aliciavikanders

People are blaming EOM but wasn't it a successful lead single? I think the "problem" (if selling 800k can be considered a problem) is that the album isn't like EOM. Fans were expecting another basic album filled with radio-ready piano ballads like EOM or Hello or SLY, but instead got a more fully thought-out and developed record... that is very jazzy and soulful and has a lot of long tracks. She's still operating in the same vein/sound she has her whole career, but 30 is a lot more ambitious than her other records. And I don't think the soccer moms were looking for ambition.

These are absolutely great numbers but next year those vinyls her label ordered are going to be giving "they shipped it, but it got shipped back" when they're selling for 40% off at Walmart

Apart from the lead single and "Can I Get It" the album isn't commercial at all. It's very jazzy and nearly half of it consists of 6+ minute songs... so the streaming numbers make sense even if it's surprising. Adele will still be fine because she will always be a touring force and she sells physicals better than anyone, but yeah, that whole thing she said about "not making songs for TikTok" ended up being a self-fulfilling prophecy looking at these #s

Swifties need therapy desperately

Wizkid did that

Isaiah

Her third album will be her experimental masterpiece

Social media hype alone does not translate to streams and never has I have faves signed to indie labels who go viral literally every week on social media, but I know outside of the small and dedicated fanbases that they’ve built over the years, the people liking and retweeting aren’t checking for the music. Liking something of someone dancing/performing or looking hot in a photoshoot only takes 2 seconds Going out of your way to find the music is something else entirely

It feels like everyone overestimated her power, in the sense that while her potential is enormous, they thought that alone (along with some blunted name recognition and viral tweets), could bypass actually releasing music and crafting a sound for her over the years. Said this before in another thread but she has really tried it all: dancehall/Afrobeats-inspired songs (with Calvin Harris), alt R&B (Waves), dance-pop collabs (with Sam Smith), bubblegum pop leftovers (Motivation), and now a chill R&B song with an iconic 90s sample (Wild Side). Couple that distinct lack of musical identity with the fact she's released 9 songs—with no album in sight—in 3.5 years of a solo career, and these early numbers are not surprising The good thing is the song has room to grow with playlisting and radio. Her team need to stick to an album rollout regardless of the numbers. Get the music out, let us know who Normani really is as an artist, and then grow from there.

He releases great albums and has a fanbase.

The way this comparison and “rivalry” is so forced

Lmao

Why do y’all act like personal opinions are facts?

When this pulls an Only Girl (In the World) a month from now

ATRL's casual racism jumping out yet AGAIN Someone who had a Top 10 single last year, has a #11-peaking single, and whose album last year debuted at #2 with 99k first-week sales is now a "random rapper"? It's not adding up for me.

It’s more than just her fans

TikTok:

A literal nightmare Why is this year so quiet so far for big releases? Drake could have stopped this.

I screamed

Should have been 'The Weekend'. Love my homegirl Solange but she really let Solana down with that video

Olivia and SZA

Iconic, if you ask me