Damn has certified Kendrick Lamar's spot at the top of the game, and based on the latest sales projections, he's about to reach new heights as an artist. The latest album for K-Dot is expected to debut as the No. 1 album on the Billboard 200 chart and pass Drake's More Life by having the biggest first week of any project in 2017.
More Life set the 2017 bar for first-week sales after moving 505,000 equivalent units in its first week, but Damn is currently on pace to move between 530,000 and 550,000 equivalent album units in its first week. It's also expected to set a new high for traditional album sales in a week, as Kendrick is currently on track to move 330,000 traditional units in week one, which would beat the year's high set by Ed Sheeran's Divide with 322,000.
Independent of his competition, this is a massive leap for Kendrick, whose biggest sales week to date came courtesy of 2015's To Pimp A Butterfly. Being at the head of the sales pack in his debut week is the only part that isn't groundbreaking for Kendrick—this marks his third consecutive project to debut at No. 1, following the success of To Pimp A Butterfly and 2016's Untitled Unmastered.
K-Dot has come a long way in terms of popularity and more success could be on the way. His single "Humble" debuted at No. 2 on the Hot 100 chart, and his collaboration with Rihanna on "Loyalty" has a ton of potential as a single. Even his music videos are star-studded, with actor Don Cheadle guest starring in the video for "DNA", the banger laced by Mike Will Made-It.
Damn is everywhere right now, from your car speakers to the background of the NBA Playoffs. And if its first-week sales are any indication, it's an album you should expect to hear on repeat for much of 2017.
