Ye's 'Bully' Lands at No. 2 as BTS Keep Their Billboard 200 Grip

Ye's 'Bully' just posted a massive debut — 152,000 equivalent album units in its first week — but it wasn't enough to crack the top spot. BTS' 'Arirang' held firm at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 with 187,000 units, keeping the crown for another week and proving the group's commercial stamina isn't slowing down anytime soon.

The No. 2 finish is still a statement. After years of legal turmoil and public fallout, 'Bully' confirms that Ye's audience hasn't evaporated. The album leans into soul samples and production choices that feel familiar to anyone who's followed his catalog over the past two decades. It's not a reinvention — it's a reminder that the core fanbase is still locked in.

But the chart story is only half the picture. Ye was recently announced as the sole headliner for all three nights of Wireless Festival 2026, set for July 10–12 at Finsbury Park in north London. The booking immediately triggered fallout. Pepsi pulled its long-running sponsorship of the festival on April 5, ending a deal that had been in place since 2015 under the "Pepsi MAX Presents Wireless" branding. "Pepsi has decided to withdraw its sponsorship of Wireless Festival," as Music Business Worldwide reported.

Diageo, the parent company behind Johnnie Walker and Captain Morgan, followed suit. "We have informed the organizers of our concerns, and as it stands, Diageo will not sponsor the 2026 Wireless festival," the company said, per Music Business Worldwide.

“Ticket presales were set to open April 7 through Ticketmaster, with general on-sale the following day.”

The political response has been equally swift. UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer called the booking "deeply concerning" in a statement to The Sun, as reported by Music Business Worldwide. That kind of public pushback from a sitting head of government adds a layer of pressure that festival organizers can't easily brush off.

Ticket presales were set to open April 7 through Ticketmaster, with general on-sale the following day. Whether consumer demand matches the corporate exodus will say a lot about where things actually stand.

The tension here is real and not easily resolved: 152,000 first-week units says the music still moves. Two pulled sponsorships and a prime minister's statement say the business around it is getting harder to hold together. How Wireless navigates the next few months — and whether more sponsors walk — will be one of the most watched stories in live music this year.