A quick look at the most notable jumps and drops on this week’s Billboard 200 albums chart.
— Justin Bieber: Perhaps we have Oprah Winfrey to thank for the Justin Bieber’s rise back to No. 1 this week on the Billboard 200 with “My World 2.0,” as the singer performed on Winfrey’s show on May 11. While his album is down this week in sales by 6% (selling 60,000 copies, according to Nielsen Soundscan), that decline is actually not so bad, considering it’s the week after the busy Mother’s Day shopping week, and overall album sales drop by 12%.
— MercyMe: The Christian band’s “The Generous Mr. Lovewell” slides 20 spots to No. 23 on 18,000 units sold (down a whopping 80%) in its second week. Its big debut last week — No. 3 with 88,000 — was inflated in part by sales earned by a successful and lengthy pre-order campaign. Now, in the album’s week two, without all of those pre-orders, it takes an appropriate tumble.
— Daughtry: Following the band’s performance of “September” on “American Idol” on May 12, Daughtry’s album “Leave This Town” had its best sales in six weeks — 9,000 — with a gain of 37% and gallops up the tally 34 slots, rising 85-51.
— Mumford & Sons: The act’s “Sigh No More” set sells 6,000 copies with an 80% jump in overall sales and re-enters the Billboard 200 at No. 94. It was Amazon MP3 store’s daily deal on May 14 for only $3.99 — and in turn nabs a 123% gain in downloads. Because it zips into the top 100, it also graduates from the Heatseekers Albums chart, where it had spent 12 weeks.
— La Roux: The act’s “Bulletproof” continues to find new fans as it rises 17-14 on the Mainstream Top 40 airplay, climbs 40-35 on all-format Hot 100 Airplay list and was heard on ABC’s “Dancing With the Stars” last week. The duo’s self-titled album sells a little over 4,000 copies and zooms up the list 68 spots to No. 121 with a 28% increase.
— Emily Osment: Non-traditional sales of her “All the Right Wrongs” EP through Scholastic’s teacher catalog have propelled the “Hannah Montana” co-star’s album sales over the past weeks. This issue, the set sells 4,000 with a 50% gain and re-enters at No. 132 — its ninth straight weekly increase. Its chart return grants the album its first taste of the Billboard 200 since last November, when it spent its initial two weeks on the tally.
— Harry Connick, Jr.: A week after the singer’s “Your Songs” made a lofty re-entry on the chart at No. 58 with 8,000 sold following his turn as the “American Idol” mentor, the set collapses 138 slots to No. 196 (3,000; down 64%).
The Billboard Hot 100:
— Usher: After being bumped from the top for a week by Eminem’s “Not Afraid,” Usher bounds back to No. 1 for a second frame with “OMG.” Usher’s track is the top airplay gainer for a fifth straight week (up 22.9 million listener impressions to 114 million, according to Nielsen BDS), ranking No. 3 on the Hot 100 Airplay chart and No. 2 on Hot Digital Songs (240,000 downloads, according to Nielsen SoundScan).
— Katy Perry: Katy Perry makes a career-best debut at No. 2 with “California Gurls,” featuring Snoop Dogg. The song shifts 294,000 downloads in its first week of availability, more than enough to send it to the top of the Hot Digital Songs tally. On Hot 100 Airplay, the track opens at No. 31 (33.5 million listener impressions), the highest debut on that list since Mariah Carey started at No. 23 with “Touch My Body” in March 2008.
— Eminem: With a 47% dip in second-week sales to 202,000, Eminem’s “Not Afraid” slips from 1-6 on the Hot 100. It’s the biggest drop from the top since Coldplay’s “Viva La Vida” also took a five-spot hit on the chart dated July 5, 2008. “Afraid” has yet to crack the top 75 on Hot 100 Airplay, though its audience impressions increase by 39%.
— Lady Gaga: Lady Gaga’s “Alejandro” (11-8) becomes her seventh straight radio single to reach the top 10. The last female artist to launch a career in such fashion was Monica, who also placed her first seven charting songs as a lead vocalist in the top 10 from 1995-1999. Gaga’s streak has taken her all of 17 months.
— “Glee” Cast: The ensemble once again places five new entries on the Hot 100, led by its rendition of Rick Springfield’s 1981 No. 1 smash, “Jessie’s Girl” at No. 23. The title sells 105,000 downloads and opens at No. 10 on Digital Songs. Of last week’s five sales-fueled debuts, only “Total Eclipse of the Heart” still beats on the list (falling 16-72).
— Drake: Drake has two bulleted titles in the top 20. “Over” moves 17-15 (up in sales, but down in airplay) and “Find Your Love,” which shoots 34-20 in its second week on the chart. “Love” is up over 50% in both metrics.
— 3OH!3 & Young Jeezy: Besides Eminem and the “Glee” cast, other sales-fueled debuts on last week’s chart take a step back this week, including 3OH!3 with “My First Kiss” (9-21, down 44% downloads) and Young Jeezy’s “Lose My Mind” (35-44, down 25%). However, the tracks are up 55% and 16% in airplay, respectively.
