There’s something undeniably theatrical about Ghost. Whether it’s the anonymity of its masked musicians or the tongue-in-cheek decadence of its merchandise, the band continues to prove that spectacle is part of its DNA. But beyond the carefully crafted persona of Papa V Perpetua, Ghost has just done something that cuts through all the costumes, topping the Billboard 200 with a hard rock album in 2025.
According to Billboard, Skeletá has debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 chart, pulling in 86,000 equivalent album units in its first week of release in the United States. A staggering 89% of that—77,000 units — came from traditional album sales, with vinyl purchases alone accounting for over 44,000 copies.
Skeletá is the first hard rock album to reach the No. 1 spot on the Billboard 200 since AC/DC’s Power Up in 2020. And those vinyl numbers? They’re record-setting. The LP’s first-week vinyl tally not only marks the biggest vinyl sales week for a hard rock album in the modern era (since tracking began in 1991), but it’s the third-largest sales week of vinyl in the modern era for any rock album. Only Blink-182’s One More Time… and Boygenius’s The Record have done better.
But while the chart-topping release is noteworthy, Ghost isn’t content with just dominating musically. The band continues to blur the line between tongue-in-cheek provocation and marketing genius. Case in point: the “Ghildo.”
A limited-edition sex toy modeled after Papa V Perpetua, the Ghildo, dropped this week as part of the band’s “Mama’s Day Collection.” The sex toy in the image of Ghost frontman Papa V Perpetua sold out in a matter of minutes after going on sale this week. Measuring 7 inches long and 2 inches thick, the purple silicone toy comes with a velvet drawstring pouch and sells for $129 — a cheeky nod to exclusivity and irreverence.
The run was limited to 666 units, sold exclusively via Rockabilia, and according to Metalsucks, sold out in minutes.
For longtime fans, this isn’t exactly out of character. Ghost has a history of provocative merch, including the Phallos Mortuus box set — “a bible-bound package containing a sizeable Papa Emeritus dildo and a bronze butt plug.”
