Over the course of the past couple weeks, it has become evident that Gunna is now a formidable rap powerhouse, rather than his prior status as a burgeoning up-and-comer. This was made clear by his topping of the hottest pop star in the world right now, The Weeknd.
Both Gunna and The Weeknd released brand new studio albums on Jan. 7 with DS4EVER and Dawn FM, respectively. After it was first believed that The Weeknd would narrowly edge out Gunna for the No. 1 spot on the Billboard 200 chart, it was actually Gunna that would claim the crown. DS4EVER debuted at No. 1 selling 150K units, while Dawn FM sold 148K units.
While this shocked the music community, Gunna was focused on celebrating his accomplishment. While avoiding any rivalry fans may have tried to create between him and The Weeknd, Gunna emphasized how important this was to him in a recent interview with Complex: "I’m definitely cherishing it, because it’s a moment. The Weeknd is a very, very big artist. I mean, he’s done the Super Bowl and everything. Just to be fighting with him—good sportsmanship fighting, because I’m cool with him—it’s love. You feel like a big dog, since you’re going against a big dog. And it’s on its way to passing it.”
Now after the dust had settled and Gunna came out victorious, it seems that he will still remain ranked over The Weeknd for the second week in a row, as DS4EVER sold 96K units in its 2nd week, while Dawn FM falls short again with 66K units in its 2nd week.
The Weeknd's album release did not include physical copies, which surely hurt his sales numbers. But, this triumph for Gunna is a major development in his young career, and we can only assume he will continue to grow his name and fanbase in the years to come.
[Via]