NICKI’S RELOADED AT #1

XL/Columbia Grammy winner Adele’s 21 continues its remarkable run, racking up another 152k (+22%) to finish at #2, bringing her U.S. total to more than 8.6 million.

Big Machine country stars Rascal Flatts’ Changed debuts at #3, with 131k, while Mercury Nashville’s Lionel Richie (#4) and Syco/Columbia boy band One Direction’s Up All Night (#5) round out the Top 5, the latter giving Team Stringer/Barnett two of them.

Universal Republic Icelandic roots rockers Of Monsters & Men’s debut, My Head is an Animal, is the week’s big surprise, debuting at #6 with 55k, one of three albums for Monte Lipman’s label in the Top 10, along with The Hunger Games soundtrack (#7).

Verity gospel mainstay Marvin Sapp’s I Win is the other newcomer at #9, sandwiched in between Interscope’s Madonna (#8, down a record 87%) and Atlantic’s Shinedown (#10).

Other new Top 50 entries include ATO’s Alabama Shakes (#16), Sony Masterworks’ Wilson Phillips (#28) and Nonesuch’s critically acclaimed Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductee Dr. John (#44).

Glassnote’s Mumford & Sons (#33), Big Machine’s Taylor Swift (#36), A&M/ Octone’s Maroon 5 (#39), Interscope’s Van Halen (#421), Capitol/EMI’s Coldplay (#47) and Startime/Columbia’s Foster the People (#49) all re-enter the chart.

In brisk Easter weekend sales, there are a number of triple-digit gainers in 19/RCA’s Kelly Clarkson (#25-13, +117%), Razor & Tie’s Kidz Bop 21 (#36-21, +110%) and RCA Nashville’s Miranda Lambert (#41-25, +102%). Other top movers include Republic Nashville’s The Band Perry (#45-29, +94%), One Direction (#6-5, +89%), Walt Disney’s Shake It Up, Live 2 Dance (#28-18, +73%) and Capitol Nashville’s Lady Antebellum (#28-18, +65%).

Hitting retail this week are RCA’s Monica, Redwing/RED’s Bonnie Raitt, Top Stop Music/WMG’s Prince Royce, Merge’s M. Ward, Universal Republic’s Florence + the Machine Unplugged and the physical release of the Alabama Shakes.