It’s a good day to be Ariana Grande. The singer is likely somewhere out there celebrating the #1 bow of Yours Truly , her debut album, which will land atop the Billboard 200 album tally thanks to sales of 138,000, according to figures provided by Nielsen SoundScan.
That’s impressive for a number of reasons, not the least of which is that Grande, 20, fended off competition from at least three other veteran acts who also made it into the top 10.
Just behind Grande is Tamar Braxton, the reality TV star and younger sister of Toni Braxton, whose Love and War, her first album in 13 years, hit #2 on sales of 114,000.
Hesitation, Love and Appreciation
The shake-up on the charts brought plenty of fresh blood in, including the return of iconic industrial rockers Nine Inch Hails, whose Hesitation Marks hit #3 (107,000) and John Legend, just behind at #4 with Love in the Future (68,000). Soul singer Jaheim got in on the action as well, sliding in at #6 with Appreciation Day (58,000).
All those new faces sent some other former chart toppers on the way down, including Robin Thicke, whose Blurred Lines slipped two spots to #7 (57,000), last week’s #1, Avenged Sevenfold, down seven spots to #8 with Hail to the King (down 74 percent, 42,0000) and Justin Timberlake, who fell three to #9 with The 20/20 Experience (38,000).
Thunderous “Roar”
Katy Perry’s continues to reverberate on the Digital Songs chart, notching its fourth week at #1 thanks to sales of another 373,000. The big surprise, though, was the huge leap for singer Lorde, whose woozy single “Royals” shot up six spots to #2 as sales bumped up 34 percent to 225,000.
Avicii’s countronica smash “Wake Me Up!” also moved up the tally, scooting three spots to #3 (197,000), even as Eminem’s “Berzerk” fell two to #4 as business was off by nearly 50 percent to 187,000.
Thicke, Gaga and Cyrus slide
After scoring big bumps following the 2013 MTV Video Music Awards, Robin Thicke and Lady Gaga moved the other direction. Thicke’s “Blurred Lines” was down two to #5 as sales fell 31 percent to 168,000 and Gaga’s “Applause” also lost a pair to land at #6 (160,000).
Also losing ground was Miley Cyrus, whose “Wrecking Ball” shed five to land at #10 (116,000) in the days before the controversial video for the ballad hit the Internet.
The news was better for Lana Del Rey, who is turning into the sleeper of the season as the Cedric Gervais remix of “Summertime Sadness” continues to march up the charts. It finally crashed the top 10 at #8 on sales of 127,000.
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