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Michael Jackson still reigns over Billboard charts
With the numbers now in from the first full week of sales (6/29-7/5) since his June 25 passing, Michael Jackson again dominates the Billboard charts with total sales of 800,000 copies.
The King of Pop's unexpected death has rejuvenated his album sales, with 422,000 copies sold in the four days following his death and nine of the top 10 spots on Billboard's Top Pop Catalog Albums chart last week comprised of Jackson-related material.
This past week, many retail stores received new shipments of Jackson albums from Sony Entertainment and Universal Music Group after selling out in the days following his death. In all, the icon's solo catalog moved 656,000 physical albums last week, while 144,000 digital albums were downloaded. In comparison, the week prior saw 181,000 physical copies sold and 241,000 digital downloads.
According to SoundScan, Jackson's best-of "Number Ones" album holds the title of top-selling album in the US with sales of 315,000 copies, as well as No. 1 on Billboard's Top Comprehensive Albums chart, while "Thriller" returns to the top at No. 2 with 187,000 copies moved, according to Nielsen SoundScan retail figures.
Jackson's work also takes hold of the Top Pop Catalog Albums chart again this week, this time commanding all 10 spots. His solo albums claim Nos. 1-6 and Nos. 8-10, while the Jackson 5's "The Ultimate Collection" snags No. 7.
Five Jackson singles made it onto Billboard's Hot Digital Songs chart, with "Man in the Mirror" leading the pack at 159,000 downloads. In total, Jackson's material--both solo and with the Jackson 5--has been downloaded 2.2 million times this week.
Last week, Jackson became the first artist to sell 1 million or more tracks in a single week.
