Can ‘Idol’ Still Churn Out Stars? Time Will Tell

Source: NY TIMES

Katharine McPhee, who came in second on Season 5 of “American Idol,” performing with the winner, Taylor Hicks. Ms. McPhee's first record opened at No. 2 on the Billboard album chart.

With a rush of publicity over the departure of Simon Cowell, “American Idol” returned this week for a ninth season, promising once again to introduce the next batch of fresh-faced pop stars.

Katharine McPhee, who came in second on Season 5 of “American Idol,” performing with the winner, Taylor Hicks. Ms. McPhee's first record opened at No. 2 on the Billboard album chart.

But when it comes to how well those winners and finalists will ultimately fare in the music marketplace, stardom is far from a sure thing, as sales figures from Nielsen SoundScan show.

Take for example Katharine McPhee, who came in second place on Season 5. Her first, self-titled record came out three years ago on RCA, and opened at No. 2 on the Billboard album chart. But a year later she was dropped by RCA, and last week she released her second album, “Unbroken,” on Verve, an imprint of Universal Music Group. (Sony Music Entertainment, RCA’s parent, has the contractual option to release music by “Idol” contestants.) “Unbroken” opened at No. 27 with 15,000 sales, and to date both albums have sold a combined 380,000 copies, a modest number for any aspiring pop star.

Granted, Ms. McPhee has not been one of the show’s biggest success stories. But even for its most famous names, who must learn to build a musical career that relies on more than their association with the show, “Idol” has shown a pattern of diminishing returns.

Kelly Clarkson, the first winner and one of the franchise’s most familiar faces, has released four albums since 2003, with combined sales of 10.5 million. But only 819,000 of that is for her latest, “All I Ever Wanted,” which came out in March. Chris Daughtry (fourth place in Season 5), who records simply as Daughtry, sold 4.6 million copies of his first album, but his latest, “Leave This Town,” released last summer, hasn’t been as popular, selling 890,000.

Carrie Underwood, the Season 4 winner, has felt the same effect, but less severely. Her “Some Hearts,” from 2005, has sold a whopping 6.9 million copies, and its follow-up, “Carnival Ride,” 3.1 million. Her latest, “Play On,” has been out for 10 weeks and moved a healthy 1.2 million copies.

For retailers, radio programmers and music industry observers, there is no clear answer to the question of whether “American Idol” has lost its ability to mint big stars, or whether these sliding numbers are simply a function of the larger pattern of declining album sales as consumers shift from buying CDs to downloading single songs.

“I still think that ‘Idol,’ even the most recent seasons, is such a great platform for the winners to work with superstar writers and producers,” said Sharon Dastur, program director for the New York Top 40 station Z100 (WHTZ, 100.3 FM). “They wouldn’t have gotten the chance to do that if they were just another singer starting out.”

Although the ratings for “American Idol,” which is on Fox, have been declining since their peak in 2006, it is still by far the most popular series on television. But the music industry has changed dramatically in the last nine years, and the novelty of an “Idol” win may no longer be enough to propel a winner’s album sales, let alone sustain a career.

Adam Lambert, who came in second on Season 8 last year, enjoyed about as much attention as a new pop star could possibly hope for. He ended up on the cover of Rolling Stone and with a big controversy — usually good for sales — over his performance at the “American Music Awards” in November, right before his album “For Your Entertainment” was released.

But “For Your Entertainment” has failed to catch fire, peaking at No. 3 on the chart and selling 445,000 copies to date. That’s nothing to sniff at, but in the same span of time Susan Boyle — introduced on another television talent show last year — has moved more than seven times as many.

While their album sales may have suffered, many ‘Idol’ singers have found success with downloads of single songs. “Battlefield,” the second album by Jordin Sparks, who won Season 6, has sold only 158,000 copies. (Her first, “Jordin Sparks,” has sold one million.) But its title track has been a big hit on the radio — Ms. Dastur said that Z100 had played it 1,578 times since last May, while most songs do not make it past 1,200 spins — and been downloaded 1.3 million times.

Kris Allen, who beat Mr. Lambert for the title last year, has had a slow start in terms of album sales: his self-titled release has sold 233,000 copies since it was released in November. But his song “Live Like We’re Dying” has had 551,000 downloads.

Tom Corson, general manager of the RCA Music Group, dismissed a suggestion that the “Idol” buzz has cooled off.

“It’s reflective of the overall market,” he said. “With most artists, the physical sales have eroded but the digital side has grown.”

At least one part of the music industry, however, is not happy about the shift to digital music: retailers. Joe Nardone Jr., an owner of Gallery of Sound, a six-store chain in Pennsylvania, believes that digital sales come at the expense of CDs, particularly when it comes to “Idol” singers, whose performances on the show are often sold as downloads while the contest is still going on.

“Since they’ve driven everybody online with that promotion, and with all the voting, the physical side is taken out of the mix,” Mr. Nardone said. “When somebody has to wait for the album, six months later, they’re less interested.”

Billboard Chart News - 1/13/10

Source: Billboard Chart Alert:

Ke$ha's 'Animal' Bites At No. 1 With Big Digital Debut
January 13, 2010

Editor: Keith Caulfield; Contributors: Gary Trust, Alex Vitoulis; Editorial Director: Silvio Pietroluongo

Newcomer Ke$ha opens at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 with her debut album, "Animal," shifting 152,000 copies . . . Of that figure, an eye-popping 76% was made up of digital downloads . . . After a six-week run at No. 1, Susan Boyle's "I Dreamed a Dream" drifts to No. 2 with 93,000 (down 32%) . . . Next week, Ke$ha may step aside for Vampire Weekend's second album, "Contra," which has a chance of starting at No. 1 with perhaps 75,000.

FLASH POINTS

• Ke$ha replaces Susan Boyle at the top of the Billboard 200 heap, thanks to the arrival of the former's debut album, "Animal," with 152,000 copies, according to Nielsen SoundScan.

• The youthful fans of Ke$ha must be delighted to see the 22-year-old party-hearty girl bump the soaring sounds of the 48-year-old Scottish reality TV star's "I Dreamed a Dream" out of the top slot after a six-week run. This week, Boyle slips to No. 2 with 93,000 (down 32%).

• With 152,000, "Animal" actually sold better than first expected. Initially, some industry sources thought it was going to sell around 100,000 copies in its first frame. That comparatively conservative figure came as a result of how "Animal" sold a boatload of downloads in it first two days of release. Generally, albums that intially sell crazy download numbers tend to trail off quicker as the week progresses. Thus, some industry projectors figured "Animal" would sell around 100,000.

• But as it turns out, "Animal" held up very well all week long, especially at digital download stores. It also helps that the set carried an attractive developing-artist list price of $9.98, and it was on sale for less than that at the big physical retailers. Additionally, both the Amazon MP3 and iTunes Stores sold it for only $6.99.

• In total, 76% of the album's first-week sales came from download retailers. That's the largest weekly digital percentage share for an album at No. 1 on the Billboard 200. It's also the largest digital sales week for any album—in terms of number of downloads—since John Mayer's "Battle Studies" debuted with 129,000 downloads in November. But, consider that his 129,000 downloads came as a part of an overall 286,000 copies that week (for a 45% digital share).

• As for the rest of the top 10 this week, Lady Gaga's "The Fame" gets bounced down one rung to No. 3 with 66,000 (down 20%) while Alicia Keys' "The Element of Freedom" (62,000; down 22%) and Mary J. Blige's "Stronger With Each Tear" (47,000; down 25%) each also drop one spot, respectively, to Nos. 4 and 5. The "Alvin and the Chipmunks: The Squeakquel" soundtrack climbs one position to No. 6 with 44,000 (down 13%), Taylor Swift's "Fearless" falls two spots to No. 7 (38,000; down 36%), and the Black Eyed Peas' "The E.N.D." holds steady at No. 8 (36,000; down 24%). Closing out the top 10 are Justin Bieber's "My World," falling three places to No. 9 (34,000; down 34%) and Lady Gaga's "The Fame Monster," down one notch to No. 10 with 31,000 (down 30%).

• Overall album sales in this past chart week (ending Jan. 10) totaled 5.9 million units, down 24% compared with the sum last week (7.8 million) and down 5% compared with the comparable sales week of 2009 (week ending Jan. 11; 6.3 million).

• NEXT WEEK...

• As for next week on the Billboard 200, it's looking like Vampire Weekend's sophomore album, "Contra," will be the highest debut and seems like a good bet for No. 1. Industry sources are projecting—based on first-day sales numbers—that the album could sell between 60,000 to 75,000 copies by week's end on Sunday, Jan. 17.

• Ke$ha's "Animal" will likely slide out of the No. 1 position to make way for Vampire Weekend, though it's too early to tell what kind of second-week sales drop "Animal" may face.

• Vampire's new set is being sold for $9.99 in iTunes' Store and for $3.99 in Amazon's MP3 Store. The latter retailer got a head start on the Vampire action, as it began selling the set Monday, Jan. 11—one day earlier than the album's official street date. Target and Best Buy are each also offering the title for not quite $8.

• Vampire Weekend's self-titled debut entered and peaked on the Billboard 200 at No. 17 with 28,000 nearly two years ago. It has sold far sold 491,000 in the United States, according to Nielsen SoundScan.

• Nielsen SoundScan's sales tracking week, as reflected in Billboard's sales charts, runs from Monday through Sunday of each week. Next week's album charts will be revealed Wednesday, Jan. 20, and will reflect data through the week ending Sunday, Jan. 13.

MARKET WATCH

• Album units, current chart week: 5.9 million units
• DOWN 24% from last week's charts: 7.8 million units
• DOWN 5% from the comparable week in 2009: 6.3 million units
• This week: Only the No. 1 album on the Billboard 200 sells more than 100,000 copies.
• This week last year on the Billboard 200: Taylor Swift's "Fearless" was a familiar face at No. 1, selling 72,000. The chart's top debut came at No. 16 from "Total Club Hits 2" with 20,000 copies.

A LOOK AHEAD

• Among the albums released this week, due on next week's charts: Vampire Weekend's "Contra," OK Go's "Of the Blue Colour of the Sky," Omarion's "Ollusion" and Ringo Starr's "Y Not."

• Next week's Billboard 200 competes with the same week in 2009 when: Taylor Swift's "Fearless" was yet again No. 1 (63,000) while the biggest new entry came from the soundtrack to "Notorious" at No. 4 with 43,000.

Simon Cowell Leaves Idol After This Season

Source: Variety

Simon Cowell is leaving "American Idol."
Fox execs and Cowell himself on Monday confirmed the acerbic judge's decision to exit the hit talent competish in order to help launch his long-awaited U.S. version of Brit TV sensation "The X Factor."

As now planned, "X Factor" will bow in fall 2011 on Fox , which means Cowell will be off the air for 16 months.

The real drama this season on "American Idol," even before its bow, has centered on the fate of Cowell.

The show is locked on Fox through at least 2011, but Cowell's megabucks deal with it expires at the end of this season.

At stake, of course, is the future of "Idol," perhaps the most important TV franchise in history.

"We reached an agreement formally at about half past 10 this morning," said Cowell, who signed his deal in front of critics at the TV Critics Assn. press tour. "Where we have come to and agreed is that X Factor will launch in America in 2011, with me judging the show and exec producing the show. Because of that this will be my last season on 'American Idol,' this year."

Sales Down in the Music Business

Source: Celebrity Cafe

In recent years, music sales have been declining, and 2009 is no different. Album sales dropped 12.7%, marking this as the eighth time in nine years that a decline has occurred. Unfortunately for the music business, this is a new low since ratings started being published in 1991.

However, this does not necessarily mean that certain artists were not successful. The death of the “King of Pop,” Michael Jackson, in July helped him to become the top selling artist of the year. Similarly, artists like Taylor Swift and The Beatles also had top selling albums even though they did not release anything new in the past year. Swift’s 2008 album, Fearless, was the top-selling album of the year, followed by Britain’s Got Talent sensation Susan Boyle, whose album was titled I Dreamed a Dream.

Music reps attribute this decline in album sales to the increased volume of internet music piracy and also the increased popularity of using sites such as iTunes
instead of buying the album. In addition, it seems as though the general population has focused its attention more on movies and live music events rather than on album music in the past year. The failure of music stores like the Virgin Megastore and Circuit City have not helped matters, either.

Female Acts Tipped for Top Again in 2010 Pop Polls

From ABC News

LONDON (Reuters) - No two lists are the same, but as pop pundits gaze into their crystal balls at the start of a new decade it is single female acts who look destined for the top, at the expense of indie bands.

Emboldened by the success in 2009 of flamboyant Lady Gaga, YouTube sensation Susan Boyle and country star Taylor Swift, and the likes of Amy Winehouse and Duffy before them, women are being backed to eclipse the bands once again in 2010.

"The 'Gaga effect' is going to continue in the next year and you can already see more artistic, edgy female pop acts," said Albert Schilcher, vice president of talent and music at MTV Networks International.

"Indie acts are suffering somewhat," he told Reuters. "That's not to say there can't be another great indie band, but not a lot of them are being signed (by labels) at the moment," said Schilcher, who also predicted a resurgence in dance music.

Paul Rees, editor of Q magazine, agreed.

"If you look at all the things that are being teed up by major labels, most of them are solo female artists," he told the BBC as part of its annual poll of the "next big things" in pop chosen by over 100 industry experts.

"That's what they're betting their money on."

Already on her way to international stardom is LA-based Kesha, whose debut song "TiK ToK" hit number one in the key U.S. market where it shifted 610,000 digital tracks in a single week last month, the highest weekly sum by a female artist on record.

The New York Times described the track as "a zippy and salacious celebration of late nights and mornings-after" and likened the 22-year-old to Lady Gaga, widely considered to be the biggest international breakthrough of 2009.

All eyes are now on her album "Animal" on Sony Music Entertainment's RCA label which hit the shelves in the United States on Tuesday.

Britain's answer to Kesha may be Ellie Goulding, who features in numerous tip lists and has already carried off the 2010 Critics' Choice Award at the BRITs.

The Music Charts Next Week-A Preview from Hits Daily Double

Source: Hits Daily Double

A new decade, another new female pop diva.

This one calls herself a pimp, brags about throwing up in the closet during a “Party at a Rich Dude’s House” (supposedly Paris Hilton) and scolds one potential boy toy, “Don’t be a little bitch with your chit-chat/Just show me where your dick’s at.”

She’s Ke$ha--think a female Beastie Boys crossed with Lady Gaga--an electro-pop 22-year-old Valley Girl whose singer/songwriter single mom, Pebe Sebert, is helping guide her fast-rising career, with studio whizzes Dr. Luke and Max Martin providing the beats.

Her debut RCA/RMG album, Animal—in large part thanks to the smash single, “TiK ToK,” now up to 2 million downloads and climbing—hit retail this week and looks set to battle her polar opposite, Susan Boyle’s I Dreamed a Dream, for #1 on next week’s HITS Top 50, with a total between 105-115k. That’s based on one-day sales from those retailers who haven’t re-opened as medical marijuana dispensaries. Ke$ha was previously known for being the featured vocalist on Flo Rida’s massive smash, “Right Round.” Give credit to the signing to RCA/Jive Label Group boss Barry Weiss.

The only other debut of note is Idol alum Katherine McPhee’s Verve Forecast debut, Unbroken, which sees her as a blonde, targeted for between 13-15k

The market was down 55% vs. last week, down 9% vs. same week last year and finishes the 53-week year down 11%. And you thought you had it rough.

The Hottest Selling Music This Week, Ending 12/27/09

From Billboard

Week Ending Dec. 27, 2009: Boyle's Five-Week Blitz by Paul Grein in Chart Watch
Susan Boyle's I Dreamed A Dream sold 510,000 copies this week, bringing its five-week total to 2,968,000. It's the first album to top 500K in each of its first five weeks of release since December 2000, when the Beatles' 1 and Backstreet Boys' Black & Blue both did the trick. (The Beatles' compilation topped 500K in each of its first six weeks.) In the more than 18 years that Nielsen/SoundScan has tracked sales for Billboard, only one other album has topped 500K in each of its first five weeks of release. That's Garth Brooks' 1997 album, Sevens..

Some quick stats: I Dreamed A Dream is the first album to spend its first five weeks at #1 since 50 Cent's The Massacre in 2005. It's the first album by a female solo artist to spend its first five weeks at #1 since Norah Jones' Feels Like Home in 2004. It's the first album by a British artist to spend its first five weeks at #1 since Def Leppard's Adrenalize in 1992..

There's still one chart week to go in 2009, but it now seems clear that Taylor Swift's Fearless will come out on top. Fearless has sold 3,157,000 copies so far this year, which is 189,000 more than I Dreamed A Dream. Sales for all albums will slow markedly next week as the holidays recede, so Boyle probably won't be able to close that gap. Even so, this has been one of the closest races for the year's #1 album in Nielsen/SoundScan history. The closest contest was in 1994, when The Lion King soundtrack edged out Ace Of Base's The Sign for bragging rights by just 17,000 copies. The second closest was in 2005 when Mariah Carey's The Emancipation Of Mimi edged out 50 Cent's The Massacre by 116,000 copies..

Both Fearless and I Dreamed A Dream have already outsold the #1 album of 2008, Lil Wayne's Tha Carter III, which sold 2,874,000 that year. This is the first time since 2002 that the top two albums of the year outsold the #1 album of the year before..

Fearless this week becomes the first album in a decade to log 50 weeks in the top 10. The last album to hang in the top 10 this long was Britney Spears' 1999 debut album, ...Baby One More Time. Swift's next target will be Shania Twain's Come On Over, which logged 53 weeks in the top 10 from 1997 to 2000..

Fearless topped the 5 million mark in total sales last week and this week advances to 5,269,000. It's the best-selling album since a pair of blockbusters which were released in the fourth quarter of 2005: Nickelback's All The Right Reasons (7,280,000) and Carrie Underwood's Some Hearts (6,901,000)..

Mary J. Blige's Stronger With Each Tear opens at #2 with first-week sales of 330,000. Blige is a model of consistency. This is her seventh consecutive studio album to debut at #1 or #2. That's every studio album she has released since Share My World in 1997..

Stronger With Each Tear is Blige's third studio album in a row to be released just before Christmas. The Breakthrough debuted at #1 on the chart for the week ending Dec. 25, 2005 with first-week sales of 727,000. Growing Pains started at #2 on the chart for the week ending Dec. 23, 2007 with sales of 629,000. As you can see, the new album got off to a slower start than Blige's last two studio albums. The same was true of Alicia Keys' current album, The Element Of Freedom, which started with sales of 417K last week. To a large degree, that's just the way it is these days..

Blige also appears on a second album in the top three, Andrea Bocelli's My Christmas. She joins the opera star to sing "What Child Is This.".

Michael Buble's Crazy Love, which debuted at #1 nine weeks ago, moves up to #1 in the U.K. this week. It's Buble's first #1 album in the U.K. The Canadian star evokes the eternal cool and class of Frank Sinatra, who had four #1 albums in the U.K.: Songs For Swingin' Lovers!, This Is Sinatra!, A Swingin' Affair! and Portrait Of Sinatra. But none of those four albums also reached the top spot in the U.S., which means that Buble has achieved something (a transatlantic #1 album) that eluded even the Chairman of the Board..

Ke$ha's "TiK ToK" holds at #1 on Hot Digital Songs for the second straight week. The song sold 610,000 downloads this week, the second greatest weekly total in digital history. Flo Rida's "Right Round," which featured Ke$ha, sold 636,000 copies in its first week in February. That makes "TiK ToK" the new record-holder for a song by a female artist and for any song not in its first week of release..

"TiK ToK" also tops the 2 million mark in paid downloads this week. All of this bodes well for her album, Animal, which is due on Jan. 5..

This must be gratifying for Ke$ha, whose "featured" credit on "Right Round" was suddenly yanked in the song's sixth week of release. While the record was #1 on the Hot 100, the billing (which is shown on the chart) went from "Flo Rida featuring Ke$ha" to simply "Flo Rida." (It's a tough business...).

By coincidence, "Right Round" this week becomes the 12th song to top the 4 million mark in paid downloads. Flo Rida's 2007 smash "Low" (featuring T-Pain) has sold 5,312,000 downloads, more than any other song. Only two other acts, Lady Gaga and Black Eyed Peas, have two songs at or above the 4 million mark. Flo Rida is what used to be called a "singles artist." "Low" and "Right Round" have sold a combined total of 9,378,000 downloads. But Flo's two albums, Mail On Sunday and R.O.O.T.S. (Route Of Overcoming The Struggle), have sold a combined total of just 663,000 copies..

Here's the low-down on this week's top 10 albums..

1. Susan Boyle, I Dreamed A Dream, 510,000. The album logs its fifth straight week at #1. It's the first album by a female artist in the Nielsen/SoundScan era to top 500,000 in sales in each of its first five weeks of release..

2. Mary J. Blige, Stronger With Each Tear, 330,000. This new entry is Blige's seventh consecutive studio album to debut at #1 or #2. It's her 10th top 10 album. "I Am" falls from #82 to #109 on Hot Digital Songs..

3. Andrea Bocelli, My Christmas, 284,000. The album dips from #2 to #3 in its eighth week. The album has been listed in the top three all eight weeks. The album is #4 for the year-to-date..

4. Alicia Keys, The Element Of Freedom, 280,000. The album drops from #2 to #4 in its second week. Two songs from the album are listed on Hot Digital Songs, topped by "Try Sleeping With A Broken Heart," which falls from #23 to #81..

5. Taylor Swift, Fearless, 224,000. The former #1 album dips from #4 to #5. This is its 50th week in the top 10; its 59th week on the chart. Five songs from the album are listed on Hot Digital Songs, topped by "You Belong With Me," which jumps from #38 to #22..

6. Lady Gaga, The Fame, 169,000. The album drops from #4 to #6 in its 59th week. This is its 27th week in the top 10. Six songs from the expanded version of the album are listed on Hot Digital Songs, topped by "Bad Romance," which dips from #2 to #3. The album is #5 for the year-to-date..

7. Justin Bieber, My World, 157,000. The EP rebounds from #8 to #7 its sixth week. This is its fourth week in the top 10. Four songs from the album are listed on Hot Digital Songs, topped by "One Time," which leaps from #34 to #13..

8. Carrie Underwood, Play On, 153,000. The former #1 album drops from #5 to #8 in its eighth week. This is its eighth week in the top 10. "Cowboy Casanova" jumps from #36 to #25 on Hot Digital Songs..

9. Young Money, We Are Young Money, 142,000. This new entry features collaborations by artists signed to Lil Wayne's Young Money label. Three songs from the album are listed on Hot Digital Songs, topped by "Bedrock" (featuring Lloyd), which holds at #11..

10. Michael Buble, Crazy Love, 137,000. The former #1 album dips from #7 to #10 in its 12th week. This is its 10th week in the top 10. "Haven't Met You There," drops from #62 to #84..

Two albums drop out of the top 10 this week. Robin Thicke's Sex Therapy: The Experience drops from #9 to #30. Glee: The Music, Volume 2 drops from #10 to #16..

Eminem's Relapse vaults from #113 to #11 in the wake of the release of Relapse: Refill, which features seven new tracks. Relapse debuted at #1 in May with first-week sales of 608,000. Its total sales as of this week: 1,694,000..

Relapse is just the latest in a long line of albums to experience a resurgence after the release of an expanded edition. Here are five other high-profile examples from the past 18 months. Fergie's The Dutchess leaped from #104 to #28 in June 2008 with the release of The Dutchess Deluxe. Rihanna's Good Girl Gone Bad vaulted from #124 to #7 in June 2008 with the release of a Reloaded edition. Chris Brown's Exclusive surged from #56 to #10 in June 2008 after the release of The Forever Edition. Coldplay's Viva La Vida Or Death And All His Friends jumped from #54 to #25 in November 2008 after the release of a Prospekt's March Edition. Lady Gaga's The Fame advanced from #34 to #6 in November after the release of The Fame Monster..

The idea of expanded editions is relatively new. Back in the day, acts simply moved on to their next albums. In April 1971, Carole King released Tapestry, which was one of the most successful and influential albums of its time. In December, with Tapestry still in the top 10, King released her follow-up, Music. That album also reached #1, but it, perhaps inevitably, fell short of the massive expectations that its predecessor had created. Under today's industry customs, Music would probably never have been released. King would have simply chosen the seven best of those 12 songs, which would have gone on a Christmas 1971 reissue of Tapestry: Reloaded (or, in this case, Tapestry: Restitched.).

Michael Jackson continues to sell well, a full six months after his death. Michael Jackson's This Is It dips from #11 to #13. It's the #1 theatrical movie soundtrack for the ninth straight week. Number Ones holds at #32 (as it tops the 4 million mark in total sales). It's the #1 catalog album for the 19th time in 2009. The last album to top the catalog chart this many times in one calendar year was Johnny Cash's 16 Greatest Hits in 2006. Both of these albums were released when the artists were still living, but topped the catalog chart only after the artists' death. .

.
Owl City's Ocean Eyes sold 108,000 copies this week to rebound from #23 to #14. One third of those copies (35,000) were sold digitally, making this the week's #1 digital album. Over the course of its run, Ocean Eyes has sold 609,000 copies, more than a third of them (224,000) in the digital realm..

The soundtrack to Alvin & The Chipmunks: The Squeakquel jumps from #30 to #20. This gives the Chipmunks a 50-year span of top 20 albums. The Chipettes' version of Beyonce's "Single Ladies (Put A Ring On It)" enters Hot Digital Songs at #132. Over the years, the Chipmunks have cracked (or bubbled under) the Hot 100 with parodies of Eddy Howard's "Ragtime Cowboy Joe," Gene Autry's "Rudolph The Red-Nosed Reindeer," the Beatles' "All My Loving," Billy Joel's "You May Be Right," Daniel Powter's "Bad Day" and Lipps Inc.'s "Funkytown." .

The soundtrack to the musical Nine debuts at #97. The film was directed by Rob Marshall, who also did the honors on Chicago. The Chicago soundtrack reached #2 on The Billboard 200 in February 2003 and went on to sell more than 2 million copies. But Chicago was a more famous stage musical than Nine. That was reflected in the fate of the cast albums from both shows. The 1975 Broadway cast album from Chicago and the cast album from a 1997 revival of the show both made The Billboard 200. The 1982 cast album from Nine and the caster from a 2003 revival of the show both failed to chart. (So this week's debut of the Nine soundtrack marks the first time this property has ever made The Billboard 200.) .

Josh Groban's Noel tops the 5 million mark this week. It's the fourth holiday album to reach that threshold, following Kenny G's Miracles-The Holiday Album (7,215,000), Celine Dion's These Are Special Times (5,123,000) and Mariah Carey's Merry Christmas (5,048,000)..

Song Scorecard: Three current hits topped the 2 million mark in paid downloads this week: Ke$ha's "TiK ToK," Iyaz's "Replay," and "Empire State Of Mind" by Jay Z & Alicia Keys. Keys' "No One" has sold 3,208,000 copies. Rihanna's "Umbrella," which featured Jay-Z, has sold 3,453,000 copies..

Survivor's 1982 single "Eye Of The Tiger" also tops the 2 million mark in paid downloads this week. The propulsive pop/rock smash, which was featured in the movie Rocky III, is the third song first released prior to 1990 to reach this digital milestone. It follows Journey's 1981 hit "Don't Stop Believin'" (3,330,000 paid downloads) and Michael Jackson's 1984 smash "Thriller" (2,145,000)..

Two other songs topped the 2 million mark this week: Cascada's 2005 hit "Everytime We Touch" and Fall Out Boy's 2007 hit "Thnks Fr Th Mmmrs.".