bigted Posted December 29, 2005 Report Share Posted December 29, 2005 Blige's 'Breakthrough' Bows At No. 1 Mary J. Blige December 28, 2005, 11:15 AM ET Katie Hasty, N.Y. Despite slow overall sales throughout the holiday season, the week leading up to Christmas saw a retail burst led by a trio of R&B/hip-hop artists that shifted more than 1.75 million copies to lead The Billboard 200. With sales of 727,000 copies in the United States, according to Nielsen SoundScan, Mary J. Blige's "The Breakthrough" (Geffen) emerges as the No. 1 title on The Billboard 200, followed by Jamie Foxx's "Unpredictable" (J) and the late Notorious B.I.G.'s star-filled "Duets: The Final Chapter" (Bad Boy) to fill the chart's top three slots. At 33 million units, CD sales were up by a whopping 34% from the previous week and up 2% compared to the same week a year ago. At 602 million units, sales in 2005 lag behind 2004 by 10%. Featuring guest appearances by Jay-Z, Raphael Saadiq and featuring Bono, "The Breakthrough" is Blige's 11th title to appear on The Billboard 200 and marks her the third trip to the top. The set was preceded by the single "Be Without You," which is in the top 5 on Billboard’s Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart, and bows at No. 1 on the Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart. A musician long before scoring as an actor, Foxx's return to music moved an impressive 598,000 to debut at No. 2. The "Ray" star began stirring the musical waters earlier this year as a featured performer on Kanye West's smash hit "Gold Digger." Foxx first cracked The Billboard 200 in 1994 with his debut album "Peep This" which peaked at No. 78. A boatload of guests -- including Eminem, Jay-Z, R. Kelly and Blige -- join the Notorious B.I.G. on "Duets" in the No. 3 position on the chart based on sales of 438,000 copies. The Bad Boy release comes nearly nine years after the rap icon's death. Eminem's "Curtain Call: The Hits (Shady/Aftermath/Interscope) falls 1-4 this week despite a 33% increase to 430,000. "American Idol" star Carrie Underwood's "Some Hearts" drops 2-5, though sales jumped 48% to 401,000. In its 37th week on the chart, Mariah Carey's "The Emancipation of Mimi" (Island Def Jam) climbs 7-6 on a 52% sales increase to 290,000 units. The 20th volume in the "NOW That's What I Call Music!" hits compilation (BMG/Zomba/EMI/UME) dips 3-7 with 283,000 (+9%), while Kenny Chesney's "The Road and the radio" (BNA) slides 5-8 with 269,000 copies (+24%). Nickelback's "All the Right Reasons" dips 6-9 on 265,000 (+38%) and Kelly Clarkson's "Breakaway" falls 8-10 on 230,000 (+27%) to round out the top tier. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Admin Hero1 Posted December 29, 2005 Admin Report Share Posted December 29, 2005 now will interscope release tell me why???? :jusmindyabizness: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jonny 5 Posted December 29, 2005 Report Share Posted December 29, 2005 good news... should be a slight incentive Tim. Will should use it to his advantage... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bigted Posted December 29, 2005 Author Report Share Posted December 29, 2005 Christmas is the perfect time to release an album, Jamie Foxx sold 598,000, wtf?!!! :mygod: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mfuqua23 Posted December 29, 2005 Report Share Posted December 29, 2005 I actually liked a bit of Jamie's album. I haven't heard it all the way thru yet tho. Don't let that "Unpredictable" single fool you. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bigted Posted December 29, 2005 Author Report Share Posted December 29, 2005 (edited) Yeah Jamie got some skills, I'm probably gonna check that album, I guess I could've saw it coming though since he's so big in the game right now with winning an Oscar and being on Kanye's big hits... If Jimmy Iovine looks at the charts this week, hopefully he gets Will out there to shoot "Tell Me Why" with Mary J.... Will and Kel should also get Jamie on their compilation album.... Edited December 29, 2005 by bigted Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frenetic Posted December 29, 2005 Report Share Posted December 29, 2005 That's some crazy numbers even though they would've sold half if they weren't released before christmas. Still... B.I.G is gonna go plat faster than that 2pac album that Eminem ****ed up. Mary deserved that... love her. Hope she gets the same success as mariah. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MaxFly Posted December 29, 2005 Report Share Posted December 29, 2005 now will interscope release tell me why???? :jusmindyabizness: Thinking the same thing... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bigted Posted December 29, 2005 Author Report Share Posted December 29, 2005 :word: I think "Tell Me Why"'d help Mary J.'s album stay on top for a while as well and get people to pay attention to "Lost and Found" again at the same time, this should be a no-brainer but I wonder if Interscope is that smart though.... :willvspaparazzi: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MaxFly Posted December 29, 2005 Report Share Posted December 29, 2005 Will should just go ahead and release Tell Me Why off of Overbrook; take Interscope out of the picture. Then see how the track is doing on the radio... If it's doing well, make a video... doesn't have to be expensive... no line dancing, just straight hip hop. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JumpinJack AJ Posted December 29, 2005 Report Share Posted December 29, 2005 That Mary J album is dope. I wish is waz a bit grittier, but i love it. I could see "Tell Me Why" getting an extra push since her new album just came out. Let's hope for the best. I STILL haven't gotten Jamie Foxx's album. I think i'll get it 2day. I actually loved his 1st album but i never got it. Now u can find it on ebay for LOTS and LOTS of money. I actually have taped performances of him when he waz sining love on The Arsenio Hall Show back in the mid-90's. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Turntable Posted December 29, 2005 Report Share Posted December 29, 2005 (edited) Mary J. Blige's "The Breakthrough" has the 5th biggest opening week #'s for a female artist AND the biggest opening week #'s for a female rnb artist. 1 - "Oops...I Did It Again" Britney Spears 1,319,000 2 - "Feels Like Home" Norah Jones 1,027,000 3 - "Up!" Shania Twain 874,000 4 - "Britney" Britney Spears 746,000 5 - "The Breakthough" Mary J. Blige 750,000 6 - "The Diary Of..." Alicia Keys 618,000 7 - "In The Zone" Britney Spears 609,000 8 - "All For You" Janet Jackson 605,000 9 - "A New Day Has Come" Celine Dion 558,000 10 - "Greatest Hits" Shania Twain 530,00 Edited December 29, 2005 by Turntable Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jazzy Julie Posted December 29, 2005 Report Share Posted December 29, 2005 Oh they HAVE to release tell me why now, it would be perfect timing. Will isnt doing anything and it will help both thier albums sales. Interscope are dumb if they dont realise this. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bigted Posted December 29, 2005 Author Report Share Posted December 29, 2005 Max is right, Will needs to take this in his own hands now and release it through Overbrook.... :pony: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Admin Hero1 Posted December 29, 2005 Admin Report Share Posted December 29, 2005 interscope are in charge of releasing it to radio..Will could certainly shoot a video for tell me why tho.. if they released it now it could go to #1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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