We weren’t sweating whether Ed Sheeran would top the Billboard charts this week with his second album, X. The only question was how big he would go.
Do The Math
Frankly, it wasn’t even close. Ed debuted with 209,000, according to figures provided by Nielsen SoundScan, easily blowing by the #5 debut of +, which moved a comparatively modest 42,000 units in its first week in June 2012. The high landing also gave Sheeran his first #1 debut in the U.S.
It was already a good day for Ed before the official Billboard numbers came out with the news that he set new Spotify streaming records last week. In fact, Sheeran logged the fourth-biggest debut of 2014, coming in behind Coldplay, Erich Church and Brantley Gilbert.
Meanwhile, Sam Smith was down 60 percent from his debut, but the British singer held strong at #2 with In the Lonely Hour, moving another 67,000 units.
G-Eazy Does It
Oakland rapper and mtvU Fandom Awards performer G-Eazy proved that These Things Happen with a hot #3 debut (46,000). That was just enough to push last week’s #1, Lana Del Rey’s Ultraviolence, to #4 (44,000, down 76 percent).
Get used to the spotlight, G.
WireImage/Bennett Raglin
The Rest Of The Top 10
The week’s other top 10 debuts came from rockers Mastodon, who landed at #6 with Once More Round the Sun (34,000) and jam godheads Phish, whose Fuego boogie danced in just behind with sales of 32,000 for their highest chart debut since 1996. Further down the list, Black Hippy member Ab-Soul came in at #11 with These Days (22,000).
Jody ‘Mid’-Roller
After years of hype, meme rapper Riff Raff’s debut, Neon Icon, finally charted and, well, the landing was modest. Jody Highroller had to settle for a #22 debut on low-key first-week figures just short of 12,000.
Sam’s Got His Own #1
Smith moved up three spots to #1 on the Billboard Digital Songs chart (211,000) after sales climbed by 42 percent. That was enough to push Magic’s “Rude” down a spot to #2 (210,000) and Iggy Azalea’s “Fancy” to #3 (178,000).
Canada, Internet, Cute Boy … Sound Familiar?
Getty Images Entertainment/Sonia Recchia
15-year-old Canadian Vine star Shawn Mendes crashed the boards with the #5 debut of his first single, “Life of the Party” (148,000), while Disclosure’s hook-up with Sam Smith, “Latch,” made its way into the top 10 for the first time at #9 (101,000).
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