Music Charts

Chartbreaker: Justin Bieber's 'Believe' has year's best-selling week for an album debut

Say what you want about Justin Bieber -- "he looks like a girl," "he's annoying," "he's only relevant to thirteen-year-old girls" -- but the pop star sensation is doing something right. His new album, Believe , sold 374,000 copies in its first week. That number may not seem like a lot for a number- ... More >>

Chartbreaker: Usher beats Adele as top album, while "Call Me Maybe" is top single again

Carly Rae Jepsen's "Call Me Maybe" remains number one for another week on the Billboard Hot 100. However, on the Billboard 200 albums chart, somewhat unexpectedly, Usher overtakes Adele for the number-one album in the country with Looking 4 Myself -- even without a strong lead single to drive sales. ... More >>

Chartbreaker: Carly Rae Jepsen's "Call Me Maybe" and Adele's 21 claim the top spots

It was a big week for a certain Canadian this week, as the import's song finally overtook Gotye's "Somebody That I Used To Know." And no, we're not talking about Justin Bieber, but she is his protege. Carly Rae Jepsen's inescapable viral and radio hit, "Call Me Maybe," conquers the Billboard Ho ... More >>

Chartbreaker: Gotye and John Mayer spend yet another week at the top of the charts

Another strong week for Gotye, who held on to number one with "Somebody That I Used To Know." If you haven't kept track, that's a tally of eight weeks at the top now. However, that could change next week, as strong pushes from both Rihanna and Katy Perry, not to mention Carly Rae Jepsen, who could ... More >>

Chartbreaker: John Mayer's new album, Born and Raised, takes the top spot this week

John Mayer knocks Adam Lambert from the top of the Billboard 200 albums chart this week as Mayer's new record, Born And Raised, lands at number one. Lambert's Trespassing, meanwhile, drops all the way to number twelve. Born And Raised is Mayer's third number-one album, joining 2003's Heavier Things ... More >>

Chartbreaker: In a clash of Idols, Adam Lambert unseats Carrie Underwood with Trespassing

It's a big week for American Idol this week. Besides the crowning of the season 11 winner, Phillip Phillips, the singing talent show sees another of its alums rise to the top of the Billboard 200 chart. The first time in chart history, one Idol is succeeded by another, as Adam Lambert's Trespassi ... More >>

Chartbreaker: Another strong week for Carrie Underwood and Gotye, thanks to moms

Many of previous weeks' big-performing albums have rebounded on the Billboard 200 chart, thanks to a Mother's Day sales surge. Adele's 21 is the best example of this boost, as the album shoots up from number four to number two this week. It's still not enough to reclaim the top spot from Carrie Unde ... More >>

Chartbreaker: Competition is Blown Away on the charts this week by Carrie Underwood

Carrie Underwood debuted at the top of the Billboard 200 albums chart this week with her fourth album, Blown Away, selling 267,000 copies. Underwood's latest trails only Madonna's MDNA, which sold 358,000, as the biggest-selling debut of 2012. Another noteworthy feat for Underwood this week: She f ... More >>

Chartbreaker: Jack White beats Adele in an otherwise slow sales week for albums

Music sales were slow last week. Jack White's debut solo album, Blunderbuss took the top spot with 138,000 copies sold -- that's less than half of what Madonna 's new one, MDNA , shifted its first week on the chart this time last month: 359,000 (although sales subsequently plummeted the following w ... More >>

Chartbreaker: Lionel Richie bests Madonna and Nicki Minaj, Maroon 5's "Payphone" cashes in

See Also: • Madonna's MDNA falls harder than Lady Gaga's Born This Way did • Madonna's MDNA outsells Lionel Richie's Tuskegee (what year is this again?) Madonna and Lionel Richie -- who would have thought that after four weeks on the Billboard 200 albums chart, only Richie would remain in the t ... More >>

Chartbreaker: Madonna's MDNA falls harder than Lady Gaga's Born This Way did, while Nicki Minaj takes the top in the U.S. and U.K.

In the ultimate twist of "Give Me Some Luvin'" irony, Nicki Minaj has dethroned Madonna from the top of the Billboard 200 chart this week, as Pink Friday: Roman Reloaded easily takes the top spot with 253,000 copies sold, while Madge's MDNA dropped to number eight, selling only 48,000 in its second ... More >>

Chartbreaker: Madonna's MDNA outsells Lionel Richie's Tuskegee (what year is this again?)

Madonna nabs the top spot on the Billboard 200 with her new album, MDNA. The set, her twelfth studio album, is also her eighth number-one; Madonna is now second only to Barbra Streisand with the number of top albums, and even then Babz only leads by one. MDNA shifted 359,000 copies, nearly 80,000 mo ... More >>

Chartbreaker: Taylor Swift and The Hunger Games top Adele and One Direction this week

Lots of noise on the Billboard 200 albums chart in the past two weeks, and it hasn't been from Adele...for once. Last week, newcomers One Direction made history as the first British import with a number-one album debut -- neither the Spice Girls nor the Beatles had albums ever debut at number one in ... More >>

Chartbreaker: Bruce Springsteen shows Adele who is Boss with his new album, Wrecking Ball

Adele finally fell from the top this week, thanks to none other than the Boss. That's right -- Bruce Springsteen's new release, Wrecking Ball, his seventeenth studio album, managed to end Adele's reign at the top of the Billboard 200, shifting 224,000 units to Adele's 195,000. Sales for Adele's 21 d ... More >>

Chartbreaker: Adele on top once again for the 23rd week

Watch out, Prince. Adele is about to set fire to your "Purple Rain." One more week, and Adele's 21 will boast the same chart record Purple Rain did in 1984 and 1985: reigning at the top of the Billboard 200 for 24 whole weeks.

Chartbreaker: Adele beats Michael Jackson's record and eyes Prince's Purple Rain next

Yet another big week for Adele, who continues to dominate the charts. With a ninth consecutive week at number one on the Billboard 200 chart, the 22nd week overall, Adele's second album, 21 recently supplanted The Bodyguard soundtrack in the record books and now the album has is closing in on Prince ... More >>

Nicki Minaj and Katy Perry fight for pop's best new song with "Starships" and "Part Of Me"

Whose new single is better -- Nicki Minaj's "Starships" or Katy Perry's "Part Of Me"?​Both Katy Perry and Nicki Minaj used their Grammy performances on Sunday to premiere new singles from their forthcoming albums, Teenage Dream: The Complete Confection and Pink Friday: Roman Reloaded, respecti ... More >>

Look out, Gaga: Madonna's back to get all the "Luvin'" with a potent new drug called M.D.N.A.

Forget Tim Tebow. From now until at least the day after the Super Bowl, everyone's going to be talking about another figure in pop culture who had the religion thing down long before Tebow did: Madonna. Although Lady Gaga may never admit as much, Madge recently acknowledged the similarities between ... More >>

Black Keys: "Rock & Roll is dying because of Nickelback"

Despite the pointed assertion of Black Keys drummer Patrick Carney that rock music is dying because of Nickelback, the genre still appears to be selling quite well. Granted, not quite as well as hip-hop or pop, but it's still kicking. In a recent Rolling Stone cover story, Carney is quoted as sayin ... More >>

Michael Buble's Christmas raises the bar for all holiday tracks, plus a breakdown of the charts

It's going to be a holly, jolly Christmas with Michael Buble's new collection of holiday classics.​Michael Buble put out a killer Christmas record, and it could not have come at a better time. While the charts are currently flooded with dance-pop beats, synthesizers-laden hooks and auto-tuned ... More >>

Ten pop music moments that defined 2011

With major comebacks and massive hits, 2011 was the year of the women, from Beyoncé to Miley Cyrus. Without singers like Adele, we wouldn't have songs to cry along with, and without Katy Perry, we wouldn't have any songs to hum at our nine to five. So what exactly were the biggest pop moments of 20 ... More >>

Katy Perry's charisma fizzles on Saturday Night Live guest host, plus a breakdown of the charts

Katy Perry hosted Saturday Night Live last weekend.​For a pop star whose boobs were their own punch line on a previous appearance of Saturday Night Live, Katy Perry's hosting duties fell flat on Saturday. Instead of creating any memorable new characters -- á la Justin Timberlake -- the writer ... More >>

"Marry the Night," Lady Gaga's new video, registers eleven million views and counting

Lady Gaga won't let a face full of cereal stop her from being the biggest pop star yet.​"Marry The Night," Lady Gaga's new video has racked up eleven million views and counting since debuting this past Friday. The most surprising part isn't how many views the clip has registered as much as the ... More >>

Nicole Scherzinger's debut album delayed again, plus a breakdown of this week's charts

Despite being a judge on the American version of X Factor, Nicole Scherzinger has had a rough go in the music industry ever since leaving the Pussycat Dolls. This week, word came down that the release date for her debut album Killer Love, originally slated for November 15, has been pushed back to so ... More >>

Madonna's new single leaks: Does it deserve any love? Plus a breakdown of this week's charts

Madonna wants all your love, but does she deserve any of it?​It was a big week for female pop music. Katy Perry, Lady Gaga and Madonna were all in the spotlight this week. Perry's new video for "The One That Got Away" garnerd hit six million YouTube views over the weekend. The song is her sixt ... More >>

Could Katy Perry's new single break MJ's record, or merely be "The One That Got Away"?

Katy Perry won't let another number-one single get away.​This Friday, on the magical, mystical date of 11/11/11, Katy Perry is planning to premiere the video for her sixth single, "The One That Got Away," from Teenage Dream, the album that keeps on producing hit singles. In an attempt to break ... More >>

Beyoncé's "Party" will make you forget B's last video, plus a breakdown of this week's charts

Forget "Countdown" -- Beyoncé is here to party.​What do you do if you release a music video and get slammed with plagiarism accusations? If you're Beyoncé, you release another video. And then another. First Beyoncé released a video for "Countdown," her third official single (after "Run The ... More >>

Scotty McCreery breaks a few Billboard records, plus a breakdown of this week's charts

Scotty McCreery​Scotty McCreery's new album, Clear As Day, broke records this week by debuting at number one on the Billboard 200, proving that American Idol can still produce stars, even if it's been a while. Clear As Day is the first debut release from an American Idol winner to catapult to ... More >>

Gym Class Heroes enters top ten with Adam Levine's help, plus a look at this week's charts

When did Adam Levine become such a pop god? Really? Throw the Maroon 5 singer's vocal on any track, and watch it hit the top ten right now. Case in point: "Stereo Hearts." It isn't the strongest Gym Class Heroes track (that distinction belongs to "Peace Sign/Index Down" with Busta Rhymes), and yet " ... More >>

Professor concludes that sex sells. Who knew? The 10 best "reproductive messages" in songs

State University of New York professor Dawn R. Hobbs recently concluded that 92 percent of the songs that made it to the Billboard Top 10 in 2009 contained some form of "reproductive messages." The conclusion is unsurprising: Sex sells. What is mildly surprising, however, is the statistical degree t ... More >>

LMFAO benefits from its marketing brilliance, plus a breakdown of this week's charts

LMFAO is a love-'em-or-hate-'em act. You either love "Party Rock Anthem" or you hate it with every fiber of your party-rockin' being. You either love "Shots," or you think the devil would play it on loop in hell. LMFAO is that polarizing. The act's newest single, "Sexy and I Know It," is so cringe-t ... More >>

Will Dev's sea of hands carry her to the top? Plus a full breakdown of this week's charts

Dev: like a pregnant G6.Her name is Dev. She may roll like a G6, but her sex-drive shtick is totally hot. And the sea of hands touching her naked body doesn't hurt either. Unlike other dance-pop starlets of today, Dev comes out of left field with a sound that's more Euro club than Euro trash -- thin ... More >>

Adele's non-single single makes chart history and more: A full breakdown of this week's charts

Duffy who?​Adele makes Billboard chart history this week, as "Someone Like You" flies to the top spot on the Hot 100 -- even though it wasn't officially released as a single, it's still all over Denver radio. Adele deserves this, though. Girl has had a huuuuuge year in music. First "Rolling ... More >>

Kelly Clarkson returns, Katy Perry loses top spot and more: A full breakdown of this week's charts

"Mr. Know It All" is no "Since U Been Gone," but it will sell quite well.​Kelly Clarkson is back. Again. After disappearing from the pop-music scene following her massive hit album Breakaway, then returning with the Clive Davis-hated project My December, then returning again with "My Life Woul ... More >>

Despite claims to the contrary, Maroon 5's Adam Levine does not have moves like Jagger

Earth to Mick: This guy's trying to steal your moves...and unsuccessfully, no less.​LMFAO leads the Billboard Hot 100 again this week, once again blocking Katy Perry from her fifth number one and tying Michael Jackson's record. But we heard all about that last week. This week, the biggest surp ... More >>

Could Katy Perry be as "Bad" as Michael Jackson? It's certainly looking that way

Perry's "Friday Night" is the next "Dirty Diana"?​"Katy Perry breaks another record" -- how many times have we heard that this summer? Not enough, apparently. Perry, whose last two singles, "E.T." and "Firework" have both been certified 4x-platinum, may claim yet another chart record title wit ... More >>

Screw you, Paul Simon! We love your pop!

Paul Simon...looking seeeexy.​In a recent interview, Paul Simon proclaimed that he's no longer concerned with topping the pop-music charts, and that he can now go back to writing and performing the songs that are true to his nature. To that statement, we say, "FUCK YOU, PAUL SIMON." We love yo ... More >>

The Decemberists

Wednesday, February 9, Boulder Theater, 303-786-7030.

Bruno Mars back to Joe Venuti: First Billboard chart published 75 years ago today

Look how far they've come.​Billboard magazine published its first music chart ever on January 4, 1936 -- 75 years ago today. It was called The Hit Parade, and it was one of the first music charts of any kind. The first number-one in Billboard history? Joe Venuti, father of the jazz violin, per ... More >>

Rihanna is a Singles Lady if there ever was one

​Last week in Poptimystic, we talked about Taylor Swift and her unparalleled ability to sell albums in the current music industry wasteland. But the album is not what it once was, and the ability to sell singles may actually be a better litmus test of an artist's influence. It remains the un ... More >>

Justin Bieber

Thursday, July 8, 1stBank Center, 303-830-8497.

What would the industry do without Glee?

For the second week in a row, album sales reached their lowest point in the history of the SoundScan era. "Indie" bands, meanwhile, continue to chart unexpectedly high: This week, The Black Keys are number three, Band of Horses is number seven and LCD Soundsystem is number ten. But these are fl ... More >>

Album Sales Are In The Crapper, But The National Is Doing Just Fine

This week's signs of the music industry's apocalypse: 1. The National had the highest selling debut album in the country this week, good for number three overall (behind Justin Beiber and Lady Antebellum). 2. This was the worst week for album sales since SoundScan started keeping track in 1991. ... More >>

B.o.B. (sort of) wins the week

As expected, B.o.B.'s Adventures of Bobby Ray is the number one album in the country this week. Of course, it only needed to sell 84,000 copies to do it. As Billboard notes, this is the first three-week run of no albums breaking 100,000 since February of last year. Cue alarm bells, death of The I ... More >>

Who'd have thought Justin Bieber's My World 2.0 would prove an accurate title?

There you have it: Fourteen-year-old Bieber's debut full-length is on top of the Billboard album chart. His debut EP, meanwhile, is at number five. That one's called My World (get it?) -- can't argue with either title. This makes him the youngest chart-topper since Stevie Wonder, yet something te ... More >>

Poptimystic: We Are The World cannot unseat Ke$ha

Appearing in an episode of The Simple Life and then singing uncredited back-up vocals on the worst single of last year would not appear to be the path to pop enshrinement. But here is Ke$ha, who did exactly that and is now parked on top of the Hot 100. Above is the video for her next single, "Bl ... More >>

Ke$ha rules the airwaves -- and makes us want to shoot ourselves in the face

"Just listened to a "song" from Ke$ha. Fucking shoot me in the face! That was the worst 3min of my life. I am going to kill puppies now." Best. Tweet. Ever. Hands down. Couldn't have said it any better, numberthree. Not only do you swing the sticks with the zest of Papa Zita, clearly you've also bee ... More >>

Hitsville, by the numbers

What sort of year was 2008? Let's look at the stats.

Fray to Go