The female hip-hop movement has been thriving in the last few years. So much so that many rap fans have surmised that the ladies are running the game. It’s been decades since a large number of women have been taking over the genre simultaneously. The current names include some hit makers: Nicki Minaj, Doja Cat, Cardi B, Latto, Sexyy Red, GloRilla, Ice Spice and others. However, star power, hit records and cult followings aren’t always transferring to album sales.
Coi Leray‘s Coi album, released last June, features the hit single “Players,” which peaked at No. 9 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart. The track was considered one of the songs of the summer, but it failed to help boost sales of her album. The Coi LP debuted at No. 102 on the Billboard 200 chart with 10,000 equivalent album units in the first week. A low number even considering today’s standards.
Using the last 12 months since August of 2023 as a barometer, the lackluster sales numbers have continued, despite female rappers having a large hold on streams, radio play and the conversation online. In the last year, only Nicki Minaj has been able to crack 100,000 units in her first week. Her Pink Friday 2 album debuted with 228,300, and that was assisted by the return from a four-year album hiatus.
The next closest debut for a female rap artist over the last 12 months is Doja Cat’s Scarlet, which moved 72,000 copies in its first week after being spearheaded by the chart-topping single “Paint The Town Red.” Megan Thee Stallion dropped songs “Cobra,” “Hiss” and “BOA” before her Megan album arrived to the tune of 64,000 units.
A different story is told when combining the first-week sales for three of the most popular newer rappers right now. Sexyy Red, Ice Spice and GloRilla’s 2024 projects—In Sexyy We Trust, Y2K! and Ehhhthang, Ehhhthang, respectively—don’t even add up to 100,000 units. This is despite each woman having a Top 40 Billboard Hot 100 hit and being considered the most popular of the latest crop of femcees.
Below are the album sales for the last year of some of the most well-known female rappers in the game, confirmed by Billboard charts source Luminate.
- Doja Cat, Scarlet (Sept. 20, 2023) — 72,000
- City Girls, RAW (Oct. 20, 2023) — 10,000
- Baby Tate, Bate Tate Presents: Sexploration: The Musical (Oct. 27, 2023) — 2,000
- Lola Brooke, Dennis Daughter (Nov. 10, 2023) — 4,000
- Nicki Minaj, Pink Friday 2 (Dec. 8, 2023) — 228,300
- Tierra Whack, World Wide Whack (March 15, 2024) — 5,000
- Flo Milli, Fine Ho, Stay (March 15, 2024) — 16,000
- GloRilla, Ehhhthang, Ehhhthang (April 5, 2024) —33,100
- Rapsody, Please Don’t Cry (May 17, 2024) – 5,000
- Sexyy Red, In Sexyy We Trust (May 24, 2024) — 28,000
- Megan Thee Stallion, Megan (June 28, 2024) —64,000
- JT, City Cinderella (July 19, 2024) — 27,000
- Ice Spice, Y2K! (July 26, 2024) — 28,200
- Latto, Sugar Honey Iced Tea (Aug. 9, 2024) — 29,000
How Are the Numbers Compiled?
According to Billboard, their weekly U.S. albums chart is calculated based on streaming numbers from multiple streaming services that make up equivalent album units, compiled by Luminate.
“Units comprise album sales, track equivalent albums (TEA) and streaming equivalent albums (SEA),” Billboard states on their website. “Each unit equals one album sale, or 10 individual tracks sold from an album, or 3,750 ad-supported or 1,250 paid/subscription on-demand official audio and video streams generated by songs from an album.”
Chart Data, a leading social media voice for presenting sales numbers, gives a further breakdown on their website noting, “TEA is calculated by adding up all of the song sales from an album and dividing by 10. Thus, 10 song downloads from the same album is equivalent to 1 album unit.”
Furthermore, “SEA is calculated by adding up all of the audio song streams from an album. Premium streaming totals are divided by 1,250 and free streaming totals are divided by 3,750. Thus, 1,250 premium streams or 3,750 free streams from the same album is equivalent to 1 album unit.”
XXL has reached out to Spotify, Apple Music and YouTube for comment on their metrics and received no response as of press time.
So, What Gives?
As streaming has become the new norm, sales numbers have been on the decline across the board. Even Eminem, the biggest-selling rapper of all time, can’t put numbers on the boards like he used to.
While hip-hop was the most listened-to genre of music in 2023, its market share was down nearly two percent from its peak in 2020, according to a report from Newsweek. This means artists outside hip-hop are starting to take more shine. These days, blockbuster debuts only seem to be generated by pop icons like Taylor Swift and Beyoncé, and country star Morgan Wallen.
Showcasing the sales numbers for women in hip-hop is in no way a slight. Female rappers might be falling victim to a numbers game. While men and women listen to male rappers, a man who listens to hip-hop might be less inclined to stream or buy an album from a female artist, cutting their pool of potential buyers substantially.
Despite the overall flat sales, the ladies of hip-hop keep pushing the envelope and are a driving force in a genre that has been dominated by misogyny. About damn time.