Adele’s ‘30’ becomes first album in over a year to sell a million copies in the U.S.

Simon Emmett

Adele continues to make history with her long-awaited album 30, which is now the first album in over a year to sell over a million copies in the United States.  The last artist who enjoyed such a feat was Taylor Swift following her July 2020 release of folklore

Billboard adds 30 surpassed the million-sales milestone in less than a month.  The album was released on November 19 and the outlet reports that 692,000 copies flew off the shelves in its first week alone.  Fans snatched up an additional 225,000 copies the following week.

Sales encompass all CD, vinyl LP, cassette and digital album download purchases.

It should also be noted that, while Adele sold over a million copies in just a few weeks, it took Taylor’s folklore almost three months to sell that many copies. 

Billboard notes that it’s become even harder for artists to sell that many albums thanks to the rise of streaming.  They say only three other albums have achieved powerhouse sales since 2019: the soundtrack to Lady Gaga and Bradley Cooper‘s A Star Is BornHarry Styles‘ Fine Line, and Billie Eilish‘s debut album WHEN WE ALL FALL ASLEEP, WHERE DO WE GO?

 

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