Taylor Swift's Showgirl has sold 3.5 million

When Adele’s album 25 came out 10 years ago — featuring the hit Hello — it sold nearly 3.5 million copies out of the gate, breaking longstanding opening-week sales numbers.

- Ben Sisario

An astonished music industry assumed that in the new age of streaming, no album could top it. Then came Taylor Swift.

The Life Of A Showgirl, which came out on Oct 3, has surpassed Adele’s decade-old record. According to initial sales reports collected by tracking firm Luminate and reported to Billboard, Showgirl has logged the equivalent of at least 3.5 million sales in the United States in its first five days on sale, and it still has two days to go before the opening-week sales period ends on Oct 9.

The success comes as Swift navigates a mixed reaction to Showgirl.