CHART SPOTLIGHT. According to MusicWeek, one out of ten albums sold in the UK was Adele’s. Her amazing performance helped the whole market to survive a slump. Her 21 album still tops the UK album chart, while Adele’s debut 19 resurged in sales. In total, 2.22m copies were shifted in the first quarter resulting in a 1.5% growth year-on-year. Subtracting Adele’s figures, the record market would drop 8.7% year-on-year instead.
Following the global success of “The Time (Dirty Bit),” Black Eyed Peas returns to the charts with another single off The Beginning. Produced by will.i.am, DJ Ammo and Rodney Jerkins (who produced “Telephone” w/Gaga-Beyoncé), the track vaults into No.9 on the German singles chart this week. The track has so far peaked at No.38 on the Billboard Hot 100.
Rihanna celebrated her 23rd birthday performing at the halftime show at the NBA All-Star Game. According to Billboard, Drake worked “happy birthday” into the lyrics of their massive hit “What’s My Name?”. Rihanna performed several tracks, including “Only Girl” and “Umbrella.”
The L.A. based Asian American electro hop quartet Far East Movement is set follow-up the UK No.4 hit “Like a G6.” Featuring Ryan Tedder as guest vocalist, “Rocketeer” has already managed to peak at No.7 on the Billboard Hot 100.
