Billboard 200: 4/17/10: Usher #1 329k

[areyoureadytojump]

SOUNDSCAN (WEEK ENDING 4/4/10)

1) Usher – Raymond V. Raymond – 329,107
2) Justin Beiber – My World 2.0 – 290,903 (After 2 weeks – 573,739)
3) Various Artists – Now 33 – 122,778 (After 2 weeks – 257,945)

Other Debuts
4) Erykah Badu – New Amerykah Part Two – 110,082
7) Alan Jackson – Freight Train – 72,411
12) Method Man, Ghostface Killah & Raekwon – Wu Massacare – 37,931
23) Barenaked Ladies – All In Good Time – 23,234
26) Various Artists – Radio Disney Jams 12 – 22,472
34) Gretchen Wilson – I Got Your Country Right Here – 14,753
41) Amy Grant – Somewhere Down The Road – 13,310
47) E-40 – Revenue Retrievin’: Day Shift – 11,983
49) E-40 – Revenue Retrievin’: Night Shift – 11,865

[Fat Ass Kelly Price]

Wow. Usher's artist almost outsold him.

[Tanisha Thomas.]

I think Justin Bieber will reclaim the top spot (predictions 110-130k). I predict Usher will sell around 90k and 110k.

[Sure Thing]

I don't think Usher will fall all the way down to 90K. I hope not.

I'm hoping for around 130k.

[Tanisha Thomas.]

130k seems reasonable, but I still think Justin will get that #1 spot. Who dropped this week?

[galvanize]

Apr 7, 2010 10:30:52 GMT -5 Tanisha Thomas. said:

130k seems reasonable, but I still think Justin will get that #1 spot. Who dropped this week?

Only competition I really spot is Madonna & Slash of Guns N Roses fame.

In other words, maybe Slash will go top 5 and Madonna will resume a top 15 with The Sticky & Sweet Tour.

[musicjunky318]

Usher's #'s are kinda terrible considering all that promo.

[shoegazer]

From Billboard.com

Usher scores his third straight No. 1 album on the Billboard 200 as "Raymond v Raymond" bumps Justin Bieber's "My World 2.0" out of the top slot, selling 329,000 copies in its first week according to Nielsen SoundScan. He previously led the tally with 2008's "Here I Stand" and 2004's "Confessions." That's the third-best sales week of the year, following the debuts of Sade's "Soldier of Love" (502,000) and Lady Antebellum's "Need You Now" (481,000).

Usher topped the Billboard 200 his last time out in 2008 with "Here I Stand," selling 443,000 in its opening frame. The star's No. 1 streak started with his first chart-topper -- 2004's "Confessions."

He supported the new set's release last week with stops on "American Idol" and "The Ellen DeGeneres Show," and on both he performed his new single "OMG." The single is expected to make a handsome debut on the Billboard Hot 100 when the new chart is unveiled tomorrow (Apr. 8).

Bieber's "My World 2.0" falls to No. 2 with 291,000 though it's up 3% in sales. There's no doubt that Easter basket shopping helped sales of Bieber's album in its second week, as the bunny holiday fell on Sunday, April 4, the final day of the sales tracking week. That second-week gain (from a No. 1 debut) is incredibly rare. It marks the first time a No. 1-debuting album -- issued on a traditional Tuesday release schedule -- has posted an increase in its second week since 2002. Back in the week ending March 31 -- also Easter week of that year -- the "Now 9" compilation fell from No. 1 to No. 2 but with an 11% gain (moving from 419,000 to 463,000).

The last time an artist or group's album, released on a Tuesday, had a second-week increase from a No. 1 debut was even earlier -- during Thanksgiving week of 2000. That's when the Beatles' hits set "1" claimed an 11% increase in its second frame, moving from No. 1 the previous week (595,000) to No. 2 that week (662,000).

Hot on the heels of the release of her much-blogged-about music video for "Window Seat," Erykah Badu's "New Amerykah, Part Two: Return of the Ankh" enters the Billboard 200 at No. 4 with 110,000. It's the follow up to 2008's "New Amerykah: Part One (4th World War)," which bowed at No. 2 with 124,000. Over on the Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart, the new album debuts at No. 2 and is her sixth straight set to reach the top three -- her entire career-output. She previously notched No. 1s with "Baduizm" and "Live," a pair of No. 2s with "World Wide Underground (EP)" and "New Amerykah: Part One" and a No. 3 hit with "Mama's Gun."

Country king Alan Jackson rolls in with the Billboard 200's third-highest debut at No. 7 with his latest set, "Freight Train," shifting 72,000 copies in its first week. It's Jackson's 11th top 10 effort on the big chart, while over on the Top Country Albums list, where it enters at No. 2, it's his 21st top 10 album. His last album, 2008's "Good Time," debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 with 119,000 sold in its premiere week.

As for the rest of the top 10: the "Now 33" compilation holds at No. 3 with 123,000 (down 9%) while Lady Antebellum's sturdy "Need You Now" falls one spot to No. 5 with 87,000 (up 11%). The set has spent its entire 11-week chart run lodged inside the top five of the chart. Monica's "Still Standing" slips four spaces to No. 6 with 81,000 (down 56%) while Justin Bieber's first "My World" drops three rungs to No. 8 with 63,000 (down 26%). Rounding out the top 10 are Lady Gaga's "The Fame" -- down one spot -- at No. 9 with 49,000 (up 21%) and the Black Eyed Peas' "The E.N.D." holding steady at No. 10 with 43,000 (but up a sizable 25%).

Overall album sales in this past chart week (ending April 4) totaled 6.84 million units, up 13% compared to the sum last week (6.03 million) and down 4% compared to the comparable sales week of 2009 (7.11 million). Year to date album sales stand at 81.95 million, down 8% compared to the same total at this point last year (89.02 million).

[Tanisha Thomas.]

Apr 7, 2010 10:47:20 GMT -5 musicjunky318 said:

Usher's #'s are kinda terrible considering all that promo.

Really? It's not great, but solid enough. I want to see how well he does in the long run. I'm not expecting much.

[HolidayGuy]

Overall album sales should take a decent hit next week, with the post-Easter frame. Good that year-to-year sales only dipped 4% this week (though Easter week may have fallen in a different week last year).

I imagine Usher or Bieber will be #1 next week. While Madonna's live CD/DVD may be #1 on amazon.com, I'd be surprised (pleasantly) if it sold enough to rank top 10 on the Billboard 200. The Confessions Tour, which supported a more successful album, opened at #15 with 40K.

[Kishi KCM]

^ Agreed, it'll go to Usher or Bieber and both of them will have over 100K.

[Music Fan]

#1 next week IMO will be between Bieber & Slash (since the Slash album is battling out with Jack Johnsons for #1 on iTunes and is higher than any new release on Amazon, for whatever that's worth)

[Oprah]

Didn't Jack Johnson debut with 350K+ with his last album? And that was in January. I wouldn't be surprised if he takes the top spot.

Looks like they overestimated Urrsherr. He's got a bunch of hits out there and OMG is just getting started on pop so I wouldn't worry about him.

[areyoureadytojump]

www.billboard.biz/bbbiz/content_display/charts/chart_alert/e3ib2760edf9d29719e81b663de3a61cb66

Usher Reigns With Third No. 1 Album; Bieber Gains in Week Two
April 07, 2010

Editor: Keith Caulfield; Contributors: Gary Trust, Alex Vitoulis; Editorial Director: Silvio Pietroluongo

Usher claims his third consecutive No. 1 album on the Billboard 200 chart as his "Raymond v Raymond" bows atop the list with 329,000 copies ... He previously led the tally with 2008's "Here I Stand" and 2004's "Confessions" ... Usher pushes Justin Bieber's "My World 2.0" out of the penthouse to No. 2 in its second week -- however, "World" actually sports an rare second-week gain for a No. 1-debuting album.


FLASH POINTS

• Usher scores his third straight No. 1 album on the Billboard 200 as "Raymond v Raymond" bumps Justin Bieber's "My World 2.0" out of the top slot, selling 329,000 copies in its first week according to Nielsen SoundScan. That's the third-best sales week of the year, following the debuts of Sade's "Soldier of Love" (502,000) and Lady Antebellum's "Need You Now" (481,000).

• Usher topped the Billboard 200 his last time out in 2008 with "Here I Stand," selling 443,000 in its opening frame. The star's No. 1 streak started with his first chart-topper -- 2004's "Confessions."

• He supported the new set's release last week with stops on "American Idol" and "The Ellen DeGeneres Show," and on both he performed his new single "OMG." Watch for the single to make a handsome debut on the Billboard Hot 100 tomorrow when the new chart is unveiled.

• Bieber's "My World 2.0" falls to No. 2 with 291,000 though it's up 3% in sales. There's no doubt that Easter basket shopping helped sales of Bieber's album in its second week, as the bunny holiday fell on Sunday, April 4, the final day of the sales tracking week.

• That second-week gain (from a No. 1 debut) is incredibly rare. While we've had instances of No. 1-debuting albums earn sales increases in their second week, they almost always happen because the set was issued on an off-cycle release date. Like, when Michael Buble's 2009 album "Crazy Love" landed a 55% gain in week two -- but only after it had an abbreviated first week. (It was released on a Friday, so its first "week" was really only three full days of sales. Thus, it was natural to see a jump for the set in its second week after it had a true week under its belt.)

• But, Bieber's "My World 2.0" was released on a Tuesday, so a second-week jump is very notable. It marks the first time a No. 1-debuting album -- issued on a traditional Tuesday release schedule -- has posted an increase in its second week since 2002. Back in the week ending March 31 -- also Easter week of that year -- the "Now 9" compilation fell from No. 1 to No. 2 but with an 11% gain (moving from 419,000 to 463,000).

• The last time an artist or group's album, released on a Tuesday, had a second-week increase from a No. 1 debut was even earlier -- during Thanksgiving week of 2000. That's when the Beatles' hits set "1" claimed an 11% increase in its second frame, moving from No. 1 the previous week (595,000) to No. 2 that week (662,000).

• Switching gears back to the Billboard 200 this week ... Hot on the heels of the release of her much-blogged-about music video for "Window Seat," Erykah Badu's "New Amerykah, Part Two: Return of the Ankh" enters the Billboard 200 at No. 4 with 110,000. It's the follow up to 2008's "New Amerykah: Part One (4th World War)," which bowed at No. 2 with 124,000. Over on the Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart, the new album debuts at No. 2 and is her sixth straight set to reach the top three -- her entire career-output. She previously notched No. 1s with "Baduizm" and "Live," a pair of No. 2s with "World Wide Underground (EP)" and "New Amerykah: Part One" and a No. 3 hit with "Mama's Gun."

• Country king Alan Jackson rolls in with the Billboard 200's third-highest debut at No. 7 with his latest set, "Freight Train," shifting 72,000 copies in its first week. It's Jackson's 11th top 10 effort on the big chart, while over on the Top Country Albums list, where it enters at No. 2, it's his 21st top 10 album. His last album, 2008's "Good Time," debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 with 119,000 sold in its premiere week.

• And here's a recap of the rest of the top 10: the "Now 33" compilation holds at No. 3 with 123,000 (down 9%) while Lady Antebellum's sturdy "Need You Now" falls one spot to No. 5 with 87,000 (up 11%). The set has spent its entire 11-week chart run lodged inside the top five of the chart. Monica's "Still Standing" slips four spaces to No. 6 with 81,000 (down 56%) while Justin Bieber's first "My World" drops three rungs to No. 8 with 63,000 (up 26%). Rounding out the top 10 are Lady Gaga's "The Fame" -- down one spot -- at No. 9 with 49,000 (up 21%) and the Black Eyed Peas' "The E.N.D." holding steady at No. 10 with 43,000 (but up a sizable 25%).

• Overall album sales in this past chart week (ending April 4) totaled 6.84 million units, up 13% compared to the sum last week (6.03 million) and down 4% compared to the comparable sales week of 2009 (7.11 million). Year to date album sales stand at 81.95 million, down 8% compared to the same total at this point last year (89.02 million).

• AND NEXT WEEK:

• On next week's Billboard 200 chart, it's looking like Justin Bieber's "My World 2.0" may retake the No. 1 crown. He won't have any competition from new releases, as none of the albums that came to market this week seemingly pose a threat to his return to the top.

• It's too early to tell what the Bieb's "My World 2.0" will sell by week's end on April 11, but industry prognosticators think that his album will see a lighter sales erosion than what Usher's "Raymond v Raymond" -- this week's No. 1 -- will experience in its second week.

• What albums are looking to impact the Billboard 200 next week -- just not at No. 1? Guitar god Slash's all-star collaborations album, simply titled "Slash," is on track for a top 10 entry. The set sports guest vocalists Fergie, M Shadows of Avenged Sevenfold, Kid Rock, Ozzy Osbourne and others.

• The big chart will also see arrivals from a colorful cross-section of albums like Sharon Jones and the Dap Kings' "I Learned the Hard Way," Madonna's live set "Sticky & Sweet Tour," Jakob Dylan's "Women and Country" and John Butler Trio's "April Uprising."



MARKET WATCH

• Album units, current chart week: 6.84 million units
• UP 13% from last week's charts: 6.03 million units
• DOWN 4% from the comparable week in 2009: 7.11 million units
• This week: The top four albums each sell more than 100,000 copies.
• This week last year on The Billboard 200: Keith Urban narrowly beat out Prince to earn his first No. 1 album as "Defying Gravity" debuted with 172,000 copies ahead of the latter's "Lotus Flower's" arrival with 168,000. Diana Krall's "Quiet Nights" was the third debut in the top three, starting at No. 3 with 104,000.


A LOOK AHEAD

• Among the albums released this week, due on next week's charts: Slash's "Slash," Sharon Jones and the Dap-Kings' "I Learned the Hard Way," Angelique Kidjo's "Oyo," Madonna's "Sticky and Sweet Tour" and Karen Clark-Sheard's "All in One."

• Next week's Billboard 200 competes with the same week in 2009 when: Rascal Flatts' "Unstoppable" lived up to its title as it stormed in at No. 1 with 351,000 copies sold during Easter week. (Easter fell on April 12 last year.) Meanwhile, the "Hannah Montana: the Movie" soundtrack climbed from No. 5 to No. 2 with 196,000 (up 127%). Jadakiss' "The Last Kiss" debuted at No. 3 with 135,000 while Jason Aldean's "Wide Open" started at No. 4 with 109,000.

[Deleted]

Week Ending April 4, 2010: Usher Sends Protege Packing
Posted Wed Apr 7, 2010 11:44am PDT by Paul Grein in Chart Watch

Usher played a key role early in Justin Bieber's career, helping the teenager land a record deal with L.A. Reid and Island Def Jam. He even joined Bieber on "First Dance," a track from the young star's debut EP, My World. This week, Usher boots his young protégé out of the #1 spot on The Billboard 200. Usher's Raymond Vs. Raymond debuts at #1, sending Bieber's My World 2.0 down to #2 (even though Bieber's album sold more copies in its second week than it did in its first; more on this later).

This isn't the first time a mentor has knocked a protégé out of the top spot. In 1974, a red-hot Elton John signed ‘60s star Neil Sedaka to his Rocket Records. The following year, Elton sang a background vocal on Sedaka's "Bad Blood." The song topped the Hot 100 for three weeks, a career best for Sedaka, but it was replaced in the top spot by....Elton's "Island Girl." In both of these cases, I'm sure it was nothing personal. It's just that nothing comes between a hit-maker and the #1 spot.

And Bieber may well have the last laugh. My World 2.0 is expected to return to the top spot next week. My World 2.0 is already demonstrating its buoyancy, while superstar releases like Usher's often experience a big second week drop-off.

Raymond Vs. Raymond is Usher's third album in a row to enter the chart at #1. The album sold 329,000 copies in its first week, fewer than his last album, Here I Stand, which sold 443,000 copies in its first week in June 2008 and far fewer than his 2004 blockbuster Confessions, which sold 1,096,000 copies in its first week. Confessions still holds the record for the biggest one-week sales by a (non-rap) R&B album in Nielsen/SoundScan history.
Raymond Vs. Raymond is Usher's fifth consecutive studio album to reach the top five on The Billboard 200. Each of the other four spawned at least one #1 single on the Hot 100. 1997's My Way gave us "Nice & Slow." 2001's 8701 spawned a pair of #1 hits, "U Remind Me" and "U Got It Bad." Confessions contained four #1 hits, "Yeah!" (featuring Lil Jon and
Ludacris), "Burn," "Confessions Part II" and "My Boo" (a duet with Alicia Keys). Here I Stand yielded "Love In This Club" (featuring Young Jeezy). Will Raymond Vs. Raymond keep this string alive? Stay tuned. His single "OMG" (featuring will.i.am of the Black Eyed Peas) is expected to make a potent debut on the chart later today.

Usher has said that the title of his new album was inspired by the title of the Oscar-winning 1979 film Kramer Vs. Kramer. Usher isn't the first R&B artist to be inspired by that movie title. Kool & the Gang had a Top 40 hit in 1981 titled "Jones Vs. Jones."

Though My World 2.0 slips to #2, its sales jumped from 283,000 in its first week to 291,000 in its second. It's the first album to experience this odd mixed fortune (losing the #1 spot but gaining sales) since NOW 9 did the same thing in March 2002.

My World 2.0 is the first album by a teen star to top 200K in both of its first two weeks since Taylor Swift's Fearless topped that mark in each of its first three weeks in 2008. (The record for a teen act was set by the Backstreet Boys' Millennium, which topped the 200K sales mark in each of its first 15 (!) weeks in 1999. The boy band featured 19-year old Nick Carter.)
Erykah Badu's New Amerykah Part Two debuts at #4 with first-week sales of 110,000. It's Badu's sequel to New Amerykah, Pt. 1: 4th World War, which debuted at #2 in March 2008, with first-week sales of 124,000. Five of Badu's six albums have reached the top five on The Billboard 200, an impressive show of consistency.

Badu has stirred controversy with the video for the album's first single, "Window Seat." In the video, she disrobes in Dallas' Dealey Plaza, the site of President Kennedy's assassination in November 1963. Near the end of the video, she falls to the ground, as if she's been shot. Badu was born and still lives in Dallas, so she has a connection to the city. But that doesn't really matter. It's tacky to exploit a national tragedy for promotional gain. Let's hope nobody out there is thinking of self-serving stunts capitalizing on 9/11.

Lady Antebellum this week becomes the first country group or duo to achieve two historic firsts. The red-hot trio becomes the first country group or duo to have a song reach the 3 million mark in digital sales. Lady A accomplishes the feat with its Eagles--influenced, mid-tempo ballad "Need You Now." Taylor Swift is the only other country act to land a 3 million-seller. She has scored twice, with "Love Story" (4,471,000) and "You Belong With Me" (3,140,000). Until "Need You Now," the biggest digital seller by a country group or duo was Rascal Flatts' 2006 hit "Life Is A Highway," which has sold 2,320,000 copies.

Also, Lady A becomes the first country group or duo to have an album spend its first 10 weeks at #1 on the Top Country Albums chart. Need You Now is the first album by any artist (male, female or group) to spend its first 10 weeks on top of the country chart since Taylor Swift's Fearless, which was #1 for its first 12 weeks in 2008-2009. No one debuted at #1 on Top Country Albums between 1964, when the chart was introduced, and 1991, when Nielsen/SoundScan brought much more immediacy to the chart, so acts in those years didn't have a chance to achieve this feat. Even so, Lady A's accomplishment is "A-mazing."
Train's "Hey, Soul Sister" tops the Hot Digital Songs chart for the second straight week. The song sold 219,000 copies this week, bringing its 32-week total to 2,725,000. Here's the rest of this week's top five: Rihanna's "Rude Boy" holds at #2 for the fourth (non-consecutive) week; "Nothin' On You" by B.O.B featuring Bruno Mars rebounds from #5 to #3; "Break Your Heart" by Taio Cruz featuring Ludacris dips from #3 to #4; and "Baby" by Justin Bieber featuring Ludacris slips from #4 to #5.

Shameless Plug: "Telephone" by Lady Gaga featuring Beyonce tops the 1.5 mark in digital sales this week. The smash, which shot from #9 to #3 on last week's Hot 100, joins a long line of all-female collaborations to scale the chart. Most of the most successful pairings have something in common: The artists come from different worlds. Think: Barbra Streisand and Donna Summer. Eve and Gwen Stefani. Christina Aguilera, Lil' Kim, Mya and Pink. And we can't forget Eurythmics/Aretha Franklin, whose great hit "Sisters Are Doin' It For Themselves" is the rallying cry for this trend. Does this sound like a plug for an upcoming Chart Watch Extra? It is. Check it out on Friday.

Here's the low-down on this week's top 10 albums.

1. Usher, Raymond Vs. Raymond, 329,000. This new entry is Usher's third album in a row to reach #1. 46,000 copies were sold digitally, making this the week's #1 Digital Album. Five songs from the album are listed on Hot Digital Songs, topped by "OMG" (featuring will.i.am), which bows at #7.

2. Justin Bieber, My World 2.0, 291,000. The album slips from #1 to #2 in its second week. The album is already #6 for the year-to-date. Five songs from the album are listed on Hot Digital Songs, topped by "Baby" (featuring Ludacris), which dips from #4 to #5.

3. Various Artists, NOW 33, 123,000. The compilation holds at #3 in its second week. The album has sold 258,000 copies in its first two weeks.

4. Erykah Badu, New Amerykah Part Two, 110,000. This new entry is Badu's fifth top 10 album. "Window Seat," the song with the tacky video, enters Hot Digital Songs at #165.

5. Lady Antebellum, Need You Now, 87,000. The former #1 album dips from #4 to #5 in its
10th week. It's #1 for the year-to-date. Two songs from the album are listed on Hot Digital Songs. "Need You Now" dips from #7 to #9. "American Honey" dips from #37 to #40.

6. Monica, Still Standing, 81,000. The album drops from #2 to #6 in its second week. "Everything To Me" drops from #132 to #184 on Hot Digital Songs.

7. Alan Jackson, Freight Train, 72,000. This new entry is Jackson's 11th top 10 album. It enters Top Country Albums at #2. It looks like it's going to become his first studio album to fall short of the #1 spot on the country chart since Under The Influence in 1999.

8. Justin Bieber, My World, 63,000. The EP slips from #5 to #8 in its 20th week. This is its 10th week in the top 10. Three songs from the EP are listed on Hot Digital Songs, topped by "One Time," which jumps from #75 to #70.

9. Lady Gaga, The Fame, 49,000. The album slips from #8 to #9 in its 75th week. This is its 41st week in the top 10. Seven songs from the expanded version of the album are listed on Hot Digital Songs, topped by "Telephone" (featuring Beyonce), which holds at #6.

10. The Black Eyed Peas, The E.N.D., 43,000. The album holds at #10 in its 43rd week. This is its 30th week in the top 10. Four songs from the album are listed on Hot Digital Songs, topped by "Imma Be," which holds at #8.

Three albums fell out of the top 10 this week. She & Him's Volume 2 dives from #6 to #28, Ludacris' Battle Of The Sexes falls from #7 to #11 and Marvin Sapp's Here I Am falls from #9 to #13.

Meth, Ghost & Rae's Wu-Massacre debuts at #12. The album marks a reunion for Method Man, Ghostface Killah and Raekwon, who were key members of Wu-Tang Clan, which released four studio albums from 1993 through 2001. In the intervening years, all three MCs had solo success. Method Man had six top 10 albums (including two with Redman), Ghostface Killah had four and Raekwon had three.

Alvin & The Chipmunks: The Squeakquel rebounds from #30 to #14 on the heels of the movie's release on DVD. It's the #1 soundtrack, knocking off The Twilight Saga: New Moon. This is the eighth week at #1 on the soundtrack chart for the latest album by Alvin, Theodore and Simon...Barenaked Ladies' All In Good Time bows at #23. The Canadian pop band had three top 10 albums from 1998 through 2003...Gretchen Wilson's fourth studio album, I Got Your Country Right Here, bows at #33. The country singer's first three studio albums all debuted in the top five.

E-40's current album, Revenue Retrievin,' was released in two volumes. They sold almost exactly the same number of copies this week, a shade less than 12,000 each. Day Shift enters The Billboard 200 at #47. Night Shift arrives at #49....Chris Tomlin's 2006 album See The Morning drops from #32 to #68. It's the #1 Catalog Album for the fourth straight week.
The 3-D remake of Clash Of The Titans was #1 at the box-office this past weekend. The movie grossed $61.2 million over the weekend, more than the 1981 original grossed in its entire run. The original grossed $41 million during its run, according to Boxofficemojo.com. Ramin Djawadi's score album sold about 1,000 copies this week, too few to make The Billboard 200...A pair of pop stars had leading roles in the weekend's #2 and #4 movies. Janet Jackson stars in Tyler Perry's Why Did I Get Married Too?, which was #2 at the box-office. Miley Cyrus stars in The Last Song, which was #4.

Song Scorecard: Not many songs prove their appeal three times, but Queen's "Bohemian Rhapsody" has done just that. The song was first a top 10 hit in 1976, and returned to the top 10 in 1992 when it was featured in the movie Wayne's World. This week, it tops the 2 million mark in paid downloads, reflecting activity in the digital era, which began in earnest about six years ago...Another oldie, Panic At The Disco's 2006 breakthrough hit "I Write Sins Not Tragedies," also tops the 2 million mark in paid downloads this week.
Madonna's records have been played in public in the U.K. more than those of any other artist in the past 10 years, according to a study by the People's Artist Chart. This combines radio and TV play as well as spins in pubs, clubs, shops and restaurants. The rest of the top five: the Beatles, Robbie Williams, Queen and Take That. How did a girl from Bay City, Mich. beat out four British acts in their own country? Talent and drive. Maybe Scouting For Girls will head the list a decade from now. Their "This Ain't A Love Song" is this week's #1 hit in the U.K.
Heads Up: Slash's first solo album, Slash, is expected to be next week's top new entry. Also due: Madonna's first live album, The Sticky And Sweet Tour (a CD/DVD combo), Peter Wolf's Midnight Souvenirs, Jakob Dylan's Women + Country, Sharon Jones & the Dap-Kings' I Learned The Hard Way, John Butler Trio's April Uprising and Karen Clark-Sheard's All In One.

[PDC1987]

Apr 7, 2010 14:48:17 GMT -5 @2m said:

Also due: Madonna's first live album, The Sticky And Sweet Tour (a CD/DVD combo)

It's her 3rd live album, not 1st, and all 3 have been released in the last 4 years. That's an embarrassing oversight.

[Tanisha Thomas.]

Apr 7, 2010 14:51:12 GMT -5 PDC1987 said:

Apr 7, 2010 14:48:17 GMT -5 @2m said:

Also due: Madonna's first live album, The Sticky And Sweet Tour (a CD/DVD combo)

It's her 3rd live album, not 1st, and all 3 have been released in the last 4 years. That's an embarrassing oversight.

Why do you say that?

[PDC1987]

Apr 7, 2010 14:54:47 GMT -5 Tanisha Thomas. said:

Apr 7, 2010 14:51:12 GMT -5 PDC1987 said:

It's her 3rd live album, not 1st, and all 3 have been released in the last 4 years. That's an embarrassing oversight.

Why do you say that?

Would a little research kill them?

I just hate inaccuracy.

[starr]

Apr 7, 2010 9:29:01 GMT -5 areyoureadytojump said:

SOUNDSCAN (WEEK ENDING 4/4/10)

1) Usher – Raymond V. Raymond – 329,107
2) Justin Bieber – My World 2.0 – 290,903 (After 2 weeks – 573,739)

I didn't think it was a smart idea of Usher to release his album in Justin's second week if he wanted to be number 1 on the charts. Usher got number 1. Just 38,204 difference in sales. That's very close.

[WouldYouJumpTheGDTrainAlready?]

^especially after how Here I Stand had fared. It could have been a lot worse.

[Kishi KCM]

With Usher bringing in revenue from radio and record sales, I doubt he or his label are sweating it.

[HolidayGuy]

Yeah, that was a rather lazy oversight on Grein's part in regards to Madge's live album count.

I don't think nearly 40K is THAT close of a sales race. Not like it was a photo finish or anything.

[Tanisha Thomas.]

Well, 40k is pretty close enough considering that it's Usher's first week and Justin's second.

[Rodze]

gothamjungle.com/GothamBlog/?p=8156

1 1 USHER RAYMOND V RAYMOND 329107 330103
2 2 JUSTIN BIEBER MY WORLD 2.O 290903 573739
2 3 VARIOUS NOW 33 122778 257945
1 4 ERYKAH BADU NEW AMERYKAH PART TWO 110082 110352
10 5 LADY ANTEBELLUM NEED YOU NOW 86616 1647332
2 6 MONICA STILL STANDING 81059 265640
1 7 ALAN JACKSON FREIGHT TRAIN 72411 72441
20 8 JUSTIN BIEBER MY WORLD 63246 1172590
75 9 LADY GAGA FAME 49497 3149023
43 10 BLACK EYED PEAS E.N.D. (ENERGY NEVER DIES) 42928 2386847
4 11 LUDACRIS BATTLE OF THE SEXES 40398 283734
1 12 METHOD MAN/GHOSTFACE KILLAH & RAEKWON WU MASSACRE 37931 38089
3 13 MARVIN SAPP HERE I AM 36623 140829
18 14 ALVIN & THE CHIPMUNKS: THE SQUEAKQUEL ALVIN & THE CHIPMUNKS: THE SQUEAKQUEL 33110 587488
8 15 SADE SOLDIER OF LOVE 32549 1055501
73 16 TAYLOR SWIFT FEARLESS 32111 5751662
19 17 LADY GAGA FAME MONSTER (8TRK) 31717 959704
13 18 KE$HA ANIMAL 30738 545798
72 19 ZAC BROWN BAND FOUNDATION 25451 1781509
27 20 SELENA GOMEZ & SCENE KISS AND TELL 24714 528818

[HolidayGuy]

Just as it saw a big sales increase following placement in Best Buy's circular and an advertised $7.99 price, Mimi Carey's Memoirs leaps 145-90* on this week's Billboard 200, following placement in Target's circular, also with an advertised $7.99 price.

Taylor Swift's debut rose back up, 115-76* in its 180th week on the chart.

[c0ldasfire]

^^^ any idea if Britney's "The Singles Collection" saw a sales increase? lol

[Caviar]

Didn't that already fall off the charts weeks after it debuted? ???

[areyoureadytojump]

A little late this week:

Will the following albums be certified by the RIAA on tomorrow's chart?

Numbers are from the 4/10/10 chart:

Ke$ha 515k
Young Money 404k
Mary J Blige 714k
Miley Cyrus 1,329,312
Adam Lambert 577k
Now 32 857k
Eminem 1,898,228
Muse 446k
Drake 420k
Alice In Chains 401k
Kenny Chesney 602k
Chrisette Michele 422k
Brad Paisley 517k

Albums only on the BB200 for 5+ weeks are listed and have sold over 400k.

No new album certifications this week.

[HolidayGuy]

Was The Singles Collection featured in a prominent circular last week? Its weekly sales probably are down to less than 2K, so even if it saw a 50% gain, that probably wouldn't be enough for it to be on the BB 200. Is it on the Current Albums chart?

Janet Jackson's Number Ones is hanging onto the Current Albums chart- it has a decent price, though, for the moat part- $14.99 at Wal-Mart, for instance- good pricing for a double-CD.

[S. Carter]

Apr 7, 2010 13:40:01 GMT -5 areyoureadytojump said:

A LOOK AHEAD

• Among the albums released this week, due on next week's charts: Slash's "Slash," Sharon Jones and the Dap-Kings' "I Learned the Hard Way," Angelique Kidjo's "Oyo," Madonna's "Sticky and Sweet Tour" and Karen Clark-Sheard's "All in One."

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Yesssss Karen! :)

"All In One" in stores & on itunes now!

www.karewrecords.com