Battle For Billboard Dominance As Both Artists Try To Secure Entire Top 10 List

Topline

Drake and 21 Savage’s new album Her Loss debuted at No. 1 on Billboard’s 200 albums as Taylor Swift’s song “Anti-Hero” maintained the top spot on the Hot 100, as Drake and Swift continued their competition as some of the most accomplished artists in chart history.

Key Facts

Eight songs from Her Loss debuted in the top 10 of the Hot 100, according to Billboard, making Drake the first artist in history to have twice occupied at least eight spots on the chart (he also accomplished this feat with 2021’s Certified Lover Boy.)

Swift became the first artist in history to occupy the entire chart’s top 10 when her album Midnights was released three weeks ago.

With the success of Her Loss, Drake extended his record as the artist with the most top 10 hits on the Hot 100 in history, with 67 (Swift has the second most, with 40).

“Anti-Hero” had the biggest sales week for a song in five years, with 327,000 paid downloads, when Swift released “Look What You Made Me Do.”

With Her Loss’s top ranking on the albums chart, Drake surpasses Swift as the artist with the third-most No. 1 albums: The Beatles have 19, Jay-Z has 14, Drake has 12 and Swift, Bruce Springsteen and Barbra Streisand are tied with 11, Billboard reported.

Her Loss had the fourth-largest streaming week ever with 513.56 million streams; Drake’s album Scorpion (745.92 million) holds the record, followed by his work Certified Lover Boy (743.67 million) and Swift’s Midnights (549.26 million).

Big Number

404,000. That’s how many equivalent album units Her Loss earned in its first week, making it the third-biggest debut of 2022. Swift’s Midnights had the largest week, with 1.5 million, and Harry Styles’ Harry’s House had the second-largest with 521,000, according to Billboard.

Billboard Hot 100 Top 10 Singles

1. “Anti-Hero,” Taylor Swift
2. “Rich Flex,” Drake and 21 Savage
3. “Major Distribution,” Drake and 21 Savage
4. “On BS,” Drake and 21 Savage
5. “Spin Bout U,” Drake and 21 Savage
6. “P**sy & Millions,” Drake and 21 Savage
7. “Privileged Rappers,” Drake and 21 Savage
8. “Circo Loco,” Drake and 21 Savage
9. “BackOutsideBoyz,” Drake and 21 Savage
10. “Unholy,” Sam Smith and Kim Petras

Billboard 200 Top 10 Albums

1. Her Loss, Drake and 21 Savage
2. Midnights, Taylor Swift
3. It’s Only Me, Lil Baby
4. Un Verano Sin Ti, Bad Bunny
5. Smithereens, Joji
6. Dangerous: The Double Album, Morgan Wallen
7. The Highlights, The Weeknd
8. Harry’s House, Harry Styles
9. American Heartbreak, Zach Bryan
10. Gemini Rights, Steve Lacy

Key Background

Several contravercial lyrics from Her Loss have garnered headlines, including remarks from Drake implying that Megan Thee Stallion’s claim she was shot by Tory Lanez is false. Drake and 21 Savage promoted the album using a fake press tour, by creating a fake Vogue issue, a fake Howard Stern interview and a fake NPR “Tiny Desk Concert.” While Stern and NPR enjoyed the stunts, Vogue’s publisher Condé Nast sued the rappers last week and their PR firm over it, saying it was damaging to their brand and confusing for consumers. On Wednesday, a judge issued Drake and 21 Savage a temporary restraining order which demanded they remove all physical and digital copies of the fake magazine.

Further Reading

Drake And 21 Savage Sued Over Fake ‘Vogue’ Cover—Here’s All The Drama ‘Her Loss’ Album Has Caused (Forbes)

Drake And 21 Savage Ordered By Judge To Stop Promoting Fake ‘Vogue’ Cover (Forbes)

Taylor Swift’s ‘Midnights’ Occupies Entire Billboard Top 10 Singles Chart (Forbes)