Pure album sales refer to the number of physical albums sold, excluding digital downloads and streaming. In other words, it represents the actual copies of the album purchased and distributed on physical formats like CDs or vinyl records.
Having started his career in the pre-streaming era, Eminem has had to rely entirely on this type of sales for quite some time. His classic albums were only available on physical copies. And if now music fans buy them to have a tangible connection to Marshall’s music, back then, the physical copy was the only possible connection, full stop.
Eminem’s incredible catalogue of music, featuring hits like “Lose Yourself”, “The Real Slim Shady”, and “Stan”, has resonated with fans worldwide for decades. His ability to blend storytelling, technical skills, and social commentary has made him one of the greatest rappers ever.
So, it is no wonder that starting from his early years and continuing into the 21st century, Eminem managed to sell 50 million pure albums, more than any other rapper ever did.
Em’s recent album, “The Death of Slim Shady”, has not yet contributed to this number. The project debuted at No.1 on the Billboard 200 chart, with 281,000 album equivalent units sold in its first week of release. However, we are still waiting for the physical copies to make an impact on the album sales.
