The Weeknd Hits No. 1 on Billboard Artist 100
The R&B singer takes over at the top, while Amy Winehouse debuts thanks to sales generated from interest in her new documentary. Plus: moves for Journey, the Beatles and Bob Marley.
The Weeknd is the top musical act in the U.S. for the first time, rising 3-1 on the Billboard Artist 100 chart (dated Aug. 1).
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The Artist 100 is the first weekly survey dedicated to measuring artist activity across Billboard‘s most influential charts, including the Billboard Hot 100 songs chart, Top Album Sales and the Social 50. The Artist 100 blends data measuring album and track sales, radio airplay, streaming and social media fan interaction to provide a weekly multi-dimensional ranking of artist popularity.
The Weeknd (born Abel Tesfaye) crowns the Artist 100, powered by two concurrent top 10s on the Hot 100: “Can’t Feel My Face,” up 3-2, and “The Hills,” which becomes his fourth career top 10 with a 12-10 rise. Digital song sales are driving more than half his Artist 100 chart points.
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Taylor Swift holds at No. 2 on the Artist 100, while Tyrese soars in at No. 3, fueled almost fully by album sales, which account for 95 percent of his activity. His new album, Black Rose, launches at No. 1 on Top Album Sales with 74,000 copies sold, according to Nielsen Music.
Rounding out the Artist 100’s top five, Meek Mill drops to No. 4 after two weeks at No. 1, as his Dreams Worth More Than Money falls 1-3 on Top Album Sales (33, 000, down 86 percent), and Ed Sheeran slips 4-5.
In other notable Artist 100 action, Amy Winehouse debuts at No. 97, up by 62 percent in overall activity and fueled by the buzz of the new documentary Amy, which opened in theaters July 3 and celebrates the late singer/songwriter. Winehouse, who died at age 27 in 2011 from alcohol poisoning, bows with the bulk (88 percent) of her chart points from album sales. Her 2007 breakthrough Back to Black blasts 65-33 on Top Album Sales with 7,000 sold, marking its best sales frame since the week ending Dec. 25, 2011 (when it sold 12,000, thanks to a 50 percent Christmas-week gain). The set includes her tragically-appropriate signature hit “Rehab,” which rose to No. 9 on the Hot 100 in 2007.
Another act debuts on the Artist 100 without the benefit of a current hit single: Journey, at No. 100 (up 83 percent). The rock band soars 94-25 on Top Album Sales with 1988’s Journey’s Greatest Hits (8,000, up 74 percent). The set vaults thanks to sale-pricing in the iTunes Store during the tracking week (ending July 16), as the retailer spotlighted classics by multiple veteran artists, including The Beatles, who re-enter the Artist 100 at No. 87 (up 153 percent), and Bob Marley and the Wailers, who return at No. 91 (up 169 percent).
Check out the entire Artist 100 here.
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