SIGN O’ THE TIMES

Prince No. 1 on Billboard Top 200 Chart

Fans bought enough music in half of one day to hit mark.

Prince’s albums The Very Best of Prince and Purple Rain topped the Billboard 200 albums chart almost immediately following the rock and R&B legend’s untimely death at age 57. After the Purple One passed away Thursday—the final day of that week’s album-sales tracking—fans rushed to purchase enough of his music in just a half-day that the aforementioned records qualified for the two highest-selling albums of the week. The Very Best ranked No. 1 with 179,000 units sold, and his 1984 soundtrack Purple Rain sold 69,000 units. Additionally, Prince’s 1993 box set The Hits/The B-Sides entered the top 10 with 41,000 units sold. According to Billboard, the late singer’s massive posthumous sales come not just as a reflection of his popularity but also of his music’s limited availability for streaming online.