Playboi Carti’s third album, “MUSIC,” debuted at No. 1 this week. For comparison, his 2018 debut album, “Die Lit,” hit No. 3, and his 2021 album “Whole Lotta Red” reached No. 1. “MUSIC” sold 298,000 units this week. This marks the best figures of any album this year since “Hurry Up Tomorrow” by the Weeknd, which kicked its release off with 490,000 units.

Streaming of Carti’s album was monumental, with 380 million plays translating to 283,000 units, putting it at No. 1 on the Top Streaming Albums chart. It was the most streams for an album since Taylor Swift’s “The Tortured Poets Department,” released last May, was streamed 430 million times. Among rap albums, it’s second only to “For All The Dogs” by Drake, released in October 2023, which garnered 510 million streams. While having 30 tracks undoubtedly helped “MUSIC” achieve the streaming numbers it did, the fact that all 30 entered the Hot 100 makes any critique about the track count irrelevant.

The tracks cover a wide range on the chart, from “EVIL J0RDAN” at No. 2 and “RATHER LIE” at No. 4, all the way to No. 96. When factoring in “Timeless,” a Weeknd song he’s featured in and that’s currently at No. 23, Carti landed a staggering 31 songs on this week’s Hot 100. He’s now just the third artist in history to have had at least 30 songs on the Hot 100 simultaneously. Morgan Wallen charted 36 songs during the release week of “One Thing At A Time” in March 2023, while Taylor Swift charted 32, and later 31, songs during the first two weeks of “TTPD” in May 2024. Carti, however, is the first rapper to achieve this, breaking Drake’s previous record of 27 tracks in July 2018 with “Scorpion.”

“MUSIC” sold 14,000 copies, placing it No. 3 on the Top Album Sales chart. The album is currently only available for digital purchase. While it was announced for preorder last September, it wasn’t released until just recently on March 14, a whopping six months later. We can expect to see a boost to sales figures when the CD ships out and covers all those preorders with it.

Lady Gaga’s “MAYHEM” dropped to No. 2 from its previous position at the top of the chart. It sold 74,000 units this week, a 66% decrease from the previous one. The rest of the Top 10 features familiar names. No. 3 through 8 are Kendrick Lamar’s “GNX,” PARTYNEXTDOOR and Drake’s “$ome $exy $ongs 4 U,” SZA’s “SOS,” Sabrina Carpenter’s “Short n’ Sweet,” Tate McRae’s “So Close To What,” and Bad Bunny’s “DeBÍ TiRAR MáS FOToS”—all of which have previously topped the chart.

LE SSERAFIM’s EP “HOT” debuted at No. 9. It’s the group’s fourth Top 10 album and moved 45,000 units. With album sales reaching 38,000 copies, it’s No. 1 on the Top Album Sales chart. It was also streamed 94 million times, equal to 7,000 units.

Kendrick Lamar and SZA’s duet “luther” has held the top of the Hot 100 for five consecutive weeks. After four weeks at No. 1 on the Streaming Songs chart, it slipped to No. 3. Streams dropped by 11%, bringing the weekly total below 30 million for the first time in a while. It remains No. 2 for airplay and is now No. 10 on the Digital Song Sales chart.

While No. 1 remains unchanged, the rest of the upper echelons saw plenty of change. Three songs debuted in the Top 5. “EVIL J0RDAN” and “RATHER LIE” by Playboi Carti were No. 2 and No. 4, bringing Carti’s total number of Top 10 hits to seven.

It’s the first time he’s had two songs in the Top 10 simultaneously. The Weeknd, who features on “RATHER LIE,” became the 27th artist in history to have 20 Top 10 hits. Both of Carti’s Top 5 tracks debuted at on the week’s Streaming Songs chart, at No. 1 and No. 2.

Chappell Roan’s new single “The Giver” debuted at No. 5. It’s her third Top 10 hit after “Good Luck, Babe!” and “Pink Pony Club.” True to her latent popularity, this isn’t just the first time one of her songs debuted immediately in the Top 10, but anywhere in the Top 40. “The Giver” is No. 4 in streams and No. 2 in digital sales. The single also debuted at No. 1 on the Hot Country Songs chart, which is restricted to songs in the genre but otherwise uses the same metrics as the Hot 100. Roan is only the third female artist to debut at No. 1 on that chart. Her predecessors are Bebe Rexha, who achieved the feat with Florida Georgia Line for the 2017 song “Meant To Be,” and Beyoncé, with her song “TEXAS HOLD ’EM” last year.

Doechii’s version of “Anxiety,” which debuted at No. 13 the previous week, is now at No. 10. It’s her first entry into the Top 10. The song is also No. 6 on Streaming Songs and No. 1 on Digital Song Sales.

While Playboi Carti’s dominance pushed many songs down the Hot 100, Alex Warren’s “Ordinary” rose from No. 43 to No. 35. Considering 10 songs made their debut above it, the upward momentum is all the more remarkable. “Ordinary” also climbed on the Streaming Songs chart, moving from No. 31 to No. 24 and making it the only song in the Top 50 to move up during the week. Its standing on the Global 200 saw an even bigger improvement, jumping from No. 26 to No. 12. Warren has also now spent four weeks straight at No. 1 on the Emerging Artists chart, which is calculated the same way as the Artist 100, but it only includes artists who have never ranked in the top 25 of either the Hot 100 or the “Billboard” 200. Warren’s gains are particularly striking amid such an extraordinary week for “MUSIC,” raising the question—has the singer tapped into a previously ignored niche outside the typical pop music listener?

Warren is actually a musician second and an influencer first. After a rough childhood, he became homeless, living out of friends’ cars. He got his start in the mid-2000s sharing skateboarding content on Instagram, later expanding his influence by founding the TikTok collective the Hype House. Today, he boasts over 25 million followers across TikTok, YouTube, and Instagram.

Warren started releasing music in 2021. It’s a familiar trend—many TikTok creators who became massively popular during the COVID-19 pandemic have tried moving onto music. However, Warren has been careful not to let the way he speaks frankly about his childhood trauma be dismissed as chasing trends. His vulnerability hasn’t been limited to a one-off single or one-time concert but has been a part of his music all along. And there’s no doubting that “Ordinary” is now an incredible success. The song captures how love can turn everyday life into a work of art, an honest sentiment that lines up with Warren’s personal journey.

It’s no surprise that his massive following of over 10 million has opened doors to an array of opportunities. But turning those opportunities into a genuine career, rather than just fan service or a side hustle, is another matter entirely. Warren stands out as one of the rare cases where an influencer has truly established themselves as a legitimate musician. It’s moments like these that show how having loyal followers can create momentum independent of trends in the industry.

ROSÉ and Bruno Mars’ duet “APT.” is in its 22nd week on the Hot 100, currently at No. 14. It claims No. 1 on the Global Excl. US chart for the 18th time, the most in the chart’s history. It’s also No. 20 on the Streaming Songs chart, No. 4 on Digital Song Sales, and No. 9 on Radio Songs. The BLACKPINK member’s album “rosie” is at No. 52 on the “Billboard” 200 in its 15th week, the highest-ever 15-week position for a K-pop solo album. ROSÉ is No. 43 on the Artist 100.

LE SSERAFIM’s EP “HOT” debuts at No. 9 on the “Billboard” 200 and No. 1 on the Top Album Sales chart. “HOT” also enters the Bubbling Under Hot 100 at No. 9. The group’s songs “EASY” and “CRAZY” previously peaked on the Hot 100 at No. 99 and No. 76, respectively, last year. LE SSERAFIM returns to the Artist 100 at No. 8, marking their 18th appearance on the chart.

JENNIE’s album “Ruby” is at No. 20 on the “Billboard” 200, No. 26 on Top Streaming Albums, and No. 12 on the Top Album Sales chart. It’s now higher up on the Top Streaming Albums chart than any K-pop album before it. JENNIE is No. 35 on the Artist 100.

“Alter Ego” by LISA is No. 125 on the “Billboard” 200 and No. 34 on the Top Album Sales chart.

JISOO’s EP “AMORTAGE” debuts at No. 11 on the Top Album Sales chart. This follows the EP’s initial release in February and the March 14 launch of physical copies in North America. JISOO returns to the Artist 100 at No. 58, marking her second appearance on the chart. She also returns to the Emerging Artists chart, now at No. 4.

Stray Kids’ album “HOP” is at No. 16 on the Top Album Sales chart, and the group is No. 54 on the Artist 100.

YEJI’s EP “AIR” debuts at No. 17 on the Top Album Sales chart. The ITZY member enters the Artist 100 at No. 73 and debuts at No. 5 on the Emerging Artists chart.

On the Digital Song Sales chart, “Who” by Jimin is No. 22, while j-hope and Miguel’s “Sweet Dreams” is No. 20.

“ROMANCE: UNTOLD” by ENHYPEN sits at No. 40 on the Top Album Sales chart.

Over on the Emerging Artists chart, ILLIT is No. 46 and IVE returns at No. 50.

Finally, on the Global 200, LE SSERAFIM’s single “HOT” debuts at No. 45. Here’s the rest of the K-pop breakdown for the chart: