Drummer Ashton Irwin has spoken out about 5SOS being robbed of the No. 1 spot on the US Billboard charts this week, with their new album Calm.
In a video shared to Twitter on Tuesday, the 25-year-old rocker thanked fans for support, but admitted he was ‘disappointed.’
The band’s new album is currently at No. 2 on the Billboard 200 charts, but the record was released a week early – so the figures for the placing are incorrect and they narrowly missed out on the top spot.
‘It’s disappointing and my heart broke when I found out’: Ashton Irwin thanked fans for support on Tuesday, as he spoke out about 5SOS being robbed of a No. 1 on the US Billboard charts
Ashton thanked fans for supporting the record and the bid to reach No. 1.
‘I just wanna say I appreciate you contesting and fighting for our No. 1 record in the US, we’re left with the number two spot this week and may I add, that I think it’s absolutely astonishing and incredible that we’re even at the top of those charts in the caliber of artists that are there with us,’ he began.
‘Records were released a week early that we had no control over, which is very disappointing and quite honestly, my heart broke when I found out about that.’
So close! The band’s new album, Calm, is currently at No. 2 on the Billboard 200 charts, but the record was released a week early – so the figures for the placing are incorrect and they narrowly missed out on the top spot
The top spot: Coming in at No. 1 on the Billboard chart is The Weeknd, with his album, After Hours
Crunching the figures, he added: ‘It was released a week early and we lost 10,000 records, it was actually more, we managed to retrieve some that were released early and it was in the tens of thousands to begin with.’
Ashton said that other artists have had their records released early and the charts have ‘been amended.’
He went on to thank fans, saying: ‘It seems like that isn’t going to happen to us. But I want you to know that I’m extremely proud of this fan base for having a voice, voicing and knowing how powerful they can be when they unite together.’
He added: ‘I love you guys, remain sincere, keep voicing when things are wrong and I’ll try and be as brave as you are.’
Speaking out: Ashton tweeted alongside the video, saying he was ‘apprehensive’ to share his thoughts
Ashton tweeted alongside the video, saying he was ‘apprehensive’ to share his thoughts.
‘I think I’ve censored myself fairly well, I feel fearful to speak up about the albums that went out early for fear or loosing partnership with media outlets… but here’s some thoughts.’
He immediately received support from fans, with one fan page tweeting: ‘Our hearts are broken with you. We’re so sorry. We will NOT stop fighting for you.’
Support: He immediately received support from fans, with one fan page tweeting: ‘Our hearts are broken with you. We’re so sorry. We will NOT stop fighting for you’
They added hashtags including ‘add the 10K Billboard.’
Coming in at No. 1 on the Billboard chart is The Weeknd, with his album, After Hours.
Calm has reached to the top of the charts in Australia and the UK, but according to Billboard.com, a warehouse error prevented 5SOS from nabbing the top spot on the US charts.
On March 23, 10,000 advance copies were sent out to fans who had pre-ordered the album four days early, preventing them from celebrating a win in all three markets.
After prematurely debuting at No. 62, the hitmakers were forced to release a statement to their social media, explaining the recent mishap.
Over the weekend, over 20,000 furious fans signed a petition and called for the number of records sent out early to be recognised towards their album count.
Error: On March 23, 10,000 advance copies were sent out to fans who had pre-ordered the album four days early, preventing them from celebrating a win in all three markets