Drake and PARTYNEXTDOOR are a beloved duo. They haven't amassed significant chart success together, but for OVO fans, their collabs represent some of the best fusions of hip hop and R&B of the last two decades. The notion of Drake and PND joining forces for an album was a dream come true for many. At least, it seemed to be on paper. DJ Akademiks has released the first week sale projections for $OME $EXY $ONGS 4 U, the anticipated collab. And compared to the rest of Drake's career, they are disappointing.
$OME $EXY $ONGS 4 U is projected to sell 250K copies during its first week. These are very solid numbers by most metrics. DJ Akademiks even points out that Drake and PND's collab album will top Billboard 200 with room to spare. "It will easily be number one next week beating #2 by at least 100k," the streamer tweeted. By Drake standards, though, these first week sales are alarmingly low. Drake is a commercial force, and only two of his albums have moved less units in their first week than $OME $EXY $ONGS 4 U.
What Are Drake's Lowest First Week Album Sales?
Dark Lane Demo Tapes moved just 223K units in 2020. The release was considered a compilation more than a proper album, however, as many of the songs had leaked online. Plus, Drizzy broke news of Dark Lane shortly before it dropped. There was barely any time to drum up anticipation. The other album that sold less than 250K first week was 2022's Honestly, Nevermind. Once again, Drake decided to drop an album on fans at the last minute. There was no single, nor the usual press rollout that comes with a huge studio release. The album, which is still considered one of Drizzy's most polarizing, sold only 204K in its first week.
The 6 God has been making hits for a decade and a half. It's unfair to expect that he would continue to put up the numbers he did with 2016's Views or 2018's Scorpion. Even if we look at his recent releases, though, the projections for $OME $EXY $ONGS 4 U are concerning. Drake's last collab album, Her Loss in 2022, moved 404K units in its first week. Then there's For All the Dogs in 2023, which sold 402K in its first week. Not a good sign.
