HANNAH AND HOW
Walt Disney Records’ Hannah Montana soundtrack to the hit cable series, featuring Billy Ray Cyrus’ daughter Miley, is the #1 album on this week’s HITS Top 50, registering 271k in first-week sales. With the High School Musical soundtrack and Rascal Flatts as the two top-selling albums of 2006 to date, Buena Vista Music Group boss Bob Cavallo should be given the keys to the Magic Kingdom, as well as the executive washroom.
Hannah’s debut is enough to turn back challenges from G.O.O.D./Columbia/Sony Urban’s Grammy-winning John Legend at #2 with 229k, and Reprise emo-rockers My Chemical Romance, produced by Bob’s son Rob Cavallo, at #3 and 228k sold, in a tight race not decided until the very last retail report was filed.
The only other Top 10 newcomer is Geffen’s young St. Louis rap phenom Jibbs at #10.
The rest, all holdovers, are Jive/ZLG’s Justin Timberlake (#4), Wind-up’s Evanescence (#5), Universal Republic’s Hinder (#6), last week’s chart-topping Bad Boy/Atlantic hip-hop icon Diddy (#7), RPM Records/Columbia’s Tony Bennett (#8) and Roadrunner/IDJ’s Nickelback (#9).
Arista/SBMG Nashville’s Alabama leads the list of Top 50 bows, thanks to the veteran country band’s QVC appearance, followed by Columbia/SBMG Nashville’s Montgomery Gentry (#19), Def Jam South/IDJ's Shareefa (#20), Big Machine’s Taylor Swift (#21), Asylum/Atlantic’s Lil’ Boosie (#25), SoBe Entertainment’s Brooke Hogan (#28), Walt Disney Records’ Nightmare Before Christmas 3D soundtrack (#30) and New Door/UMe’s Paul Stanley (#41), while Virgin’s 30 Seconds to Mars re-enters at #50.
Beyonce’s Columbia album B’Day leads the gainers, rising 17% and moving 23-18, with A&M/Interscope’s Fergie (#23, +6%), Arista/RMG’s Carrie Underwood (#24, +6%), A&M/Interscope’s Snow Patrol (#34, +4%) and RCA/RMG’s Christina Aguilera (#35, +1%) also showing upward mobility.
Among those discs hitting the street today are TVT’s Lil Jon, J/RMG's Barry Manilow, Universal Motown’s Birdman & Lil Wayne, Universal Republic’s The Who, Virgin's Meat Loaf, Maverick/Reprise’s Deftones and SBMG Nashville's American Idol star Kellie Pickler.
