Lady Gaga has four singles in the top 50 in the week of the release of her second full-length album, Born This Way. "Hair" debuts at #12, "The Edge Of Glory" drops to #19, "Born This Way" drops to #24 and "Judas" drops to #41. Record companies didn't use to "flood the zone" with so many hits before an album was even on the charts, but first-week sales tallies are critical. The philosophy is "give it everything you've got" to put a big first-week number on the board. The strategy seems to be working: Born This Way is expected to debut at #1 next week with sales topping 1 million.
Taylor Swift's label (Big Machine) had a similar game-plan in the weeks leading up to the release of her 2008 album, Fearless. Between Aug. 30 and Nov. 22, 2008, five Swift songs cracked the Hot 100: "Change," "Love Story," "Fearless," "You're Not Sorry" and "You Belong With Me." The following week, Nov. 29, the album entered The Billboard 200 at #1 (and eight more Swift songs crashed onto the Hot 100). The strategy worked: Fearless sold 592K copies in its first week. With sales to date of 6,306,000, it's the best-selling album that has been released in the last five years.
"Hair" (no, it's not a remake of the 1969 hit by the Cowsills) ranks #5 on Hot Digital Songs. It sold 147K copies in its first week. The song is not being promoted to radio.
Gaga made the top 10 with her first 10 songs that were promoted to radio. Among women, only Mariah Carey can equal that claim. Carey made the top 10 with her first 11 singles, from "Vision Of Love" in July 1990 to a cover of Nilsson's classic "Without You" in February 1994. Gaga first cracked the top 10 with "Just Dance" (featuring Colby O'Donis) in December 2008.
Gaga also makes news in the U.K., where she has four songs in this week's top 20: "The Edge Of Glory" at #6, "Judas" at #8, "Hair" at #13 and "Born This Way" at #20. The Official Charts Co. reports that Gaga is the first solo female artist to have four or more simultaneous top 20 hits since Ruby Murray in 1955. Other artists to have four or more simultaneous top 20 hits in the U.K. include Frankie Laine and a pair of legends who achieved the feat after their deaths: John Lennon and Michael Jackson.
Adele's "Rolling In The Deep" sits at #1 (for the third week) in its 20th week on the Hot 100. It's the first song to rank #1 this deep into its chart run since Lady Gaga's aforementioned "Just Dance" (featuring Colby O'Donis), which still ruled the chart in its 22ndweek in January 2009.
"Rolling In The Deep" this week surpasses Gaga's "Born This Way" to become the third best-selling song so far in 2011. It trails only "E.T." by Katy Perry featuring Kanye West and Cee Lo Green's "F**k You (Forget You)."
Pitbull's "Give Me Everything" (featuring Ne-Yo, Afrojack and Nayer) jumps from #4 to #3 in the U.S. and moves up to #1 in the U.K. It's Pitbull's second #1 hit in the U.K. this year, following J.Lo's "On The Floor." (Bruno Mars is the only other artist with two U.K. #1 hits so far in 2011.) "Give Me Everything" is Ne-Yo's fourth U.K. #1, following "So Sick," "Closer" and "Beautiful Monster." On top of all this, the smash tops the 1 million mark in U.S. digital sales this week.
Here's the low-down on this week's top 10 songs.
1. Adele, "Rolling In The Deep." The song holds at #1 for the third straight week in its 20th week on the chart. This is its eighth week in the top 10. Digital sales rank: #1 (297K).
2. Katy Perry featuring Kanye West, "E.T." The former #1 smash holds at #2 for the third straight week in its 15th week on the chart. This is its 13th week in the top 10. Digital sales rank: #3 (173K).
3. Pitbull featuring Ne-Yo, Afrojack and Nayer, "Give Me Everything." The song jumps from #4 to #3 in its eighth week on the chart. This is its third week in the top 10. Digital sales rank: #2 (212K).
4. The Black Eyed Peas, "Just Can't Get Enough." The song rebounds from #5 to #4 in its 14th week on the chart. This is its 10th week in the top 10. Digital sales rank: #8 (126K).
5. Jennifer Lopez featuring Pitbull, "On The Floor." The song rebounds from #6 to #5 in its 13th week on the chart. This is its 12th week in the top 10. Digital sales rank: #7 (138K).
6. Bruno Mars, "The Lazy Song." The song rebounds from #7 to #6 in its 13th week on the chart. This is its fifth week in the top 10. Digital sales rank: #6 (146K).
7. Britney Spears, "Till The World Ends." The song rebounds from #8 to #7 in its 12th week on the chart. This is its seventh week in the top 10. Digital sales rank: #10 (111K).
8. LMFAO featuring Lauren Bennett & GoonRock, "Party Rock Anthem." The song jumps from #20 to #8 in its ninth week on the chart. The song spent four weeks at #1 in the U.K. in April and May. Digital sales rank: #4 (163K).
9. Lupe Fiasco, "The Show Goes On." The song jumps from #12 to #9 in its 21st week on the chart. This is Lupe Fiasco's second top 10 (and highest-charting) hit, following "Superstar" (featuring Matthew Santos), which peaked at #10 in March 2008. Digital sales rank: #12 (104K).
10. Chris Brown featuring Lil Wayne & Busta Rhymes, "Look At Me Now." The song dips from #9 to #10 in its 16th week on the chart. This is its 10th week in the top 10. The song logged eight weeks at #1 on Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs. Digital sales rank: #11 (105K).
Two songs drop out of the top 10 hits week. Lady Gaga's "The Edge Of Glory" dives from #3 to #19 in its second week on the chart. "Down On Me" by Jeremih featuring 50 Cent dips from #10 to #11 in its 28th week.
Wiz Khalifa's "Roll Up" jumps from #17 to #13 in its 15th week. This is its highest ranking to date. It's vying to become the act's third top 10 hit of 2011, following "Black And Yellow" and "No Sleep."
Nicki Minaj's "Super Bass" vaults from #22 to #15 in its fourth week. It's vying to become Minaj's first top 10 hit as a lead artist, following featured roles on hits by Trey Songz and Britney Spears. Digital sales rank: #9 (113K).
"Motivation" by Kelly Rowland featuring Lil Wayne continues to streak toward the top 10. It jumps from #26 to #21 in its sixth week. The song moves up to #1 on Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs. It's Rowland's sixth #1, following four hits with Destiny's Child and Nelly's 2002 smash "Dilemma," on which she was featured. It's Lil Wayne's fifth. This is the third time Lil Wayne has been in a featured role on a #1 R&B hit. He supported Lloyd on "You" and Chris Brown on "Look At Me Now."
Miguel's "Sure Thing" jumps from #43 to #36 in its 11th week. The song reached #1 on Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs last week.
"Old Alabama" by Brad Paisley featuring Alabama jumps from #46 to #38 in its seventh week. The song also moves up to #1 on Hot Country Songs. It's Paisley's 17th #1 country hit; Alabama's 33rd. This is the third time that Paisley has taken a collabo to #1. "When I Get Where I'm Going," which featured Dolly Parton, reached #1 in March 2006. "Start A Band," a duet with Keith Urban, topped the chart in January 2009. Alabama first topped the chart with "Tennessee River" in August 1980 (when Paisley was seven). The group's most recent #1 before this week was "Reckless" in 1993.
Two songs that got off to fast starts and then dropped like stones are turning around. Beyonce's "Run The World (Girls)" jumps from #76 to #50 in its fifth week. The song has climbed as high as #33. "John," the John Lennon-referencing song by Lil Wayne featuring Rick Ross, jumps from #70 to #58 in its ninth week. The song has climbed as high as #22.
"Ballin" by Young Jeezy featuring Lil Wayne debuts at #57, five weeks after it entered Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs. This is far from the first chart hit to use this vivid word in its title. "Ballin' Out Of Control" by Jermaine Dupri featuring Nate Dogg reached #95 in 2001. And way back in 1974, Marvin Gaye climbed to #50 with "You Sure Love To Ball." The following year, Sweet hit #5 with "Ballroom Blitz," which I don't believe was about ballroom dancing.
Three more Glee songs enter the Hot 100. "Pure Imagination" debuts at #59, followed by covers of Amy Winehouse's "Back To Black" at #82 and Fanny Brice's "My Man" at #94. Gene Wilder introduced "Pure Imagination" in the 1971 movie Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory. (The movie also spawned Sammy Davis Jr.'s biggest hit, the #1 smash "The Candy Man.") Lou Rawls included "Pure Imagination" on a top 10 album in 1976, but Rawls' version wasn't released as a single. This marks the first time the song has appeared on the Hot 100.
"My Man" originated in the Broadway show Ziegfeld Follies of 1921. Fanny Brice had a big hit with the song the following year. Peggy Lee put it on the Hot 100 in 1959, though it is most closely identified with Barbra Streisand, who brought it back to the Hot 100 in 1965. Streisand sang it in her 1965 TV special My Name Is Barbra, for which she won an Emmy, and in the 1968 movie Funny Girl, for which she won an Oscar.
"Right There" by Nicole Scherzinger featuring 50 Cent debuts at #77. The single is from Scherzinger's upcoming solo debut album Killer Love, which is set for release in the U.S. in August. Of Scherzinger's five top 10 hits to date, three are rap/sung collabos. With the Pussycat Dolls, she reached the top 10 with "Don't Cha" (featuring Busta Rhymes) and "Buttons" (featuring Big Snoop Dogg). As a solo performer, she was featured on Diddy's 2006 hit "Come To Me."
"I'm On One" by DJ Khaled featuring Drake, Rick Ross & Lil Wayne bows at #78, one week after it entered Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs at #60.
Rihanna's "California King Bed" debuts at #80. It's vying to become Rihanna's 19th top 10 hit. That would give Rihanna as many top 10 hits as Prince has had in his entire career. (The late, great Ricky Nelson also had 19 top 10 hits.)...Jason Derulo's "Don't Wanna Go Home" bows at #92. In the past 18 months, Derulo has amassed three top 10 hits: "Whatcha Say," "In My Head" and "Ridin' Solo."
Song Scorecard: Taylor Swift's "Love Story" tops the 5 million mark in digital sales. It's the second country song to reach this plateau, following Lady Antebellum's "Need You Now," which achieved the feat in April. "Love Story" was Swift's first top five hit on the Hot 100.
Snow Patrol's "Chasing Cars" tops the 3 million mark in digital sales. The song reached the top five in October 2006.
Two current hit collabos top the 2 million mark in digital sales this week: "On The Floor" by Jennifer Lopez featuring Pitbull and "Down On Me" by Jeremih featuring 50 Cent.
Shameless Plug: Adele's 21 is only the 16th album by female artist to log nine or more weeks at #1 since the pop album chart became a weekly feature in March 1956. (I'm including movie soundtracks and original cast albums on which a woman had star billing.) Whitney Houston leads the pack with three albums that stayed on top for nine or more weeks: her first two studio releases and the soundtrack to The Bodyguard. Julie Andrews is in second place with two. She scored with the My Fair Lady cast album and the Mary Poppins soundtrack. Who else is on the list? You'll find out on Thursday when we post this Chart Watch Extra, which truly has something for everybody, whether your tastes run to "I Could Have Danced All Night" or "You Oughta Know."