Kendrick Lamar’s GNX debuts at No. 1 on Billboard 200, marks biggest streaming week for R&B album

Kendrick Lamar’s surprise album GNX debuts at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 chart (dated Dec. 7), marking his fifth consecutive chart-topping release. The album earned 319,000 equivalent album units in the week ending Nov. 28, making it the year’s sixth-largest debut. The release, which came without prior notice on Nov. 22, experienced significant streaming success, contributing to one of 2024's biggest streaming weeks for any album. With 379.72 million on-demand streams across its 12 tracks, GNX set the year’s largest streaming week for an R&B/hip-hop album.

The album’s success is largely driven by streaming, with 285,000 SEA (streaming equivalent album) units, while it sold 32,000 copies. GNX also ranks as the third-largest streaming week overall in 2024, following Taylor Swift's The Tortured Poets Department. Lamar's previous Billboard 200 No. 1s include Mr. Morale & the Big Steppers (2022) and DAMN. (2017). Additionally, GNX precedes Lamar's performance at the 2025 Super Bowl halftime show in February, marking his second appearance after 2022’s hip-hop showcase.

Also entering the Billboard 200 top 10 is the Wicked film soundtrack, which debuts at No. 2 with 139,000 equivalent album units. This marks the highest debut ever for a big-screen adaptation of a stage musical. The album, which features songs from the film starring Cynthia Erivo and Ariana Grande, sees its strongest sales from physical formats, including vinyl and CD editions. It also achieves 67.66 million streams, marking the largest streaming week ever for a stage-to-screen musical film soundtrack.

Other top-charting albums include Sabrina Carpenter’s Short n’ Sweet, which rises to No. 3, and Tyler, The Creator’s CHROMAKOPIA, which drops to No. 4.