CALM BEFORE THE
SEPTEMBER STORM

It’s always darkest just before the dawn, or in this case, the beginning of the much-anticipated fall rush of new superstar releases. At least that’s the hope of beleaguered music retailers around this great country of ours, who weighed in with the results of one-day sales.

In what is hopefully the calm before the September storm, it looks like tobyMac and Slaughterhouse will fight it out for #1 next week. The wild card will be sales from the Christian market for veteran tobyMac, the rapper formerly known as Kevin Michael McKeehan, whose Forefront album, Eye on It, is looking at sales of 50-60k.

That puts it head to head for #1 on next week’s chart with Shady/ Aftermath/Interscope Eminem protégés and supergroup Slaughterhouse with their sophomore album, Welcome to Our House. The band features Joe Budden, Crooked I, Joell Ortiz and Royce da 5”9”.

Collective Sounds’ Alanis Morissette album, Havoc and Bright Lights, her first since 2008’s Flavors of Entanglement, is on target for between 37-42k in first-week sales. That release sold 70k in its first week.

Album sales were down 4% vs. last week, down 2% vs. same week last year and down 4% year to date.

Track sales were down 5% vs. last week, up 5% vs. same week last year and up 6% year to date.

TEA sales were down 4% vs. last week, flat vs. same week last year and down 1% year to date.