Weekly Chart Notes: Even Before Her First Billboard No. 1, Rihanna Shined Like A Diamond

After tallying 12 No. 1 Billboard Hot 100 singles, Rihanna this week registers her first Billboard 200 No. 1 album, as "Unapologetic" starts with 238,000 copies sold, according to Nielsen SoundScan.

While her first leading set is a feat worth praising, it also seems logical to recognize that Rihanna's single vs. album success hasn't been as disparate as those No. 1 totals suggest. Despite a dozen dominators on the Hot 100 and no Billboard 200 toppers until this week, Rihanna has been a force on the latter chart since her 2005 arrival.

 

Rihanna first appeared on the Billboard 200 the week of Sept. 17, 2005, when "Music of the Sun" arrived at its No. 10 peak. Less than a year later (May 13, 2006), "A Girl Like Me" bowed at its No. 5 peak, powered by her first Hot 100 No. 1, "SOS." Just more than a year after that (June 23, 2007), "Good Girl Gone Bad" launched at No. 2, fueled by her seven-week Hot 100 No. 1 "Umbrella," featuring Jay-Z.

"Girl" narrowly missed the Billboard 200 summit that frame. T-Pain's "Epiphany" opened at No. 1 with 171,000 copies, just 9,000 units ahead of Rihanna's set. And, while T-Pain won the initial chart battle, Rihanna claimed a victory of longevity: "Epiphany" spent 28 weeks on the chart, "Girl," 99. To date, "Epiphany" has sold 911,000; "Girl," 2.8 million.

Since, Rihanna has released the studio sets "Rated R" (No. 4, 2009), "Loud" (No. 3, 2010) and "Talk That Talk" (No. 3, 2011) prior to "Unapologetic." Arriving in the thick of the holiday shopping season each year, the three sets ran into yuletide blockades each year.

Upon its debut, "Rated R" ranked behind buzz-worthy sets by Susan Boyle and Andrea Bocelli ("My Christmas"), as well as Adam Lambert's debut album "For Your Entertainment," the lattermost album buoyed by fervent fans who felt that he, not actual champ Kris Allen, was the deserving winner of "American Idol" that year.

A year later, Rihanna was again unable to unseat Boyle, whose seasonal "My Gift" was amid an eight-week Billboard 200 reign. "Loud" also started behind Jackie Evancho's EP "O Holy Night."

Last December, "Talk That Talk" (198,000 sold in its first week) began below Michael Buble's "Christmas"(227,000) and Nickelback's "Here and Now" (less than a thousand units lower than Buble's set). While the race among all three albums was close, each set's genre also points to why Rihanna may have been at a disadvantage. Holiday albums naturally attract attention in December. Nickelback, meanwhile, is a rock act while Rihanna's main success has been in pop circles. Since superstar pop acts' songs are so often available for consumption on radio airwaves, the only way to hear a less radio-ready rock group's new music may be to buy its new album. Based on that premise, Nickelback's higher sales sum that week is understandable.

That she releases studio albums at such a consistent pace may have also had a hand in Rihanna not having reached No. 1 until this week. When an artist is so forthcoming with new music, each album arrives with less event status, perhaps lessening its demand.

And, while five of her albums have sold more than a million copies each, the 2.8 million units that "Girl" has sold is her best sum. Perhaps Rihanna's albums would sell more if another release wasn't always issued so soon after.

Still, since her first week in the Billboard 200 top 10, only the "Glee" cast (13), Miley Cyrus/"Hannah Montana" (nine) and Toby Keith (eight) have more top 10s than Rihanna (while Kenny Chesney also boasts seven).

Clearly, even before her first No. 1 album, Rihanna's Billboard 200 success since the start of her career merits praise.

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via billboard.com