"Ghosttown" Remixes Are Out

Head over to Madonna's YouTube channel to listen to the newly released "Ghosttown" remixes. Remember, streaming helps with charts! Now that the remixes are out we can expect Madonna's next Club Play smash!

Billboard On Rebel Heart's Second Week Sales

"Madonna, Rebel Heart - No. 21: Madonna’s Rebel Heart slips from No. 2 to No. 21 with 26,000 units (down 78 percent) in its second week. It fell by 80 percent in album sales, to 24,000 (down from 116,000). The 80 percent erosion is steep, but not terribly out-of-the-ordinary for a title that likely had a lot of pre-order sales that made it difficult to sustain a strong second week. High-debuting albums from big-named stars regularly see second-week declines of more than 75 percent in sales. For example, in the tracking week ending March 8, Big Sean’s Dark Sky Paradise, Kid Rock’s First Kiss and Chris Brown & Tyga’s Fan of a Fan all dropped by 75 or more in their second frame. In the past year, albums that fell sharper than Rebel Heart include: Fall Out Boy’s American Beauty/American Psycho (82 percent), Foo Fighters’ Sonic Highways (81 percent) and 5 Seconds of Summer’s She Looks So Perfect EP (82 percent)."

Billboard.com

Chart News: Week of 4/4/2015

Rebel Heart
Sales This Week: 26,000 (equivalent album units) / 24,000 (pure album sales)
The Billboard 200: #21 (Down from #2)
Top Album Sales: #15 (Down from #1)
Vinyl Albums: Off (From #2)
Top Current Albums: #15 (Down from #1)
Top Internet Albums: #4 (Down from #1)
Tastemakers: #9 (Down from #1)
Digital Albums: #13 (Down from #1)

Ghosttown
Adult Contemporary: #21 (Debut)

Living For Love

Dance Club Songs: #14 (Down from #7)

Hot Dance / Electronic Songs: #20 (Down from #14)

Dance / Electronic Digital Songs: #24 (Up from #31)

Billboard Twitter Top Tracks: #50 (Re-Entry)

Dance / Mix Show Airplay: Off (from #30)

Bitch I'm Madonna

Hot Dance / Electronic Songs: Off (from #33)

Rebel Heart (2015)

Hits Daily Double: Building Album Sales Chart: Final

Hits Daily Double's final predictions are in and they have Madonna falling to #16 in sales this week with 22,800 copies sold of Rebel Heart, at an 80% drop from the week before.

Chart Highlights: Madonna's 'Ghosttown' Debuts on Adult Contemporary

The Queen of Pop charts her first song at the format since 2007. 

Debut No. 21 "Ghosttown" Madonna
Madonna debuts on Adult Contemporary with "Ghosttown," the second single from her new album, Rebel Heart. First single "Living for Love" reached No. 36 on Pop Songs, aided by concentrated plays on iHeartMedia-owned stations; spins on certain AC stations in the chain likewise spur the start of "Ghosttown." (It bubbles under Adult Pop Songs, also thanks to iHeartMedia plays in that format).

The bow of "Ghosttown" ends Madonna's longest break from charting on AC: she last reached the list with "Jump," which hit No. 21 in January 2007. She makes her 36th visit to the tally. Since her first week on the chart in June 1984 (with "Borderline"), only Elton John (43), Celine Dion (41) and Rod Stewart (40) have made more appearances.

Billboard.com

Hits Daily Double: Building Album Sales Chart: 75.13% In

It's not looking good for week #2, guys. Seriously, I don't get it. Madonna has been doing so much promo, yet, at 75% of retail sales reports in, she's only at 11.8K in sales. Hits' final estimates should be in by tomorrow, we'll see what she ends up with...

"Ghosttown" Radio Update

Over the last 7 days "Ghosttown" has seen some some building radio play from many Adult Contemporary and Hot AC stations across the country. Leading the pack is WLTW in New York with 15 plays, followed by KKCW in Portland, KOSO in Modesto, and KPEK in Albuquerque with 11 plays each. A few Top 40 stations have also given the track a few spins. "Ghosttown"'s current Mediabase quick-cut airplay stands at about 3.586 audience impressions. While not anything groundbreaking, it's definitely a promising start. Hopefully this continues into next week.

My Thoughts On The #2 Situation

I don't think I usually use this blog as a platform to express my complaints, but today I feel that I have to. This week royally sucks. Madonna has the best-selling album of the week, yet Billboard is not recognizing this on their official Top 200 Albums chart. If you have the best-selling album of the week, you should be #1. Period. Rebel Heart is #1 on Top Album Sales, #1 on Top Current Albums, #1 on Top Internet Albums, #1 on Tastemaker Albums AND #1 in Digital Albums and all of that equals as officially being the #2 album in the country? That's such bullshit. The more time that goes on, the more I'm losing respect for Billboard. Over the years, I've loved keeping up with Madonna's accomplishments on their charts, cheering her on when she wins, and accepting it when she fails, but when it's downright taken from her, that's where it's not enjoyable anymore. Streams and individual track sales should not count for an albums chart. When physical singles were sold in stores, those where never counted for the album chart, so why should individual track downloads? It's very unfortunate that Rebel Heart will be a #2 album with an asterisk at the end of it. It's not right.

Chart News: Week Of 3/28/2015

Rebel Heart
Sales This Week: 121,000 (equivalent album units) / 116,000 (pure album sales)
The Billboard 200: #2 (Debut)
Top Album Sales: #1 (Debut)
Vinyl Albums: #2 (Debut)
Top Current Albums: #1 (Debut)
Top Internet Albums: #1 (Debut)
Tastemakers: #1 (Debut)
Digital Albums: #1 (Debut)

Living For Love

Dance Club Songs: #7 (Down from #6)

Hot Dance / Electronic Songs: #14 (Up from #21)

Dance / Electronic Digital Songs: #31 (Down from #30)

Billboard Twitter Top Tracks: Off (Down from #46)

Dance / Mix Show Airplay: #30 (Down from #25)

Bitch I'm Madonna

Hot Dance / Electronic Songs: #33 (Re-Entry)

Billboard: Rebel Heart Comes In At #2

 It's official: Fox TV's breakout hit series Empire crashes in at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 albums chart, as its soundtrack debuts atop the list after a battle was brewing between it and Madonna's new Rebel Heart album.
The Billboard 200 chart ranks the most popular albums of the week based on multi-metric consumption, which includes traditional album sales, track equivalent albums (TEA) and streaming equivalent albums (SEA).

The Empire soundtrack was released March 10 through Columbia Records and bows with 130,000 equivalent album units earned in the week ending March 15, according to Nielsen Music. It's the first TV soundtrack to debut at No. 1 since 2010, when three different Glee albums arrived atop the list. (Both Empire and Glee air on Fox TV.)
Madonna's Rebel Heart, also issued on March 10, starts in the No. 2 slot with 121,000 units. The Live Nation/Interscope Records release is Madonna's 21st top 10 album.
The rest of the new Billboard 200 chart's top 10 will be revealed on Wednesday, March 18.

Although Rebel Heart debuts with more albums sold than Empire, it fell behind the soundtrack when it came to streaming and track equivalent album units -- so it ended up at No. 2 on the overall Billboard 200 chart.

Read the full article at Billboard.com

Hits Daily Double: Chart Attack: Debuts Rule The Top 3

Madge Tops Album Chart, Empire Takes Sales Plus Streaming, Luke Takes #3 on Both

Live Nation/Interscope’s Madonna has topped the HITS Album Sales Chart with 116k, passing Twentieth Century Fox/Columbia’s Empire soundtrack in a photo finish. Season 1’s smash-filled ST earned 107k, locking it in at the #2 spot. The tables were turned, however, on the Sales Plus Streaming (SPS) Chart, where Empire snagged 128k to Madge’s 122k. An array of singles from the show helped power it to the top. Meanwhile, bowing third on both charts, Luke Bryan’s spring-break collection hog-tied 84k in album sales and 95k at SPS for Capitol Nashville.

Hits Daily Double

What does this mean? Basically, since Billboard now incorporates streaming data and individual track sales into the Billboard 200, Madonna will most likely be #2 even though she actually sold the most albums this week. THUMBS DOWN. 

Hits Daily Double Building Albums Sales Chart: 76.14% In

Here is a current look at the building chart for last week's albums sales according to Hits Daily Double. As you can see,  only about 76% of retailers have submitted their sales. Madonna is currently in the lead but the race is very close and anything can happen. Don't be surprised if she is #2 on this week's album chart. Expect the worst but hope for the best! The rest of Hits' figures should be in by tomorrow.

"Ghosttown" Radio Initiative To Begin On Monday?

News is coming in that a few radio stations across the country have started playing "Ghosttown" this weekend, including Z100 in New York and Y100 in Miami. Apparently, a company-wide iHeart radio airplay initiative is scheduled to kick off on Monday. No word yet if it will only be a week-long deal like it was for "Living For Love". Hopefully "Ghosttown" will fare better with radio listeners than "Living For Love" did! Stay tuned...

Hits Daily Double Updated Sales Predictions

YOUR TOP 15: EMPIRE VS. THE EMPRESS
It Looks Like a Battle for the Top Spot on our Sales Plus Streaming (SPS) Chart

Yesterday's iTunes outages are affecting the forecasts for next week, with wonderers wondering how many consumers either resorted to physical retail during the store's downtime or simply lost the impulse to buy. In any case, it could still be a battle for #1 as our margin of error today is somewhat greater due to the aformentioned outages. Empire still gets the edge. Here’s what we think headed into the weekend:

*Empire Soundtrack (Twentieth Century Fox/Columbia) 110-120k (90-95k sales)
*Madonna (Live Nation/Interscope) 110-120k (105-115k sales)
*Luke Bryan (Capitol Nashville) 100-110k (90-95k sales)
Fifty Shades of Grey (Republic) 65-70k (35-40k sales)
Taylor Swift (Big Machine) 65-70k (35-40k sales)
Drake (YMCMB/Republic) 50-55k (25-28k sales)
Ed Sheeran (Atlantic) 50-55k (25-28k sales)
Sam Smith (Capitol) 50-55k (30-35k sales)
Maroon 5 (222/Interscope) 40-45k (14-17k sales)
Big Sean (G.O.O.D/Def Jam) 35-40k (18-21k sales)
Kelly Clarkson (RCA) 35-40k (24-27k sales)
Meghan Trainor (Epic) 35-40k (20-23k sales)
Nicki Minaj (YMCMB/Republic) 27-30k (9-11k sales)
Hozier (Columbia) 27-30k (12-15k sales)
Imagine Dragons (KidinaKorner/Interscope) 25-28k (19-22k sales)

*Debuts

Hits Daily Double

Chart News: Week Of 3/21/2015

Living For Love
Dance Club Songs: #6 (Down from #2)
Hot Dance / Electronic Songs: #21 (Down from #12)

Dance / Electronic Digital Songs: #30 (Down from #20)
Billboard Twitter Top Tracks: #46 (Down from #28)
Dance / Mix Show Airplay: #25 (Up from #33)

Madonna Confirms "Ghosttown" As Second Rebel Heart Single

During her live interview on Howard Stern's show today, Madonna confirmed that "Ghosttown" will be the second single from Rebel Heart. She also confirmed that she is filming the video next week. Drowned Madonna is reporting that Jonas Åkerlund will be the director.

Billboard.com: Madonna Vs. 'Empire' For No. 1 on Billboard 200 Albums Chart

"The Queen of Pop is battling TV's hottest new series for No. 1 on the Billboard 200 chart next week.

Industry forecasters say Madonna's new album, Rebel Heart, and the soundtrack to Fox TV's Empire are both aiming to shift around 125,000 equivalent album units in the week ending March 15. The two sets were released on March 10.

The Billboard 200 chart ranks the most popular albums of the week based onmulti-metric consumption, which includes traditional album sales, track equivalent albums (TEA) and streaming equivalent albums (SEA). The new Billboard 200's top 10 will be revealed on Wednesday, March 18.

If Madonna opens atop the list, it will mark her ninth No. 1, stretching back to 1984's Like a Virgin. She last led the chart with her previous studio album, 2012'sMDNA. (Among all women, Madonna has the second-most No. 1s, behind onlyBarbra Streisand, with 10.)

However, if Empire bows at No. 1, it will be the first TV soundtrack to hit No. 1 since 2010, when Glee, the Music: Journey to Regionals debuted atop the tally (dated June 26, 2010). Like Empire, Glee airs on Fox (at least for two more episodes).

Rebel Heart was released through Live Nation/Interscope Records, while theEmpire album was issued by 20th Century Fox TV/Columbia Records.

Also on tap for a big debut: Luke Bryan's latest spring break-themed album,Spring Break…Checkin' Out. It could move around 100,000 units and possibly debut at No. 3 on the chart, behind Madonna and Empire."

Billboard.com

Hits Daily Double First Week Prediction For Rebel Heart

"It’s another battle for #1 on our SPS chart next week as Madonna and the Empire soundtrack lock horns. We’re giving the upside today to the Empire soundtrack as this week’s episode featuring Jennifer Hudson and Mary J. Blige has yet to air and our projection is likely to increase in the next few days. Madonna should lead the album chart at 100-110k. Here are this week’s key debuts:

Empire (Turn First/Columbia) 115-125k (90-100k sales)
Madonna (Live Nation/Interscope) 115-125k (100-110k sales)
Luke Bryan (Capitol Nashville) 95-105k (85-95k sales)"

Hits Daily Double

Happy Rebel Heart Day!

Did you get yours yet? I got mine! ;)
What do you guys think of the album? You can read my review on my Madonna Collection Blog

Madonna's Albums Ranked From Highest to Lowest Charting

Billboard.com looks back at Madonna's history on the Billboard 200. Rebel Heart is out today in the USA, will it join the #1's Club? Stay Tuned!

Rebel Heart Billboard Review

Billboard.com has posted their review of Rebel Heart. Read it here.

Chart News: Week Of 3/14/2015

Living For Love
Dance Club Songs: #2 (Down from #1)
Hot Dance / Electronic Songs: #12 (Down from #11)

Dance / Electronic Digital Songs: #20 (Down from #15)
Billboard Twitter Top Tracks: #28 (Down from #18)
Pop Songs (Mainstream Top 40): Off (From #36)
Dance / Mix Show Airplay: #33 (Up from #35)

Madonna Covered Don McLean's 'American Pie' 15 Years Ago Today

On this day (Mar. 3) in 2000, Madonna released her version of "the day the music died" by covering singer-songwriter Don McLean's 1971 hit "American Pie" (which hit No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 for four weeks in 1972) for the soundtrack of her film The Next Best Thing.

Though the film did not fare well with critics, the song peaked at No. 29 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart and No. 1 on the Billboard Hot Dance Club Songs chart.

Billboard's Chuck Taylor reviewed the song at the time of its release: "Applause to Madonna for not pandering to today's temporary trends and for challenging programmers to broaden their playlists. In all, a fine preview of the forthcoming soundtrack to The Next Best Thing."

The accompanying music video cuts between Madonna dancing in front of an American flag (wearing a tiara) and various Americans, including same sex couples, working class citizens and angst ridden teens who may or may not believe in rock 'n roll. Cheerleaders and a guest appearance by co-star and BFF Rupert Everett (who provides backing vocals in the song) make it appear that all is right in the land of the free, but is anyone else listening to the lyrics masked by the upbeat tempo?

The original version peaked at No. 1 on the Hot 100 chart, and in the decades that have followed, McLean has attempted to clear up confusion as to what exactly the song is about. But as for the lyrics, he said, "They're beyond analysis. They're poetry." That may be so, but the song presents an abstract story of McLean's life.

"It is biographical in nature and I don't think anyone has ever picked up on that. The song starts off with my memories of the death of Buddy Holly. But it moves on to describe America as I was seeing it and how I was fantasizing it might become. The song was written as my attempt at an epic song about America and I used the imagery of music and politics to do that."

So there you have it, America. Oh, and just what did McLean think about Madonna's cover of his national treasure?

"It is a gift for her to have recorded 'American Pie,'" McLean said. "I think it is sensual and mystical. I also feel that she's chosen autobiographical verses that reflect her career and personal history. I have received many gifts from God but this is the first time I have ever received a gift from a goddess."

Billboard.com

Chart Preview: Dance Club Songs (Week Of 3/14/2015)

Apparently, "Living For Love" has fallen to #2 on next week's Dance Club Songs chart after spending one week at #1, becoming her 44th #1 Dance hit (in case you've been living under a rock all last week and hadn't heard the news!). Reader 'zephyr66' points out an interesting chart fact that I wasn't aware of: Since January 2008, only 7 songs have made it more than one week atop the Dance Club Songs chart, one of which was Madonna's own "4 Minutes" back in 2008 (2 weeks at #1). Thanks for that! Seems like it's definitely a lot more competitive now.

Madonna To Launch 'Rebel Heart' World Tour in August

Madonna will embark on an international tour in support of her new album Rebel Heart, an all-arena trek that will take the artist to territories she hasn't visited in decades, if ever, Billboard has learned. An announcement from tour producer Live Nation is expected today.

The Rebel Heart world tour launches Aug. 29 at American Airlines Arena in Miami, which will begin a run through North American arenas of about 25-30 shows through October, with additional dates likely to be added as certain shows sell out. The artist will then head to the U.K. and Europe for a run of 20-25 shows beginning in November running through the third week in December.

In early 2016, Madonna will take Rebel Heart to Asia and Australia, with those dates expected to be announced by the end of March. The entire tour is produced by Live Nation's Global Touring division, led by chairman Arthur Fogel. Rebel Heart will be Fogel's fifth tour with Madonna, a relationship that has produced more than $1 billion in Boxscore grosses, with 7.8 million tickets sold to 289 shows. That's a remarkable per-show average of $3.8 million gross and 27,227 attendance, enough to make her the top female touring artist in the world.

Read the full article on Billboard.com 
 
UPDATE: Read the full press release and preliminary tour dates on Madonna.com