Diddy scores his first No. 1 album on The Billboard 200 since 1997 this week with “Press Play.” The Bad Boy/Atlantic effort also knocks Lloyd Banks’ “Rotten Apple” from the throne on the Top R&B/Hip-Hop chart after only one week. “Press Play” sold 170,000 copies in the United States, according to Nielsen SoundScan, the lowest first-week sum of Diddy’s solo career.
Under his previous moniker Puff Daddy, his debut “No Way Out” also topped the 200 with a whopping 561,000 units in 1997. The follow-up, 1999’s “Forever” (205,000) and 2001’s “The Saga Continues” (186,000) both debuted and peaked at No. 2.
Evanescence’s Wind-Up effort “The Open Door” keeps the No. 2 spot warm for a second week with 112,000 copies, a 31% sales decline. Pop youngster JoJo returns to the chart with her sophomore set “The High Road” (Da Family/Blackground) at No. 3. Moving 108,000 units, the set also trumps the No. 4 chart entry of her 2004 self-titled debut.
Justin Timberlake’s “FutureSex/LoveSounds,” which topped the chart for two weeks earlier this month, jumps up 7-4 with 99,000, an 8% sales increase. Dierks Bentley arrives at No. 5 with “Long Trip Alone” (Capitol Nashville), which also bows at No. 1 on the Top Country Albums chart.
The set shifted 82,000, good enough for his best sales week and Billboard 200 charting position to date; his 2005 release “Modern Day Drifter” began with 75,000 at No. 6. “Long Trip” was previewed by the single “Every Mile a Memory,”
which ascends 3-1 on new Hot Country Songs chart, to be posted tomorrow on Billboard.com.
After entering at the summit of the big chart last week, Rod Stewart’s J Records release “Still the Same… Great American Rock Classics of Our Time” falls to No. 6 with 79,000 (-57%). Meanwhile, Hinder’s “Extreme Behavior” continues to prosper in its 38th week on the chart, ascending 9-7 with 76,000 and a sales decline of less than 1%.
“American Idol” second season winner Ruben Studdard is back with “The Return” (J) at No. 8 with 71,000 units. His debut set, “Soulful,” started at No. 1 in 2003 with 417,000, while the gospel-dominated follow-up “I Need An Angel” began at No. 20 in 2004.
Tony Bennett’s “Duets: An American Classic” (RPM/Columbia) falls 5-9 with 68,000, a sales slip of 35%, while the Killers’ “Sam’s Town” (Island) rounds out the top 10, falling 6-10 with 62,000.
Bentley is not the only country star to enjoy a strong debut this week. Vince Gill impacts the chart with the four-disc album “These Days” (MCA) at No. 17, which sold 42,000 copies. Other big debuts include Frankie J’s “Priceless” at No. 30 (Columbia, 26,000), Aeromsith’s “Devil’s Got a New Disguise — The Very Best of Aerosmith” at No. 33 (Columbia, 23,000), Lonestar’s “Mountains” at No. 37 (BNA, 22,000), Hi-Tek’s “Hi-Teknology, Vol. 2: The Chip” at No. 38 (Babygrande, also 22,000) and Sarah McLachlan’s holiday set “Wintersong,” at No. 42 (Arista, 20,000).
Overall CD sales are down 2.3% from last week’s count and down 2.3% compared to the same week a year ago at 9.86 million units. Sales for 2006 are down 5% compared to 2005 at 423.5 million units.
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