chance the rapper partynextdoor chart with free mixtapes
Chance the Rapper's "Acid Rap" cracks the Heatseekers chart -- even though the MC's not selling the new mixtape.
Two acts have cracked the Heatseekers chart even as their releases are also available for free.
In the case of Chance the Rapper, his much-hyped "Acid Rap" mixtape reached No. 26 on the Heatseekers chart with 800 units sold, according to Nielsen SoundScan. However, the MC hasn't made the release commercially available himself: while available for physical purchase on Amazon and other retailers via the label MTC, distributed by Houston, Texas' 1Stop, Chance's management tells Billboard they're not responsible. The rapper remains unsigned, and "Acid Rap" was released for free (via ChanceRaps.com) in part due to rights issues stemming from guest appearances and samples. A similarly bootleg iTunes release of the mixtape was taken down.
PARTYNEXTDOOR's self-titled mixtape notches an official success, however, with the retail version moving 1,600 copies and bowing at No. 6 on Heatseekers this week. As with Chance, the mixtape is also available for free download alongside its retail release on Drake's OVO Sound label.
Download figures for the acts' free editions were not available. However, PARTYNEXTDOOR's release is a streaming hit on SoundCloud, with the track "Over Here," featuring Drake, nearly up to 900,000 plays.