As Billboard.biz reported on Sept. 26, Mumford & Sons' "Babel" is on course for a record-setting week on the next Billboard 200 albums chart. The band's second release may sell around 600,000 copies by the end of the tracking week on Sept. 30, easily securing a No. 1 debut on the Billboard 200 chart next week.
Mumford & Sons' 'Babel' on Track to Sell a Whopping 600,000 Copies in First Week [1]
The new Billboard 200 chart's top 10 will be revealed on the morning of Oct. 3.
Mumford & Sons isn't the only big-named act with a new release this week -- Green Day, No Doubt, Lupe Fiasco and Deadmau5 are all on course for top 10 arrivals next week.
Green Day's latest, "Uno!," may move around 150,000 -- good enough for a No. 2 entry, according to industry forecasters. That's off quite a bit from the start of its last studio release, 2009's "21st Century Breakdown," which debuted at No. 1 with 215,000 sold, according to Nielsen SoundScan. The band's promotional duties this week were thrown for a loop when frontman Billie Joe Armstrong announced on Sept. 23 that he was "seeking treatment for substance abuse."
No Doubt's long-awaited new studio album "Push & Shove" may bow in the No. 3 slot with 125,000. The quartet was last on the chart with a new studio set in 2001-2003 with "Rock Steady." The album release spent 76 weeks on the chart, peaking at No. 9 in its debut week.
Lupe Fiasco's "Food & Liquor II: the Great American Rap Album Pt. 1" seems like it will start with between 90,000 and 100,000, which should prompt a No. 4 debut. Fiasco's last release, 2011's "Lasers," debuted at No. 1, selling 204,000 in its premiere frame.
The fifth-largest entry next week looks to be Deadmau5's ">Album Title Goes Here<," which might sell 50,000. It would mark a career-high sales week (and new chart high) for the EDM act, whose best week thus far was the debut of 2010's "4X4=12." Its highest week came during its debut, when it entered the chart at No. 47 (its peak) with 27,000.
On Nielsen SoundScan's Building chart (below), Mumford & Sons is No. 1, followed by No Doubt, Green Day and Fiasco at Nos. 2-4, respectively. The Building tally is a precursor to the final Billboard 200 ranking -- reflecting the first four days (Monday through Thursday) of SoundScan's tracking week as reported by six major merchants.
As for the rest of the Building chart's top 10: P!nk's "The Truth About Love" is at No. 5; Deadmau5 is No. 6; the "Cruel Summer" compilation is No. 7; and Dave Matthews Band's "Away From the World" is No. 8. Rounding out the top 10 are the Killers' "Battle Born" (No. 9) and Little Big Town's "Tornado."
| Nielsen SoundScan Building Chart | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Rank | LW BB 200 |
Artist | Title |
| 1 | NEW | Mumford & Sons | "Babel" |
| 2 | NEW | No Doubt | "Push & Shove" |
| 3 | NEW | Green Day | "Uno!" |
| 4 | NEW | Lupe Fiasco | "Food & Liquor II" |
| 5 | 1 | P!nk | "The Truth About Love" |
| 6 | NEW | deadmau5 | "Album Title Goes Here" |
| 7 | 2 | Various | "Cruel Summer" |
| 8 | 4 | Dave Matthews Band | "Away From the World" |
| 9 | 3 | The Killers | "Battle Born" |
| 10 | 5 | Little Big Town | "Tornado" |
| The Building Chart reflects the first four days (Monday through Thursday) of SoundScan's tracking week (which ends Sunday) as reported by six major merchants: iTunes, Trans World Entertainment, Best Buy, Starbucks, Target and Anderson Merchandisers. Billboard estimates that they make up about 85% of all U.S. album sales. | |||
