J. Cole Makes The Chart His ‘World’ With #1 Debut
When we recently asked J. Cole about some of the classic rap albums that have inspired him, the Roc Nation MC told us, “Hopefully mine is one of those that you gotta pop in on your road trips.” The Roc Nation MC is off to a good start: Cole World: The Sideline Story, his debut LP, debuts debuts at #1 on Billboard‘s Top 200 chart. Cole’s album, which features the singles “Work Out” and “Can’t Get Enough,” moved enough copies (218,000) in its first week to edge out Blink 182’s Neighborhoods — the California punk-pop band’s first album in eight years — and force it to enter at #2. Neighborhoods sold 151,000, according to Billboard.
When we highlighted Cole World in our Fall Music Preview, J. told us he was aiming to make the LP an “emotional rollercoaster” for listeners:
“I wanted to do things the best. So if I had a super emotional record that’s supposed to touch your heart, I wanted to do the things to really make you cry when you hear it. Or if I was doing a party song or a fun song, I really wanted to do it the best and really have you feel like you’re really jamming for real. Or, you know, if I was riding in the car, doing a rap record, I really wanted to go hard and do everything to the fullest extent. I don’t wanna have anything half-ass on the album.”
Four other records dent the upper tier of the album chart this week, all from rock acts: Wilco’s The Whole Love (#5, 82,000 copies), Switchfoot’s Vice Verses (#8, 45,000), Chickenfoot’s Chickenfoot III (#9, 42,000) and Mastodon’s The Hunter (#10, 39,000).
Next week we find out how the latest American Idol winner, 17-year-old Scotty McCreery, fared out of the gate with his debut LP Clear As Day. (So far, so good: he’s #1 on iTunes and #3 on Amazon.com’s music bestseller list.)
The Top 10 Of Billboard‘s Top 200 Chart:
1. J. Cole, Cole World: The Sideline Story *new* *1 week* 2. Blink 182, Neighborhoods *new* 3. Adele, 21 4.Tony Bennett, Duets II 5. Wilco, The Whole Love *new* 6.Lady Antebellum, Own The Night 7. Lil Wayne, Tha Carter IV 8. Switchfoot, Vice Verses *new* 9. Chickenfoot, Chickenfoot III *new* 10. Mastodon, The Hunter *new*
