Taylor Swift’s ‘Tortured Poets Department’ makes gigantic debut at No. 1 with her career-best first-week sales

Taylor Swift’s latest album “The Tortured Poets Department” is indeed the blockbuster that many expectedit to become.

Taylor Swift’s latest album “The Tortured Poets Department” is indeed the blockbuster that many expected it to become. On Sunday, the 31-song double album debuted at No. 1 on the all-encompassing Billboard 200 albums chart, selling 2.61 million so-called equivalent album units in the U.S. in the week ending April 25, according to Billboard. Traditional album sales (including purchases of digital download albums, CDs, vinyl LPs and cassettes) account for 1.914 million of that total, the publication said on Sunday. “My mind is blown. I’m completely floored by the love you’ve shown this album,” Swift said in an Instagram post. “2.6 million ARE YOU ACTUALLY SERIOUS?? Thank you for listening, streaming, and welcoming Tortured Poets into your life. Feeling completely overwhelmed.” “Tortured Poets” is Swift’s 14th album to claim the top spot. She is now tied with Jay-Z for the second-most No. 1 albums by a recording artist, both artists being just a handful of steps behind The Beatles’ 19 top albums. Swift also has the most No. 1 albums on the Billboard 200 albums chart among female recording artists. The achievements are even more impressive when you consider that 14 of Swift’s 15 albums (11 studio albums + four re-recorded “Taylor’s Version” releases) have claimed the No. 1 spot. Her 2006 self-titled debut album peaked at No. 5. Along with the album’s chart-topping performance, Swift marked her biggest first-week sales to date with the album. That honor previously belonged to “1989 (Taylor’s Version),” which sold 1.359 million copies in the US in its first week last year.