Jack Harlow has been embroiled in some controversy as of late, thanks to his comments made on The New York Times' music show, Popcast. During this interview, he said that he "Got Blacker" with his new album, Monica.
This new project is in the R&B and Neo-Soul lane, although fans don't feel as though he has the chops for these genres. Meanwhile, his "Got Blacker" comments came across as tone deaf. At the end of the day, no one wants to hear a white rapper say something like that.
In the midst of this controversy, the album has been getting dragged through the mud on social media. Furthermore, reviewers like Anthony Fantano and publications like Pitchfork have given the album some pretty brutal ratings. With that in mind, fans have been curious what the first week's sales numbers would look like. After all, poorly rated albums have gone on to have commercial success.
Unfortunately, for Harlow, that is not going to be the case here. Instead, the artist is on track for a rough debut.
"Monica" First Week Sales Projections
According to Kurrco, the album is set to debut outside of the Billboard 200's Top 20. For an artist of Harlow's size, this is a stunning development. As for the sales figures, it appears as though Harlow will hover around 25K units. Considering he sold 113K with Come Home The Kids Miss You, Harlow is on a steep decline.
The album's sound just did not appeal to his hardcore fans. This is not what they listen to him for. Meanwhile, others felt alienated by his comments leading up to the release of the album. For these two reasons, Harlow is finding himself at a crossroads.
Of course, this isn't exactly the end of Harlow's career. There is still time for a comeback. He could apologize for his comments and return with an album that appeals to those core fans. For now, however, he will simply have to stew on this, and consider where things went wrong.
