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Pop Rock Nation

Category: People

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  • Chart Chat 12/16/09: New Release FAIL

    Folks continue to run out in droves to buy Susan Boyle. The British singer’s “I Dreamed a Dream” spends a third week on top of the Billboard Album charts, moving 582,000 copies of her debut effort. In three weeks, “Dream” has sold a mind-boggling 1.8 million records. It is currently the fourth biggest selling album of 2009 and has a chance to catch Taylor Swift for the #1 crown with 2 weeks left.

    As has been custom these past couple weeks, Italian singer Andrea Bocelli holds down the #2 spot with “My Christmas”. 400,000 copies slide across store shelves this week, giving Bocelli a grand total of 1.5 million sold in just six weeks.

    The week’s top debut? The second volume of songs from the hit television show “Glee”. A collection of remade popular favorites from the likes of Kelly Clarkson, this soundtrack moved 173,000 copies to land at the #3 spot overall and also dislodges Michael Jackson’s “This is It” from the #1 spot on the Soundtrack charts after a six week run.

    Other folks who put albums out last week are probably not as in the mood to celebrate as the “Glee” cast. Last week’s most high-profile debut was Chris Brown’s “Graffiti”. The album manages to come in at #7 with 107,000 copies sold. Not a bad amount, and it is the week’s biggest selling R&B album, but it’s also 1/3 of what his previous album, “Exclusive” sold in it’s first week. It’s also just a little more than half of what Rihanna’s latest album sold in its’ first week. Brown doesn’t sport this week’s only disappointing debut. Snoop Dogg bows all the way down at #23 with his latest, “Malice N Wonderland”, and Timbaland’s “Shock Value II” slides in at a lowly #36. The albums sell 59,000 and 39,000 copies respectively. All I can say to those numbers is “Yowsa!!”

    One of this season’s surprise strong sellers comes from Canadian teenager Justin Bieber, who probably has swiped a large chunk of Brown’s audience. The Usher protege’s debut EP “My World” hangs in at #8. It’s scanned just under 400,000 copies in four weeks of release. Couple a teen-friendly artist with an agreeable price, and chances are, you’ll have a hit. Just ask Miley Cyrus, whose “Time of Our Lives” EP sits down at #20 and becomes the 20th album this year to cross the million sales mark.

    Next week’s big chart news will be the debut of the new Alicia Keys album. With the Boyle and Bocelli juggernauts at full speed and without a big radio single, I’d say the chances of Keys scoring a #1 debut are kinda slim. Will she score her fifth consecutive chart topper? Stay tuned and catch us next week with another Chart Chat column.

    This week’s Top 20 albums:

    1) Susan Boyle “I Dreamed a Dream”
    2) Andrea Bocelli “My Christmas”
    3) Glee Cast “Glee-The Music Vol. 2”
    4) Taylor Swift “Fearless”
    5) Carrie Underwood “Play On”
    6) Lady GaGa “The Fame”
    7) Chris Brown “Graffiti”
    8) Justin Bieber “My World (EP)”
    9) Michael Buble “Crazy Love”
    10) Gucci Mane “The State vs. Radric Davis”
    11) Glee Cast “Glee-The Music Vol. 1”
    12) Michael Jackson “This is It”
    13) Various Artists “Now 32”
    14) Lady GaGa “The Fame: Monster (EP)”
    15) Norah Jones “The Fall”
    16) Josh Groban “Noel”
    17) Jimmy Buffett “Buffett Hotel”
    18) Soundtrack “Twilight: New Moon”
    19) 30 Seconds to Mars “This is War”
    20) Miley Cyrus “Time of Our Lives (EP)”

  • Man On The Street – Chris Brown, His Supposed Blackballed Graffiti, And Wal-Mart

    Money Mike wrote about Chris Brown and his claim of being blackballed based on the fact that he walked into a Wal-Mart and didn’t see his new album, Graffiti stocked on the shelves. He went on a tirade through his Twitter account about how the manager of Wal-Mart didn’t know why his album wasn’t stocked and then re-tweeted many responses from fans who talked about their efforts to buy the album.

    And then, his Twitter account went poof.

    I decided to take this into my own hands and went to my local Wal-Mart to see if Brown’s album was stocked on shelves or if he was indeed being “blackballed”.

    Before I decided to look for myself, I asked the Wal-Mart employee if he know about Brown’s claims of being blackballed by the store. I think I made him uncomfortable as his response was that he wasn’t racist and he didn’t know what I was talking about. Hmmm. Maybe he didn’t know the term blackballed.

    Since I didn’t get much help from the Wal-Mart employee, I went to the CD racks and looked myself. I glanced at the first rack which had the newest CDs like Alicia Keys, though there was no Robin Thicke to be found so unless he was sold out, he should get on Twitter right now and claim that he was whiteballed, I mean blackballed. And then I looked at the second rack and found Brown’s album. So at least at this Wal-Mart, Chris Brown and his Graffiti were not blackballed.

    Chris Brown's Graffiti
    Chris Brown’s Graffiti

    Before I left, I wanted to know if the reason that there was a full stack of Brown CDs was because they had just sold a bunch and had to restock the shelves.

    I went back to the employee and asked him how many of Brown’s CDs were sold today. Here’s how the conversation went:

    Me: How many of Chris Brown’s Graffiti were sold today?

    Employee: Well, let me check in the system.

    Me: Ok.

    Employee: It looks like we sold one CD today.

    Me: Only one?

    Employee: But somehow two were returned.

    Me: So you’re saying that you sold a negative one Chris Brown CD today?

    Employee: Yes.

    Me: And how many Rihanna CDs?

    Employee: Not negative one.

    Me: Ok then.

    Ok, maybe that conversation never happened, but you know it was believable.

    There you have it. Chris Brown isn’t being blackballed. He just can’t sell any albums.

  • R’NR HOF Announces 2010 Inductees: World Goes “Huh”?

    The Rock ‘n Roll Hall of Fame just announced it’s 2010 inductees, and they are…(drumroll please)…Iggy & The Stooges, Genesis, ABBA, Jimmy Cliff and The Hollies.

    *Rubs eyes* Say what?

    Yes, folks. In a class that included the Red Hot Chili Peppers, Kiss and LL Cool J, this is what that lovely nominating committee was able to come up with.

    I’m sorry, but if Jann Wenner isn’t playing favorites OR someone isn’t getting paid under the table, then I don’t know how else to explain this one.

    I don’t know a whole lot about The Stooges (or Iggy’s music, really, beyond “Lust for Life”), but he seems to be widely regarded as a pioneer. He can slide.

    Genesis? Groundbreaking prog-rock band. Very theatrical and musically complex. Then they regrouped and turned out some of the most irresistible pop nuggets of the Eighties, not to mention a string of stellar solo hits by Peter Gabriel, Phil Collins and Mike + the Mechanics. They should be in (and I just read that Phil Collins is unable to drum anymore. What happened?).

    The Hollies? Aren’t they the “all that I need is the air that i breathe and to love you” band? Can you name one member of The Hollies? Do any bands today cite The Hollies as an influence? Can you name one groundbreaking or even critically acclaimed album by The Hollies? I didn’t think so.

    Jimmy Cliff: “The Harder They Come” is a fantastic album. Might be the best reggae album of all time not recorded by someone named Marley r Tosh. But what has Jimmy Cliff really done besides that? “I Can See Clearly Now”? Seriously. The R&R Hall of Fame needs ONE reggae musician and that musician is already inducted. And I say this as a black man of Caribbean descent.

    ABBA: The textbook definition of a singles band. Granted, they were able to create tons of ear candy, but does anyone who is not Swedish and/or gay own anything by ABBA outside of the obligatory greatest hits compilation? If we’re gonna induct ABBA, why not induct Olivia Newton-John? Or Andy Gibb? Will Britney Spears wind up in the Hall of Fame one day? (God, I hope not). And if we’re inducting legendary singles acts, where the hell are Daryl Hall and John Oates??

    I’ve defended the Rock ‘n Roll Hall of Fame to tons of people over the years, but I think I’m beginning to see the light. Anyone who says that these 5 artists are the most deserving of the list of bands that were nominated seriously has rocks in their head.