Taylor Swift tops Billboard’s Top 200 albums chart yet again this week, as “Red” sold an additional 208,000 copies, according to Nielsen SoundScan. That marks “Red’s” fifth week at No. 1, and the album has now sold 2.6 million copies. Not too shabby.
Swift blocks Bruno Mars from No. 1, as the singer’s second album “Unorthodox Jukebox” debuts at No. 2 with 192,000 first-week sales. That’s Mars’ best Billboard showing yet; his previous album “Doo-Wops & Hooligans” peaked at No. 3 on the chart.
Christmas albums from Michael Buble (No. 3) and Rod Stewart (No. 5) switch spots on the chart, as holiday sets from Blake Shelton (No. 8) and Lady Antebellum (No. 10) earn spots in the Top 10. Meanwhile One Direction’s “Take Me Home” holds steady at No. 4; congrats are in order for the Brit boyband, who cross the 1 million sales marker this week — for the second time this year, no less.
And Compton rapper Game debuts at No. 6 with his latest, “Jesus Piece.” Game’s last album, last year’s “The R.E.D. Album,” debuted at No. 1.
Next week’s chart will see new albums from T.I. and Chief Keef, the last big releases of the year. Neither should pose much of a threat to Swift, who should easily be able to notch another week at No. 1.
Billboard’s Top 10 albums (sales in parentheses, followed by totals; figures according to Nielsen SoundScan)
1. Taylor Swift, Red (208,000; 2.6 million)
2. Bruno Mars, Unorthodox Jukebox (192,000, new)
3. Michael Buble, Christmas (138,000, n/a)
4. One Direction, Take Me Home (127,000; 1.04 million)
5. Rod Stewart, Merry Christmas, Baby (108,000; 710,000)
6. Game, Jesus Piece (86,000; new)
7. Phillip Phillips, The World From the Side of the Moon (68,000; 377,000)
8. Blake Shelton, Cheers, It’s Christmas (68,000; 338,000)
9. Alicia Keys, Girl on Fire (61,000; 297,000)
10. Lady Antebellum, On This Winter’s Night (60,000; 339,000)

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