Albums sales aren't what they used to be. Before the digital age took over everything, rappers could expect to go four or five times platinum if they were on top of the game. Now, we celebrate when a rapper hits gold status. Billboard's response to the decline was the inclusion of streams on the charts, which has been widely criticized by artists. Jay-Z let his opinions of streaming sales be known on Meek Mills "What's Free," but yet here we are again at the head of the week diving into album sale projections. We just can't help it.
According to Hits Daily Double, XXXTentacion can be expected to sit atop the charts this week. The debut of his posthumous album Skins was highly anticipated by fans, and is projected to move between 150-160K album equivalent units in its first week. 50-55k of those come from pure sales. Gucci Mane's latest album Evil Genius is projected to take the number three spot with between 54-59k album equivalent units sold. 5-7k of those come from pure sales. Meek Mill holds onto the number two spot this week with Championships' second week on Billboard. Travis Scott's Astroworld sits at number six, Drake's Scorpion sits at number eight, and Tekashi 6ix9ine's Dummy Boy rounds out the top ten.