Danny Gokey Debuts at No. 1 on Top Christian Albums Chart

Singer-songwriter Danny Gokey attains his second No. 1 on Billboard‘s Top Christian Albums chart (dated Feb. 4), as his new LP Rise launches atop the list, selling 11,000 copies in the week ending Jan. 19, according to Nielsen Music. On the all-genre, multi-metric Billboard 200, Rise arrives at No. 32 with 12,000 equivalent album units. It’s his third top 40 entry in as many tries on the latter chart.

“I’m incredibly grateful and really blown away by the connection that people are feeling to the new music,” Gokey tells Billboard. “I love getting to create music that inspires and entertains, and the fact that fans have embraced Rise the way that they have, and supported it in such a big way, is very humbling. It’s moments like this that make all the work worth it.”

The third-place finalist on the 2009 season of American Idol previously led Top Christian Albums with his first full-length in the genre, Hope in Front of Me, which bowed at the summit in July 2014 (with 7,000 sold). Gokey’s history on the chart also includes the holiday LP Christmas Is Here, which peaked at No. 9 in December 2015. His first studio set, 2010’s country effort My Best Days, debuted and peaked at No. 3 on Top Country Albums and No. 4 on the Billboard 200 (arriving with 65,000 sold).

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Gokey co-wrote 10 of the 12 songs on Rise, including the title-track lead single, which becomes his third top five hit on Hot Christian Songs (11-5). It’s also his first top five on Christian Digital Song Sales (19-5; up 108 percent to 3,000 sold), while holding at its No. 3 high on Christian Airplay (8 million audience impressions).

UNFIT NO MORE: Social Club Misfits (formerly known as Social Club) arrive at No. 2 on Top Christian Albums with The Misadventures of Fern & Marty (5,000 sold).

It’s the highest Top Christian Albums debut and rank yet for the Miami-based Christian hip-hop pair (Martymar and F.E.R.N.) and fourth top 10, following The Misfit Generation EP (No. 4, 2016), Us (No. 3, 2015) and Misfits 2 (No. 6, 2014). (Debut EP Rejects debuted and peaked at No. 32 in 2013.)