Tate McRae’s third album, “So Close To What”, debuted at number one this week, marking her first chart-topping album to date. She had her first top-10 hit in December 2023 with her last album, “THINK LATER”, which peaked at number four. Ahead of the new album, three singles—“It’s ok I’m ok,” “2 hands,” and “Sports car”—charted at numbers 20, 41, and 21, respectively, on the Hot 100 starting last September. On the back of all that anticipation, “So Close To What” moved 177,000 units in its debut week, the best debut for a studio album by a woman since “Short n’ Sweet” by Sabrina Carpenter back in September. McRae became the sixth Canadian woman to land a number-one album, following Celine Dion, Alanis Morissette, Avril Lavigne, Shania Twain, and Nelly Furtado.

“So Close” racked up 140 million streams, equivalent to 105,000 units, placing it at number two on the Top Streaming Albums chart. It went to the very top of the Top Album Sales chart, selling 71,000 copies. Of the standard album’s 15 tracks, 11 entered the Hot 100, with nine of them hitting the chart for the first time and all that made it to the chart landing between numbers 16 and 99. McRae soared to number one on the Artist 100 this week, climbing from number 38 a week prior—her first time topping the chart.

Other than “So Close”, all the rest of the albums in the top 10 hung around from the previous week. Last week’s number one album, “$ome $exy $ongs 4 U” by PARTYNEXTDOOR and Drake, dropped to number two with 119,000 units. “GNX” by Kendrick Lamar was third with 106,000 units, and rounding out the chart were “SOS” by SZA, “Short n’ Sweet” by Sabrina Carpenter, “DeBÍ TiRAR MáS FOToS” by Bad Bunny, and “Hurry Up Tomorrow” by the Weeknd, all of which have previously sat at number one.

The Kendrick Lamar–SZA collaboration “luther” held onto number one for a second consecutive week. It was also top of a Streaming Songs chart that mirrored the previous week, with the top three rounded out by “Not Like Us” and “tv off,” all by Lamar. “luther” was streamed 38.9 million times, representing a more than 10% decrease from the week previous, but it was still more than 10 million streams ahead of the rest of the top five, including “Die With a Smile.” Given the wave of popularity both Lamar and SZA are enjoying recently, “luther” also enjoyed significant airplay on both rap and R&B radio stations, giving it a 10% bump from the previous week and pushing it from number six to three on Radio Songs. With the combination of strong streaming and radio performance, the single is highly likely to remain at the top next week as well.

One particularly noteworthy entry in the top 10 was Chappell Roan’s song “Pink Pony Club.” The single climbed from number 11 to number eight this week, breaking back into the top 10 after previously peaking at number nine on the February 22 chart following the singer’s spectacular Grammy performance, where she also won Best New Artist. Originally released in 2020, the song was later included on her 2023 debut album “The Rise and Fall of a Midwest Princess”. Roan previously entered the top 10 once before with her hit single “Good Luck, Babe!” last year that was released after her album became a sleeper hit. This also makes “Pink Pony Club” the only track off her late-blooming debut album to have reached the top 10. While Grammy winners generally experience a short-lived boost in streams before entering a sharp decline, “Pink Pony Club” continued its momentum, rising to number seven on the Top Streaming Songs chart this week. The song has also started to gain traction on the radio, climbing to number 24 on the Radio Songs chart.

Meanwhile, Teddy Swims’ song “Lose Control” was number nine this week and celebrated its 80th week on the Hot 100, making it the fourth-longest-charting song in history. The single now finds itself in a position to challenge the records set by “Heat Waves” by Glass Animals (91 weeks), “Blinding Lights” by the Weeknd (90 weeks), and “Radioactive” by Imagine Dragons (87 weeks).

Selena Gomez, benny blanco, and Gracie Abrams’ joint single “Call Me When You Break Up” debuted at number 58 on the Hot 100. Excluding tracks that came off Tate McRae’s new album, it was the highest debut of the week. Selena Gomez and benny blanco announced their engagement in December, and not long after, news broke that Gomez was back in the studio working on her first album in four years. Then, on Valentine’s Day, the couple revealed their plans to release a joint album titled “I Said I Love You First”.

There actually is a precedent for married couples releasing albums together. One classic example is John Lennon and Yoko Ono’s 1980 album “Double Fantasy”, and more recently, Beyoncé and Jay-Z put out “EVERYTHING IS LOVE” in 2018. The tracks off “Double Fantasy” alternate between Lennon and Ono compositions, reflecting how they were partners on both a personal and creative level. The album was Lennon’s first in five years, and turned out to be his last. It went on to top the “Billboard” 200 and won the Grammy for Album of the Year. “EVERYTHING IS LOVE”, released by the couple under the name the Carters, explores their real relationship through themes of struggle and reconciliation, and received critical acclaim for its artistry and honesty. Albums made in collaboration between married couples often come with rich backstories and personal histories, making for far more than just collections of romantic songs.

The music often captures the dynamics of the artists’ personal relationship seen in everything from the recording process to the concerts they hold together. And some parts are left unsaid or remain in the realm of speculation. As engagement is a temporary, transitional stage, joint albums by engaged couples are especially rare, making this look into the lives of a future married couple, before the initial excitement has even begun to wear off, especially fascinating. Gomez has described “I Said I Love You First” as a project symbolic of their relationship. “It just felt like it was a little taste of what we are and how we made this together, and how much we loved it and how much we love each other,” she explained in a recent Apple Music interview. “And it just felt like it was meant to be.” You can listen to the couple’s vivid musical love story when the album is released on March 21.

ROSÉ and Bruno Mars’ duet “APT.” enters its 19th week on the Hot 100, now at number six. It’s also number 13 on the Streaming Songs chart, nine on Digital Song Sales, and six on Radio Songs. The track retakes the top of the Global Excl. US chart, marking its 16th week at number one—the most in the chart’s history. The BLANKPINK member’s album “rosie” is now spending its 12th week on the “Billboard” 200, currently at number 35. That’s the highest position a K-pop album has ever charted during its 12th week and has extended its record for longest run in the top 40 by a K-pop album. It also sits at number 45 on the Top Streaming Albums chart. ROSÉ, meanwhile, is number 36 on the Artist 100.

Jimin’s song “Who” is at number 33 on the Hot 100, now in its 31st week, tying it for the second-longest charting K-pop song alongside “Gangnam Style” by PSY and putting it just one week shy of BTS’s record 32 weeks with “Dynamite.” The track is also number 22 in streaming. The BTS member’s album “MUSE” has now spent 32 weeks on the “Billboard” 200 and is currently at number 123, extending its record for the longest-charting K-pop album by an individual singer. Jimin, meanwhile, is number 81 on the Artist 100.

“ExtraL” by JENNIE and Doechii debuts at number 75 on the Hot 100 this week, marking JENNIE’s highest debut on the chart and her fourth song there overall. The BLACKPINK member holds the record for the most songs on the Hot 100 by an individual female K-pop singer. Three songs from her upcoming album “Ruby” have already entered the Hot 100, just as fellow member LISA did with “Alter Ego”, meaning they share the record for the most songs off an album by a K-pop female solo artist entering the chart. JENNIE also returns to the Emerging Artists chart at number 16.

j-hope, Don Toliver, Pharrell Williams, and Speedy’s “LV Bag” debuts on the Hot 100 at number 83 and marks j-hope’s fifth song on the chart. The track also debuts at number eight on Digital Song Sales.

G-DRAGON’s new album “Übermensch” debuts at number 10 on the Top Album Sales chart, while the artist hits the Artist 100 for the first time, debuting at number 64.

“HOP” by Stray Kids spends an 11th week on the “Billboard” 200 at number 141 and is number seven for album sales. The group is number 37 on the Artist 100.

Over on the Top Album Sales chart, the ENHYPEN EP “ROMANCE: UNTOLD” is number 21 while TWICE’s 14th mini album, “STRATEGY”, is number 36.

On Emerging Artists, LISA is 19 and ILLIT is 37.

Finally, on the Global 200, “ExtraL” debuts at number 18, “LV Bag” at number 48, and “TOO BAD” by G-DRAGON at number 138. Here’s how the whole chart is looking for K-pop this week: