Changbin, I.N, Han, Felix, Lee Know, Seungmin, Hyunjin and Bang Chan of Stray Kids at the 2023 MTV … [+]
Stray Kids dominate the Billboard 200 albums chart this week with their new set Rock-Star. The title opens at No. 1 on the ranking of the most-consumed full-lengths and EPs in the nation with 224,000 equivalent album units. With another win to their credit, the band matches a feat managed by Taylor Swift, showing that they are truly among the biggest names in the music industry in America these days.
As Rock-Star opens at No. 1, Stray Kids become only the second musical act to send more than one album to the top of the Billboard 200 in 2023. They join Swift in this feat, though the South Korean pop band hasn’t quite caught up to her.
Stray Kids first hit No. 1 on the Billboard 200 this year back in mid-June. Their set 5-Star opened at the tally with just under 250,000 equivalent units shifted.
For her part, Swift has actually seen three albums hit No. 1 on the Billboard 200 this year. The week before 5-Star debuted in first place, Swift’s Midnights returned to the summit. That set was initially released in 2022, but it found its way back to the top spot as fans couldn’t get enough of it.
A month after Midnights ruled the Billboard 200 once again, Swift reappeared in the No. 1 spot with a new release. Speak Now (Taylor’s Version) debuted in first place with 716,000 equivalent units, and it ended up ruling for a pair of frames before stepping aside.
By mid-November, Swift was back at No. 1 with yet another new title. 1989 (Taylor’s Version) arrived atop the Billboard 200 with the largest debut of the singer’s career. The re-recording of her pop blockbuster 1989 started with more than a million and a half copies.
So far, Swift and Stray Kids are the only artists to collect several No. 1 albums in the U.S. this year. With only a few weeks left before 2024 begins, it doesn’t seem likely that anyone will match this showing. While they may claim this record for the year, several other names and massive sellers have spent more time atop the tally thanks to titles that have ruled for long stays, such as Morgan Wallen with his One Thing at a Time and SZA with her sophomore set SOS.