NOW IS THE TIME

Now that’s what we call a #1. Mom does too.

Now 50 seizes the top spot on the HITS Album Sales Chart this week, knocking Frozen from its accustomed perch.

The hits compilation rode a very strong Mother’s Day to a 152k bow, blowing away the 98k debut of Now 49, which has sold 315k RTD since streeting in February. As you may or may not know, the set is released on the Now label, a joint venture between UMG and Sony that is also part of the UMe universe. We just want to make sure that’s clear, mmmkay?

Frozen scored 97k (-9%). A trio of debuts round out the Top 5: Atlantic’s Hunter Hayes (69k), Verve’s Sarah McLachlan (40k) and Strange Music’s Tech N9ne Collabos (34k).

Also debuting in the Top 10 are RCA’s Santana (#8, 22k), Rhymesayers’ Atmosphere (#9, 21k) and Parlophone/WB’s Lily Allen (#10, 18k).

Gifts for Mom—or at least the search for gifts for Mom that gave people an excuse to buy albums for themselves—accounted for boosts for key titles, including Capitol Nashville’s Luke Bryan (#7, 24k, +44%), Columbia’s Pharrell (#6, 26k, +21%), Lava/Republic’s Lorde (#12, 16k, +24%), Columbia’s John Legend (#18, 12k +24%) and Republic Nashville’s Florida Georgia Line (#13, 16k, +19%).Now 49 (#17) also got a 5% bump.

Streeting this week are the Michael Jackson from-the-vaults set Xscape (Epic) and the new one from Nonesuch/WB's The Black Keys, which will battle for #1. The following week brings us Parlophone's Coldplay and Valory's Brantley Gilbert, among others.

Speaking of Mom, she's really glad that nice Donald Sterling apologized and everything.