Latin album sales were up 27% in the last shopping week before Christmas,
but lagged behind the 42% increase posted by the market overall, according
to Nielsen SoundScan.
After being dethroned for six weeks, Juanes returns to the No. 1 spot on Billboard’s Top Latin Albums chart, with a nearly 50% sales increase during the sales week ending Dec. 23. “La Vida…Es Un Ratico” moved about 14,000 units that week, according to Nielsen SoundScan.
As is typical in the mainstream market for holiday sales, veteran Latin acts largely outpaced their peers. Gloria Estefan’s “90 Millas” on Sony’s Burgundy Records imprint posted a nearly 80% sales jump, the highest percentage gain on the chart, followed by Manu Chao’s “La Radiolina” on Nacional Records at over 77%. Mana, Juan Luis Guerra, Andrea Bocelli, Ricardo Arjona and Rocio Durcal all had sales gains of over 50%.
Camila, a new Sony BMG act, stayed in the top 10 and saw sales grow by more than half. Reggaeton duo Jowell & Randy and duranguense group Los Aliados de la Sierra had compilations debut on Top Latin Albums as well.
Three albums released around the Hector Lavoe biopic “El Cantante” also saw a holiday surge, with the Marc Anthony soundtrack climbing from No. 19 to No. 13 on the chart.
