Is Suga’s Mixtape Headed Toward A Top 10 Debut?
by Hugh McIntyre
For weeks, BTS member Suga teased his fans that he had new music coming, but he never gave too much away. This led his followers to wonder if a new album, mixtape, EP, or possibly just another one-off track was headed their way, and then just a few days ago, they were given their answer, and it was exactly what many had suggested and what all were hoping for.
Suga’s sophomore mixtape D-2 arrived with little proper warning, and fans around the world rushed to press play on streaming services to hear what he’s been working on in the years since he released his first project on his own. Now, just days after it was unveiled, it looks like the set may be headed toward a lofty debut.
The set, released under Suga’s alter ego Agust D, stands a chance at landing inside the top 10 on the Billboard 200 after its first full frame has passed. Released this past Friday (May 22), the set has until the end of this coming Thursday (May 28) in which to rack up as many streams and sales as possible, and it’s already looking pretty good for the title.
According to weekly projections shared by music industry outlet HitsDailyDouble, D-2 seems like it may shift upwards of 30,000 or even 35,000 equivalent copies. That’s a very healthy sum for any title performed primarily in a language other than English, and it might wind up being enough to send the release straight into the loftiest arena on the Billboard 200.
This week, the titles that rank at Nos. 6 through 10 on the all-genre albums chart all moved under 40,000 equivalent units, with the last two managing about 35,000.
Only two newly-released titles, Gunna’s Wunna and The 1975’s Notes on a Conditional Form, are expected to debut inside the top 10 as well, and both will outpace the Korean superstar’s latest. Suga’s (or Agust D’s) success depends largely on how older titles perform, as sometimes 30,000 equivalent copies is enough for an album to rise to No. 8, 9 or 10, while in other frames, it’s not enough for a project to enter the highest tier at all.
Whether D-2 makes it to the top 10 or not, it is bound to debut in a position that is historically significant, given the musician’s background and that he performs primarily in Korean.