If you logged into Twitter over the last week, you would be forgiven for thinking Justin Timberlake was canceled like a bad check. His Super Bowl performance was ripped to shreds (largely out of anger at problematic Princetribute) and critics found little to enjoy about his 4th LP. Outside of the online bubble, however, JT’s popularity is undiminished. The superstar’s Man Of The Woods lands at number one on the Billboard 200 with a healthy first-week tally of 293,000 equivalent album units (242,000 traditional sales).
That’s the biggest opening bow since Taylor Swift’s Reputation (1.22 million traditional sales). As far as male artists are concerned, it’s the best start since Kendrick Lamar’s DAMN (353,000 traditional sales). Of course, to put things into perspective, it’s also Justin’s lowest first-week number. Even The 20/20 Experience (2 of 2) did better, selling 350,000 copies. However, physical sales are on a steep decline across the board and the album is yet to deliver a radio hit. That could change, however, with Chris Stapleton-assisted “Say Something,” which is shaping up to be a massive multi-genre hit. Check it out below.
This article was originally published by: Idolator
