Kehlani aiming for No. 2 bow with “It Was Good Until It Wasn’t,” while Lil Durk and Bad Bunny are also heading for high debuts.
NAV is on course for his second No. 1 album on the Billboard 200 chart, according to industry forecasters. Prognosticators suggest that the rapper-singer’s latest release, Good Intentions, could earn over 110,000 equivalent album units in the U.S. in the week ending May 14.
NAV’s new album was released on May 8 via XO/Republic Records, and follows 2019’s Bad Habits, which became his first No. 1 on the chart. It launched with 82,000 units earned in its first week, according to Nielsen Music/MRC Data.
Good Intentions’ first week is largely powered by streaming activity for the set’s songs, as well as merchandise/album bundle sales. NAV’s webstore is selling 100 different merch/album bundles available associated with the Good Intentions album. In addition, there are 18 physical format/digital album offerings (six CDs, six vinyl LPs and six cassettes).
Good Intentions was initially forecasted to earn over 80,000 units in its first week, but its sturdy merch/album bundle sales shot that forecast north of 110,000.
The Billboard 200 chart ranks the most popular albums of the week based on multi-metric consumption, which comprises traditional album sales, track equivalent albums (TEA) and streaming equivalent albums (SEA). The top 10 of the May 23-dated Billboard 200 chart (where Good Intentions may launch at No. 1) is scheduled to be revealed on Billboard’s website on Sunday, May 17.
The original 18-track Good Intentions album was released on May 8 and boasts guests such as Young Thug, Travis Scott, Future and Lil Uzi Vert. Then, on May 10, NAV dropped a deluxe reissue of the album, adding 14 new cuts, including tracks featuring Quavo and Lil Duke.
Elsewhere in the top 10 on next week’s Billboard 200, watch for Kehlani to likely nab her highest charting album and best week in terms of units earned, as It Was Good Until It Wasn’t could enter at No. 2 with 80,000 units. The album is supported by over 20 merchandise/album bundles. Presently, Kehlani’s highest charting set is SweetSexySavage, which debuted and peaked at No. 3 in 2017 with 58,000 first-week units (her biggest week, in terms of volume).
Lil Durk should see his new album Just Cause Y’all Waited 2 start in the top 10 with over 50,000 units, mostly driven by streaming activity. If the rapper’s new set bows in the top 10, it will secure him a second visit to the region, following 2019’s No. 4-peaking Love Songs 4 the Streets 2.
Plus, Bad Bunny’s surprise-release Las Que No Iban a Salir could maybe earn over 40,000 units in an abbreviated tracking week. The 10-track effort dropped without warning in the mid-afternoon on Sunday, May 10, so it will only have about four-and-a-half days of activity before the tracking week’s end on May 14. (Most new releases tend to drop on Friday each week, the first day of the tracking week. Bad Bunny has bucked this trend repeatedly with his earlier albums, opting to release them at varying times of the week.)