Despite being her first traditional studio album to enter into Billboard 200 battle without a Hot 100 top 40 to precede it (see: ‘Love So Soft’), Kelly Clarkson – courtesy of new album ‘Meaning of Life’ – continues to prove that she is still quite the force to be reckoned with.
Her inaugural release on new label home, Atlantic Records, this week saw ‘Meaning’ become her 8th consecutive top 3 debut on the Billboard 200. Thanks to 79,000 equivalent album units sold (of which 68,000 were in pure sales), the set’s first week commercial performance was only bested by that of country star Kenny Chesney (who leads this week’s tally with 219,000 equivalent album units earned).
The feat is all the more impressive for Clarkson who, via ‘Meaning of Life,’ answered fan requests to deviate from her pop-rock sounding offers to return to more rhythmic/R&B/soul influenced sounds. As congratulate the ‘American Idol’ alum and hope she continues in this sonic vein, see who joins her and Chesney in this week’s updated ‘Chart Check: Billboard 200.’
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