Dua Lipa went out with a bang at her fourth and final Radical Optimism Tour stop at the Kia Forum in Inglewood, California, on Wednesday night (Oct. 8), bringing out Gwen Stefani to duet on No Doubt‘s heartbreak anthem “Don’t Speak.”

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Lipa introduced Stefani as “one of my personal heroes, one of my favorite artists, someone who I’ve grown up listening to my whole life, who’s influenced my music, influenced my style, someone who I love as a performer, and someone who just constantly keeps redefining herself and music. And I just absolutely love that this incredible woman is here tonight.”

Stefani emerged on the Forum stage to thunderous cheers, matching Dua’s all-black vibes with her own plaid-accented rocker look, and traded verses and harmonized effortlessly with Lipa on the 16-week Radio Songs chart-topper from 1996. It was a family affair on Wednesday night, as Billboard spotted Kingston and Zuma, Stefani’s two sons with ex-husband Gavin Rossdale, in the crowd for the surprise duet.

But the No Doubt frontwoman wasn’t the only surprise Lipa had in store for her L.A. crowds: On Tuesday’s night 3, she also brought out Lionel Richie to perform his four-week Billboard Hot 100 No. 1 smash “All Night Long (All Night)” together.

It’s not always a guarantee that Dua Lipa will bring out a special guest on the Radical Optimism Tour, but she has been performing a brand-new cover with her band each night. For her first two shows in L.A., Lipa stuck with a Golden State theme, covering Fleetwood Mac’s “The Chain” on Saturday night and The Mamas & The Papas’ “California Dreamin’” on Sunday night.

Of course, this being Hollywood and all, there were also famous faces peppered throughout the Forum crowd across the four nights, including fellow musicians Adele, Olivia Rodrigo, St. Vincent and Lucy Dacus.

Next up, the Radical Optimism Tour hits San Francisco for two nights (Oct. 11-12) before wrapping her U.S. leg in Seattle on Oct. 15-16 and heading to South America.

Billboard and Telemundo announced on Thursday (Oct. 9) that global superstar Bad Bunny will be recognized as the Top Latin Artist of the 21st Century at the 2025 Billboard Latin Music Awards. The prestigious honor is based on his unparalleled achievements on Billboard’s Top Latin Albums and Hot Latin Songs charts throughout the first 25 years of the century.

The award ceremony will take place live on Oct. 23 at 8 p.m. ET from the James L. Knight Center in Miami and will be broadcast on Telemundo.

With historic consistency, the multi-platinum Puerto Rican superstar has repeatedly shattered records in Latin music on the Billboard charts and beyond. His last four albums — Debí Tirar Más Fotos (2025), Nadie Sabe Lo Que Va a Pasar Mañana (2023), Un Verano Sin Ti (2022), and El Último Tour del Mundo (2020) — have all earned unprecedented No. 1s on the all-genre Billboard 200. Beyond the charts, Bad Bunny’s recent concert series at the Coliseo de Puerto Rico marked a milestone by breaking records for its magnitude and economic impact.

He has become a cultural icon, breaking barriers in fashion, film, and music — from co-chairing the Met Gala to collaborating with soccer megastar Leo Messi on a groundbreaking Adidas partnership — as well as starring in film projects alongside acclaimed directors and actors.

Bad Bunny graces the cover of Billboard‘s October Issue 14. He will also be the first Latin-American male solo artist to headline the Super Bowl Halftime Show in February.

The honor caps off Billboard Latin Music Week in Miami, which will host exclusive performances, conversations, and industry events from Oct. 20–24. Tickets to the awards are available now. See the full schedule here.

Fans will be able to stream the event on the Telemundo App, Peacock, and Telemundo Internacional.

Ozuna solidifies his dominion with “Sirenita,” as the song jumps 3-1 on Billboard’s Latin Airplay chart (dated Oct. 11). The achievement comes as the single returns to No. 1 on the Latin Rhythm Airplay chart for a third nonconsecutive week.

“Sirenita” lands at the Latin Airplay summit — after three consecutive weeks at No. 3 — with 9.4 million audience impressions, up 21%, earned in the United States on the tracking week ending Oct. 2, as reported by Luminate. The song was released June 5 via Nibiru/Sony Music Latin.

With the new achievement, Ozuna boosts his career total to 36 No. 1s on Latin Airplay and inches closer to the all-time No. 1 record by J Balvin, who still commands with 38 chart-topping tracks.

“Sirenita” marks Ozuna’s second win in 2025, following “Más Que Tú,” with Kapo (one week in April).

Over on Latin Rhythm Airplay, “Sirenita” rebounds to its No. 1 peak for a third week atop.

Los Dos De Tamaulipas Make Chart Strides: “We Are No. 1 on Billboard!”
There is a new face atop the Regional Mexican Airplay chart, as Los Dos de Tamaulipas scores its first No. 1 with new single “Supercargada.” The song, which was released June 13 on AfinArte, rises 6-1 after a 47% boost in audience impressions, to 8.1 million, earned in the United States during the tracking period.

“Since we were kids, we dreamed of being No. 1 on these charts, and today, thanks to God and the support of all our fans, we made it a reality,” Orlando y Rolando Zapata from Los Dos de Tamaulipas, tells Billboard. “We Are No. 1 on Billboard!”

Los Dos de Tamaulipas claim their first No. 1 on Regional Mexican Airplay on their seventh try, dating to their first entry in 2021. Prior to “Sirenita,” which takes the Greatest Gainer honor of the week, the duo scored its first top 10 through the No. 5-peaking “Arriba La Compañía” in April.

After teasing a possible trip back in time to one of her most underrated eras earlier this year, Madonna confirmed on Thursday (Oct. 9) that she is gearing up to tell some more Bedtime Stories. According to a release, the singer will drop the eight-track Bedtime Stores — The Untold Chapter EP on Nov 28.

The 30th anniversary homage to the singer’s R&B-flavored sixth album, will revisit the 1994 collection in which she took a softer approach to love following the sexual dynamite of her previous album, Erotica. The refresh will featured early demos, alternate versions and rarities that track the evolution of the album’s soulful sound with tracks including a “Quiet Storm Demo Remix” of “Survival,” an “Allstar New Single Mix” of “Secret” and the “Howie Tee New Clean Edit” of “Human Nature,” among others.

The Untold Chapter will be released on black vinyl as well as digitally, as well as a deluxe 2-CD edition with the original album and the new EP, as well as a 20-page booklet of lyrics and illustrations; fans can pre-order the black vinyl here. The singer worked with producer Stuart Price (Confessions on a Dance Floor) on editing and mixing the new version for the EP to create a “cohesive new chapter.” The artwork features never-before-seen images from a 1994 shoot by Paolo Roversi, whose pictures were originally used for the “Bedtime Story” single, which was co-written by Bjork and British producer Nellee Hooper (Soul II Soul). The album spun off a pair of Billboard Hot 100 top three hits with “Secret” (No. 3) and “Take a Bow” (seven weeks at No. 1, Madonna’s longest stay in the top spot).

Nov. 28 will also see the silver vinyl reissue of the original Bedtime Stories album at select retailers.

Last month, Madonna announced her return to her original label, Warner Records, for which she’s recording the follow-up to 2019’s Madame X, a Price-produced sequel to the pair’s 2005 Confessions on a Dance Floor album, due out next year. Madonna has been on a nostalgic tear lately, which has included the July release of her long-rumored Veronica Electronica album, a collection of eight rare and unreleased remixes of tracks from her beloved 1998 Ray of Light LP.

Check out the track listing for Bedtime Stories — The Untold Chapter below.

Side One

  1. “Survival” – Quiet Storm Demo Remix
  2. “Secret” – Allstar New Single Mix
  3. “Right On Time” – Original Demo Edit
  4. “Don’t Stop” – Original Demo Edit

Side Two

  1. “Freedom” – Short Mix
  2. “Human Nature” – Howie Tee New Clean Edit
  3. “Let Down Your Guard” – Rough Single Mix
  4. “Love Won’t Wait” – Original Demo Edit


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Are you ready for it? After clarifying those rumors about her possible Super Bowl halftime show earlier this week on The Tonight Show, Taylor Swift will be back on Friday night (Oct. 10) for a command performance.

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NBC announced on Wednesday (Oct. 8) that a special encore edition of The Tonight Show will air tomorrow, featuring an extended interview with host Jimmy Fallon featuring bits not seen in the original visit on Monday night (Oct. 6). The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon: Taylor Swift (Extended Cut) will include unaired interview segments from the episode where Swift responded to rumors that she had turned down a chance to play at next year’s Super Bowl.

“Here’s the thing: Jay-Z has always been very good to me,” Swift told Fallon in the already aired episode in reference to the rap mogul whose Roc Nation produces the halftime show. “Our teams are really close. They sometimes will call and say, ‘How does she feel about [the Super Bowl]?’ And that’s not like an official offer or like a conference room conversation. Just ‘Our teams are really close, how does she feel about it in general?,’” Swift added.

During the aired bits, Swift also talked about her excitement about her engagement to Travis Kelce, as well as explaining why her bestie, Ed Sheeran, had to find out about it from the internet because he famously doesn’t have a cell phone. “You have to email him and then set up a FaceTime and he has to find an iPad and they have to give it to him like he’s like a child,” she said. “This is one of my absolute favorite people on the planet and the news came out and I was like, ‘Oh my God, we forgot to call Ed!’ He’s like family, I love him, but he doesn’t have a phone!”

She also broke down her lusty homage to Kelce’s equipment, “Wood,” saying it started off as a tune about superstitions, but then took a randy turn. “I don’t know what happened, man,” she joked about the track that many have taken as a thinly veiled humble brag about her intended’s endowment.

The original episode was already very Taylor-coded, from the Roots interrupting Fallon’s monologue to encourage him to just let the singer come out already, to the cold open in which Fallon dressed up in a glittery marching band costume and danced to “The Fate of Ophelia” with a group of showgirls.

The Tonight Show airs at 11:35 p.m. ET on NBC and streams the next day on Peacock.


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In 2025, a lot is going on in the world at any given moment — and Wale has prepped an apt soundtrack for that phenomenon. On Nov. 14, the Grammy-nominated D.C. rapper will release his eighth studio album, Everything Is a Lot, via Def Jam.

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The Billboard chart-topping MC’s new album promises to tackle the myriad stresses, life developments, and global pressures he’s encountered in the four years since his last studio LP, 2021’s Folarin II. That album, a sequel to his career-shifting 2012 mixtape of the same name, housed the J. Cole-assisted “Poke It Out,” Wale’s most recent Billboard Hot 100 entry (No. 73).

“One of the underlying things is how heavy everything is in the world around me, my personal life, and the industry,” he exclusively told Billboard. “I carried all of that with me and got it out of my system through this project.” 

With an expansive soundscape courtesy of producers such as BNYX, Salaam Remi, Kel-P Vibes, Go Grizz, Streetrunner, Emil and Genio, EIA will include bluesy lead single “Blanco,” which Wale debuted live at Dreamville earlier this year, and “Where to Start,” which samples SWV’s classic 1992 hit “I’m So Into You.” The 16-track set, recorded primarily in London and Los Angeles, will also feature genre-bending collaborations with a yet-to-be-revealed roster that includes buzzy names across R&B, hip-hop and Afrobeats.

Everything Is a Lot also serves as Wale’s first full-length release under Def Jam, following six albums and over a decade with Rick Ross’ Maybach Music Group, an imprint of Warner Records. During that stint, Wale followed up his 2009 Attention Deficit debut studio album with four Billboard 200 top 10 projects, including the No. 1 albums The Gifted (2013) and The Album About Nothing (2015). After a semi-public falling out with MMG, particularly with Meek Mill, Wale signed with Def Jam in 2023, marking a new chapter in his two-decade career. “The industry is a completely different place than it was four years ago,” he reflects. “They had a purge, and a lot of people lost their jobs.”

Across Everything Is a Lot, Wale’s primary goal was “to express a certain level of vulnerability.” To do so, he leaned on soulful samples and bluesy Western influences, the latter of which shine through on “Blanco,” the first song he completed for the forthcoming LP. “It’s never as contrived as people think,” he says of the album’s varied production and strikingly honest tracks like “Lonely.” “If I’m in the mood to write something, I just get to it. It’s all about capturing that feeling in the moment.” On “Fly Away,” Wale samples Maxwell’s classic, Grammy-winning “Pretty Wings” for a moving number about “abandonment and attachment issues,” underscoring his commitment to confronting discomfort on the record.

“It’s always been hard to keep people’s attention,” Wale says. “That’s why my first album is called Attention Deficit. It’s become increasingly harder in this day and age, where fans are rewiring themselves to only like what the algorithm tells them to like. It’s an uphill battle, so it’s a blessing to be in the conversation still.”

Check out the full tracklist and album artwork for Wale’s Everything Is a Lot below.

Wale, "Everything Is A Lot (EIA)"


Wale, Everything Is a Lot (EIA)

Art by Landon Kiry

  1. “Conundrum”
  2. “Belly”
  3. “Where to Start”
  4. “Blanco”
  5. “Michael Fredo”
  6. “Power and Problems”
  7. “Mirroronnabenz”
  8. “YSF”
  9. “Tomorrow Today”
  10. “Big Head”
  11. “City On Fire”
  12. “Fly Away”
  13. “Corner Bottles”
  14. “Like I”
  15. “Survive “
  16. “Lonely”

Taylor Swift continued her Life of a Showgirl promo push on Wednesday night (Oct. 8) with a three-segment sit-down on Late Night with Seth Meyers during which she closed the circle on the story of Zoë Kravitz losing her Burmese python at the singer’s house and had some fun tweaking fiancé Travis Kelce about that time he mixed up Hugh Grant’s wife with Greta Gerwig at the Eras Tour.

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The latter story involved the Kansas City Chiefs tight end attending Swift’s June 2024 Eras show in London, where he was sat in the VIP box alongside actor Grant and his wife, Anna Eberstein, who Kelce apparently confused with Barbie director Greta Gerwig. In describing her mega-FOMO about looking out at the raucous celeb-packed box that night — also at the London show were Mila Kunis and Ashton Kutcher, Liam Hemsworth, Tom Cruise and all of Kelce’s best friends from Cleveland — Swift described being jealous at the shot-taking and party atmosphere in the roped-off section, with Taylor worrying that her 6’6″ intended’s hard dancing might actually shake the tent to the ground.

“The most fun thing about having Travis out on tour is that he would go to the tents and give me the tea afterward,” she said of their post-show car chats. Before the gig, she let him know that his “favorite director,” Gerwig, was in the tent, so she encouraged him to tell her how much he loves her films. “She’s the sweetest, giggliest person,” Swift said.

In the car ride after the show, a shot-filled Kelce said that it was “the most fun tent” of the tour thus far, gushing about what a blast it was mingling with the A-listers, though Swift noticed he didn’t mention meeting Gerwig. “I think I told an annoying joke that she’s heard too many times,” Kelce admitted, explaining that he told Gerwig how much he loved Barbie, pointing up to the stage at Swift and saying “I’m just Ken, too.”

Swift thought it was a totally solid joke, with Kelce describing how Gerwig “smiled politely” at the quip, something Taylor thought was “very out of character,” surmising that maybe she had heard the bit too many times. “‘She was talking to Hugh Grant all night, so I think they might be doing a movie together,’” Kelce explained. “‘They were really, really close. They were dancing all night, had all these inside jokes that kind of seemed like they were soul mates,’” he told her. “‘The tea is crazy tonight,’” Swift recalled thinking.

As Kelce kept talking about it, Swift was scrolling through pics on her phone, seeing photos and videos of Travis dancing with Gerwig “like they’re best friends.” She showed him a video of Gerwig laughing, surmising that she did think the joke was funny, only to have Kelce say “‘that’s not Greta.’”

“‘Is there any chance at all, baby, that you complimented Hugh Grant’s wife Anna on her movie Barbie, said ‘I’m just Ken, too’ and she politely nodded because she didn’t have the heart to tell you she didn’t direct it?,’” Swift asked Kelce. “‘And is there any chance that the people who look like soul mates are Hugh Grant and his soul mate?’”

“The bad news for you is he has face blindness,” Meyers joked. “The good thing is he recognized true love. He saw soulmates, and he knew they were soulmates.”

In her first appearance on the show in five years, Swift also told Meyers that the Life of a Showgirl roll-out has “absolutely been my favorite one,” calling it the “most joyful” promo run she’s had to date. And, for the first time, she said her whole family, including her mom, dad and brother, have all been with her on the global press tour, joking that her mom was struggling to find Wheel of Fortune on British TV. “I’m floored, I’m blown away by this week. I don’t know how to say thank you enough for everything that you guys have put into caring about the music and caring about this week. We’re doing this together,” she said.

She also, of course, talked about her oft-noted bread-baking obsession, with Meyers trying to keep up by busting out some of the loafs larded with lyric-inspired puns, with both agreeing that the “Fate of Doughphelia” bread puns need to stop. He then played a clip from the Showgirl movie event in which Swift gets super excited about getting some of her bread into “The Fate of Ophelia” video, which she directed. “It was a huge moment for me because obviously my bread has always been for texture and taste, but this was for camera,” she joked. “This is a huge challenge, for me, for the bread, for my starter. Like, ‘okay, are you showbiz bread?’”

As for the Kravitz incident, the actress previously told Meyers about losing her mom Lisa Bonet’s pet Burmese python at Swift’s house after the singer generously invited the mother-daughter to stay with her during the L.A. wildfires earlier this year, and how they had to “completely” destroy one of the bathrooms to extricate the pet. Swift told Meyers she “can’t even be mad” about the bit, prefacing the “Taylor’s version” of the story by saying “we’ve all got that one friend.”

“I just remember getting a call from my head of security and him trying to explain this story to me,” Swift said, noting that her first question was “what snake?”

“I kind of found myself listening to this,” Swift said. “And I’m like, ‘Uh-huh, OK, OK.’ And I hate to first-and-last name a friend, but it’s important in this situation. OK, so Zoe Kravitz and Lisa Bonet are holding on to a Burmese python. It’s halfway in the wall. There’s a man standing with an ax, who has just chopped up a custom vintage antique cupboard. There’s splinters on the floor. They’re looking — in my mind, this is an Annie Leibovitz shoot… It just sound incredible. I’m sad I didn’t see it.”

Mayers had a special Tay/Kover blue mug on his desk and the entire night was devoted to Swift, with the host sprinting through is traditional “A Closer Look” segment to get to the main event. He also, super casually, asked about the invitations for her wedding to Kelce, which Swift, shockingly, said she had not even thought about it yet. Meyers, who graciously agreed to an Evite for the blessed event, then suggested Swift send the invites in a picture frame, since people will probably frame it up anyway.

Watch Swift on Late Night below.


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Grammy Award winner Kid Harpoon has been announced as Abbey Road Studio’s first-ever producer in residence (Oct. 9).

The songwriter and producer, born Thomas Hull, will have complete access to Abbey Road as his creative playground and studio home in the U.K., as well as its collection of vintage gear, microphones and instruments, and cutting-edge tech including music production software Audiomovers. He will also consult on the studios’ music tech and innovation work.

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Kid Harpoon’s songwriting and production career has included roles on critically acclaimed and commercially successful records. In 2023, Harry StylesHarry’s House, which featured Hull in an executive producer role, won the album of the year prize at the Grammys; a year later in 2024, Miley Cyrus’ “Flowers,” which he also produced, scooped the record of the year award. Elsewhere throughout his career he has contributed to music released by Shawn Mendes, Lizzo, Maggie Rogers, Florence + The Machine and, most recently, David Byrne.

“I’m beyond excited to become Producer in Residence at Abbey Road,” Hull said in a statement. “In this position, I’m hoping to use my experience to help guide some of the incredible up-and-coming talent we have in the UK while they navigate their way through what can be a difficult industry. Mark [Robertson, director of marketing & creative] and the team have a real desire to give back and develop new talent, which is something I’m really passionate about. To be able to contribute to the Abbey Road legacy in any way is an honour, and I can’t wait to get stuck in!”

Kid Harpoon is the latest resident of the iconic London recording studios, and joins artist in residence Jordan Rakei who has been in the role for 18 months. He will also contribute to the studios’ free educational programs, including Abbey Road Amplify, which is expanding to Manchester for the first time for a series of panels and studio workshops at Aviva Studios and the new adidas / Abbey Road studio in the Co-op Live arena (Nov. 18-21), as well as the London edition at the Abbey Road base (Nov. 5-8).

Speaking to Billboard U.K. managing director Sally Davies discussed her ambition to “turbo-charge” the next decade for the studios, which has hosted sessions by The Beatles, Pink Floyd and Oasis. “The music we make here is world-moving. It travels all over and makes people happy, and we should be shouting about that,” Davies said. “One of my main focuses is to share the breadth of what we do, and the level of ambition and innovation.”

Tyler, the Creator has been revealed as the first headliner for the 2026 edition of London’s All Points East festival.

The rapper will host a double-header takeover, performing on Aug. 28 and then again the following day on Aug. 29. He will be joined by a stacked bill of artists across the weekend, including Turnstile, Clipse, Danny Brown, Sexyy Red, Ravyn Lenae, and Baby Keem.

The other names confirmed to appear so far are: Mariah The Scientist, Yebba, Daniel Caesar, Fakemink, Vince Staples, Jean Dawson, Rochelle Jordan, Lovespells, AG Club, La Reezy, Mustard & Friends, Dijon, Ghostface Killah, Syd, Faye Webster, Jim Legxacy, Samara Cyn, Khamari, Mike, Quadeca, and Partyof2. See the event poster and day splits below.

Tickets for the event, which will take place in Victoria Park, go on sale on Oct. 17 at 10 a.m. (BST). Two-day tickets will be available as well as single day tickets, with more information available at the festival’s official website.

Earlier this year, Tyler scored his fourth consecutive No. 1 on the Billboard 200 with Don’t Tap The Glass. The album hit No. 2 on the Official U.K. Albums Chart, following an off-cycle drop on a Monday (July 21) rather than the global standard of releasing a new record on a Friday. 

The multi-hyphenate star previously topped the Billboard 200 with Chromakopia (2024), Call Me If You Get Lost (2021) and IGOR (2019). Later this year, he will make his feature film debut as he stars alongside Timothée Chalamet in the Josh Safdie-directed Marty Supreme, due for theatrical release on Dec. 25.

All Points East 2025 saw RAYE, Chase & Status, The Maccabees, Barry Can’t Swim and LCD Soundsystem top the bill across two weeks of shows. The annual event, which launched in 2018, has grown into one of the capital’s major summer festivals, welcoming 40,000 fans per night.


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As Taylor Swift’s The Life of a Showgirl continues to near the modern-era single-week album sales record, currently held by the debut week of Adele’s 25, the streams for The Life of a Showgirl keep piling up.

Historic Streaming Numbers: According to initial reports to data tracking firm Luminate, the tracks on The Life of a Showgirl have generated more than 460 million on-demand official streams in the United States since the album’s release on Oct. 3. There are multiple versions of album on streaming services: a standard 12-song edition, a track-by-track commentary edition that includes the 12 songs plus commentary tracks from Swift, and a track-by-track commentary edition that has Swift’s commentary and lyric videos for each of the songs.

The Life of a Showgirl already has 2025’s second-largest streaming week for an album, second only to the debut week of Morgan Wallen’s 37-song I’m the Problem, which bowed with 462.63 million for its tracks in May. The Life of a Showgirl is already among the top 10 all time-biggest streaming weeks for an album. Swift herself has the largest streaming week ever for an album, when The Tortured Poets Department’s 31 songs claimed 891.37 million streams in its opening week in 2024.

Sales Tracking: The sales continue to come in to Luminate for The Life of a Showgirl and it may soon topple Adele’s longstanding record for the largest sales week for an album in the modern era. Adele’s 25 debuted with 3.378 million copies sold in its first week in 2015 — the biggest sales week for any album since Luminate began tracking data in 1991 (when the modern era of music sales tabulation began).

Helping The Life of a Showgirl in the last few days of the tracking week are new iTunes Store-exclusive editions of the album that sold for $4.99 each, and for 24-hours only. She’s released three so far (one a day, starting Monday, through Wednesday) and all are adaptations of the four limited-edition CDs Swift released in her webstore over the weekend. The CDs each had the album’s 12 songs, plus two unique bonus tracks (acoustic/alternative versions of songs on the album). The iTunes Store versions carry the same tracklists as the CDs, but the iTunes versions add two unique voice memos to each album.

Currently, there are 32 different versions of The Life of a Showgirl powering its first-week sales (27 physical iterations [18 CDs, eight vinyl LPs and one cassette] and five download variants).

Life of a Showgirl’s official first-week numbers (equivalent album units, total traditional album sales and streaming figures) reflecting the tracking week of Oct. 3-9, are expected to be announced by Billboard on Sunday, Oct. 12, along with its assumed large debut on the multi-metric Billboard 200 albums chart (dated Oct. 18). Luminate’s sales, streaming and airplay data powers Billboard’s charts. All numbers cited in this story are for the U.S. only.

For all chart news, follow @billboard and @billboardcharts on both X (formerly Twitter) and Instagram. 

PREVIOUSLY (OCT. 8): Taylor Swift’s The Life of a Showgirl has now earned 3.5 million equivalent album units in the United States, according to initial reports to data tracking firm Luminate, since the album’s release on Oct. 3. Of that sum, traditional album sales (physical and digital purchases) equal 3.2 million copies, with the remaining 300,000 powered by streaming activity of the songs on the album.

Luminate’s current tracking week began on Friday, Oct. 3, and ends on Thursday, Oct. 9.

With 3.2 million copies sold, The Life of a Showgirl continues to near the record for the largest sales week for an album in the modern era (since 1991, when Luminate began electronically tracking music purchases). The modern-era single-week sales record is held by the opening week of Adele’s 25, when it debuted with 3.378 million copies sold in 2015.

However, as The Life of a Showgirl has earned 3.5 million equivalent album units, the album has now secured a new record for the largest week, by equivalent album units, for an album, since the Billboard 200 chart began ranking the week’s most popular albums by equivalent album units in Dec. 2014. The previous record was held by the debut week of Adele’s 25, which bowed with 3.482 million units on the Dec. 12, 2015 chart (mostly powered by the 3.378 million individual purchases of the album, with the remaining sum driven by track purchases and streaming).

Equivalent Album Units Explained: Each equivalent album 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. (None of the tracks from The Life of a Showgirl are available to purchase individually, so the album does not have any track sales contributing to its total thus far.)

The Billboard 200 transitioned from a pure album sales-based ranking to a multi-metric, units-based ranking, with the Dec. 13, 2014-dated chart. From that point forward, albums were ranked on the Billboard 200 by equivalent album units earned — meaning that in addition to album purchases counting towards an album’s chart placement, streams of songs from an album, as well as track purchases, would also contribute towards an album’s position on the weekly chart.

While the Billboard 200 has incorporated streams and track purchases since Dec. 2014, Billboard continues to publish weekly album sales-only charts, including the overall Top Album Sales chart (which ranks both current and older/catalog titles), and Top Current Album Sales.

PREVIOUSLY (OCT. 7): Taylor Swift’s The Life of a Showgirl has reached 3 million in traditional album sales (physical and digital purchases), across all versions of the album, according to initial reports to data tracking firm Luminate. On the album’s first day of release (Oct. 3), it cleared 2.7 million sold. After Showgirl’s first day, it captured the second-largest sales week for an album in the modern era — since Luminate began electronically tracking data in 1991. The only larger sales week in that span of time was registered by the opening frame of Adele’s 25, which sold 3.378 million copies in its first week in 2015.

Showgirl has earned over 3.2 million equivalent album units in the U.S. With 3.2 million equivalent album units earned, Showgirl already has the second-largest week, by equivalent album units, for any album since the Billboard 200 began ranking the week’s most popular albums by equivalent album units with the Dec. 13, 2014-dated chart. The largest week, by equivalent album units, for any album, in that span of time, was registered by the debut week of Adele’s 25, which launched with 3.482 million units on the Dec. 12, 2015 chart.

Showgirl got a mid-week boost with the release of four new CD variants of the album, exclusively sold through Swift’s official webstore. Available for a limited time, each CD had alternate cover art, the album’s 12 songs, plus two unique bonus tracks for each CD (alternate versions of songs from the album). These four CDs join 23 previously available physical versions of the album (across vinyl, CD and cassette) and two digital download editions (a standard wide version, and iTunes-exclusive version with a bonus video). Also helping Showgirl was a restock of a previously available deluxe CD boxed set, sold through Swift’s store, containing a branded cardigan sweater and a copy of the CD.

Swift herself has been on the promotional trail, chatting up the album on radio programs and sitting down for an interview on NBC’s The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon (Oct. 6). Her film Taylor Swift: The Official Release Party of a Showgirl barnstormed movie theaters over the Oct. 3-5 weekend, coming in atop the box office at U.S. and Canada movie theaters.

As for Showgirl’s streaming start – its 12 songs generated over 300 million on-demand official streams in its first two days in the U.S. (Oct. 3-4). Swift holds the record for the largest streaming week for an album, when The Tortured Poets Department debuted with 891.37 million on-demand official streams for the 31 songs on its deluxe edition in 2024.

The most-streamed song on Showgirl in its first two days is “The Fate of Ophelia,” with more than 48 million official on-demand steams. That number could grow significantly following the song’s official music video premiere on YouTube on Sunday, Oct. 5.

If The Life of a Showgirl debuts atop the Billboard 200, it will mark Swift’s 15th No. 1 album, lifting her past Drake and JAY-Z for the most No. 1 albums among soloists, and becoming the sole act with the second-most No. 1s. She is currently tied with Drake and JAY-Z with 14 No. 1s each, and only The Beatles, with 19 No. 1s, have more, dating to when the chart began publishing on a regular, weekly basis in 1956.

All 14 of Swift’s full-length studio albums and re-recorded projects from 2008’s Fearless (her second album) through 2024’s The Tortured Poets Department have debuted at No. 1.

PREVIOUSLY (OCT. 4): Taylor Swift’s The Life of a Showgirl album is off to a sparkling start in the United States. On its first day of release, Oct. 3, the set sold 2.7 million copies in traditional album sales (physical and digital purchases) across all versions of the album, according to initial reports to data tracking firm Luminate. That marks Swift’s biggest week ever, and the second-largest sales week for any album in the modern era — since Luminate began electronically tracking data in 1991. The only larger sales week in that span of time was registered by the opening frame of Adele’s 25, which sold 3.378 million copies in its first week in 2015.

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Showgirl also stuns with a new modern-era record (1991-present) for the most copies of a vinyl album sold in a single week, having already sold 1.2 million copies on wax. That breaks the single-week record, set by Swift in 2024, when her last album, The Tortured Poets Department, sold 859,000 copies on vinyl in its first week.

Further news of first-week building sales and streaming activity for the album, as provided by Luminate, will be reported in the coming days.

The Life of a Showgirl was announced on Aug. 12, and Swift’s official webstore began taking preorders for the album soon after. The set was issued as a widely available streaming edition and in three widely available versions to purchase across all participating retailers (a standard CD, vinyl and digital download album). There is a plethora of further variants of the album to purchase, with more details on the assorted versions later in this story.

Sales Story: The 2.7 million-sales number registered for Showgirl is inclusive of both over-the-counter and download purchases of the album made on Oct. 3, in addition to what is assumed to be a large number of pre-orders of the physical album through Internet retailers (such as Swift’s webstore, Amazon, Target, etc.) shipped to customers for arrival on release day, as well as pre-orders of the digital download album that were redeemed on release day (via the iTunes Store and other similar sellers).

After one day on sale, The Life of a Showgirl is the top-selling album of 2025 in the U.S., surpassing the 520,000 sold of The Weeknd’s Hurry Up Tomorrow, through the week ending Sept. 25.

The Life of a Showgirl’s sales are bolstered by its availability across 23 different physical configurations: 12 CDs, eight vinyl LPs, two deluxe CD boxed sets containing branded clothing and a CD, and a cassette. Four of the physical editions were exclusively sold by Target stores in the U.S. (three CDs and one vinyl), while two (a standard CD and vinyl) were available to purchase at all participating retailers.

Of the remaining 17 physical iterations, all were exclusively sold via Swift’s webstore, and most were sold for limited windows of time since the preorder launched in August. Her store carried the two deluxe CD boxed sets (one contains a branded cardigan sweater and a CD, the other contains a branded crewneck and a CD); four signed CDs; four deluxe CDs in premium packaging containing a collectible charm and photo cards; six vinyl LPs; and the cassette.

On the digital download side, there is a standard digital download available to purchase through all download sellers, as well as an iTunes Store-exclusive version that comes with a short bonus video. (Of note, none of the tracks from the album are available to purchase individually.)

To compare, Swift’s last studio album, The Tortured Poets Department, had 19 different physical iterations available in its first week (nine CDs, six vinyl LPs and four cassettes) and two digital download versions (the standard 16-song album, and the surprise deluxe 31-song Anthology edition).

Vinyl Victory: Collectively, the eight vinyl LPs for Showgirl combined to sell 1.2 million copies on the album’s first day of release — immediately breaking the modern-era record for the most vinyl copies of an album sold in a single week. Swift herself previously held the record with 859,000 copies of Poets sold in its first week.

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Million-Sellers Club: Even though we’re only one day down into the tracking week, The Life of a Showgirl sashays into the single-week million-sellers club. With 2.7 million already sold, Showgirl has the second-largest sales week of the modern era (1991-present). It stands behind only the opening week of Adele’s 25, which bowed with 3.378 million sold in 2015.

Showgirl is the eighth Swift album to have sold at least 1 million copies in a single week, following the debuts of Poets, 1989 (Taylor’s Version), Midnights, reputation, the original 1989, Red and Speak Now. She is the only act with eight different albums to each sell at least 1 million copies in a single week in the modern era. In total, there have been 27 instances — by 25 different albums — in which an album sold at least 1 million copies in a week in the modern era. One of those albums, Adele’s 25 sold more than 1 million in three separate weeks.


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