Keys Returns to Number One
Alicia Keys’ Songs in A Minor continues to make its case for the 2001 Rookie of the Year, as the album reclaimed the Number One position with sales of 192,349, according to SoundScan. The album displaced Aaliyah’s Aaliyah, which, last week — the week after her tragic death — went from Number Nineteen to Number One. This past week Aaliyah registered sales of 160,552 to settle in at Number Three.
The Number Two spot was secured by System of a Down’s second release, Toxicity, which sold 170,093 copies in its first week. The album was the only new release to reach the Top 200.
And while it was a slow week for newcomers, the vets managed to make some chart noise. Tim McGraw’s Set This Circus Down (Number Fifty) and Jennifer Lopez’s J.Lo (Number Eleven) passed the 1 million and 2 million copies sold mark, respectively. Staind’s Break the Cycle, Linkin Park’sHybrid Theory, Destiny’s Child’s Survivor (Number Twenty-six) and Ja Rule’s Rule 3:36 (Number Eighty-four) all topped 3 million units moved. And Shania Twain scored another sales milestone, as her Come On Over passed 14 million copies sold.
Next week’s chart promises some big-time debuts, with new albums from the likes of Mariah Carey, Bob Dylan and Babyface, but, in light of this week’s terrorist attacks, whether Americans will be buying music is anyone’s guess.
This week’s Top Ten: Alicia Keys’ Songs in A Minor (192,349 copies sold); System of a Down’s Toxicity (170,093); Aaliyah’s Aaliyah (160,552); Now That’s What I Call Music! 7 (147,214); Mary J. Blige’s No More Drama (147,168); Staind’s Break the Cycle (110,616); Linkin Park’s Hybrid Theory (110,150); Maxwell’s Now (107,887); ‘N Sync’s Celebrity (95,728); and Afroman’s Good Times (92,737).