entertainmentdissected

Seen here performing on NBC’s Todayshow, Beyonce Knowles has been ubiquitous in the last couple of weeks, actively promoting her new album. The hard work paid off, giving the singer her third No. 1 solo album. (picture courtesy of Reuters/Brendan McDermid)

Beyonce’s third solo album lived up to its title on the charts this week.

The former Destiny’s Child frontwoman’s I Am… Sasha Fiercedebuted at No. 1 on the Billboard 200, selling more than 482,000 units, according to Nielsen SoundScan. While a drop from the opening numbers of her last effort (541,000), the sum stands as the second-highest opening week for a female act this year, trailing only Taylor Swift’s 592,000-unit bow last week.

Fierce’ssales comfortably outdistanced runner-up Nickelback, whose Dark Horse sold more than 326,000 copies. That’s in line with the band’s previous opening, though this new effort has some major overall sales to compete with; All the Right Reasons spent around three years on the charts, selling 7 million units in the process. In a struggling albums market, Dark Horse would be fortunate to sell a quarter of that total.

David Cook, last season’s American Idol winner opened at No. 3 with nearly 280,000 units. That tops runner-up David Archuleta’s 183,000-unit opening from last week.

Over on the Hot 100 singles chart, T.I. and Rihanna continue to lead with “Live Your Life,” though Beyonce holds down positions No. 2 and 3, with “Single Ladies (Put a Ring On It)” and “If I Were a Boy.” Of those two hits, “Single Ladies” stands a greater chance at challenging for No. 1, since “Boy” trails it in both airplay and sales.

It’s Beyonce’s world on the music charts- she just may be “Irreplaceable,” after all.

Trackback URI | Comments RSS