This week’s Billboard 200 chart, dated January 18, 2025, promises a fierce battle for the top spot. Two major new releases – Lil Baby’s WHAM and Bad Bunny’s Debí Tirar Más Fotos – are competing to unseat SZA’s SOS, a long-running chart favorite.
Lil Baby – WHAM
Atlanta rapper Lil Baby, one of the biggest names in hip-hop, released his new album WHAM on January 2. The title stands for “Who Hard as Me” and features 15 fresh tracks. Collaborations with big artists like Future, Young Thug, 21 Savage, Travis Scott, GloRilla, and Rod Wave add star power to the album. The deluxe edition, available on Lil Baby’s website for $4.99, includes four extra songs. Fans can also buy CDs and merch bundles for additional perks.
Streaming numbers for WHAM are strong, especially on Apple Music, where several tracks remain in the top 100. The single “Dum, Dumb and Dumber,” featuring Future and Young Thug, is already a standout. If the album claims the No. 1 spot, it will be Lil Baby’s fourth chart-topping album, following My Turn (2020), The Voice of the Heroes (2021), and It’s Only Me (2022).
Bad Bunny – Debí Tirar Más Fotos
Bad Bunny’s new album, Debí Tirar Más Fotos (I Should Have Taken More Photos), dropped on January 5. The 17-track project explores Puerto Rican genres like salsa and plena, offering a more personal and cultural sound. Unlike his previous releases, this album features fewer collaborations and no big-name artists.
While the album has done well on streaming platforms, it hasn’t produced a major hit yet, and its release date – a Sunday – means it lost two days of tracking for its first week. However, with a digital price of $4.99, Bad Bunny’s fanbase could still push the album high on the chart. His last three albums all reached No. 1, making him a strong contender.
SZA – SOS (Deluxe Edition)
SZA’s SOS is still dominating the Billboard 200 more than a year after its release. Its deluxe edition, LANA, added 14 new songs, including the Kendrick Lamar collaboration “30 for 30.” The deluxe release helped the album return to No. 1 at the start of 2025.
With consistent six-figure weekly sales, SOS remains a tough competitor. For Lil Baby or Bad Bunny to claim the top spot, they’ll need to beat an album that has stayed a fan favorite since 2022.
