Chart Buzz: Britney Spears, Katy Perry, The Strokes, Kirk Franklin
Big week for debuts (Britney Spears, Wiz Khalifa), hit singles (Katy Perry, Cee Lo Green), comebacks stories (The Strokes) and gospel acts (Kirk Franklin, Mary Mary), but the major news still surrounds Adele
Britney Spears continues her golden streak of No. 1’s with the arrival of her seventh studio album, Femme Fatale. So far, the pop princess has sold a comfortable 276,000 copies in the US. Despite the rave reviews from critics and fans, analysts are already labeling the album a slight disappointment compared to Britney’s super numbers of her previous records, including Circus – which sold 505,000 copies in its first week. The UK isn’t responding so well to the album either, selling only 32,000 copies on Week 1.
Adele’s 21, bowed at No. 3 for the second week in a row, as a new release from Wiz Khalifa (Rolling Papers) carried the second place (197,000 copies sold). Chris Brown’s latest, F.A.M.E., dipped from its No. 1 spot from two weeks ago, going 1-4 (down 66 percent). But Adele is poised for a major comeback come next week.
21 is expected to sell a super amount of units next week, proving that she also has the “Taylor Swift” factor. Spears’ album will probably bow at No. 2, while Adele will once again claim the No. 1 spot. So far, Adele’s sophomore album has proven to be 2011’s best-seller and is expected to sell 85,000 copies, according to Billboard reports.
The London-born singer is also on course to claim an 11th consecutive week at No. 1 one in the UK, following her smashing records set by The Beatles and Madonna last week.
Katy Perryis dominating the No. 1 spot on the Billboard Hot 100, with her “extraterrestial” tribute, “E.T.” The single is also soaring on the Pop Songs’ survey, rising to No. 5 and becoming the week’s greatest gainer. Cee Lo Green’s also made major buzz with his crowning moment at No. 1 on the Pop Songs’ charts with “F**k You (Forget You).” The lead single from 2010’s The Lady Killer rose 3-1 and currently holds the record for being the longest single in Billboard history to rise to the No. 1 spot on the 18-year old Pop Songs’ survey.
This week leaves a major disappointment for the Strokes. After a five-year break as a group, the N.Y. rock band returned with Angles. The album debuted at No. 4 last week, but slips to No. 18. The band has already announced that they are currently working on the follow-up to Angles.
Also in the world of rock, the Foo Fighters are making major noise with their single “Rope,” which sits at No. 1 on the Rock Songs and Alternative Songs’ survey.
In other chart news…
Gospel music also saw some major steam arising in the upper tier of the Billboard 200. On Week 2 of its release, Kirk Franklin’s Hello Fear slides 5-9. With heavy promotion and a delicious R&B single (“Walking”) spinning at both gospel and urban AC radio, urban gospel duo Mary Mary debuts their latest disc, Something Big, at No. 10. The album managed to take the No. 1 spot on the Billboard Gospel Charts on its first week. Although Franklin sold 46,000 units on its second week, he still managed to outperform Mary Mary. The new album from Mary Mary sold 42,000 copies. Talkin’ about Joshua fighting the battle at Jericho.
Jennifer Hudson’s sales for I Remember Me also experienced a major drop, putting her at No. 7 (down 66 percent).
CHART BUZZ is a bi-monthly series tracing the latest airplay, radio impressions and unit sales numbers goverened by Billboard and measured by Nielsen Soundscan. For more chart information and additional chart data, go to www.billboard.com or www.billboard.biz. Visit our abbrievated Billboard and iTunes charts at: www.hifimagazine.net/blog/charts
