We’re pretty sure we know how Billie Eilish feels about this news. Happier Than Ever, the pop singer-songwriter’s second album, debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard 200, marking Eilish’s second No. 1 debut. The album earned 238,000 equivalent units, the fifth-highest week of the year so far. And unlike many of the year’s biggest hits, Eilish hits No. 1 thanks to a strong sales week, with 153,000 units in album sales — the third-highest week of the year, only behind Taylor Swift’s evermore vinyl release and Fearless (Taylor’s Version) release week. And speaking of vinyl, Happier Than Ever logged 73,000 units in vinyl sales alone, thanks to eight different vinyl editions, giving it the second-highest vinyl sales week ever of the Nielsen era, once again behind evermore (which sold 102,000); however, since evermore’s vinyl release came in May, months after the album’s release, Happier Than Ever earns the best vinyl debut week ever.
That’s a stunning feat for a Gen-Z star like 19-year-old Eilish, who leads a chart full of teens this week. At No. 2 is 17-year-old the Kid Laroi, after his album F*ck Love hit No. 1 last week, and at No. 3 is 18-year-old Olivia Rodrigo, whose debut album Sour previously entered the chart in May with the year’s biggest week. Farther down the chart, Prince’s first full archival album, Welcome 2 America, debuts at No. 4, the highest position for the late icon since 2009’s Lotus Flow3r/MPLSound/Elix3r. And Top Dawg Entertainment rapper Isaiah Rashad’s comeback, The House Is Burning, enters at No. 7, giving the musician his first top-ten album.
