Anybody else surprised Will sold 600k so far?

[bigted]

I think once "Party Starter" is out in full effect, the sales for the album'll improve a lil' bit or at least it'll stay on the charts and it'll have a chance to go platinum once the tour comes along in the fall, that'd also help boost some sales too, it's good though that Will's had all this success selling 600,000 with the weakest song on his album 'cause other rappers over the past years have released many singles and could barely sell that amount, even younger rappers coming out but time is also a factor against Will, even Michael Jackson has had the same problem with his sales and he's the king of music, "Thriller" sold 30 million and his last album "Invincible" only sold 5 million, nobody stays popular forever and some never get popular at all, not every rapper could say that have an album sellin' as much as "Big Willie Style", that's one of the highest sellin' of all-time, talent wise Will is still in his prime in fact he's improving some too, "Born To Reign" was one of the better albums in '02 too even though it wasn't one of his better ones some of us might say, "Lost and Found" deserves much better but so did "Code Red" also, but at the end of the day at least Will's still in the game.

[Jazzy Julie]

im not surprised either and as long as the sales are better than b2r im quite happy. I think we have a lot more sale spurts in the future tho, lost and found is no where near its full selling potential.

[MaxFly]

If you had asked me this question in June, I would have been surprised that Will hasn't sold more by this point.

I aslo don't understand why people keep drawing comparisons to Born 2 Reign when Lost and Found outsold Born 2 Reign in its third week... Born 2 Reign was an anomaly, but I feel that people use Born 2 Reign as a form of measure for how Lost and Found is doing...

[bigted]

Well it's easier to compare "Lost and Found" to "Born To Reign" sales wise 'cause it was his last album, it's hard to compare the progress of "Lost and Found" to the progress of "Big Willie Style" 'cause that was a few albums ago and it ain't '97 anymore, even the Backstreet Boys went from selling 13 million to selling 500,000 since then, any artist from any music genre has a tough time staying relevant. Will's sellin' more than any rapper who was popular out at that time too, I doubt Busta Rhymes is gonna sell that much with his new album either when it comes out and Wyclef's sales fell off dramatically too since he released "The Carnival", KRS-ONE went gold at that time too and he hasn't come close that since and he's been releasing albums mostly every year, Will's been one of the most consistant sellin' in hip-hop history and it's even more amazing that he's done it this well not releasing albums every year, Ludacris and Jay-Z only stay relevant 'cause they release albums every year even though gradually they're gonna lose popularity too with new rappers coming along, but then again Will topping the box office has always kept him in the public spotlight too you could say, even selling only a few hundred thousand each album is being consistant 'cause some go from platinum with a few hit songs to selling 90,000 and not having a hit song getting airplay.

Edited August 18, 2005 by bigted

[Turntable]

It's a lil' dissapointing to not see Will at the top of the charts since I'm a fan but in perspective there's a lot of rappers like Fat Joe, Memphis Bleek, and Cassidy that'd love to be selling 600,000 since their albums are floppin' badly, 600,000 is respectable for today's standards of the rap game but no doubt I wish it was doin' "Big Willie Style" numbers 'cause this deserves to be called one of Will's best albums and not be underrated like "Code Red", most rappers on their 9th album or more are barely sellin' 100,000 except for LL Cool J, so this is an accomplishment.

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That`s a word...

[MaxFly]

Well it's easier to compare "Lost and Found" to "Born To Reign" sales wise 'cause it was his last album, it's hard to compare the progress of "Lost and Found" to the progress of "Big Willie Style" 'cause that was a few albums ago and it ain't '97 anymore, even the Backstreet Boys went from selling 13 million to selling 500,000 since then, any artist from any music genre has a tough time staying relevant. Will's sellin' more than any rapper who was popular out at that time too, I doubt Busta Rhymes is gonna sell that much with his new album either when it comes out and Wyclef's sales fell off dramatically too since he released "The Carnival", KRS-ONE went gold at that time too and he hasn't come close that since and he's been releasing albums mostly every year, Will's been one of the most consistant sellin' in hip-hop history and it's even more amazing that he's done it this well not releasing albums every year, Ludacris and Jay-Z only stay relevant 'cause they release albums every year even though gradually they're gonna lose popularity too with new rappers coming along, but then again Will topping the box office has always kept him in the public spotlight too you could say, even selling only a few hundred thousand each album is being consistant 'cause some go from platinum with a few hit songs to selling 90,000 and not having a hit song getting airplay.

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I think that's the problem. We're comparing Lost and Found to a far inferior album just because it was it was his last album. As a result, anything Lost and Found does will be an accomplishment because the standard is Born 2 Reign. We're setting the bar too low. I understand your reservations about comparing it to Big Willie Style, but no one is making that comparison, certainly not me. Instead, why don't we draw comparisons to Willenium's sales... or an average between the sales of Willenium and B2R if you want to be even more accurate. Why don't we set the bar at a reasonable level. Born 2 Reign isn't a reasonable level. It was an anomaly. We do Lost and Found a disservice in setting the bar at such average levels... Lost and Found a great deal more than average...

I also think people are looking at the drop in album sales as a natural progression... It certainly doesn't have to be... Lost and Found has proven that so far. Largely, the reason Born 2 Reign didn't do well was because it wasn't that good. Lost and Found... being very good, is doing better. If Will's next album is even better than Lost and Found and more widely accepted than Lost and Found has been, I expect it to enjoy better sales.

Also, the thing with a lot of music stars is that they do the same things over and over again. They address the same subjects and they don't reinvent themselves. As a result, their music becomes banal very quickly... We've heard the backstreet boys croon the same themes so often, the novelty of it is lost. All musicians will progressively notice a drop in their sales from album to album because the masses love a new act... a new comer... But I think an artist like will can stymie that decline by doing what he did with Lost and Found... Talk about totally new subjects... things that don't fit the "Will Smith" mold. It keeps the artist more interesting... Artists tend to want to do the same kinds of songs that have earned them success in the past... things that have been proven in the industry... But the flip side of that is that there is only so long until when they do becomes boring and people lose interest in them....

That's doesn't have to be Will... and we shouldn't expect that....

[bigted]

I'd say that "Born To Reign" was better quality than "Nellyville" and "The Eminem Show" albums that were selling millions at that time, it just wasn't promoted at all like those were and that's why it didn't sell much, I actually read people giving good reviews of "Born To Reign" on amazon.com. You're right a lot of artists do get boring after a while and that's what has kept him in the game, I think Will always comes back with something fresh that attracts the fans for buying the albums. "Willenium" sold its sales of the success of "Will 2K" and "Freakin' It", which weren't as big of hits as "Switch" was which tells you that more people download albums now than back then, even if "Party Starter" takes off it might not do "Willenium" numbers, "Will 2K" only made up to #25 and "Freakin' It" flopped at #99, even "Party Starter" at #65 is already more successful than that even without the video already, lol, if it was '99 "Lost and Found" would be at 4 million already and 50 Cent would be at 10 million with all of singles out, people download him too, it's a different time now. We could compare it to "Code Red" too to compare quality albums with each other, JJFP released FIVE singles and it still only sold 200,000 and that was 12 years ago where people thought that JJFP were finished and that Will would just go into acting and leave music forever, the biggest miracle in music history was that he was able to bounce back and sell 10 million+ with "Big Willie Style" where he released singles 6 months apart from each other too on top of that, and now flash forward to 2005 in seeing Will triple sales of "Born To Reign" no matter how bad some of us might say it was I'd say yes sellin' 600,000 now this late in his rap career is amazing, it's gonna be platinum by the end of the year most likely too, people take Will's success for granted but nobody in hip-hop has done what he's done.

Edited August 19, 2005 by bigted

[MaxFly]

Ted, if you went to Amazon.com, you'd find good reviews for The Massacre and Who Is Mike Jones...

I honestly think you're just searching for excuses to praise mediocrity. What Lost and Found has sold now is mediocre compared to what it could have and should have reasonably sold by now. We can slice it and dice it however we want, but that point is the common denominator...

We can provide many theories for why Lost and Found should be right where it is now, but none of them stand up under scrutiny.

All of this is likely no fault of Will's, but the fact remains that at this point, Lost and Found had the potential to sell better than it has. It hasn't lived up to it's potential. Though I'm happy it didn't flop like Born 2 Reign, I won't use Born 2 Reign as its meausuring stick... It deserves more than that.

[Frenetic]

This whole debate feels so boring.. That's why I don't give a damn anymore.. i'm just waitin for the video. Don't think the album will do more than 800k even with Tell me why ( if it'll be released)

[bigted]

Well let's be real, there's people out there that do like 50 Cent and Mike Jones, that's why they're popular, so you think "Born To Reign" is as bad as their albums? It was Will's worst album but come on, it wasn't the worst album in hip-hop history, if he promoted it at least as much as he promoted "Lost and Found", it'd gone gold officially, not shipped gold. Will could release 5 singles on "Lost and Found" like "Code Red" and it still might not outsell 50 Cent and Eminem, it's not a guarantee that it would, gangsta rap is the style now ever since "The Chronic" and Will doesn't appeal to that fanbase, "Big Willie Style" was the one miracle he performed after a flopped album that might not ever happen again but "Lost and Found" improving a lil' bit over "Born To Reign" is good enough for me and I'm done talkin' about it.

Edited August 19, 2005 by bigted

[Hero1]

maxfly albums sales arent that big at the moment.. if you look at a lot of artists sales at the minute gold is a good achievement.. how many albums are released in a year? and how many go gold? a small percentage.. lets not downplay gold as a solid achievement.. I think and want Lost & Found to do a lot better, but with the resistance Will faced from previous fans radio music video channels he came back from a long way.. Born to reign just didnt sell 220, 000 but it was released over 3 years ago.. 3 years is an eternity in the music industry..you are quickly forgotten.. before lost & found people were saying.."will should stick to acting" "why would he bother releasing music" "who cares about wills music anymore" many many people were counting him out.. so after 20 years.. Gold is good :word:

[MaxFly]

maxfly albums sales arent that big at the moment.. if you look at a lot of artists sales at the minute gold is a good achievement..  how many albums are released in a year? and how many go gold? a small percentage.. lets not downplay gold as a solid achievement.. I think and want Lost & Found to do a lot better, but with the resistance Will faced from previous fans radio music video channels he came back from a long way.. Born to reign just didnt sell 220, 000 but it was released over 3 years ago.. 3 years is an eternity in the music industry..you are quickly forgotten.. before lost & found people were saying.."will should stick to acting" "why would he bother releasing music" "who cares about wills music anymore" many many people were counting him out.. so after 20 years.. Gold is good  :word:

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No problem with gold. It is an achievement... But at the same time it kinda doesn't surprise me that Lost and Found reached gold... I expected it to reach gold at an earlier point and 600k at an earlier point. Will did receive resistance prior to Lost and Found, but Lost and Found recieved quite a bit of critical acclaim in the legitimate hip hop circles upon its release...

Sigh... where's the Party Starter video... :ithinkimkanye:

[rcpbball30]

On one hand, I think with better promotion, yes, Lost and Found could have sold more by now. On the other hand, going gold, especially today, is a good accomplishment. Downloading has really killed album sales all around. It's a good comeback from Born To Reign, and one of the best hip-hop albums of all time, at the same time. I think the reason that we are disappointed with sales is because it is so good, a lot of people will just not take Will seriously. It's like a half-empty, half-full kind of thing, its just the way you want to look at things.

[Fresh-Ta-Def]

will has done a very good job staying relevant i mean 600k is great check album sales look at fatjoe and his sales he deserves more then that he put out one of the biggest singles "lean back" and it didnt help the terror squad album at all. will is very good at doing what he does and i respect him for saying my albums are for the people who listen. i mean i see people with 3-4 "massacre" albums 1 for car, 1 for home, 1 for cds, and what ever, its mainstream its playable anywhere. Wills music has its own genere, "just a cd naw man a peice of me!" see people listen to mainstream alot more nowadays like uncle phill said in fresh prince "before you judge somebody you get to know them" if people concidered doing this with music then will would obviously be selling alot. what i dont get is why record sales mean so much in the first place i mean i know the more sold, the more money, but if you look at half the true hiphop artists they aint got nothing, like royce 5'9 said in his song "look at how many ni99as invented this s**t, how many of them broke?" if you take that in to a sales perspective hes got a point, krs1 DROP, wills droped, so many have fallowed, for gods sake even lil bowow has dropped, i mean common sales are not a excat justification of how good an artist is, i bet you tony yayo comes out and sells lots, because of who he is accoited with, busta rhymes has dropped now i guarentee he will be back up selling more... redman and method man have dropped, if will had a mainstream with lets say for example "50cent" and another track with another highly famous guy then i bet he would be double plat. sales dont mean anything man "its like eating a lowcarb cholate bar, you can eat tons and still not get fat," "but if you eat regular tons of them you will eventually" THINK ABOUT IT

Edited August 19, 2005 by Fresh-Ta-Def

[MaxFly]

will has done a very good job staying relevant i mean 600k is great check album sales look at fatjoe and his sales he deserves more then that he put out one of the biggest singles "lean back" and it didnt help the terror squad album at all. will is very good at doing what he does and i respect him for saying my albums are for the people who listen. i mean i see people with 3-4 "massacre" albums 1 for car, 1 for home, 1 for cds, and what ever, its mainstream its playable anywhere. Wills music has its own genere, "just a cd naw man a peice of me!" see people listen to mainstream alot more nowadays like uncle phill said in fresh prince "before you judge somebody you get to know them" if people concidered doing this with music then will would obviously be selling alot. what i dont get is why record sales mean so much in the first place i mean i know the more sold, the more money, but if you look at half the true hiphop artists they aint got nothing, like royce 5'9 said in his song "look at how many ni99as invented this s**t, how many of them broke?" if you take that in to a sales perspective hes got a point, krs1 DROP, wills droped, so many have fallowed, for gods sake even lil bowow has dropped, i mean common sales are not a excat justification of how good an artist is, i bet you tony yayo comes out and sells lots, because of who he is accoited with, busta rhymes has dropped now i guarentee he will be back up selling more... redman and method man have dropped, if will had a mainstream with lets say for example "50cent" and another track with another highly famous guy then i bet he would be double plat. sales dont mean anything man  "its like eating a lowcarb cholate bar, you can eat tons and still not get fat," "but if you eat regular tons of them you will eventually" THINK ABOUT IT

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For Lost and Found, album sales isn't really about the money. It's about a quality album reaching its full reasonable potential.