2016 – Rihanna – ANTI
More than a decade into her career and after a 4 years hiatus, Rihanna came back as strong as ever. Her new album ANTI was given away upon release but the strength of singles, especially on streaming platforms, made it the most successful female album from 2016 still.
Its pure album sales stand at over 1,2 million units while its TEA and SEA amount for more than 4,3 million units up to date. At 5,5 million, it isn’t untouchable at the top spot but it owns the lead so far.
Challengers
ANTI is the only album over 5 million equivalent album sales from 2016 by a solo female artist. There is 3 artists around 4 million who should break this mark in the future through. They are Ariana Grande with Dangerous Woman, Beyoncé with Lemonade and Sia with This Is Acting.
How well did Femme Fatale and Blackout do?
FF had 3 international #1 hits with TTWE, IWG, and HIAMe (#1 in 6 nations), plus she had sold pretty well with her album as well, letting her catchup to Blackout. Due to the lower sales expectations of 2011, I would be surprised if Britney wasn’t close to the #5 spot for 2011.
Blackout I assume would possibly be top 10 for 2007? But I understand you likely don’t bother listing that low for a years best.