Justin Bieber notches his second No. 1 album on the Billboard 200 with “Never Say Never: The Remixes” opening in the top slot with 165,000 copies sold, according to Nielsen SoundScan.
His first topper came with “My World 2.0,” which debuted at No. 1 as well, on the April 10, 2010, chart, with 283,000. Overall, “Never Say Never: The Remixes” is Biebs’ fourth top 10 album on the tally, joining previous hits “My World” (No. 5) and “My Worlds Acoustic” (No. 7).
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More stunning: All four of Bieber’s albums are in the top 40 this week, the first time an artist has managed the feat since 1993. (“Mhy World 2.0” is No. 8, “My Worlds Acoustic” is No. 18, and “My World” is No. 31.) The last artist to concurrently chart as many in the top 40 was Garth Brooks on Jan. 23, 1993. The country king — at the height of Garth Mania — held down the Nos. 2, 23, 26 and 29 slots that week with “The Chase,” “Beyond the Season,” “Ropin’ the Wind” and “No Fences,” respectively.
Bieber’s “Never Say Never: The Remixes” is the first remix album to top the Billboard 200 in almost a decade. The last to do so was Jennifer Lopez‘s “J to tha L-O! The Remixes,” which reigned for two weeks beginning Feb. 23, 2002.
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Bieber’s mini-album includes four remixes, a live version of “Overboard” and two studio tunes that weren’t previously on an album: the title track and “Born to Be Somebody.” The latter, written by Diane Warren, plays over the end credits to the Bieb’s documentary film of the same name, which has racked up $48 million at the U.S. and Canada box office since it opened on Feb. 11.
The teen phenom’s big week was no doubt also fueled by the Feb. 13 Grammy Awards, where he performed on the show. The awards’ power is felt on the tally in full effect this week, now that we’ve had a week’s worth of impact. Bieber’s fellow new artist nominee Mumford & Sons holds at No. 2 with their “Sigh No More,” but sells 133,000 (up 169%) — its best sales week so far. The title was helped not just by the Grammys, but also by Amazon MP3’s sale-pricing of the set for $5.99.
Last week’s No. 1, the “Now 37” compilation, slips to No. 3 with 95,000 (down 37%) while Lady Antebellum‘s “Need You Now” flies 17-4 (85,000; up 205%). Lady A performed the album’s title track on the show, and the song won the awards for song and record of the year, as well as for best country performance by a duo or group with vocals and best country song. The “Need You Now” set also took the honor for best country album.
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Grammy also smiles on Bruno Mars‘ “Doo-Wops & Hooligans” (6-5 with 61,000; up 55%), Eminem‘s “Recovery” (7-6 with almost 61,000; up 60%), the “2011 Grammy Nominees” album (11-7 with 56,000; up 67%) and the aforementioned “My World 2.0” (falling five spots, 3-8, with 54,000, though it’s up 13%).
Nicki Minaj‘s “Pink Friday” falls 4-9 with 46,000 while Rihanna (another Grammy performer) slips 8-10 with 45,000 (though she gains by 24%).
Just outside the top 10, zipping 52-12, is surprise album of the year winner “The Suburbs” by Arcade Fire (41,000; up 238%) while super-surprise best new artist champ Esperanza Spalding re-enters at No. 34 with “Chamber Music Society” (18,000; up 476%).
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Over on the Digital Songs chart, Lady Gaga‘s “Born This Way” remains at No. 1 for a second week with a surprising increase in sales. This week, after its first full week of availability, it shifted 509,000 — up 14%. Last week, the tune entered atop the list with 448,000 after less than three full days of sales.
The song’s 509,000 haul is the fourth-largest week for a digital download, and it’s just the fifth song to shift more than 500,000 in a week.
“Born This Way” is the first No. 1-debuting song to post a sales increase in its second week since Beyonce‘s “Single Ladies (Put a Ring on It)” moved 228,000 after bowing at No. 1 with 204,000 on the Dec. 6, 2008, chart.
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Like the Billboard 200, the Digital Songs list this week is riddled with Grammy gainers. Performer and nominee Cee Lo Green rises 6-2 with “F**k You (Forget You)” (412,000; up 178%) while “I Need a Doctor” by Dr. Dre featuring Eminem and Skylar Grey zips 14-3 with 283,000 (up 172%). The latter tune was performed on the show, as was the song at No. 4, Bieber’s “Never Say Never,” which rises eight slots (199,000; up 67%). Mars’ “Grenade,” also sung on the awards, climbs 8-5 (180,000; up 25%).
Rihanna’s “S&M” continues to gain, rising 7-6 (173,000; up 20%), while Katy Perry‘s “Firework” slips 2-7 (154,000; down 9%) and P!nk‘s “F**kin’ Perfect” drops 3-8 (142,000; down 8%). Wiz Khalifa‘s “Black and Yellow” (5-9 with 129,000; down 15%) and Avril Lavigne‘s “What the Hell” (11-10 with 124,000; down 15%) round out the top 10.
Overall album sales in this past chart week (ending Feb. 20) totaled 7.2 million units, up 12% compared with the sum last week (6.4 million) and up 10% compared with the comparable sales week of 2010 (6.5 million). Year-to-date album sales stand at 40 million, down 11% compared with the same total at this point last year (45.1 million).
Digital track sales this past week totaled 29 million downloads, up 8% compared with last week (26.8 million) and up 15% stacked next to the comparable week of 2010 (25.2 million). Year-to-date track sales are at 188.7 million, up 6% compared with the same total at this point last year (178.6 million).
Next week’s Billboard 200 competes with the same week in 2010 when: Sade‘s “Soldier of Love” held at No. 1 for a third week (127,000; down 34%) while Johnny Cash‘s “American VI: Ain’t No Grave” was the tally’s highest new entry, coming in at No. 3 with 54,000.