Yesterday (Aug. 29), initial first-week sales projections for Lil Wayne's "Tha Carter IV" were hovering in the 700,000-850,000 range, but now, after a full day's worth of sales under its belt, that number has grown. Industry sources now suggest the album may shift over 850,000-900,000 by week's end on Sept. 4.
The album, released yesterday at 12 AM, will undoubtedly hit No. 1 on the Billboard 200 next week, marking Wayne's third chart-topper.
If "Carter IV" shifts 850,000 or more, it will instantly mark the biggest sales week for a hip-hop album (or one by a male artist), since his own "Carter III" bowed with 1.01 million on the June 28, 2008 chart according to Nielsen SoundScan.
"Carter III" is one of only 17 albums to have sold a million or more in one week since SoundScan began tracking data in 1991.
"Carter IV" follows a pair of top-two sets for Wayne in 2010: "Rebirth" (No. 2) and "I Am Not a Human Being" (No. 1). They launched with 176,000 and 110,000 copies, respectively.
