Jay-Z Remains in Top Spot, Kid Cudi & Drake Make Impressive Chart Debuts

Hip-Hop dominates this week’s Billboard 200 sales chart thanks to Jay-Z and the flood of new major rap releases that hit shelves last Tuesday (September 15).

Holding down the No. 1 position for the second week in a row is the self-described Frank Sinatra of the rap game, Mr. Shawn Carter. Jay-Z’s Blueprint 3 sold an additional 297,900 copies this week, bringing his two-week total to an impressive 774,000 units, according to the Nielsen SoundScan.

Coming in at no. 4 is Kanye West’s protégé Kid Cudi. The XXL Freshman alumnus failed to meet his 110-120K projections, but still managed to break 100k with his Universal/Motown debut Man on the Moon: The End of Day, officially selling 103,900 CDs in its first week. The disc received a boost in sales thanks to its $3.99 price tag at amazon.com.

Two spots down at no. 6 is Cudi’s fellow Universal label mate Drake. The Toronto-bred upstart managed to surpass expectations by racking up 73,300 in sales figures of the shortened, retail version of his critically-acclaimed, free mixtape So Far Gone.

Landing one spot down at no. 7 is Baton Rouge trap star Lil Boosie. Fans picked up 48,700 copies of the Trill Entertainment rapper’s new disc Superbad: The Return of Boosie Bad Azz in its introductory week.

The Black Eyed Peas slide down to the no. 10 slot this week. The group’s latest disc The E.N.D. (Energy Never Dies) tacked on an additional 40,200 units to their growing sales number, making their overall stats stand at 1,111,300 after 15 weeks.

In his sophomore week on the charts Raekwon plummets from the no. 4 position to no. 22. Only Built 4 Cuban Linx…Pt II, the sequel to the Wu-Tang rapper’s 1995 classic solo debut, moved 21, 300 units this go-round. After two weeks, the Chef is sitting on 89,000 in sales.

Sitting tight at no. 31 is Eminem. The hip-hop heavyweight continues to keep registers ringing well into his 18th week on the charts. Relapse rang in 13,800 CDs in sales this week, bringing the Detroit superstar’s overall tally to 1, 438,500.

Miami vet Trick Daddy debuted at no. 34 this week. Finally Famous: Born a Thug, Still a Thug, pulled in a 13,200 in sales in its first week on shelves. Fellow Floridian Pitbull landed two spots down at no. 36. The Latin rapper’s new disc Rebelution sold 13,000 units this week, bringing its three-week total to 72,100.

New releases by the New Boyz, KRS-One and Buckshot and Q-Tip failed to make it into the top 40. Skinny Jeans and a Mic by the New Boyz landed at no. 56 with 9,700 albums sold. Survival Skills the collaborative effort between KRS and Buck pushed out 8,400 discs from stores, earning the duo a seat at no. 62 and Tip’s Kamaal the Abstract came in at no. 77. The former Tribe Called Quest frontman, was able to sell 6,500 discs of an album that was originally supposed to drop in 2002.

Foundation, the new disc by M.O.P did not make it into The Billboard 200. According to the Nielsen SoundScan report the disc sold close to 2,100 copies in its debut week.

Next week look for Us, the new release by indie staple Brother Ali, to make it onto the charts. –Max G