Success comes in all sorts of shapes and sizes, on local levels and global fronts. Some just seem to want a piece of it in every market.
It has been a very good week for overachievers Bloc Party and Taylor Swift, as well as Birdy, Ricki-Lee, and Brandy. Also, find out where new releases from Owl City, Aiden Grimshaw and David Guetta land.
Reece Mastin was almost licking it on both sides this week with his winning single ‘Good Night’ returning to #1 and album debuting at #2 on our ARIA charts. Reece Mastin – a compilation of choons the kid purveyed on X Factor Australia – is the biggest new album in the country, instantly certified platinum for shipments of over 70,000 copies.
Needless to say, the fastest selling artist to ever come out of the local talent show franchise. The kid rocker’s cover of Maroon 5‘s ‘She Will Be Loved’ managed to break the ARIA Top 100 at #87 based on track downloads alone.
Timomatic‘s ‘Set It Off’ skyrockets to a new peak of #22 on our ARIA charts, marking another key success for Aussie pop this year. The man, who’s best known as the singer/dancer who came second on this year’s Australia’s Got Talent series, co-wrote ‘Set It Off’ with DNA – the same Sydney songwriting/production duo who’s responsible for Marvin Priest‘s ‘Own This Club’. DNA also currently has two songs in the ARIA Top 10 in Reece Mastin‘s ‘Good Night’ and Guy Sebastian‘s ‘Don’t Worry Be Happy’.
Matt Corby‘s experiencing some chart wonder with his EP Into The Flame climbing to a new peak of #33. This is the strummy la la artist’s biggest commercial success yet. He really is the new Lisa Mitchell-style success story from our Idol franchise.
Watch Matt‘s video for ‘Untitled’, a track featured on his Into The Flame EP. Side bar: I would totally do him.
Ricki-Lee‘s glorious ‘Raining Diamonds’ is probably set to retire soon. The underrated smash falls to #39 this week after clocking six weeks in our ARIA Top 50. Our gurl can still probably treat herself to a few Gasp dresses this Christmas – ‘Raining Diamonds’ has been certified gold sales for selling over 35,000 copies.
Cher Lloyd‘s summery smash ‘With Ur Love’ rises to a new peak of #43 on our Aussie charts. Snaps to the ‘Swagger Jagger’ singer for snagging herself an American recording contract with L.A. Reid‘s label Epic Records. I’m sure you’ll agree that her seriously on point debut album Sticks + Stones deserve some proper Stateside attention – check out where it lands on my Feed Limmy Top 30 Albums of 2011 list.
Watch Cher Lloyd do one of my favourite tracks ‘Want U Back’ acoustic style:
Lady Gaga‘s Born This Way album returns to our ARIA Top 50, probably thanks to the Christmas rush. Same goes for Katy Perry‘s Teenage Dream. Y’all know there are loads of unimaginative grown ups buying these records for their nieces and daughters. Meanwhile at the singles bar, Gaga’s two recent singles ‘You and I’ and ‘Marry The Night’ exit the Top 100 while ‘Born This Way’ and ‘The Edge of Glory’ keep selling. Born This Way: The Remix sinks to #100 on our ARIA Top 100.
Little Mix‘s winner’s single ‘Cannonball’ debuts at #1 in the UK, clocking 210,000 opening week sales to become the fastest selling single of 2011. The recently crowned British X Factor champs made history this week as the first girl group to go #1 in the UK since Girls Aloud‘s ‘The Promise’ in 2008. Damien Rice‘s original ‘Cannonball’ rides on the coattails back to #19 on the UK charts this week.
Leona Lewis‘ new single EP ‘Hurt’ enters at #8 in the UK, making it the second biggest new release there this week. It is also incidentally Leona‘s eighth UK Top 10 placement.
Watch an acoustic performance ‘Hurt’, which was recorded on the star’s recent webchat:
Kelendria Trene Rowland‘s Here I Am nosedives from a tepid peak of #43 to #63 on the UK charts this week. Totally not surprised to see it go down that hard. Meanwhile, the smash single ‘Down For Whatever’ leaves the UK Top 20.
Take That‘s Progress Live tour DVD is still the biggest selling music DVD in the UK but over in the US and Australia, Adele‘s Live at The Royal Albert Hall continues to reign on top. Lady Gaga‘s The Monster Ball tour sits at #13 on the UK music DVD charts but does better at #2 in Australia and #3 in the US. Beyoncé’s Live at Roseland DVD falls from #8 to #18 in the UK and from #4 to #6 in Australia but stays strong at #2 in the US.
Check out Queen Bey performing the life-defining ‘I Was Here’:
The Black Keys have the highest selling new album in America with El Camino debuting at #2. It’s remarkably the rock band’s biggest commercial success yet – clocking over 206,000 first week sales. This is very much an improvement on last year’s Brothers, which entered at #3 with 73,000 copies.
Amy Winehouse‘s posthumous album Lioness: Hidden Treasures debuts at #5 in the US, off the back of 114,000 opening week sales. This is the late soul singer’s biggest chart debut ever. Mind you, Back to Black entered at #7 but eventually climbed to #2 on the Billboard 200.
Watch a mini doco about Amy Winehouse‘s Hidden Treasures:
Robin Thicke‘s Love After War album debuts at #22 on the US Billboard 200, making this the sexy soul man’s first album to miss the Top 20 since his 2006 breakthrough. Love After War opened with 42,000 first week sales – a far cry from his last album Sex Therapy, which opened with 123,000 copies almost exactly two years ago.
Katy Perry‘s ‘The One That Got Away’ is starting to show its desperation to go #1. There’s the introduction of a rent-a-rapper remix featuring B.o.B. now impacting media – a trick she’s run up on with the last two singles (see: ‘Last Friday Night’ with Missy Elliott and ‘E.T.’ with Kanye West).
But then there’s also a drastic price slash on iTunes! All up, the discounted price managed to only push ‘The One That Got Away’ up to #6 on the US Digital Song chart with a 24% sales increase (117,000 copies). In the UK, ‘The One That Got Away’ rises to #20 but remains at its current peak of #27 in Australia for the second week in a row.
Listen to the odd new B.o.B remix of ‘The One That Got Away’:
That kinda fuckery’s not tolerated here in Australia because we evidently can’t get enough of the song. ‘Stronger’ has been all over radios and it’s also thankfully rising up the ARIA charts to a new peak of #37.
Estelle‘s ‘Thank You’ leaps to #47 on the US R&B/Hip Hop song chart. It’s obvious that the British hip hop/soul siren’s been struggling to make an impact recently. Her last few singles ‘Freak’, ‘Fall in Love’ and ‘Break My Heart’ have all flopped, relegating the album to be pushed back for a February 2012 release.
Listen to Estelle‘s amazingly personal ‘Thank You’:
Beyoncé‘s ‘Countdown’ reigns wild at #1 on the US Billboard Dance/Club play charts. I sense that this single – as amazing as it truly is – will never see the mainstream success it deserves. ‘Countdown’ is out of the US Billboard Hot 100, overshadowed by ‘Party’ which is placed at #55. Over in the UK and Australia, ‘Love On Top’ takes precedence.
Wynter Gordon‘s flawless ‘Buy My Love’ has risen to an exciting new peak of #2 on the US Dance/Club play charts. Fuck me, this is gonna be bigger than ‘Til Death’. I am so happy for my gurl. Hopefully this will lead to some long awaited mainstream crossover in the States. Over in the UK, ‘Dirty Talk’ moves up to #35 on the dance charts this week. Very interesting belated development given that the song’s already been moving all year round.
Gloria Estefan‘s ‘Hotel Nacional’ debuts at #29 on the US Dance/Club play charts – making it the highest new entry there this week. I am so glad they went with this as her next single. It should speak to lovers of ‘We Speak No Americano’ and hopefully drive more people to check out Miss Little Havana, which made Feed Limmy’s Top 30 Albums of 2011.
Listen to a preview of ‘Hotel Nacional (Ralphi Rosario Club Mix)’:
Reece Mastin‘s ‘Good Night’ has been booted off the #1 spot by previous chart topper LMFAO‘s ‘Sexy and I Know It’. The teen X Factor winner’s been out promoting his mandatory cover’s album so we should see that effortlessly enter our Top 5 next Monday.
Watch them pitch Reece as just a regular rock band front man in the ‘Good Night’ music video:
Ricki-Lee‘s ‘Raining Diamonds’ isn’t seeing fortunes turn around after the music video finally dropped. She’s looking flawless as ever but the video has only garnered over 6,200 views in five days. Meanwhile, not that it’s necessarily fair to compare, Reece Mastin‘s video managed over 46,000 views in almost the same amount of time.
‘Raining Diamonds’ picks up to #34 on the ARIA singles chart this week but fails to secure any more radio support. The runaway smash sunk from #25 to #31 on the Aussie airplay charts (between 1 to 7 December).
Listen to ‘Raining Diamonds (Kreap’s Italo Disco Hammer Mix)’ done by Melbourne producer Kreap:
Timomatic‘s ‘Set It Off’ cracks our ARIA Top 50 at #39 this week. The Jason DeRulo-style dance/pop track is also the biggest gainer on our airplay charts (between 1 to 7 December), rising to #35.
Cher Lloyd‘s ‘With Ur Love’ (featuring Mike Posner) finally cracks our ARIA Top 50 at #48 this week. Meanwhile her series mates One Direction‘s ‘What Makes You Beautiful’ holds on at #11 and their album Up All Night drops to #10. I wouldn’t have believed it if y’all told me this time last year that we’d have two UK X Factor contestants in our Top 50.
The Potbelleez‘s new single ‘Feed Off Me’ debuts at #42 on our ARIA club charts. Surely this would have to be it from the album, right? Watch the gang’s video for ‘Feed Off Me’:
Over in the US, Live At The Royal Albert Hall is now the best-selling music DVD of 2011, cancelling all its competitors after just one week on the shelves. Live At The Royal Albert Hall managed to sell 96,000 copies in the last week, making it the biggest one-week sales for a music DVD in four years. Coming in next best in this year’s music DVD race is AC/DC‘s Live at River Plate (73,000 copies) and Beyoncé‘s I Am… World Tour (63,000 copies).
Beyoncé‘s Live at Roseland debuts at #4 on our ARIA music DVD chart this week. Meanwhile, Lady Gaga‘s The Monster Ball Tour holds tight at #2, Kylie‘s Aphrodite Les Folies – Live in London drops from #3 to #7 and Britney‘s Femme Fatale Tour fizzes from #8 to #21.
Over in the US, Live at Roseland remains at #2 on the DVD charts while Gaga‘s The Monster Ball slides to #3 and Britney‘s Femme Fatale business dips to #5. Kylie‘s Aphrodite Les Folies has interestingly debuted at #17 to be one of the biggest new music DVDs out in the week.
Watch Kylie slaying ‘Cupid Boy’ with her pack of gays – this should’ve been a single:
Over in the US, Someone To Watch Over Me moves back up to #16 on the Billboard 200 while its predecessor The Gift leaps from #45 to #29.
Amy Winehouse‘s first posthumous album Lioness: Hidden Treasures debuts at #8 in Australia this week. Further down, Back to Black re-enters at #89. Over in the UK, Lioness enters at #1 to become the fourth biggest debut this year, with 194,966 opening week sales. The project’s new single ‘Our Day Will Come’ debuts at #29.
Glee‘s Glee: The Music Volume 7 debuts at #18 in Australia this week, making this their lowest charting compilation yet of the seven. I am, of course, excluding their Christmas albums and other supplementary records. Over in the UK, Volume 7 debuts at a disappointing #58.
Meanwhile in the States, the Glee gang sent five new entries into the Billboard Hot 100 and it reads as such: ‘Perfect’ (originally by Pink) at #57, ‘Girls Just Wanna Have Fun’ at #59, ‘I Kissed A Girl’ at #66, ‘I’m The Only One’ (originally by Melissa Etheridge) at #86 and ‘Constant Craving’ (originally by k.d. lang) at #89. Glee Cast‘s cover of ‘Perfect’ is the most downloaded new song on the digital charts. Check back next Monday to see where Volume 7 lands on the American album charts.
Check out Glee’s cover of ‘Fuckin’ Perfect’:
Elsewhere, Stan Walker‘s Let The Music Play nosedives from #27 to #61 on our ARIA Top 100 in its third week while Sade‘s The Ultimate Collection re-enters at #85 after playing several dates around the country last week.
Lady Gaga‘s ‘Marry The Night’ finally bounces back into our ARIA charts at, well, #100 this week. *Snortcackles* Her massively successful Born This Way album also made a move back up from #71 to #53 this week while the remix album slumps to #79.
Over in the US, ‘Marry The Night’ manages a mighty leap from #59 to #32 in its fourth week in the Billboard Hot 100. Meanwhile her live Christmas EP – A Very Gaga Holiday – tumbles from #52 to #135 on the US Billboard Hot 100 and Born This Way: The Remix sinks to #188.
Listen to ‘Marry The Night (Dimitri Vegas & Like Mike Remix)’:
Rebecca Ferguson‘s Heaven made a formidable debut at #3 on the UK charts with 128,458 first week sales. Amazon has revealed that Rebecca‘s album has garnered more pre-orders than any other contestant from the UK X Factor 2010 cast. Heaven beat advance sales of Matt Cardle‘s Letters by 181%, One Direction‘s Up All Night by 11% and Cher Lloyd‘s Stick + Stones by 571%. Bam! Becca, you better werk.
Beyoncé‘s 4 picks up pace in the UK after ITV aired her amazing pre-recorded special: A Night With Beyoncé, sending the album from #49 to #26 with 24,115 copies sold during the week. Further down, I Am… Sasha Fierce also comes bolting back up at #81.
Looking at the singles bar, Bey‘s euphoric ‘Love On Top’ rises to a new peak of #22 in the UK while ‘Countdown’ ascends to #54 and ‘Best Thing I Never Had’ re-enters at #71.
Watch Bey deliver an emotional rendition of ‘I Care’ and ‘I Miss You’ for A Night with Beyoncé *crying and shaking*:
Olly Murs‘ moment of validation is finally here. His new single ‘Dance With Me Tonight’ finally claims the UK #1 slot after being cock blocked by Rihanna and the X Factor charity single in the last two weeks.
Mariah Carey‘s ‘All I Want For Christmas Is You’ makes its annual appearance on the charts, rising to #12 in the UK this week. Further down there are a tonne of other seasonal numbers showing up too. Highlights include: Coldplay‘s ‘Christmas Lights’ entering at #66, Michael Buble‘s ‘Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas’ shooting up to #99 and Kylie‘s old ‘Santa Baby’ debuting at #100.
Meanwhile, I’ve rewatched this like a thousand times in the last 24 hours. That’s Christmas spirit for ya!
Mary J. Blige‘s My Life II… The Journey Continues (Act 1) [Editor’s note: what a fucking indulgent album title] slides to #6 in its second week, suffering a 54% sales drop. Meanwhile, Mary‘s new singles move up the US R&B/Hip Hop chart: ’25/8’ rises to #39 and ‘Mr Wrong’ (with Drake) edges to #41.
Rihanna‘s Talk That Talk cops a 66% sales drop in its second week in the US. ‘We Found Love’ may still be the #1 single for six weeks running, but the album has slumped from #3 to #7, registering 68,000 second week sales.
‘We Found Love’ is the first song by any artist to stay at #1 for six or more weeks in both the US and UK since ‘Umbrella’. That’s two massive long-staying chart toppers for RiRi in this century. Could she possibly be the biggest singles artist in the Western world?
Meanwhile, ‘You Da One’ rises to #18 on the US Billboard Hot 100 while title track ‘Talk That Talk’ sinks from #31 to #77.
Listen to ‘You Da One (Liam Keegan Remix)’:
Robin Thicke‘s Love After War album should start charting on the US Billboard 200 later this week but if it’s any indication of interest, both its singles are steady rising up the R&B/Hip Hop charts: ‘Love After War’ making #20 and ‘Pretty Lil’ Heart’ featuring Lil Wayne at #70.
Katy Perry‘s ‘The One That Got Away’ drops to #7 this week after peaking at #5 on the US Billboard Hot 100. Well, show’s over – I guess. Nothing left to see here. But wait, from what I’ve heard, the song has been discounted to 69 cents on the US iTunes store and if you couple this with the increased radio airplay, things should technically improve for ‘The One That Got Away’ in the coming week. Plus, Katy‘s hosting of Saturday Night Live should generate enough publicity to help this single get back its footing.
Listen to ‘The One That Got Away (R3hab Remix)’:
Bruno Mars‘ ‘It Will Rain’ sits at #3 on the US Billboard Hot 100 but goes on to top the digital charts. The ballad, which was featured on The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn Part 1, is the first song from a movie soundtrack to go #1 on the US digital charts since Taylor Swift‘s ‘Today Was A Fairytale’ (which was launched from the Valentine’s Day soundtrack).
Jay-Z and Kanye West‘s ‘Ni**as in Paris’ leaps to #8 on the US Billboard Hot 100 after 17 weeks on the charts. Impressively, this is now Jay’s 18th US Top 10 hit. His first appearance was all the way back in 1997 as a feature rapper on Foxy Brown‘s I’ll Be’. Where is she now?
T-Pain featuring Wiz Khalifa and Lily Allen‘s ‘5 O’Clock’ rises to #8 on the US Billboard Hot 100, making this Lily Allen‘s first ever appearance in the American Top 10. I mean, it’s not like they don’t know who she is over there – her first album Alright, Still managed to go #20 and 2009’s It’s Not Me, It’s You made #5 on the US Billboard 200.
Watch the music video for ‘5 O’Clock’:
Will.i.Am‘s ‘T.H.E. (The Hardest Ever)’ nosedives from #36 to #90 in its second week on the US Billboard Hot 100. Here in Australia, it falls out of the Top 100 altogether after just a week. Bye, bitch.
Check out the big budget music video for ‘T.H.E. (The Hardest Ever)’:
Wynter Gordon‘s ‘Buy My Love’ ascends to #4 on the US Dance/Club play chart. This is now mah gurl’s third top five dance smash following ‘Til Death’s placement at #3 and of course, ‘Dirty Talk”s reign at #1.
Deborah Cox is back, bitches, and her new single ‘If It Wasn’t For Love’ is the biggest new entry on the dance/club play charts this week, entering at #27.
Listen to ‘If It Wasn’t For Love (Mixin Marc & Tony Svejda Original Mix)’:
Other notable debuts in this neck of the charts include Ultra Nate and Michelle Williams‘ ‘Waiting On You’ (#41). Fuck yeah, Tenitra! Plus, David Guetta and Sia‘s ‘Titanium’ crashing in at #42 while Britney‘s ‘Criminal’ remixes arrive at a lowly #50.
Reece Mastin‘s ‘Good Night’ checks off its second week on top of our ARIA singles chart, now clocking over 70,000 sales to become one of the fastest selling singles here this year. ‘Good Night’ is unsurprisingly also the biggest gainer on our Aussie airplay chart (between 24 to 30 November), rising to #23.
Guy Sebastian‘s ‘Don’t Worry Be Happy’ improves on last week’s debut, now rising to #4 on the ARIA chart in its second week. Probably thanks to some decent radio rotation too. ‘Don’t Worry Be Happy’ leaps from #54 to #27 on the Australian airplay chart.
Adele has the biggest selling music DVD in Australia this week with Live at Royal Albert Hall debuting on top of the charts, beating off two other new tour DVD releases: Lady Gaga‘s Monster Ball Tour (#2) and Kylie‘s Aphrodite Les Folies (#3). I suppose someone should mention that Britney‘s Femme Fatale tour DVD arrived at #8? Such a non-factor.
Over in the UK, Kylie‘s Aphrodite Les Folies Live in London debuts at #72 on the album charts. It should show up on the DVD charts next week.
Watch Adele performing ‘Turning Tables’ live at The Royal Albert Hall:
Jessica Mauboy and Stan Walker‘s redundant ballad ‘Galaxy’ sits at #20 on the ARIA Top 50 and registers the biggest drop on the Australian airplay chart in the last week, sinking from #17 to #31. The song has strangely appeared on the UK release schedule with a tentative 12 December launch date. Meanwhile, Stan‘s new album Let The Music Play worringly drops from #18 to #27 in its second week here.
Kelly Clarkson‘s ‘What Doesn’t Kill You (Stronger)’ leaps to #44 on our ARIA singles chart this week, while its predecessor ‘Mr Know It All’ falls to #29. All these lesser songs need to take note and move out of the way too. Kelly‘s hit album Stronger falls to #20 in its sixth week here.
Lana Del Rey‘s ‘Video Games’ breaks into a new peak of #56 on our ARIA charts. The gospel of Del Rey continues to spread across Europe – in fact, ‘Video Games’ is currently reigning in the iTunes Top 10 in Germany, Austria and the Netherlands.
Watch Lana perform ‘Blue Jeans’ – a track featured on her ‘Video Games’ EP:
Olly Murs finally gets a UK #1 album with In Case You Didn’t Know debuting on top, selling 148,000 copies in its first week. His first album Olly Murs arrived at roughly the same time last year but only managed to sell 108,000 copies to debut at #2. Well done, you.
Take That’s Progress Live album enters at #12 in the UK this week, making sure Gary Barlow‘s not left penniless this Christmas while his X Factor cohorts all manage chart appearances. Progress Live remains as the biggest selling music DVD in the UK for the second week in a row, keeping Adele‘s Live At Royal Hall from claiming the throne.
Watch Take That performing one of my faves ‘Kidz’ live on their Progress tour:
N-Dubz‘s Greatest Hits debuts at a humble #38 this week. It was such a pointless cash grab to coincide with Tulisa‘s X Factor gig and Dappy’s recent solo success. Tulisa‘s own solo album’s not slated for release until the first quarter of next year.
Kelly Rowland‘s Here I Am (International Version) cops a red-faced flop in the UK this week, entering at #56 despite all the promo she’s put in during the week including a mini concert for BBC 1Xtra – which was an utter hot mess, by the way. The album turns up at #23 on the UK digital charts, which doesn’t look too bad I guess. Kelendria‘s current single ‘Down For Whatever’ drops to #9 there while the sexy American urban smash ‘Lay It On Me’ starts charting at #81 in the UK.
Here I Am has a slight chance of faring better in its second week, especially after today’s X Factor performance. Look, I really don’t think it’s gonna significantly turn fortunes around for the diva but kudos for trying anyway.
Watch Ms Kelly turn out a medley performance of ‘When Love Takes Over/Down For Whatever’ on UK X Factor:
X Factor Finalists‘ woeful charity single ‘Wishing On A Star’ did go #1 after all, making this the fourth consecutive year where the show has slapped a benefit release on top of the charts.
Jessie J‘s defining ballad ‘Who You Are’ races from #37 to #8 this week, thanks to her performance on the UK X Factor and not to mention a complimentary warble by axed contestant Misha B.
Rebecca Ferguson‘s debut album Heaven arrives in UK storefronts today and it’ll be interesting to see where it ends up given the lukewarm chart response to ‘Nothing’s Real But Love’. The slow-burning single does a death drop from #10 to #30 this week.
Emeli Sandé‘s second solo single ‘Daddy’ debuts at #21 this week, obviously gonna be a hard match for ‘Heaven’s peak at #2. The flawless singer/songwriter will drop her debut album Our Version of Events on 6 February.
Watch Emeli‘s video for ‘Daddy’:
Michael Buble‘s Christmas album squeezes to the #1 spot on the US Billboard 200 with a marginal 0.18% lead over Nickelback‘s Here and Now, which debuted at #2. This is said to be the closest race to the top since November 2007.
Christmas is Buble‘s third US #1 album and with 227,000 copies sold, this is actually the biggest weekly sales he’s ever clocked. I’m thinking he’s gonna be doing seasonal records more often now. Interestingly enough with Justin Bieber‘s Under The Mistletoe and Michael Buble‘s Christmas going #1, 2011 is now the first year to yield two US #1 Christmas albums since 1957, when Elvis and Bing Crosby scaled such heights.
Watch Michael Buble recording ‘All I Want For Christmas Is You’:
Rihanna‘s Talk That Talk debuts at #3 in the US, nabbing 197,000 first week sales. Last year’s blockbuster album Loud managed to debut at #2 with 207,000 copies sold. Over at the singles bar, ‘We Found Love’ continues to reign on top of the US Billboard Hot 100 while ‘Talk That Talk’ becomes the biggest new single in the country, debuting at #31. Elsewhere, ‘You Da One’ drops from #14 to #22 while ‘Where Have You Been’ cracks the Top 100 at #65.
In the UK, Talk That Talk drops to #3 in its second week. The pull downwards is also reflected on the singles chart with ‘We Found Love’ slipping to #3 and ‘You Da One’ dipping one spot to #40. The more drastic drops were felt by album tracks: ‘Talk That Talk’ (#25 to #47) and ‘Where Have You Been’ (#61 to #94).
Here in Australia, ‘We Found Love’ is still securely seated in the ARIA Top 5 while its predecessor ‘You Da One’ ascends to a new peak of #31. Its other sister tracks ‘Where Have You Been’ and ‘Talk That Talk’ drop to #63 and #73 respectively, while the new album slides to #7 in its second week. Talk That Talk has now been certified gold sales for shipments of 35,000 copies in Australia.
Listen to Rihanna‘s fierce as fuck ‘Cockiness (Love It)’:
A Very Gaga Holiday EP debuts at #52 on the US Billboard 200 while Born This Way – The Remix enters at a lowly #105. Over at the singles chart, ‘You and I’ sits at #29 while ‘Marry The Night’ ascends from #97 to #59.
In the UK, Born This Way – The Remix debuts at #77 while ‘Marry The Night’ edges to a new peak of #16. Here in Australia, Born This Way – The Remix debuts at #62 on our ARIA charts but ‘Marry The Night’ has yet to return to our ARIA Top 100.
Watch the hilarious Cooking with Gaga segment on Alan Carr‘s Chatty Man:
Monica‘s new ballad ‘Until It’s Gone’ moves up to a new peak of #26 on the US R&B/Hip Hop charts. There hasn’t been as much of a buzz with this new era for Mo so let’s hope things pick up in the new year. Her seventh studio album New Life is slated for a 21 February release in the States.
Selena Gomez & The Scene‘s ‘Love You Like A Love Song’ finally tops the US Billboard Dance/Club play charts with Beyoncé‘s ‘Countdown’ closing in at #2. Shout out to these key risers: Wynter Gordon‘s amazing ‘Buy My Love’ (#7), Nervo‘s ‘We’re All No One’ (#8) and Katy Perry‘s ‘The One That Got Away’ (#13).
Gotye and Kimbra‘s ‘Somebody That I Used To Know’ has risen to claim the top spot this week, making him the first Australian artist to go #1 here since Guy Sebastian‘s ‘Who’s That Girl’ earlier this year. ‘Somebody That I Used To Know’ is not only the indie pop purveyor’s first chart topper but his first single to crack the ARIA Top 50. Likewise for his partner in crime Kimbra, who has been the hipster community’s best kept secret up until now. It’s an amazing feat for the pair to rise to #1 in only five weeks, racking up platinum sales and earning the support of commercial stations, where they typically would only get rotation on Triple J. Gotye premiered his forthcoming Making Mirrors album on Triple J last night in full, ahead of its release this Friday. The album, in its pre-order state, is currently charting at #7 on iTunes Australia. Kimbra‘s own album Vows will drop locally on 2 September.
Jessica Mauboy‘s ‘Inescapable’ shoots up to #4 this week, making this her first Top 5 hit since ‘Burn’ ascended to #1 in 2009. I know, right? But it’s not like everything in between has flopped or anything. J Mally’s singles are always well-timed and mostly well-supported by Aussie radios, which naturally results in high charting positions. In fact, all her singles have gone Top 20 bar ‘Let Me Be Me’, which was the sixth and final single from Been Waiting (could we blame anyone for not caring?). Keep an eye on next week’s chart to see where the album peaks with the arrival of its deluxe incarnation. If you’re trying to decide if it’s worth your pennies or not, here’s a preview of some new Get ‘Em Girls tracks and my thoughts on the lot. In the two days that counted, Get ‘Em Girls Deluxe has managed to bring the album back to #19 on the Australian Urban charts.
Watch J Mally perform ‘Inescapable’ on Australia’s Got Talent:
Lady Gaga‘s ‘You And I’ is the most added new song to Aussie radios this week. The music video is set to premiere this Thursday. I know she’s always hyping up her latest video to be her best work yet but really, wouldn’t it be impressive if her best video truly was for the single nobody counted on? Elsewhere, Rihanna‘s ‘Cheers (Drink To That)’ rises to #18 in Australia this week, making it her fifth consecutive Top 20 smash here. Every single off the Loud album – bar ‘Man Down’, which wasn’t even serviced to Aussie radios, was it? – has gone Top 20 in Australia, a feat no other RiRi album has ever achieved. Not even the mega Good Girl Gone Bad. Over in the States, ‘Cheers’ shoots up to #50 on the Billboard Hot 100.
Marvin Priest and mah gurl Wynter Gordon‘s ‘Take Me Away’ has finally cracked the Top 50 this week at #32 after a few weeks in the wilderness. The song is getting a bit more radio support so it’s fitting to see it do what it’s doing now. Wynter’s own single ‘Buy My Love’ is set to be released and issued to Aussie radios on 22 August – let’s pray the uptake on that is even greater than what it has been for ‘Take Me Away’.
Watch Marvin Priest and Wynter Gordon‘s ‘Take Me Away’ video. My gurl is looking absolutely smokin’ hawt in it:
Selena Gomez & The Scene‘s ‘Love You Like A Love Song’ cracks the Aussie Top 50 this week at #48. This is actually the Disney pop princess’s second time ever charting this high in our country – ‘Naturally’ made #46 last year. While she’s never really had the same level of radio support as she has in the States and around Asia, Selena’s latest album When The Sun Goes Down managed to debut at #14 here – signifying that she’s most definitely a force to be reckoned with. I don’t know about commercial stations turning the corner to embrace Godmez but Australian gay and lesbian station JOY 94.9 has certainly kept ‘Love You Like A Love Song’ on daytime rotation for a while now. The single also makes a huge jump in the UK, going from #141 to #72 this week. Get ready for the take over.
Boy & Bear‘s Moonfire debuts at #2 in Australia to become the highest selling new album this week, beating the almighty Jay-Z and Kanye West‘s Watch The Throne which came in at #3. The Sydney-based indie rockers have been on the scene for a good year or so now and this is actually a pretty impressive debut for their first album. Last year, they probably piqued a few interests when they opened for Mumford & Sons on their Australian tour and the gang’s EP at the time With Emperor Antarctica managed to chart as high as #63.
Check out Boy & Bear‘s new single ‘Milk & Sticks’:
Zoë Badwi‘s Zoë album debuts at #35 on the ARIA chart and #22 on the digital side this week. I think that’s pretty much expected for an artist that has her heels firmly planted in the dance scene with one crossover single. I look forward to seeing our girl sustain the sales with some heavy touring over the next two months. What’s important is Ms Badwi taking her music out to the scene where it needs to be, where it was designed to be. I’m sure it’d be nice to have another mega radio smash like ‘Freefallin’ – queens, y’all know that I’m eyeballing the next single ‘Until You’re Over Me’ – but at the end of the day, the Zoë album was made to cater for dance audiences. It shall fulfill its destiny accordingly and anything beyond that would be a bonus.
Amy Winehouse and Adele continue their airtight reign of the UK Top 5 this week with the late Wino’s Back to Black still holding on to #1 and Adele’s 21 placed firmly at #2. Frank and 19 are holding down #4 and #5 positions respectively.
Jay-Z & Kanye West‘s Watch The Throne debuts at #3 in the UK, making it the highest selling new album there this week. Watch The Throne was definitely the most downloaded album in the UK and Australia this week, topping the digital charts in both territories. The hip hop moguls’ current single ‘Otis’ slips to #40 in the UK while their Beysus-annointed future single ‘Lift Off’ starts charting at #48. ‘Lift Off’ will be launched to American urban stations next Tuesday.
Cheryl Cole‘s 3 Words album has copped a surprise sale boost this week, re-entering the UK Top 100 at #80 after it had already sold over 900,000 copies in its prime. Nuhdeen will be steady sticking pins in her Chezza voodoo doll now. Speaking of the Geordie Goddess, there’s this delicious piece of goss that she has apparently recorded a will.i.am track originally intended for Cher Lloyd‘s album. What a sneaky ho. Do you see the way she’s thieving away at people’s opportunities? Trust me, she may be laying low after losing her X Factor judging seat but Ms Cole is planning something far bigger and more sinister than Nadine 2.0. We haven’t seen the last of this bitch. All of us stanning for a Girls Aloud reunion will have to topple Cheryl’s empire first.
Dub step duo Nero score their first ever UK #1 hit this week with ‘Promises’. They first caught mainstream media attention after making the shortlist for BBC’s prestigious Sound of 2011 in December alongside other lauded breaking talents like James Blake and Clare Maguire (the winner was Jessie J and look what a year it has been for her). Their chart-topping new entry could not have come at a more surprising juncture with X Factor pop acts JLS and Cher Lloyd having occupied the top spot in previous weeks. So what gives?
Check out the video for ‘Promises’ and rate it for yourselves:
David Guetta and Sia‘s ‘Titanium’ debuts at #16 in the UK and #31 in Australia this week purely off the back of strong digital sales. This epic dance number is already shaping up to be a real contender for Feed Limmy’s Top 10 singles of 2011. I honestly hope the label doesn’t tread too lightly on this success. ‘Titanium’ has the potential to go so much further if it receives the full backing of an official single launch. This needs to be impacting radios already. I’m not content with it being pitched as some digital promo teaser for the album, which I’ll probably hate anyway. ‘Titanium’ is actually turning on pop music fans who aren’t normally inclined to bump Guetta tracks because it’s one of his few singles that aren’t insipidly about getting crunk and picking up chicks. Sista Sia bringeth soul and a hurricane of emotions to the dance floor much in the way Estelle did for Guetta‘s last album gem ‘One Love’.
Jessie J‘s ‘Who’s Laughing Now’ cracks the UK Top 100 this week, entering at #37 after the video surfaced. Expect it to keep rising after the single gets officially released on 21 August. We’re expected to be treated to two new Jessie J tracks in no time, y’all. First up there’s ‘Repeat’, a track on David Guetta‘s forthcoming Nothing But The Beat album, then there’s ‘Domino’ – the Katy Perry-fashioned new summer pop jam slated to hit the States on 30 August (according to Idolator).
Nicole Scherzinger‘s ‘Wet’ rises from #189 to #38 in the UK this week. With any luck, she’ll secure a fourth consecutive Top 3 smash there. Over in the States, ‘Right There’ makes a new peak of #15 on the dance/club play charts. Here in Australia, the single hangs tight at its peak of #8. It’s already charting better than its predecessor ‘Don’t Hold Your Breath’, which only made it at #17. We can’t really hold that against it, can we? ‘Don’t Hold Your Breath’ was most Aussies’ introduction to Nicole’s solo work. It was the perfect appetiser and now that local radios have taken the Scherzinger bait, here comes more.
While we’re on the subject of post-Pussycat Doll work, if you haven’t already inspected Jessica Sutta‘s A-grade new dance/pop single ‘Show Me’ – you absolutely need to. Like, right away. The chorus is giving me life:
Kelly Rowland‘s Here I Am drops 10 places on the US Billboard 200 in its second week to chart at #13. I’ve clocked a couple of stans getting pressed because Kelendria has yet to issue a follow-up single. What is she waiting for? ‘Motivation’, as great as it was for her, has well and truly run its course. Everyone is looking forward to ‘Lay It On Me’ now but there’s still no date set for a radio impact and no sign of a video shoot either. To quote my Twitter friend and beloved pop music fan Richard Eric, ‘Lay It On Me’ is “exactly how Kelly Rowland should sound in 2011: brave, confident, and like somebody who could comfortably lead a group rather than be the second-in-charge like she was back in DC.” Trust.
Greyson Chance – the 13-year old YouTube sensation who rose to fame with his piano-based cover of ‘Paparazzi’ – sees his debut album Hold On ‘Til The Night enter the US Billboard Hot 100 at #29 and digital charts at #14. The album, released through Ellen DeGeneres‘ label eleveneleven, managed to sell 16,185 first week copies in the States off the back of two singles.
Check out his adorable video for ‘Unfriend Me’. It’s the best prepubescent break-up song you’ll ever hear:
Dev‘s second single ‘In The Dark’ has finally cracked the US Billboard Hot 100 at #97. The rent-a-ho for Far East Movement and JLS‘s singles is still hustlin’ hard to get her solo material heard in the States but everything seems to be lining up for her just fine. She’ll gain further exposure as one of the many guests on David Guetta‘s forthcoming album Nothing But The Beat – she’s on a demure, prim and family-friendly track with Timbaland titled ‘I Just Wanna Fuck’. On top of that, Dev‘s debut album The Night The Sun Came Up is set to drop in the UK first on 5 September and later in the US on 20 September.
Kylie Minogue‘s ‘Put Your Hands Up’ shoots up to #2 on the US Dance/Club play charts. So close to reaching #1 and joining the constellation of Aphrodite dance chart toppers. Elsewhere, Britney‘s ‘I Wanna Go’ is the biggest gainer on the club play charts, taking it to a new peak of #3. Wynter Gordon‘s ‘Til Death’ holds tight to the Top 5 placement. Also on the get-go is the new pan-Asian girl band Blush with their debut single ‘Undivided’ featuring Snoop Dogg, ascending to #9 on the dance charts. I am not sold on these ladies, to be honest. But I’ll let you be the judge.
Check out Blush’s beige single ‘Undivided’:
The Wanted‘s ‘Glad You Came’ remains a hot contender on the UK Top 10 but it’s their 2010 debut single ‘All Time Low’ that’s starting to heat up now across the Atlantic. I nearly fell off my chair when I clocked ‘All Time Low’ rising to #21 on the US Billboard Dance/Club charts. I mean, really? Why that mess? I could say the same for Blush. Other surprising dance chart movers include Adele‘s ‘Set Fire to The Rain’ rising to #27 and Jennifer Hudson‘s ‘No One Gonna Love You’ cracking at #47.
Leona Lewis‘ euphoric new single ‘Collide’ debuts at #32 on the US Dance/Club charts this week. Although, I’m not so sure about its future now that Avicii has filed papers to the high court preventing her label, Syco, from releasing ‘Collide’ ahead of his version ‘Fade into Darkness’. To be continued.
Underground pop sensation Natalia Kills drops the video for her eagerly anticipated new single ‘Free’ and if this isn’t the track to break her commercially, then I don’t know what will.
Everybody up in the pop blogosphere has been fanfaring and singing the praises of Natalia’s debut Perfectionist but she’s still got a fair way to go in terms of achieving mainstream attention. Her biggest smash to date is probably ‘Mirrors’, which made Top 5 on the US Billboard Dance/Club charts and here in Australia, we’re only getting formally introduced to her now via LMFAO‘s ‘Champagne Showers’.
I look forward to the day where we hear ‘Free’ (featuring will.i.am) rule the airwaves but for now, we’ve got the 90s-glam video to discuss. As usual, the visuals stay true to Natalia‘s more ominous pop vixen stylings but given the materialistic nature of the song, y’all can forgive her for posing with cash money and sexing up on a BMW bike etc., right?
Check out three key elements in Natalia’s clever ‘Free’ video:
1) 90s technology.
They could’ve gone all futuristic and new money with the latest gadgets but it’s so much more glamorous to throwback to 90s fixtures like them big ass, black bulky TVs and camcorders. Such a defining part of our childhood! I feel like we’ve all lived long enough now to see our generation re-embrace these things.
2) Editorial envy.
There’s definitely a strong fashion editorial element to this video and it goes so much beyond the clothes. Y’all see the block serif fonts that’s evocative of Vogue? The model types accompanying her in the video also drive home the materialistic vibe, depicting all the things we aspire to have while flipping through them glossy fashion mags.
3) Body for sale.
It’s pretty comical seeing Natalia‘s head superimposed onto a muscular male body, but it can also be interpreted as how we’re sold body ideals in magazines. Perhaps, it’s also a further play on a bit of androgyny? A theme that’s already well embodied in the clothes and styling of her accompanying models.
Footnotes:
Natalia Kills will release Perfectionist on 16 August. ‘Free’ (featuring will.i.am) has yet to receive a digital release here in Australia. Stay tuned.
Hold the fuck up, is this for real? David Guetta is collaborating with Aussie indie pop queen Sia?
Nothing But The Beat is the much talked about follow up to the French DJ/producer’s defining One Love opus – an album that spawned six monster hit singles and sold over three million copies. That record was so major in redefining and marrying dance, pop and R&B sonics that I kinda dread a carbon copy situation with this one.
The first single from Guetta‘s Nothing But The Beat era – ‘Where Them Girls At’ with Flo Rida and Nicki Minaj – didn’t quite do it for me. It’ll be interesting to see how it all comes out in the wash because judging by the familiar faces guesting on this record, it’s looking less and less likely to be something revolutionary.
You’ll be far less impressed when you hear the second single ‘Little Bad Girl’ featuring Taio Cruz and Ludacris:
I mean, no shade. It is what it is. A commercial dance/urban project designed to impact clubs and sub woofers in the back of your bro’s car. I would probably still drop it low and shamelessly strut to this shit. You know what I’m like.
Nothing But The Beat will feature collabos with some of the biggest names in the urban sphere: will.i.am, Usher, Snoop Dogg, Akon and Timbaland. But also interestingly enough – Jennifer Hudson, Dev and Sia.
I am probably most excited about hearing tracks with the latter three women, especially Sia, because that’s just unexpected. Perhaps the Guetta album cameo can do for Dev and Sia what it did for Wynter Gordon when she guested on One Love‘s ‘Toyfriend’.
Footnotes:
David Guetta‘s Nothing But The Beat arrives on 26 August in Australia and 30 August in the US. Stay tuned for the final tracklisting.
Feed Limmy 