“Compton” is the first new album by Dr. Dre in 16 years. Last week, tied to the release of “Straight Outta Compton,” the hit movie, the album sold 286,000 copies and finished second on the charts to country’s Luke Bryan.
But this last week, “Compton” collapsed. It dropped 85% in sales. That may be the biggest drop ever, beating even Madonna’s famous fall from grace a few years ago with “MDNA.” Compton sold just 42,732 copies.
Even worse: offered digitally as an exclusive on AppleMusic, which made Dr. Dre (real name Andre Young) a fortune buying his Beats headphones company, “Compton” scored only around 9,000 streams for listening. That brought “Compton”‘s total to 52,000 copies.
Part of the problem could be directed at Dr. Dre himself. In the last few days he’s been forced to apologize for his violent behavior against women from years ago. He told the New York Times in a statement:
“Twenty-five years ago I was a young man drinking too much and in over my head with no real structure in my life. However, none of this is an excuse for what I did. I’ve been married for 19 years and every day I’m working to be a better man for my family, seeking guidance along the way. I’m doing everything I can so I never resemble that man again…I apologize to the women I’ve hurt. I deeply regret what I did and know that it has forever impacted all of our lives.”
There are numerous stories coming out from women whom Dr. Dre abused years ago. One woman, Dee Barnes, a hip hop journalist, wrote on Gawker: “I suffer from horrific migraines that started only after the attack. My head does ring and it hurts, exactly in the same spot every time where he smashed my head against the wall.” She called the movie revisionist history.
So while the movie “Straight Outta Compton” continues to do very well at the box office with a fictional Dr. Dre, real person is finding it hard to sell his own related merchandise. Will it also affect the unfortunately named Beats headphones and brand? That remains to be seen.
