Heroes & Villains, the latest album from Metro Boomin, premiered at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 chart.
The Atlanta producer’s second studio album, which was released on December 2, garnered around 185,000 album-equivalent sales in its first week. 233.38 million on-demand song streams), 5,000 pure album sales, and 1,000 TEA units made up the majority of that total, or 179,000 SEA units.
Midnights, the best-selling album by the pop behemoth Taylor Swift, dropped to No. 2 after selling an additional 143,000 units in the previous week as Heroes & Villains took the top spot.
The star-studded album marks Metro’s third consecutive No. 1 on the Billboard 200 and his fifth to make it to the top 10. It includes Future, Travis Scott, A$AP Rocky, 21 Savage, The Weeknd, and more.
Not All Heroes Wear Capes, Metro Boomin’s debut album, debuted at No. 1 with around 99,000 album-equivalent units in 2018, while Savage Mode II, his joint album with 21 Savage, debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 in 2020.
Without Warning, Metro’s 2017 collaboration album with 21 Savage and Offset, debuted at No. 4, while his Double or Nothing album with Big Sean peaked at No. 6 in the same year.
In a recent interview with GQ, Metro Boomin discussed how Heroes & Villains was influenced by Dr. Dre’s 2001, with Nate Dogg serving as the model for Don Toliver’s contributions.
“I told [Don Toliver], ‘Like 2001, you’ve got the Nate Dogg role. “That’s you,’” he said.
Due to problems with sample clearance, Heroes & Villains was supposed to release on November 4, but it was postponed until December 2. Metro, however, claimed that he delayed it in order to avoid a conflict with Her Loss by 21 Savage and Drake.
“I couldn’t get all the samples on my album cleared in time for next week so I’m dropping on Dec. 2nd now so I have enough time to make sure you all get this masterpiece as intended.” I promise it’s worth the wait!!” he tweeted at the time.
“P.S. I would NEVER move my album date because of anyone else,” he added along with a crying face emoji.
