SoundScanner: Aloe Blacc Makes Strong Showing With Debut Album
Fans just can’t let it go. The Frozen soundtrack is No. 1 yet again on this week’s SoundScan chart, in a week where five new releases splash the Top 10. Meanwhile, Pharrell Williams’ "Happy" still leads the singles chart, and a pair of artists with otherwise not a whole lot in common celebrate important sales milestones. For more, we turn to this week’s SoundScanner:
Frozen back at No. 1: The soundtrack to the billion dollar box office smash Frozen returns to No. 1 on SoundScan’s Top Current Albums chart this week, marking the album’s sixth non-consecutive week leading the chart. The album sold 99,000 copies this week, down just 1 percent from last week (when it was No. 3), bringing its total sales to 1.43 million. The movie's DVD release this week could provide another boost in sales, so although spring is officially here, the charts could continue to remain under winter’s spell.
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Luke Bryan, Aloe Blacc debut: Frozen leads a week where five albums make Top 10 debuts. Luke Bryan lands in the week’s runner-up slot with his latest Spring Break-themed EP – his sixth, if you’re counting at home – which sold 74,000 copies its first week. "The Man" singer Aloe Blacc has the week’s next top debut, coming in at No. 4 with Lift Your Spirit, which sold 45,000 copies and lands one spot behind last week's No. 1, Rick Ross’ Mastermind. Stereolithic, the latest from rap-rock-reggae bros 311, comes in at No. 6 (41,000 sold), and Rise of an Empire, the new compilation album from Lil Wayne’s Young Money clique, lands at No. 7 (31,000). Sara Evans’ “Slow Me Down” rounds out the week’s top debuts, starting at No. 9 with 27,000 sales.
Eminem, Of Monsters and Men hit sales milestones: Talk about "Monster" sales: Eminem’s Marshall Mathers LP sequel, which comes in at No. 20 this week, crosses the double platinum sales marker in its 19th week on the chart. Its 13,000 sales this week (down 11 percent from last week) bring it to 2.003 million total sales. And sticking with the Monster theme, Icelandic folk rockers Of Monsters and Men’s My Head is an Animal (No. 114 this week) hits 1 million sales this week, as its 2,800 sales bring its total to 1.001 million. The album has been a slow but steady seller, and the sales milestone comes two weeks shy of the album’s two year anniversary on the charts.
‘Happy’ on top again: Pharrell Williams’ "Happy" is still on top of SoundScan’s Digital Songs chart, and it’s really no competition; its 364,000 downloads put it nearly 150,000 sales ahead of the week’s second place finisher, John Legend’s "All of Me." But "Happy" is down 26 percent from last week, showing its first cracks in its armor. The Top 10’s biggest gainer is the Chainsmokers’ "#Selfie," the pointedly ridiculous ode to the power of snapshots of one’s self. The song is No. 6 this week, up four spots from last week, and its 26 percent sales week-to-week sales gain shows the "#Selfie" movement is only getting stronger.
20/20 turns 1: One year ago this week, Justin Timberlake’s The 20/20 Experience crashed the chart and sold 958,000 copies its debut frame. This week, the set celebrates its birthday at No. 162, and its 2,100 sales this week (down 17 percent from last week) bring its total sales to 2.48 million copies. Meanwhile, the album’s sequel is No. 49 this week, selling 6,200 copies and bringing its total sales to 915,000. Together, the two albums have sold 3.4 million copies, not bad for a guy who a year ago was in semi-retirement.
[Photo: Getty Images]