Taylor Swift’s latest album, The Tortured Poets Department, has achieved an impressive feat by holding onto the No. 1 spot on the Billboard 200 chart for 11 consecutive weeks, tying her previous records set by 1989 and Fearless. The last female artist to accomplish this was Adele with her album 21, which spent 24 nonconsecutive weeks at the top in 2011-12. If The Tortured Poets Department stays at No. 1 for a 12th week, it will be a significant milestone for Swift.
This album earned 114,000 equivalent album units in the U.S. for the week ending on July 4, according to Luminate. The Tortured Poets Department debuted at No. 1 on the chart in May and has shown no signs of relinquishing its top position.
In addition, The Tortured Poets Department is the first album by a female artist to dominate the No. 1 spot for 11 weeks in a row since the soundtrack to The Bodyguard by Whitney Houston accomplished a 13-week streak in 1992-93. This impressive run marks a significant achievement in Swift’s career.
Other notable entries on the Billboard 200 chart include Megan Thee Stallion’s latest album, Megan, debuting at No. 3 and Beyoncé’s Cowboy Carter climbing to No. 10 after the release of a deluxe vinyl edition.
The Billboard 200 chart ranks the most popular albums of the week in the U.S. based on various metrics such as album sales, track equivalent albums, and streaming equivalent albums. The full chart for July 13, 2024, will be available on Billboard’s website on July 9.
The Tortured Poets Department continues to dominate the charts, with strong performance in streaming, album sales, and track equivalents. The album’s sales saw a significant increase thanks to the release of two new CD variants, each containing bonus tracks, which were exclusively available for pre-order on Swift’s webstore.
In a remarkable achievement, the Tortured Poets Department has joined Whitney Houston’s 1987 album “Whitney” as the only two albums by female artists to dominate the charts for their first 11 weeks at No. 1. “Whitney” held the top spot for all 11 of its initial weeks on the chart.
Only two other albums have achieved a similar feat, with Morgan Wallen’s “One Thing at a Time” holding the No. 1 position for the first 12 weeks of its total 19-week reign in 2023-24, and Stevie Wonder’s “Songs in the Key of Life” leading for the first 13 weeks out of its total 14 weeks at No. 1 in 1976. Prior to the introduction of electronically monitored tracking in 1991, it was rare for albums to debut at No. 1, with only six albums achieving this milestone, including “Whitney” and “Songs in the Key of Life.”
Taylor Swift now joins the exclusive club of artists with three or more albums spending 11 or more weeks at No. 1, following in the footsteps of Whitney Houston and The Beatles. Swift’s impressive 80 career weeks at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 set a new record among solo artists, surpassing Elvis Presley. With 14 No. 1 albums, she is tied with Jay-Z for the most chart-toppers among solo artists.
Meanwhile, on the most recent Billboard 200 chart, Morgan Wallen’s “One Thing at a Time” climbs to No. 2 with 74,000 equivalent album units, marking the last album before “Poets” to spend at least 11 weeks at No. 1, with a total of 19 weeks atop the chart in 2023-24.
