Selena Gomez and Benny Blanco’s first joint project, “I Said I Love You First,” has made its debut atop the albums chart at No. 2
The album, which earned 120,000 album units in its first week, marks the largest debut for both artists, according to Luminate. Of the total, 71,000 units came from album sales, as the record was available in seven vinyl versions, three CD editions, and a deluxe box set that included branded merchandise and a CD.
Released on March 20, the 14-track album is Gomez’s seventh top 10 album on the Billboard 200. She previously topped the chart with each of her three solo albums, starting with “Stars Dance” in 2013. For Benny Blanco, this is his highest-charting album as a credited artist.
While Gomez and Blanco have worked together before, writing and producing tracks like “Same Old Love” and “Kill Em With Kindness” for her 2015 album “Revival,” “I Said I Love You First” is their first full collaborative project. The duo also announced their engagement in December.
Despite its strong debut and wide range of physical formats, “I Said I Love You First” was narrowly beaten by Playboi Carti’s “Music” for the No. 1 spot. Carti’s album benefitted from the release of a deluxe edition. In its second week, “Music” earned 131,000 equivalent album units, with 124,000 of those coming from streams.
The deluxe edition of Carti’s album, titled “Music – Sorry 4 Da Wait,” added four new tracks, expanding the original 30-song tracklist to 34. The bonus songs—”Different Day,” “2024,” “Backr00ms,” and “FOMDJ”—were initially exclusive to webstore download variants during the album’s first week.
Other notable albums in the top 10 include Kendrick Lamar’s “GNX” at No. 3, PartyNextDoor and Drake’s “$ome $exy $ongs 4 U” at No. 4, and SZA’s “SOS” at No. 5, among others.
