Taylor Swift’s ‘Folklore’ is already the year’s biggest album release…in just three days

Taylor Swift’s Folklore is going gangbusters around the globe, with the pop superstar’s surprise release busting several records en route to what should be a massive opening week.

In the United States, the album has clocked up 500,000 equivalent album units in its first three days of release, according to new data from Nielsen Music/MRC Data, published overnight by Billboard.

Folklore is on track to hit the magical one-million sales mark in its first week, the benchmark for a mega-hit album release.

In just half a week, it’s already notched up the biggest week for any release this year in the U.S., the world’s biggest music market.

Taylor Swift

Since Nielsen SoundScan tracking began on March 1, 1991, just 20 or so albums have managed seven figures in its first seven days.

Swift has done it on several occasions, with 1989, Reputation, and Red. The all-time record is Adele’s 25, a huge CD-selling set which punched up 3,378,000 units in week one.

On the other side of the Atlantic, it’s all about TayTay as Folklore takes pole position in the U.K. chart race.

At the halfway point in the chart week, it’s outperforming the rest of the Top 5 combined, according to the Official Charts Company, and should steamroll its way to Swift’s fifth No. 1.

Three Folklore tunes are on track for the U.K. top ten, led by ‘Cardigan,’ new at No. 4 on the midweek chart.

Check out Taylor Swift’s ‘Cardigan’:

It’s the same tale in Australia, where Folklore has sprinted ahead in the chart race.

Almost certainly it will open at No. 1 on the ARIA Albums Chart, giving TayTay a sixth leader following Speak Now (2010), Red (2012), 1989 (2014), Reputation (2017) and Lover (2019).

Swift gave the world just 24 hours’ notice of her eighth and latest album release. And when it arrived last Friday (July 24), it literally flew on streaming services.

On day one, the album shifted 1.3 million copies around the world, according to Universal Music Group.

In that time, it smashed the global record for first-day album streams on Spotify by a female artist with 80.6 million plays, and set a new record for most-streamed pop album on Apple Music in 24 hours, with 35.47 million plays.

It also set new marks in the U.S. and worldwide for ”Indie/Alternative” album streams on Amazon Music.

Taylor is holding back on Swifties. A bonus track, ‘The Lakes,’ appears only on physical copies which, right now, are only available for shipping from the singer’s website.

A wider release on CD and vinyl will come a little down the line, ensuring Folklore gets a second wave at the top of international sales charts.

Folklore was recorded in isolation and is Swift’s first album release since her very public row with Big Machine chief Scott Borchetta and artist manager Scooter Braun.

This article originally appeared on The Industry Observer, which is now part of The Music Network.