Beyoncé hit a new record on iTunes Store this month following the surprise launch of the singer's latest album, which sold more than 800,000 copies in just three days of its release.
Apple announced on Monday that Beyoncé's self-titled fifth album, which is exclusively available on iTunes, has sold 617,213 copies in the U.S. setting a new U.S. first week album sales record, and making it the fastest selling album in its history.
The 14-track album, which includes 17 videos, has been billed as a "visual album" by the singer and her label. It has topped the iTunes charts in 104 countries and outperformed the singer's fourth album. "Beyoncé" has so far sold 828,773 copies while "4" sold only 310,000 copies in its first week of its release two years ago.
The surprise release of the album defied standard marketing strategies in the music industry particularly in how Beyoncé and Columbia did not supply a single copy to radio stations in advance. Radio programmers seized the chance to air the new songs anyway after buying the album from iTunes.
John Sykes, president for entertainment enterprises at Clear Channel, which operates about 850 stations, said that thousands of radio stations were playing Beyoncé's new songs day and night. "It made people rush to the radio," he said in an interview.
Explaining the surprise release, Beyoncé said in a statement released alongside the album that she didn't want to release her music the way she has done it before. "I am bored with that. I feel like I am able to speak directly to my fans. There's so much that gets between the music, the artist and the fans. I felt like I didn't want anybody to give the message when my record is coming out. I just want this to come out when it's ready and from me to my fans," she said.
The album is priced at $15.99 and is available in both clean and explicit versions. It is initially available as a complete package but Apple says that consumers will be able to purchase individual songs starting December 20. The iTunes exclusive will also expire on that date but it isn't' clear yet if the album will hit streaming services such as Spotify or it if will only be available for sale from other digital stores such as Amazon and Google Play.
