Ye’s long-running streak of topping the Billboard 200 came to an unfortunate end as his latest collaboration with Ty Dolla Sign, VULTURES 2, debuted at No. 2.
Taylor Swift’s THE TORTURED POETS DEPARTMENT reclaimed the No. 1 spot for its 14th non-consecutive week. According to the publication on Sunday (Aug. 11), it sold an additional 142,000 album-equivalent units.
VULTURES 2 sold 107,000 units in its first week and could’ve been Ye’s 12th project to land the top spot on the Billboard 200 if not for Swift. The 16-track effort contained contributions from Lil Wayne, Kodak Black, Don Toliver, Future, Lil Durk and Playboi Carti, among others. Standout cuts included “FIELD TRIP,” the Young Thug-assisted “RIVER,” “530” and “BOMB,” which saw North West rapping in Japanese.
VULTURES 2 notably experienced numerous delays before it eventually hit streaming platforms. The project was originally slated to come out on March 8, then May 3, as announced on Justin Laboy’s “The Download” podcast the month prior. On top of that, the LP missed its scheduled Aug. 9 release date, instead dropping hours after midnight the following day (Aug. 10).
Had the album debuted on time, it’s very possible that Ye and Ty Dolla Sign could’ve scored another chart-topper.
During an interview with Billboard, the “Or Nah” singer spoke about the body of work, which was intended to be shared via a Yeezy app. “Why not? Switch it up. [Ye’s] always got something up his sleeve. I always got [something] up my sleeve,” Ty Dolla Sign explained. “We got all the songs. Basically, it’s just like, ‘How can we get it there? How can we go bigger than the first album?’”
The duo’s first installment, VULTURES 1, landed at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 chart in February. Its standout cut “CARNIVAL” featuring Playboi Carti and Rich The Kid also topped the Hot 100.