On Aug. 17, 2018, Ariana Grande released her fourth album, Sweetener. Less than six months later, on Feb. 7, 2019, she released her fifth album, Thank U, Next, which is bringing about many record topping moments on the Billboard 200, a music chart that ranks the 200 most popular music pieces in all genres.
Quite possibly one of Grande’s biggest accomplishments following this album was being the second artist in history, behind the Beatles, to have songs in the No. 1,2 and 3 spots at the same time.
“‘7 Rings,’ ‘Break Up [With Your Girlfriend, I’m Bored]’ and ‘[Thank U,] Next’ mark the first triple-up for an artist at Nos. 1, 2 and 3 on the Hot 100 since The Beatles held the same spots on April 25, 1964, with ‘Can’t Buy Me Love,’ ‘Twist and Shout’ and ‘Do You Want to Know a Secret,’ respectively,” stated an article by Billboard.
Thank U, Next debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 and remained there in the following week. Its units, a measurement used to indicate number of streams, downloads and sales an album receives, made its debut week the biggest week ever for a pop album. As a reference to this success, pop albums are typically beaten in popularity by rap.
“Thank U, Next replaces A Boogie Wit Da Hoodie’s Hoodie SZN on the Billboard 200′s throne,” stated an article by Forbes. “Last week, the hip-hop musician’s set returned to the peak for a third frame thanks to a shocking lack of major releases.”
In addition to her album debuting at No.1, the songs within the album filled the Billboard 200. All songs except for one placed in the Billboard Top 40, with only “Make Up” not making the mark at number 48.
“Grande bests the mark previously set by Cardi B, who tallied nine [Billboard Top 40 and Hot 100] entries on April 21, 2018, when her album Invasion of Privacy opened atop the Billboard 200,” stated an article by Billboard.
Of these songs, “Thank U, Next” and “Seven Rings” were two songs that held the No.1 spot. “Thank U, Next,” which debuted as a single for the album on Nov. 3, 2018, remained at No. 1 for seven non-consecutive weeks.
“Billboard reports that Grande is the first female solo artist to spend two consecutive weeks at No.1 since Taylor Swift accomplished it with Reputation back in December 2017,” stated an article by Rolling Stone during “Thank U, Next”’s second week at No. 1.
“Seven Rings,” which debuted as a single for the album on Jan. 18, 2019, topped the charts for five consecutive weeks.
“‘[Seven] Rings’ is the first song by a woman to lead for its first five weeks since Adele’s ‘Hello,’ which placed at No. 1 for its first 10 frames (also encompassing its entire command) in November 2015-January 2016,” stated an article by Billboard.
This is Grande’s fourth album of her five to reach the number one spot. The only album of hers that did not accomplish this feat was her third album, Dangerous Woman, due to difficult competition.
“[Dangerous Woman] debuted and peaked at No. 2 on June 11, 2016 (stuck behind Grande’s labelmate, Drake, with his blockbuster album Views, which was in its fourth of 14 non consecutive weeks at No. 1),” stated an article by Billboard.
Of the four albums to reach number one, two of them have filled the number one spot within the past six months.
Additionally, all of the accumulated number one songs have allowed Grande to have more than three No. 1s within the past four months. This elite group additionally consists of Elvis Presley, John Lennon and Justin Bieber as the only other artists to have done this. Her and Bieber work under the same manager, Scooter Braun, who helped them with this accomplishment.
“Hmm….what do two of these four have in common? Damn we are so proud of you @arianagrande and @justinbieber,” Braun posted on his Instagram on Feb. 15 in acknowledgement of the success.
In the midst of all of this, Grande also earned the title of most followed female on Instagram. Her follower count falls only below Cristiano Ronaldo who currently has 156 million followers
“Ariana Grande has dethroned fellow singer Selena Gomez as the most followed woman on Instagram, with 146.44 million followers on the platform (versus Gomez’s 146.32 million),” stated an article by Forbes. “According to Billboard, in the past four months alone, Grande has amassed an astonishing 13 million new followers.”
Grande is receiving numerous awards for her musical success in the past year, and she continues to share her gratitude as well as her excitement for her upcoming world tour beginning March 18, 2019.
“A few months ago, I told my team I wasn’t even in an okay enough place to tour or work at all, and my friends, you guys and this music really saved my life and turned everything around,” said Grande in an Instagram post on March 1. “I’m still healing, but I feel a lot lighter as of late and I think this is really going to be such a beautiful time.”
