TobyMac Is First Christian Act To Debut At No. 1 Overall in 15 Years
TobyMac’s latest album debuted at No. 1 on SoundScan’s all-genre chart yesterday (9/5) with sales of 69k units. With this accomplishment, he becomes the third Christian artist ever in the top spot, and the first Christian act since 1997 at the overall album pinnacle. Eye On It sold 35k digital downloads, which accounted for half of the debut week sales.
EMI CMG artist TobyMac, a former member of hitmaking CCM act DC Talk, has twice placed other albums in the top 10 of the Billboard 200.
NARM President Jim Donio commented, “This week, TobyMac joined LeAnn Rimes and Bob Carlisle as the only three Christian artists in history to top the Billboard charts. TobyMac’s Eye on It became the first Christian album to hit No. 1 since 1997, but note there have been three recent No. 2 debuts from Casting Crowns, Red, and David Crowder Band in 2011 and 2012, showing the genre’s growing strength. In addition, according to Nielsen’s data, 27% of TobyMac’s sales were driven by Christian retailers and book stores, illustrating these outlets’ impact for this genre.”
The 1997 hit albums included Rimes’ You Light Up My Life–Inspirational Songs and Carlisle’s Butterfly Kisses (Shades of Grace).
