Though we’ve yet to unveil whether Sugarland’s “The Incredible Machine” or Kings of Leon’s “Come Around Sundown” has won the battle for the No. 1 crown on this week’s Billboard 200 chart, we’re already looking at next week’s chart, where Taylor Swift’s “Speak Now,” released yesterday (Oct. 25), is aiming for a monster debut.
Industry prognosticators are suggesting the Big Machine set may arrive with as much as 800,000 to 900,000 copies sold by week’s end on Oct. 31. And, there’s even a chance it could approach 1 million.
Her start could be more than 2010’s current biggest week, when Eminem’s “Recovery” arrived at No. 1 with 741,000 according to Nielsen SoundScan. If sales of “Speak Now” turn out to be especially rosy, it could be the industry’s first album to sell 1 million copies in one week since Lil Wayne’s “Tha Carter III” bowed with 1,006,000 in June of 2008.
The potential sales of “Speak Now” must be music to the industry’s ears, after many superstar album releases this year have failed to meet or exceed first-week expectations. A month ago, sources were projecting the “Speak Now” would start with 750,000.
Taylor Swift’s last album, “Fearless,” started at No. 1 with 592,000 in
November 2008 and has sold 6 million.
