Beyoncé has earned another No.1 album as Renaissance reaches the top of the charts in its first week of release.
According to Billboard, the album achieved 332,000 equivalent album units and sold 190,000 physical copies. Renaissance is Beyoncé’s seventh solo album to hit No. 1 on the Billboard 200 albums chart, making her the first female artist to have her first seven solo albums debut at No. 1 on the Billboard 200. Her new project also entered at #1 in the UK, Ireland, France, Netherlands, Belgium, Sweden, Australia, Canada, Denmark, New Zealand, South Africa, and Brazil.
“Creating this album allowed me a place to dream and to find escape during a scary time for the world,” Beyoncé said in a press release prior to the debut of Renaissance. “It allowed me to feel free and adventurous in a time when little else was moving. My intention was to create a safe place, a place without judgment. A place to be free of perfectionism and overthinking. A place to scream, release, feel freedom. It was a beautiful journey of exploration.”
The album’s lead single “Break My Soul” has also reached No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 this week, marking Beyoncé’s eighth Hot 100 No. 1 as a solo artist, Billboard reports. Her last No.1 single was 14 years ago with “Single Ladies (Put a Ring on It).” In addition to “Break My Soul,” All 16 songs from Renaissance have made it onto the Billboard Hot 100, including “Cuff It” at No. 13, “Alien Superstar” reaching No. 19, and “Church Girl” hitting No. 22.
Along with “Single Ladies,” and “Break My Soul,” Beyoncé’s previous chart-topping hits were “Crazy in Love,” ft. Jay-Z (2003), “Baby Boy” ft. Sean Paul (2003), “Check On It,” ft. Slim Thug (2006), “Irreplaceable (2006), “Perfect,” with Ed Sheeran (2017), and “Savage,” with Megan Thee Stallion (2020)
The news of Renaissance’s first single reaching No. 1 again puts Beyoncé in rare air. Her and Mariah Carey are the only artists in Billboard history to hit the top spot of the Hot 100 in four decades – the 1990s, 2000s, ’10s and ’20s.
Beyoncé’s Renaissance is available on all streaming platforms.