Beyonce’s ‘Lemonade’ Aiming for No. 1 Debut on Billboard 200 With More Than a Half-Million Copies Sold
Beyonce's "Lemonade" will loom large on the next Billboard 200 albums chart. Industry forecasters now suggest the set could debut at No. 1 on the May 14-dated list with more than 500,000 copies sold…
Beyonce’s Lemonade will loom large on the next Billboard 200 albums chart. Industry forecasters now suggest the set could debut at No. 1 on the May 14-dated list with more than 500,000 copies sold and more than 700,000 equivalent album units earned in the week ending April 28. (On April 27, sources said Lemonade was on track to sell possibly 450,000, with its equivalent unit total at 550,000 or more.)
The Billboard 200 chart ranks the most popular albums of the week based on multi-metric consumption, which includes traditional album sales, track equivalent albums (TEA) and streaming equivalent albums (SEA). The top 10 of the new May 14-dated Billboard 200 chart — and Lemonade’s official sales figure and unit total compiled by Nielsen Music — is scheduled to be revealed on Billboard’s websites on Sunday, May 1. (The May 14 Billboard 200 chart reflects data tracked in the week ending April 28.)
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Lemonade was introduced on April 23 through its same-named film, which was soundtracked by the album’s songs and premiered on HBO. The visual album was released following the film’s debut, initially exclusively through Tidal. By Monday, April 25, the album — which is bundled with the film — went on sale through other digital retailers, but Tidal remains the only service with on-demand streaming rights to the set. A physical version of the album will be released May 6.
Beyonce previously hit No. 1 on the Billboard 200 chart with her self-titled album in 2013, 4 (2011), I Am…Sasha Fierce (2008), B’Day (2006) and Dangerously In Love (2003). Her eponymous set launched atop the chart with 617,000 copies sold in just three days and from only one retailer: iTunes, where it was initially exclusively available. It sold 991,000 copies in its first 10 days.
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