The new release MIXTAPE PLUTO by Future debuted at number one this week. Future previously topped the chart back in the spring with Metro Boomin collaborations WE DON’T TRUST YOU and WE STILL DON’T TRUST YOU, released on April 6 and April 27, respectively. That means, in the span of six months, he’s put out three number-one albums. Back in 2010, three soundtrack albums for the series Glee all went to number one consecutively in the space of less than two months, but looking only at albums put out by individual artists, the last and only to pull off a similar feat was the Beatles, all the way back in 1965: Within six months, Beatles VI (July 10, 1965), Help! (September 11), and Rubber Soul (January 8, 1966) all went to number one.
Future announced MIXTAPE PLUTO on May 8, shortly after releasing his previous two number-one albums. At the time, there was intense speculation over whether Future’s latest mixtape would be another entry in the historic beef between Kendrick Lamar and Drake sparked by “Like That” off WE DON’T TRUST YOU, possibly extending the fight. It’s been nearly six years since Future’s last mixtape, WRLD ON DRUGS, came out in 2018. Initially expected sooner, info surrounding PLUTO, such as snippets and the tracklist, started to emerge in early September once the dust had settled. Released on September 20, the mixtape distances itself from all the gossip of late, seemingly harking back to the peak of Future’s creative output in the mid-2010s for a refreshing change of pace and is therefore reminiscent of the prolific period when he put out the album DS2 and the mixtapes Beast Mode, 56 Nights, and What A Time To Be Alive between January and September of 2015.
MIXTAPE PLUTO moved 129,000 units in its first week—118,000 of them from 156.6 million streams, making it the most streamed album of the week. Now with 11 number-one albums under his belt, Future is tied for fifth along with Eminem, Bruce Springsteen, Barbra Streisand, and Ye. Rounding out the list above them are the Beatles (19), Jay-Z, Taylor Swift (14), and Drake (13).
Chappell Roan’s album The Rise and Fall of a Midwest Princess rose from number three to two, reaching its peak position for the third time. The album experienced a huge week-over-week increase to 105,000 on the back of 56,000 copies sold, largely thanks to four vinyl editions and one version on cassette coming out in honor of its one-year anniversary. Midwest Princess is the sixth-best-selling vinyl of the year, with 50,000 copies sold. It’s also number one on the Top Album Sales chart. Roan, meanwhile, sits at number one on the Artist 100.
Also debuting on the chart this week are Katy Perry’s new release 143 at number six with 48,000 units—37,000 album sales and an additional 10,000 units from 13.1 million streams—and PLAN A by Lil Tecca at number nine with 42,000 units.
Shaboozey’s single “A Bar Song (Tipsy)” has now been number one 12 times. The song’s airplay figures are still going strong, and though streaming and sales are beginning to dip, the song remains at the top of the chart. If not for the Jon Kahn single “Fighter,” which led in digital song sales this week, “Bar Song” would’ve swept all three metrics once again. “Fighter” is dedicated to Donald Trump following a second assassination attempt on the former US president.
Only 24 songs have ever held onto number one for 12 weeks. “Bar Song” now stands a strong chance of going beyond simply being the biggest hit of 2024 to challenge Harry Styles’ 2022 single “As It Was” (15 weeks) and “Last Night” by Morgan Wallen (2023, 16 weeks). Can Shaboozey keep narrowing the gap and overtake his competitors before the holiday song season takes over?
Sabrina Carpenter’s triplet of singles “Espresso,” “Please Please Please,” and “Taste” once again appeared in the top 10, at numbers three, eight, and nine, respectively. Carpenter has managed to keep all three songs in the top 10 for five consecutive weeks after first debuting there, matching the record first set by the Beatles. For comparison, Justin Bieber kept three of his songs—"Sorry,” “Love Yourself,” and “What Do You Mean?”—in the top 10 for 10 weeks straight back in 2015. 2005, meanwhile, saw an 11-week period where the top 10 consistently had three 50 Cent songs listed, although four different tracks took turns holding the honor throughout that period. Carpenter has also surpassed Cardi B’s similar record of four weeks to claim the longest such streak among female artists.
Next, how is “Linkin Park 2.0” doing with their comeback? Rock has struggled to return to the highs it enjoyed in the mainstream back in the 1990s and early 2000s. Even the promise of the pop punk/emo revival didn’t end up making waves as expected. But the audience for the rock genre, long loyal followers, still holds tight to their musical preferences and can be powerful consumers at times, as the massive success of My Chemical Romance’s world tour from 2022 to 2023 showed. Linkin Park’s previously unreleased track “Lost,” released with the 20th anniversary reissue of Meteora last February, turned heads when it debuted at number 38 on the Hot 100. Notably, it debuted at number one on the Rock & Alternative Airplay chart, proving that the band continues to be cherished by both listeners and the media. Only three other songs have debuted at number one on the chart before “Lost” did: those by Linkin Park in 2010, Foo Fighters in 2011, and Green Day in 2012.
Linkin Park decided to take things a step further, bringing in new lead singer Emily Armstrong to stand in for Chester Bennington, who died seven years ago, and together, they made a new album. After completing work on From Zero, the band officially announced their comeback on Thursday, September 5 with the release of the single “The Emptiness Machine.” With just six hours to accumulate numbers for the charts dated September 14, it debuted at number 24 on the Rock & Alternative Airplay chart. By the following week, it was number one. Since 2009, only 14 songs have reached number one on the chart within their first two weeks, and five belong to Linkin Park. “Emptiness Machine” debuted at number 21 on the Hot 100 the same week, proving an even greater success than “Lost” and giving them their best-performing hit since “New Divide” reached number nine in 2009. The new single also went to number one on Hot Hard Rock Songs. With 13.4 million streams over the course of the week, it was number 19 on Streaming Songs, reaching a high that only 10 hard rock songs have ever been able to enjoy since the chart got its start in 2013—with four of them being Linkin Park songs.
On September 24, the band released another new track, “Heavy Is the Crown,” which also serves as the official theme song for this year’s League of Legends World Championship. They already performed in Korea on September 28, and have additional stops scheduled in Europe, the US, and South America. Since then, there’s be an increase in streams not only of Linkin Park’s back catalog but those of others like System of a Down and blink-192, too. From Zero is set to be released on November 15. By the time their tour wraps up next year, Linkin Park 2.0 might prove to be more than just a one-off event.
Jimin’s album MUSE is number 91 on the Billboard 200, while the BTS member himself is number 65 on the Artist 100. His single “Who” is also charting, hitting number 30 on the Hot 100, 25 on Streaming Songs, 12 on the Global 200, and 10 on Global Excl. US, doing roughly the same or a bit better on each as it moves into its 10th week on the charts.
P1Harmony’s EP SAD SONG debuts at number 16 on the Billboard 200 and number three on Top Album Sales. P1Harmony returns to the Artist 100 at number 14, earning them their highest placement to date.
Stray Kids’ mini album ATE hits number 111 on the 200 and is number eight for album sales. Stray Kids themselves sit at number 41 on the Artist 100.
The LE SSERAFIM EP CRAZY is now number 184 on the Billboard 200 and number 17 on Top Album Sales. The EP is also numbers 44 and 28 on the Global 200 and Global Excl. US charts, respectively. The girl group, meanwhile, is number 73 on the Artist 100.
BOYNEXTDOOR’s latest EP, 19.99, is number 13 on the Top Album Sales chart, and the group is number 79 on the Artist 100 as well as number four on Emerging Artists.
Coming in at number 14 for album sales is ROMANCE: UNTOLD by ENHYPEN, who themselves are 81 on the Artist 100.
KATSEYE’s debut EP SIS (Soft Is Strong) is number 35 on Top Album Sales and number three on Heatseekers Albums. Their single “Touch” makes a notable jump up from number 153 last week to number 108 on the Global 200, and is number 75 on the Global Excl. US chart. KATSEYE is also number eight on Emerging Artists.
Also on the Emerging Artists chart are xikers, at number 33, and Red Velvet, who return to take number 37. And here’s how K-pop plays out as a whole on this week’s Global 200: