Country Billboard Chart News December 24, 2018

In Brief: Billboard Country Charts (Chart issue week of December 29, 2018)

Country Album Chart ** No.1 (21 non-consecutive weeks) ** THIS ONE’S FOR YOU Luke Combs

Hot Country Songs ** No.1 (5 weeks) ** “Speechless” Dan + Shay

Country Airplay ** No.1 (2 weeks) ** “Speechless” Dan + Shay

Country Digital Songs ** No.1 (1 week) ** "Broken Hearts" Chevel Shepherd

Billboard Top 200 / Country Album Chart News (Chart issue week of December 29, 2018)

The Billboard 200 chart measures multi-metric album consumption, which includes traditional album sales, track equivalent albums (TEA) and streaming equivalent albums (SEA).

Kodak Black Scores First No. 1 Album on Billboard 200 With 'Dying to Live'

Rapper Kodak Black scored his first No.1 on the Billboard Top 200 Album Chart (BB200), as DYING TO LIVE debuted atop the tally.

The set, which was released on Dec. 14 via Dollaz N Dealz/Atlantic Records, earned 89,000 equivalent album units in the week ending Dec. 20, according to Nielsen Music. Of that sum, 5,000 were in traditional album sales -- as the bulk of the album’s units were driven by streaming activity.

Top 100 Album Sales in 2018

#1 REPUTATION Taylor Swift

#2 THE GREATEST SHOWMAN Soundtrack

#3 ÷ (DIVIDE) Ed Sheeran

#4 BEAUTIFUL TRAUMA P!nk

#5 FROM A ROOM: VOLUME 2 Chris Stapleton

#6 REARVIEW TOWN Jason Aldean

#7 KAMIKAZE Eminem

#8 A STAR IS BORN (SOUNDTRACK) Lady Gaga & Bradley Cooper

#9 MAN OF THE WOODS Justin Timberlake

#10 ASTROWORLD Travis Scott

#15 CRY PRETTY Carrie Underwood

#17 WHAT MAKES YOU COUNTRY Luke Bryan

#22 FROM A ROOM: VOLUME 1 Chris Stapleton

#23 THE ANTHOLOGY: PART I, THE FIRST FIVE YEARS Garth Brooks

#25 TRAVELLER Chris Stapleton

#27 GRAFFITI U Keith Urban

#35 KANE BROWN Kane Brown

#49 THIS ONE'S FOR YOU Luke Combs

#65 DESPERATE MAN Eric Church

#80 SWEET SOUTHERN SUGAR Kid Rock

#85 SONGS FOR THE SAINTS Kenny Chesney

Billboard Top Country Albums (Chart issue week of December 29, 2018)

Top Country Albums now ranks the most popular country albums of the week, as compiled by Nielsen Music, based on multi-metric consumption (blending traditional album sales, track equivalent albums (TEA), and streaming equivalent albums (SEA)).

10 digital track sales from an album = 1 track equivalent album (TEA) “sale”

1,500 on demand song streams from an album to one streaming equivalent album (SEA) “sale”.

Nielsen Music compiles the sales and streaming data. Billboard continues to publish pure album sales charts (subscription to billboard biz ), exclusively comprising Nielsen’s sales data.

Based on total consumption (20 non-consecutive weeks) Luke Combs with THIS ONE’S FOR YOU (River House/ Columbia Nashville/Sony Music Nashville) moved 2-1 (#31-30 Billboard 200) to top the chart for a 21 non-consecutive week in its 81st chart frame.

Gene Autry with Rudolph The Red Nosed Reindeer And Other Christmas Classics rose 3-2 (#42-40 Billboard 200; 11 chart frames).

Elvis Presley with IT'S CHRISTMAS TIME climbed 4-3 (#51-50 Billboard 200; 12 chart weeks).

Burl Ives with RUDOLPH THE RED-NOSED REINDEER rose 5-4 (#54-52; 13 chart frames).

He may have released his album a week before Christmas but it seems to have paid off as Mitchell Tenpenny ended 2018 as the newcomer with the biggest selling debut. TELLING ALL MY SECRETS debuted at #5 (#53 Billboard 200; as the second-highest non-holiday release) on the multi-metric Country Albums list from Billboard and #1 on the pure album sales driven Country Albums chart.

“What an incredible gift I received on Christmas Eve,” remarked Mitchell Tenpenny. “I was so pleasantly surprised with the news that Telling All My Secrets debuted on the Billboard album chart in such a huge way!"

Former No.1 Kane Brown with sophomore album, entitled EXPERIMENT rose 7-6 (#67-60 BB200).

Former No1 Dan + Shay with their self-titled album (Warner Bros./Warner Music Nashville) fell 6-7 (#66 Non-mover BB200).

Chris Stapleton with the 190-week TRAVELLER (MERCURY/ UMGN) held at No.8 (#70-68 BB200) as his set From A Room: Volume 1 (Mercury/Universal Music Group Nashville) rose 18-15 (#161-129 BB200) and From A Room: Volume 2 climbed 23-21 (#179 Re-Entry Billboard 200).

Brenda Lee with The Best Of Brenda Lee: 20th Century Masters The Christmas Collection held at No.9 (#79-78 BB200).

Previous weeks No.1 Brett Young with Ticket to L.A. slumped 1-10 in his second frame.

Outside the Top 10

Former No.1 Carrie Underwood with CRY PRETTY rose 14-12 (#123-102 BB200).

Former 6-week non-consecutive week No.1 Jason Aldean with REARVIEW TOWN (Macon/Broken Bow Records) fell 13-14 (#113-111 BB200) in its 36th week.

Outside the Top 25

Dolly Parton with 12-track DUMPLIN' (Soundtrack; Dolly Records/RCA Nashville | Amazon UK - UK iTunes - Amazon.com) fell 16-28 (#143 to off Billboard 200) in its third frame.

The Voice Season 15 contestents Kirk Jay with The Voice: The Season 15 Collection made a debut at No.32 and Chevel Shepherd with The Voice: The Season 15 Collection was new at #49.

Billboard Hot Country Songs (Chart issue week of December 29, 2018)

On Billboard’s Hot Country Songs chart - which blends:

a) All-format airplay, as monitored by BDS

b) Sales, as tracked by Nielsen SoundScan and

c) Streaming, (tracked by Nielsen BDS from such services as Spotify, Muve, Slacker, Rhapsody, Rdio and Xbox Music, among others) according to BDS it results in:

Dan + Shay with “Speechless” (Warner Bros./ WAR) led Hot Country Songs for a fifth week.

Hot County Songs

** No.1 (5 weeks) ** “Speechless” Dan + Shay  

** Hot Shot Debut ** No.24 “Broken Hearts” Chevel Shepherd  

Debut No.31 “What Happens In A Small Town” Brantley Gilbert + Lindsay Ell

Debut No.37 “Defenseless” Kirk Jay

Debut No.39 “Human” Chris Kroeze

Debut No.47 “You Look So Good In Love” Kirk Jay & Blake Shelton

Debut No.48 “I Won't Let Go” Kirk Jay

Billboard Country Airplay (Chart issue week of December 29, 2018)

In it’s 20th chart frame Dan + Shay with “Speechless” (writers Dan Smyers and Shay Mooney) held at No.1.

Country Airplay

*** No.1 (2 weeks) *** 38.765 million audience (+0.136 million) / 7230 radio plays (+1)

** Most Increased Audience ** No.5 “Good Girl” Dustin Lynch +3.391 million audience gain/ 6395 plays

Billboard Country Digital Singles Chart 

(Chart issue week of December 29, 2018)

The Voice Season 15 winner Chevel Shepherd with her original song "Broken Hearts" (US iTunes) made a debut at No.1 on the Billboard Country Digital Singles Chart (#6 New Entry Digital Songs).  

Performing on The Voice Live Finale, Part 1

It was 5 places behind Halsey's "Without Me" which spent a second week at its No. 2 Hot 100 high. It led Digital Song Sales for a fifth week (37,000, essentially even week-over-week).

Chevel Shepherd and her The Voice coach Kelly Clarkson with a cover of The Judds’ "Rockin' with the Rhythm of the Rain" made a debut at No.10 (#48 New Entry Digital Songs). It was performed on The Voice Week 6: Finale (Dec. 17 & 18). Additionally, Chevel Shepherd debuted at No.18 with a cover of Tanya Tucker’s 1993 #2 hit 1993 "It's a Little Too Late".

Previous weeks’ chart topper (7 non-consecutive weeks) Dan + Shay (Dan Smyers and Shay Mooney) with “Speechless” held at No.2 (#12 non-mover Digital Songs) as their hit “Tequila” fell 8-11 in its 48th frame.

Voice Season 15 Runner-up contestant (Team Blake) Kirk Jay with original “Defenseless” made a debut at No.3 (#14 New Entry Digital Songs). Kirk Jay & coach Blake Shelton with a cover of George Strait’s No1 hit (1984) "You Look So Good in Love" made a debut at No.6 (#27 New Entry Digital Songs) and Kirk Jay’s cover of Rascal Flatts’ #2 hit (2011) "I Won't Let Go" made a bow at No.7 (#32 New Entry Digital Songs).

Kirk Jay The Voice Live Finale, Part 1.

Voice Season 15 Runner-up contestant (Team Blake) Chris Kroeze with original song “Human” made a debut at No.4. (#16 New Entry Digital Songs).

Brantley Gilbert + Lindsay Ell with “What Happens In A Small Town” made a deut at No.5 (#17 New Entry Digital Songs).

Seasonal chesnutt Brenda Lee with “Rockin' Around The Christmas Tree” fell 3-8 (#29-39 Digital Songs).

Luke Combs with “She Got The Best Of Me” fell 4-9 (#31-44 Digital Songs).

Outside the Top 10

Jake Owen with “Down To The Honkytonk” fell 7-12.

Bobby Helms’ “Jingle Bell Rock” fell 10-15.

Mitchell Tenpenny with “Drunk Me” fell 5-16 in its 22nd frame.

Billboard Boxscores (Selective Country concerts)

Rank Artist: #2

Event Venue City/State: George Strait T-Mobile Arena Las Vegas

Dates: Dec. 7-8, 2018 Gross Sales: $5,475,575 Attend: 36,333/ 36,999

Shows/ Sellouts: 2/0 (666 unsold tickets) Prices: $225, $50

Promoters: Messina Touring Group/AEG Presents

Rank Artist: #29

Event Venue City/State: John Prine Arvest Bank Theatre at The Midland Kansas City, Mo.         

Dates: Nov. 16, 2018 Gross Sales: $165,917 Attend: 2,035/ 2,035

Shows/ Sellouts: 1/0* (Prices: $102.50, $62.50

Promoters: NS2

                                                 

Rank Artist: #36

Event Venue City/State: Dwight Yoakam Charleston Music Hall Charleston, S.C.

Dates: Nov. 15, 2018 Gross Sales: $77,979 Attend: 873/ 873

Shows/ Sellouts: 1/1 ** SOLD OUT ** Prices: $110, $79.50

Promoters: NS2

Latest Billboard Boxscore Chart