ChartWatch for May 26, 2010
There aren’t a lot of new albums coming out this week but we do have a few Hip Hop artists entering the top fifty. We lead off the charts this week with two influential artists in the worlds of Hip Hop and Reggae. Nas and Damian Marley lead the countdown with their highly anticipated album Distant Relatives. The duo sold 55,084 copies and now claims the number five spot.
They are followed by Usher whose latest album, Raymond Vs. Raymond, has sold another 41,264 and takes the number eight spot. Is it just me or has every song on this album been released as a single? I mean, I know it’s not that bad…but that’s a lot of singles, right?
B.o.B still holds strong at number fourteen with his debut album The Adventures of Bobby Ray. This week the Atlanta MC sells 22,315 copies.
Nas and Damian Marley weren’t the only duo that dropped an album last week. Brooklyn wordsmith and Cincinnati producer, Talib Kweli and Hi-Tek, also released Revolutions Per Minute roughly a decade after their classic debut Train of Thought. This week the two artists, better known as Reflections Eternal, sell 19,080 copies and rest at the number 19 position.
Next up is another artist entering the charts for the first time this week. Janelle Monae, the eclectic singer known recently for her working with Outkast’s Big Boi and P. Diddy, releases her latest album The ArchAndroid. Janelle sells 17,751 copies and claims the 21st spot.
Then we have a group that is all too familiar with being on the charts. The Black Eyed Peas continue to sell units of the hit album The E.N.D moving 17,399 copies and claiming the 23rd spot.
He was at the number 30 spot last week. He is at the number 30 spot this week. Ludacris holds strong and sells 12,797 copies of his latest album, Battle of the Sexes.
Finally, Lil Wayne moves another 8,907 copies of his rock album, The Rebirth, but drop a few positions to take the 47th spot.
Shoulda Been
This is usually where we talk about the album that dropped last week, should have made it on the charts, but just didn’t. There isn’t too much to say because the two albums that definitely should have moved units sold (relatively) decently. Congratulations to Nas, Damian Marley, Talib Kweli, and Hi-Tek and hopefully there isn’t a huge drop off next week.
Dropping This Week
The only thing I have for you this week is a compilation of Common’s greatest hits entitled Go!: Common Clasics. Now if you’ve ever read this column then you know how I feel about compilations and greatest-hits albums. If you’ve never experienced the artist (and just want to grab some quick singles) then pick one up, but you’re probably better off just picking one of the better albums out of the artist’s catalogue. This compilation does have the classic Westside Connection diss “The B#### in Yoo” but it hardly gives you a glimpse into Common’s body of work. Where is the introspective duet “Retrospect for Life” where Common grapples with whether or not to have his unborn child aborted while Lauryn Hill provides the melodic backdrop? Where is the Bilal assisted “The 6th Sense?” And even though this album doesn’t get the respect it deserves, where are any songs from the eclectic Electric Circus? (You may hate the album but “Aquarius” was a hard hitting track). If you want to listen to Common then go pick up Be or any one of Common’s eight other albums. (Actually, you may want to start with Be and any albums before it. You know, before Common met movies, one of the Williams girls, and Gap sweaters.)
That’s it for the charts this week. See you next week.
