Nielsen Music released the official sales numbers for the first six months of 2017 . . . and not surprisingly, album sales are down 18% compared to this time last year.
CD sales and digital album sales were both down yet again . . . but vinyl sales continue to trend upward, and overall audio “consumption” is up, thanks to streaming.
Here are the 10 best-selling albums of 2017 so far, with streaming included:
1. “Damn”, Kendrick Lamar, 1.77 million copies
2. “Divide”, Ed Sheeran, 1.75 million copies
3. “More Life”, Drake, 1.69 million copies
4. “24K Magic”, Bruno Mars, 1.1 million copies. It came out LAST year, but this number is only for sales in 2017.
5. “Culture”, Migos, 1 million copies
6. “Starboy”, The Weeknd, 981,000 copies
7. The “Moana” soundtrack, 819,000 copies
8. “Future”, Future, more than 760,000 copies
9. “Memories . . . Do Not Open”, The Chainsmokers, 760,000 copies
10. “Stoney”, Post Malone, 711,000 copies
(Hit up Billboard.com for more.)
