Linkin, Dion discs coming
50 Cent tops album coin while big releases loom
"Get Rich or Die Tryin' " (Interscope/Aftermath), 50 Cent's blockbuster debut, scanned 234,000 units, according to data from Nielsen SoundScan. That's down 16% from the prior frame, but more than enough to keep second-place finisher Norah Jones at bay for another week.
Jones' Blue Note disc "Come Away With Me" sold just under 176,000 copies -- a decline of 28% from the session before. And R&B crooner R. Kelly kept his place at third with "Chocolate Factory" (Jive), with 105,000 discs sold.
But the longtime chart leaders are very likely to be pushed aside in the next outing by rap-rock giants Linkin Park, whose latest disc "Meteora" (Warner Bros.) hit retail shelves on Tuesday and could sell into seven figures in its debut week.
Dion album coming
Also on the way is the French-Canadian songstress Dion's new disc "One Heart" (Epic), which is a near-lock on the No. 2 spot. Dion, who recently bowed her multimillion-dollar Las Vegas extravaganza "A New Day," sold half a million copies of her previous album in its first week.
This time around, however, the only chart excitement to be had came from discs associated with the big winners at Sunday's Oscar ceremony. The soundtrack to Miramax music "Chicago," for example, moved up two places to fourth, as sales inched up 3% to 96,000 units.
Eminem omnipresent
And Oscar winner Eminem made his presence felt all over the chart. His best song Oscar helped push the soundtrack to his film "8 Mile" (Interscope) up 19 spots to No. 10 on a 53% sales gain. And the rapper's own album "The Eminem Show" (Interscope/Shady) climbed six places to 12, boosting sales by 7%.
The only new releases to crack the top 50 this week came from very different ends of the demographic spectrum.
Orange County rap-punk combo (Hed) Planet Earth landed at No. 33 with its third effort "Blackout" (Jive) with 28,000 units sold, while the Allman Brothers Band's "Hittin' the Note" (Sanctuary) hit No. 37 with 25,000 copies and religious compilation "Wow Worship: Yellow" (BMG) scanned 21,000 discs, placing at 44th.
