Billie Eilish‘s new album HIT ME HARD AND SOFT didn’t debut at #1 on the Billboard 200, but it did earn a pretty sweet consolation prize.
The “bad guy” star’s third studio effort lands at #2 on the chart with a total of 339,000 equivalent album units, 191,000 of which were traditional album sales. Both of those numbers mark career bests. While her previous two records — 2019’s WHEN WE ALL FALL ASLEEP, WHERE DO WE GO? and 2021’s Happier Than Ever — both debuted at #1, they didn’t sell as many units or have such big sales weeks.
“Thank you, guys, so much for all of your support on this album,” Eilish and her brother/collaborator FINNEAS said in a statement. “This week has been so surreal and insane, and we truly could not be more overwhelmed with joy. Love you all until we die. Thank you for everything. Forever.”
Despite setting personal records, HIT ME HARD AND SOFT was kept from the top spot on the Billboard 200 by the chart behemoth that is Taylor Swift‘s THE TORTURED POETS DEPARTMENT, which remained at #1 for the fifth straight week by selling a total of 378,000 equivalent album units.
The last time two albums moved more than 300,000 units in a single week was way back in 2016. That time, the battle of the titans was between Drake‘s Views and Beyoncé’s Lemonade.
Eilish will launch a North American tour in support of HIT ME HARD AND SOFT in September.
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