Admin July 17, 2024
Taylor Swift was the clear winner of the first half of 2024 as far as music charts are concerned. Not only was her 11th studio album, The Tortured Poets Department, the most popular record in the US, but the top-selling album also broke records on the traditional album sales front and digital downloads at the midyear point.
In addition to being perched at the top, The Eras Tour concert-maker occupied several spots on the top 10 best-selling albums of the year in the US at the midyear point. Alongside her latest musical release, her previous fan-favourite albums – 1989 (Taylor’s Version), Lover, Folklore and Midnights firmly held on to five out of ten ranks. Nevertheless, Poets’ aura was unbeatable, charting as the only album in the top 10 selling chart with sales recorded in millions.
According to data tracking firm Luminate’s (formerly MRC Data, Nielsen Music and SoundScan) midyear music report for 2024, Swift’s TTPD earned 4.66 million equivalent album units for the tracking period of December 29, 2023, through June 27, 2024. Having spent 12 weeks leading the weekly Billboard 200 chart, the Republic Records production became the first album by a woman to spend its opening 12 weeks at the top.
Equivalent album units “comprise traditional album sales, track equivalent albums (TEA) and streaming equivalent albums (SEA). Each unit equals one album sales, or 10 individual tracks sold from an album, or 3,750 ad-supported on-demand official audio and video streams generated by songs from an album, or 1,250 paid/subscription on-demand official and audio streams generated by songs from an album,” as reported by Billboard.
With 2.47 million traditional album sales, Swift’s Poets also sat atop the top-selling album of the year (thus far) chart as a combined result of 1.07 million CDs, 988,000 vinyl sales and 395,000 digital downloads in the first six months of 2024.
On the popularity board, Taylor Swift was at the top with her TTPD. Morgan Wallen’s 2023 release One Thing at a Time, Noah Kahan’s October 2022 release Stick, Beyonce’s March 2024 release Cowboy Carter and SZA’s December 2022 release SOS trailed behind Swift, rounding out the top 5 popular albums of the year so far.
As for the best-selling records of the year at midpoint also included Swift’s contemporaries, Billie Eilish and Beyonce’s album releases. In contrast with the popular albums chart, the best-selling list also made room for K-pop releases.
While three of Taylor’s albums and Billie Eilish and Beyonce’s albums dominated the top five ranks, the second half of the list saw three South Korean music acts take the lead with their combined physical and digital album sales.
TOMORROW X TOGETHER’s (TXT) April 2024 mini-album release, Minisode 3: TOMORROW, took the 6th spot with 193,000 sales. Close behind TXT, ATEEZ’s 10th mini-album, Golden Hour: Part 1, sat at #7 with 191,000 sales. Concluding the figures for K-pop acts on the top 10 selling albums in US, TWICE’s 13th mini-album, With YOU-th, came in at #9 with 174,000 sales.
2024 Midyear Top 10 Albums in US
| Top 10 Albums in US (Equivalent Album Units) | Top 10 Selling Album in US (Physical + Digital Album Sales) | Top 10 Selling Vinyl Albums |
| 1. The Tortured Poets Department by Taylor Swift (4.660 million) | 1. The Tortured Poets Department by Taylor Swift (2.474 million) | 1. The Tortured Poets Department by Taylor Swift- (988,000) |
| 2. One Thing at a Time by Morgan Wallen (1.776 million) | 2. Hit Me Hard and Soft by Billie Eilish (306,000) | 2. Hit Me Hard and Soft by Billie Eilish (160,000) |
| 3. Stick Season by Noah Kahan (1.224 million) | 3. Cowboy Carter by Beyonce (257,000) | 3. 1989 (Taylor’s Version) by Taylor Swift (117,000) |
| 4. Cowboy Carter by Beyonce (1.105 million) | 4. 1989 (Taylor’s Version) by Taylor Swift | 4. Folklore by Taylor Swift (108,000) |
| 5. SOS by SZA (1.064 million) | 5. Lover by Taylor Swift (208,000) | 5. Lover by Taylor Swift (106,000) |
| 6. We Don’t Trust You by Future & Metro Boomin (1.046 million) | 6. Minisode 3: TOMORROW by TOMORROW X TOGETHER (193,000) | 6. Midnights by Taylor Swift (100,000) |
| 7. Dangerous: The Double Album by Morgan Wallen (1.010 million) | 7. Golden Hour: Part 1 by ATEEZ (191,000) | 7. Cowboy Carter by Beyonce (94,000) |
| 8. Zach Bryan by Zach Bryan (984,000) | 8. Folklore by Taylor Swift (174,000) | 8. Evermore by Taylor Swift (88,000) |
| 9. 1989 (Taylor’s Version) by Taylor Swift (953,000) | 9. With YOU-th by TWICE (174,000) | 9. Stick Season by Noah Kahan (87,000) |
| 10. Lover by Taylor Swift (948,000) | 10. Midnights by Taylor Swift (171,000) | 10. Guts by Olivia Rodrigo (74,000) |
On the other end of the study, Benson Boone’s Beautiful Things was the most streamed song in US (on-demand audio) for the first six months of the year, with 448.7 million streams. Meanwhile, Jack Harlow’s Lovin’ On Me occupied the top ranks on the top 10 radio songs in US chart, based on audience impressions. It gained a cumulative score of 1.743 billion impressions.
| 2024 Midyear Top 10 Most Streamed Songs in US (on-demand audio) | 2024 Midyear Top 10 Radio Songs in US (audience impressions) |
| 1. Beautiful Things by Benson Boone (448.7 million) | 1. Lovin on Me by Jack Harlow (1.743 billion) |
| 2. I Remember Everything by Zach Bryan ft Kacey Musgraved (437.3 million) | 2. Lose Control by Teddy Swims (1.692 billion) |
| 3. Lose Control by Teddy Swims (409.7 million) | 3. Agora Hills by Doja Cat (1.544 billion) |
| 4. Million Dollar Baby by Tommy Richman (374.9 million) | 4. Cruel Summer by Taylor Swift (1.402 billion) |
| 5. Like That by Future, Metro Boomin and Kendrick Lamar (374.9 million) | 5. Greedy by Tate McRae (1.388 billion) |
| 6. Not Like Us by Kendrick Lamar (362.1 million) | 6. Fast Car by Luke Combs (1.248 billion) |
| 7. Stick Season by Noah Kahan (342.9 million) | 7. Water by Tyla (1.210 billion) |
| 8. Lovin On Me by Jack Harlow (340.8 million) | 8. Beautiful Things by Benson Boone (1.142 billion) |
| 9. A Bar Song (Tipsy) by Shaboozey (333.1 million) | 9. Feather by Sabrina Carpenter (1.123 billion) |
| 10. Too Sweet by Hozier (333.1 million) | 10. Snooze by SZA (1.111 billion) |
