Shenseea’s album “Alpha” debuted at No. 2 on the Billboard Reggae Albums Chart despite reporting solid first-week sales.
The 14 track project, which was released less than two weeks ago on March 11, continues to make waves as the “Trending Gyal” artiste transitions from the local Dancehall genre to the international art of Pop.
Alpha, which was released via Rich Immigrants/Interscope Records, reported 4,900 album-equivalent units in the United States during the first week of its release, according to data from Luminate tracking service. This includes pure album sales of 800 copies. Alpha’s total first-week numbers include 2,000 copies in song sales, 4,616,400 in on-demand audio streams, and 750,600 in on-demand video streams.
Shenseea has received raved reviews from fans and critics alike for her effort. “Alpha” provides the best first-week numbers since Popcaan’s “Fixtape” in 2020, when compared to other recent Dancehall/Reggae albums.
However, this was still not enough to dethrone King of Reggae Bob Marley And The Wailers Legend sits in the Number 1 position for the 115th consecutive week. The 1984 hits collection moved 2,968 units in pure album sales and has an overall sales of 11,162 (including streams) over the last week.
Still, fans believe there’s more success to come and accolades to gain for Shenseea’s Alpha. The album has so far found favor with its subjects and debuted at Number 1 on iTunes Top 100 Reggae Albums chart 24 hours after its release.
Alpha features collaborations from Sean Paul, Beenie Man, Megan Thee Stallion, Tyga, Offset, and 21 Savage and includes work from a slew of hit-making producers such as London On Da Track, Dr. Luke, Murda Beatz, Rvssian, and Supa Dups.
Shenseea has been enjoying a wave of international recognition, which has been boosting her dream to transition to Pop. The Guardian has described the artiste’s iTunes debut as heralding “Jamaican dancehall’s next big crossover star.”
But first, the ShenYeng boss may have to overcome a legal battle, as she and Interscope Records are being sued for 10 million dollars for an alleged copyright infringement over “Lick” featuring Megan Thee Stallion. The lawsuit was filed on March 3 by Anastas Theodore Hackett, who claimed that “Lick” copied his song “Work” without approval and licensing.
In a now-deleted Tweet that was made on Saturday (March 19), Shenseea insinuated that the reports were untrue.
“Y’all still stupid for believing any and ANYTHING bro,” she said.
As that story unfolds, Shenseea continues to reap the rewards from her debut album and enjoy her rise to international stardom.
