Josh Groban is Back on Top of the Charts

“Popera” crooner and a former Grammy nominee Josh Groban grabbed his third # 1 album this week as his fifth release, All That Echoes, debuted on top with 145,000 copies on the Billboard 200 Albums Chart. That easily held off new releases from Tim McGraw, rock bands Red and Coheed & Cambria and the latest Now! compilation. Watch for a big shake up next week with the Grammy Awards causing a lot of albums to get big boosts like Album of the Year winners Mumford & Sons who already climb back up four notches. For now, check out the new top ten below.

Top Ten Albums on the Billboard 200:
1. All that Echoes- Josh Groban (debut)
2. Two Lanes of Freedom- Tim McGraw (debut)
3. Now 45- Various Artists (debut)
4. Babel- Mumford & Sons (last week~ 7)
5. Passione- Andrea Bocelli (lw~ 2)
6. Believe: Acoustic- Justin Bieber (lw~ 1)
7. Release the Panic- Red (debut)
8. Unorthodox Jukebox- Bruno Mars (lw~ 6)
9. The Aftermath: Descension- Coheed & Cambria (debut)
10. The Lumineers- The Lumineers (lw~ 10)

And here’s the video for Josh Groban’s first single from All That Echoes,” Brave” which just hit the top 20 on the AC charts.

Over on the Hot 100, Macklemore & Ryan Lewis make it four weeks on top with “Thrift Shop” while a bunch of songs enter the top-tier. Justin Timberlake‘s “Suit & Tie” gets a Grammy boost and returns to # 8 while Maroon 5 grabs their third consecutive top ten single from their Overexposed album with “Daylight” and Bruno Mars‘ second single from Unorthodox Jukebox, “When I Was Your Man” joins his former # 1 “Locked Out of Heaven”. Check out the new top ten below and head to Billboard for more on all the charts.

Top Ten Singles on the Hot 100:
1. “Thrift Shop”- Macklemore & Ryan Lewis (last week~ 1)
2. “Locked Out of Heaven”- Bruno Mars (lw~ 2)
3. “Scream & Shout”- Will.I.Am w/ Britney Spears (lw~ 3)
4. “Ho Hey”- The Lumineers (lw~ 4)
5. “I Knew You Were Trouble”- Taylor Swift (lw~ 5)
6. “Don’t You Worry Child”- Swedish House Mafia w/ John Martin (lw~ 6)
7. “Daylight”- Maroon 5 (lw~ 14)
8. “Suit & Tie”- Justin Timberlake w/Jay Z (lw~ 13)
9. “When I Was Your Man”- Bruno Mars (lw~ 22)
10. “Beauty & A Beat”- Justin Bieber w/ Nicki Minaj (lw~ 7)

Josh Groban gets “Brave”

Grammy nominated “Popera” star Josh Groban is finally bringing us some new music. After dabbling in acting (Crazy Stupid Love) and TV Hosting (Live with Kelly), the booming baritone is readying his sixth studio album All that Echoes set to drop on February 5th next year. Giving us a taste of his more contemporary sound, Groban’s new single “Brave” hit iTunes this week and I have your first listen below. It’s a great song, that Groban co-wrote, and it is likely to be another AC smash. The question is can he cross over to the pop charts? Let me know after you sample it below. Then, head to Josh’s website here for more info on his new album and the latest Groban news.

Josh Groban “Brave”

Will Chris Mann be the First Real Success from “The Voice”?

I have been a bit critical of The Voice since its inception. The show is really only about “the voice” during the blind audition rounds, but soon turns into a competition about “the whole package” in the subsequent weeks. The first two seasons drove me nuts with annoying judges banter, selection of contestants that weren’t as good as their booted counterparts and ridiculous over-production, and don’t get me started on the “social media” correspondent crap. Plus, honestly with so many contestants, you don’t really develop much of a connection with the singers and the show became all about the judges. That being said, season 3 has improved on all accounts. The judges have found a nice and less-irritating camaraderie and there’s some great talent along with new twists like “the steal” which make the latter rounds much more interesting. So, I’m pleased and haven’t tuned out yet like I did in the previous seasons.
With all that being said, I still wonder if The Voice will ever produce a viable hit maker. Season 1′s top contenders bombed with their debut albums and does anyone even remember who won season 2? Not likely. (It’s sad too since there are some good singers. They should take some lessons from American Idol which continues to produce big stars. This year’s Idol  winner Phillip Phillip’s coronation single, “Home”, has gone double platinum already!) … However, there may just be a surprise success from the show in top 4 finalist from season 2 pop-opera singer Chris Mann. He was the good-looking fellow from Team Xtina who was like a mix of Josh Groban and Michael Buble. And that’s exactly what he sounds like on his debut single “Roads”. The beautiful ballad is already climbing the AC charts and his first album, Roads, hits stores and digital retailers tomorrow. I think he has the best shot of actually becoming successful for any contestant from The Voice because of his genre of music. He fits the AC mold very well and doesn’t have to fight for pop radio airplay. On a side note, he clearly had the best voice of anyone his season, so it would be a fitting compliment to the show if he is actually successful and gives credence to the show’s title. Take a listen to his new single below and let me know. Do you think his voice should’ve won and will he actually succeed where everyone else from The Voice fails? … For more on Chris Mann, head here.

Chris Mann “Roads”

Sara Bareilles relies on a little Help from her Friends

Grammy nominated singer Sara Bareilles asked for a little help from her friends for her latest video “Uncharted”, and lucky for us, they all said yes. The result for this fantastic new single is a video that’s incredibly fun and even hilarious at times~ witness Josh Groban and a banana. Along with Groban, other famous faces that appear to help out are Sugarland’s Jennifer Nettles, Adam Levine of Maroon 5, Pharrell, Tegan and Sara, mega producer/writer and OneRepbulic singer Ryan Tedder, Ben Folds and Ingrid Michaelson. You even get that wacky lil kid who does all kinds of youtube videos~ you’ll know him when you see him. Anywho, check out the new video below and head to Sara’s website for more info. Plus, I highly recommend her latest album, King of Anything, which hit # 1 late last year. It’s an incredible album.

Sara Bareilles “Uncharted”

Josh Groban sings Kanye West’s Tweets~ Brilliant

Check out this hilarious video from one of my favorite singers, Grammy nominated singer Josh Groban. He performed a new song composed of recent ridiculous tweets by Grammy winner and controversial egomaniac Kanye West that was featured recently on Jimmy Kimmell. Enjoy and pick up Josh’s latest album, Illuminations in stores now.

Josh Groban sings Kanye West’s Tweets

Susan Boyle, Rihanna, and The Beatles make news on the Charts while an Idol tanks…

The holiday shopping season is upon us and the music biz is finally perking up with 8 new debuts in the top ten of the Billboard Top 200 Albums chart. However, it was a holdover that grabbed #1 as Susan Boyle’s seasonal collection, The Gift, stayed on top and actually increased its sales to 335,000 copies in week two. She held off a shockingly strong performance from another TV bred star, ten-year old Jackie Evancho of America’s Got Talent, whose holiday opera debut landed in the runner-up spot besting Rihanna‘s Loud which actually gave the pop star her biggest first week sales to date. Rihanna also has the new # 1 single in the country this week with “Only Girl in the World” which hits the summit just two weeks after her other song “What’s My Name?’ began its run on top.
Back on the album chart, Josh Groban, Kid Rock, The Glee Christmas album, Rascal Flats, Keith Urban and Nelly all made it into the top ten with the only other stalwart being Taylor Swift who hung on at # 9. Watch for strong sales for most of those releases throughout the holiday season particularly Groban and Boyle… It wasn’t good news for the latest American Idol winner, Lee Dewyze, though whose first album Live It Up tanked landing at # 19 with a paltry 39,000 for the lowest first week sales of any Idol winner or runner-up in the show’s history. Perhaps the more deserving singer he beat Crystal Bowersox will have stronger  sales power with her debut in a few weeks. Stay tuned…

Here’s this week’s top Ten albums:
1. Susan Boyle- The Gift (lw~ 1)
2. Jackie Evancho- O Holy Night (debut)
3. Rihanna- Loud (debut)
4. Josh Groban- Illuminations (debut)
5. Kid Rock- Born Free (debut)
6. Rascal Flatts- Nothing Like This (debut)
7. Keith Urban- Get Closer (debut)
8. Glee- The Christmas Album (debut)
9. Taylor Swift- Speak Now (lw~ 2)
10. Nelly- 5.0 (debut)

Back over on the singles chart, the Glee cast made more big news with “Forget You” featuring Gwyneth Paltrow which debuted at # 1 on the digital singles sales chart. That was the second # 1 in a row on the chart for the show which hit the top last week with “Teenage Dream”. The later single debuted at # 8 on the Hot 100 as well, but “Forget You” just misses the top ten debuting at # 11. The original version original version of that song “F*%k You (Forget You)” by Cee -Lo does grab a spot in the top ten though spurred on by the attention from the hit show to zoom up to # 9.

Here’s this week’s top ten songs:
1. “Only Girl in the World”- Rihanna (lw~ 2)
2. “Raise Your Glass”- Pink (lw~ 4)
3. “Like a G6”- Far East Movement (lw~ 1)
4. “We R Who We R”- Ke$ha (lw~ 6)
5. “Just a Dream”- Nelly (lw~ 5)
6. “Firework”- Katy Perry (lw~ 9)
7. “Just the Way You Are”- Bruno Mars (lw~ 3)
8. “What’s My Name?”- Rihanna w/Drake (lw~ 7)
9. “F#%k You (Forget You)”- Cee-Lo (lw~ 19)
10. “Bottoms Up”- Trey Songz (lw~ 10)

With Rihanna’s latest # 1, she now has a total of 9 chart toppers and that means she has more # 1′s than any other artist this decade. Pretty shocking, huh? Here’s a list of Rihanna’s # 1′s below.

Rihanna’s #1 songs (the most in the 2000′s by any artist):
“S.O.S.”
“Umbrella” with Jay Z
“Take A Bow”
“Disturbia”
“Live Your Life” with T.I.
“Rude Boy”
“Love the Way You Lie” with Eminem
“What’s My Name?” with Drake
“Only Girl in the World”

~and is it me or is it also shocking that “Don’t Stop the Music” didnt’ hit the top of the Hot 100? It peaked at # 3.

The lastl big chart news of the week belongs to The Beatles who finally made all their albums and singles available to iTunes. After just one week out, the supergroup sold over 450,000 albums worldwide and over 2 million singles. Looks like good music will always thrive. For more on all your chart needs, head to Billboard here.

And here’s your # 1 song in the country, Rihanna’s “Only Girl in the World”

Susan Boyle tops the Charts with her “Gift”

Surprise pop superstar Susan Boyle is back at the top of the album charts with her second record, a holiday collection entitled The Gift. The album moved 318,000 to debut at # 1 and pushed Taylor Swift into the runner-up spot after two weeks at the summit. Boyle’s numbers are good and she should continue to sell well throughout the holiday season. However, they’re a far cry from her debut album’s 710,000 copy debut week when she was riding the hype from Britain’s Got Talent. Debuting along with Boyle this week are new albums from Kid Cudi, Bon Jovi, Reba, Cee Lo and the lastest Now! collection. All of those titles will have to fend off a host of new albums next week from the likes of Pink, Rihanna, the Glee cast, Josh Groban and more. Scroll down for the full top ten and head to Billboard here for all your chart needs.

Official Billboard Results for Week of 11.08.10

1. Susan Boyle, “The Gift” (DEBUT)
2. Taylor Swift, “Speak Now” (lw~ 1)
3. Kid Cudi, “Man on the Moon II: The Legend of Mr. Rager” (DEBUT)
4. “NOW That’s What I Call Music!, Vol. 36″ (DEBUT)
5. Bon Jovi, “Greatest Hits” (DEBUT)
6. Jason Aldean, “My Kinda Party” (lw~ 2)
7. Reba McEntire, “All the Women I Am” (DEBUT)
8. Sugarland, “The Incredible Machine” (lw~ 3)
9. Cee-Lo, “The Lady Killer” (DEBUT)
10. Lil’ Wayne, “I Am Not a Human Being” (lw~ 5)

And over on the Digital Singles Sales Chart, the Glee cast grabs another # 1 with their cover of Katy Perry’s “Teenage Dream” featuring lead vocals by new costar Darren Criss as it shifts 214,000 units. It grabs the best sales week for any Glee song to date besting the group’s massive “Don’t Stop Believing”. Enjoy their “Dream” below.

Ok, I’ll admit it… I love me some Josh Groban

No, I am not afraid to admit it. I love me some Josh Groban. The classical pop singer songwriter has an undeniable voice whether soaring on opera classics or dueting with divas like Celine Dion, Charlotte Church and Sarah Brightman. He may not seem all that hip, but I don’t care. I have all his albums and I’m excited about his upcoming 6th release. Following up his three studio albums, a Christmas collection and a live set, Groban unleashes his new record in November and it’s preceded by the first gorgeous single “Hidden Away” which is already climbing the AC charts and is currently available at iTunes and other digital retailers. This Grammy nominated performer has sold nearly 20 million albums in the U.S. since 2003 and is sure to have major success with his latest entitled Illuminations.
And he’s not just a celebrated singer. He’s a young funny guy who has skewered his own persona in a guest spot on Glee, participated in the “I’m Fucking Matt Damon” song with Sarah Silverman, and dated Mad Men star January Jones. Of course he is best known for those pipes which have been featured on film (the Oscar nominated Theme song to The Polar Express “Believe”) on TV (his guest spots on Ally McBeal) and stage (in his recent appearance in the musical Chess in Concert with Tony nominee Adam Pascal and Tony winner Idina Menzel). Yes, Josh Groban is everywhere and he’s about to return to my iPod. Take a listen to his new single below and then look at my countdown of my favorite Josh Groban songs.

Josh Groban “Hidden Away”

My favorite Josh Groban songs
1. “You’re Still You” (his first top 10 AC hit from the album Josh Groban)
2. “You Raise Me Up” (his signature song and a # 1 AC hit from the second album Closer)
3. “Broken Vow” (from Josh Groban)
4. “The Prayer” (the live version with Celine Dion)
5. “Remember When it Rained” (a #15 AC hit from Closer)
6. “To Where You Are” (a # 1 AC hit from Josh Groban)
7. “February Song” (a #13 AC hit from the third album Awake)
8. “Anthem” (live from Chess in Concert)
9. “Don’t Give Up, You are Loved” (a top 10 AC hit from Awake)
10. “When You Say You Love Me” (a top 15 hit from Closer)

Miss GLEE’s Amazing Season Finale? … Check it out here!

Last night Glee aired its wonderful emotional season finale entitled “Journey” which perfectly summed up the show’s first season , not to mention it included some great music by Journey. It was easily one of the best episodes of the season and had me laughing and crying left and right as the club headed to regionals and Quinn had her baby. It was also one of the rare episodes, like the pilot and the Madonna eppy, where I loved every song and immediately purchased them on iTunes. It also included some hilarious Sue Sylvester (Jane Lynch) one liners (“Kiss my ass Josh Groban!”) and guest appearances by Josh Groban, Olivia Newton-John, Jonathan Groff and Idina Menzel. For the full episode, check it out below.

Glee’s Season Finale “Journey”

And here’s my ranking of last night’s songs….
1. “Faithfully”- Lea Michelle, Cory Monteith & Cast
2. “Anyway You Want It/Lovin’ Touchin’ Squeezin’”- The Cast
3. “Dont Stop Believin’”- The Cast (it’d be higher were it not in the pilot… but kudos on the new arrangement and recording!)
4. “Somewhere Over the Rainbow”- Matthew Morrison with Mark Sailing
5. “Bohemian Rhapsody”- Jonathan Groff & Vocal Adrenaline