Jared Braden A healthy obsession with pop music!
Move over Mariah Carey, another diva is getting a sobering taste of the current music-business climate. Despite months of relentless promotion, it appears Jennifer Lopez’s new album, A.K.A., isn’t actually bringing too many people from the block.
According to the latest report from Hits Daily Double, A.K.A., Jennifer’s eight overall studio release and first on Capitol Records, is projected to sell between 30,000 to 35,000 copies, a shockingly low number for such a recognizable pop singer. If this projection holds, A.K.A. will be her lowest sales for a debut week. I saw this coming from a mile away, though. A.K.A. has spawned two underperforming singles: “I Luh Ya Papi” and “First Love,” both of which struggled to find a strong connection with both radio and pop music fans, including myself.
“The numbers today as compared to the numbers 10 years ago to me, it’s a very different conversation because it’s more diversified how people consume music,” Greg Thompson, executive vice president of Capitol Records, recently told the Associated Press. “We try to make sure that not only do we have a good first week, but that we can continue to sell records because I think that Jennifer’s fan base will come out week two, three and four, too. It’s about constantly driving that album in people’s consciousness.”
Lopez’s last studio album, Love? (2011), debuted at number five on the US Billboard 200 chart, selling 83,100 copies in its first week. Her last top 40 single came in 2012 with the release of “Dance Again” (featuring Pitbull), which peaked at number seventeen on the Billboard Hot 100.
Things are looking good for British crooner Sam Smith, though. His debut album, In the Lonely Hour, is likely to move around 150,000 copies. The Billboard 200 chart will be announced on Wednesday, June 25.
