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Backstreet Boys Extend 'Millennium'
Source: http://www.billboard.com
Despite an impressive debut by the Red Hot Chili Peppers, Backstreet Boys' "Millennium" continues its reign atop The Billboard 200 for the fourth consecutive week. The Jive set moved 371,000 units, according to SoundScan, nearly double the Peppers' total for "Californication" (Warner Bros.), which sold a whopping 189,000 copies. Yet with Ricky Martin around, the Peppers' album still only gets the No. 3 slot on the chart, as Martin's eponymous English-language set (C2/Columbia) scores No. 2 on the strength of 310,000 units sold.
Backstreet Boys Still Larger Than Life
Source: E! Online http://www.eonline.com
by Jeffrey Jolson-Colburn
June 9, 1999, 6:30 p.m. PT
Despite their record-breaking ways, the Backstreet Boys had their hands full holding off a bevy of new releases last week at the nation's record stores, most notably a two-pronged Latin pop attack from Ricky Martin and moonlighting actress Jennifer Lopez--the genre's deepest foray yet into the Top 10.
Hardcore rappers Ja Rule and Master P's Tru also enjoyed strong debuts, but the Backstreet Boys seem unfazed by all the new competition. The blue-eyed hip-pop quintet is running numbers usually seen only during the holidays, selling 438,000 units of Millennium. The disc, backed by the hit "I Want It That Way," has now passed the 2 million mark in just three weeks, after opening with sales of 1.1 million--the first record ever to bow with more than a million.
Ricky Martin, mobbed wherever he goes, made a convincing statement at No. 2 as his eponymous English-language debut registered sales of 313,000. At nearly 2 million in sales on this record, he leads the Latin pop brigade, which is finally fulfilling its long-discussed potential--especially with Lopez added to the equation and several potential breakthrough performers waiting in the wings. Though Gloria Estefan and Enrique Iglesias have had numerous hits, multiple acts in the Top 10 now give the genre new cachet in the industry.
Lopez, who initially made a splash playing Tejano popster Selena on screen, saw her musical debut, On the 6, bow at No. 8 with sales of 111,000. Fueled by her chart-topping single, "If You Had My Love," a whirlwind of personal appearances and just plain good timing, Lopez has become the rare actor to crossover to recording success.
The start of summer vacation heated things up for two hip-hop acts as well, both representing rival rap camps. The upstart Ja Rule, backed by label cronies Jay-Z and DMX, bowed at No. 3. The Queens-based rapper's Venni Vetti Vecci logged first-week sales of 184,000. Opening at No. 5 was Da Crime Family from Tru, a rap supergroup comprised of chart-toppers Master P and his brothers Silkk the Shocker and C-Murder. The No Limit act scored 139,000.
In between the rappers was ex-Mouseketeer Britney Spears' ...Baby One More Time, which sold 149,000. TLC's FanMail delivered another 139,000 for No. 6 and crossover star Shania Twain found another 112,000 fans to score lucky No. 7.
California punkers Blink 182 made a surprisingly powerful debut with Enema of the State, their first album in two years. It entered at No. 9 with sales of 110,000. Rounding out the Top 10 was former House of Pain member Kid Rock with "Devil Without a Cause."
The star-studded Austin Powers: The Spy Who Shagged Me Soundtrack only debuted at No. 14 despite plenty of hype and would-be hits from Madonna and Lenny Kravitz.
'Millennium' Extends Reign On Billboard 200
Source: www.billboard.com
Backstreet Boys' Jive album "Millennium" holds at No. 1 on The Billboard 200 this week, selling 438,000 units, according to SoundScan, while Ricky Martin's eponymous C2 set stays at No. 2 with 313,000. In addition to having the biggest sales week in the SoundScan era, has now rung the most sales for an album's cumulative first two weeks and first three weeks. The set has moved 2.19 million units in 21 days; that total bests Garth Brooks' previous sales record for "Double Live" (Capitol Nashville) by 20,000 units.
Backstreet Boys Leave everybody else behind
Source: USA Today
Thursday May 27th, 1999
'Millennium' smashes sales Records
By Ken Barns, USA TODAY
Records were made to be broken -- especially record sales records. Just a week after Ricky Martin scored 1999's top sales week and achieved the best-selling first week ever for a contemporary pop artist, the Backstreet Boys' second album, Millennium, shattered those records and sold more copies in a week than any album in any genre, 1,134,000.
The total edged Garth Brooks' record of 1,085,000, the amount his Double Live album sold in it's first week last November. According to SoundScan, which has electronically tabulated record sales since 1991, only one other album in that era has sold more than a million albums in a week; The Bodyguard soundtrack, which tallied 1.06 million during Christmas week of 1992.
"It's a wonderful week for pop culture," says Barry Weiss, president for the Backstreet Boys' label, Jive Records. "You've got the Backstreet Boys and Star Wars."
He adds, "This is a great thing for the record industry. It shows you that when you make records that appeal to a wide demographic, you can still create a phenomenon."
Backstreet has been labeled a teen-idol act, but the audience seems to be broader, says Geoff Mayfield, director of chats for Billboard, which publishes the SoundScan tallies. "Their fan base is mostly youth, but I can't imagine selling that many albums just to kids."
More Backstreet Facts:
-Nearly one of every 11 albums purchased was a copy for the new Backstreet Boys album -- far above the normal ratio.
-Millennium was released simultaneously worldwide and is estimated to have sold over 8 million copies globally.
-It matched it's US No. 1 debut by topping charts in Germany, Canada, Austria, Switzerland, Finland, Spain, Mexico, Holland, Greece, Norway and Portugal.
-Jive estimates that the album sold close to 500,000 copies in the USA in it's first day -- nearly enough to be certified gold in a day.
Backstreet Boys Have Second Big Week
Source: www.billboard.com
Backstreet Boys easily hold the top spot on The Billboard 200 for the second consecutive week. "Millennium" (Jive) moved 622,000 units, according to SoundScan, keeping it at No. 1. The Backstreet Boys' sales total this week ranks as the third largest of the year so far, behind the album's first week (1.13 million) and the debut week of Ricky Martin's eponymous C2 set (661,000).
Backstreet Boys Back Atop Billboard 200
Source: www.billboard.com
Backstreet Boys are back -- and in a big way on The Billboard 200. As reported yesterday, the Jive quintet debuts at No. 1 with "Millennium," which moved 1.13 million units, according to SoundScan, establishing a new SoundScan-era record for sales in a single week. The Boys triumph deposes the eponymous C2/Columbia set by Ricky Martin, which slips to No. 2 on the strength of 458,000 units sold. But the Latin heartthrob shouldn't feel bad -- the album's omnipresent first single, "Livin' La Vida Loca," continues its five-week reign atop The Billboard Hot 100.
Back on the album chart, Britney Spears again buoys up the list, moving to No. 3 with her Jive debut, "...Baby One More Time." TLC's "Fanmail" (LaFace/Arista) drops a spot to No. 4, while the soundtrack to "Star Wars Episode 1: The Phantom Menace" (Sony Classical) bounds up to No. 5.
Adding more new blood to this week's Billboard 200 are Jimmy Buffet's latest Margaritaville/Island album, "Beach House On The Moon," which debuts at No. 8, and the Suave House/Universal set by Eightball & MJG, "Vol. 1 -- In Our Lifetime," which bows at No. 10. The latter also enters the Top R& B albums at No. 1.
Backstreet Boys break U.S. sales record
Source: JAM! Music http://www.canoe.ca/JamMusic/
By JOHN SAKAMOTO
Executive Producer, JAM!
Any doubt that "Backstreet's back" has been officially eliminated. The Backstreet Boys' third album, "Millennium", smashed the record for first-week sales in the U.S., selling an astonishing 1,134,000 copies south of the border, and wracking up a hefty 192,000 copies in Canada.
"Millennium" squeaked past the previous U.S. high, held by Garth Brooks' heavily marketed "Double Live" album, which moved 1,085,000 copies upon release last November.
The Boys' tally in Canada -- the first country in the world to turn the group into platinum-selling superstars -- was more than triple the sales of its nearest runner-up (Ricky Martin) but still fell far short of the Canadian record. That honour, like so many others, is held by Celine Dion, whose "Let's Talk About Love" rang up 230,000 in sales in its first week of release in November 1997.
During a press conference in Toronto last week, the band's label, BMG/Jive Music, presented three members of the group with five-times platinum awards for "Millennium", signifying 500,000 copies shipped to retailers across Canada.
The rest of the SoundScan Canada Top 5: Ricky Martin, the dance compilation "Groove Station", TLC, and Shania Twain.
Backstreet Boys Set New Million Mark In First Week
Source: Reuters
LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - The Backstreet Boys got an early start on New Year's celebrations as their album ``Millennium'' sold 1.13 million copies in its opening week, breaking the record set by Garth Brooks last fall.
The pop heartthrobs have been promoting ``Millennium,'' their second U.S. release, with an extensive TV advertising campaign, and industry observers had predicted smash numbers for the album. Sales data for the week ended May 23 were provided by the group's Jive Records label, which also has the week's No. 3 album with Britney Spears.
The old first-week high mark of 1.09 million copies was set by Brooks' ``Double Live'' in the week ended Nov. 22, 1998. Before that, the record was 950,000 for Pearl Jam's 1993 sophomore release ``Vs.''
``Millennium'' knocked Ricky Martin's self-titled English-language debut down to No. 2 on the pop charts after just one week, with sales of about 458,000 units, down 31 percent. Spears' ``...Baby One More Time'' jumped three places to No. 3 with almost 141,500 units sold.
TLC's ``FanMail'' slipped a notch to No. 4 with nearly 135,000 copies sold, followed by the soundtrack for ``Star Wars: Episode I -- The Phantom Menace,'' with sales of almost 115,000 units, up three places to No. 5.
Rounding out the top 10 were Shania Twain's ``Come on Over'' at No. 6 (down one from last week); Snoop Dogg's ``Top Dogg'' at No. 7 (down five); Jimmy Buffett's ``Beach House on the Moon'' at No. 8 (new release); the Ruff Ryders compilation at No. 9 (down two); and Eightball and MJG's ``In Our Lifetime, Vol. 1'' at No. 10 (new release).
Backstreet Boys Topple Garth's Sales Record
Source: www.billboard.com
Backstreet Boys' sophomore album "Millennium" (Jive) sold 1.13 million units in its first week of release, according to SoundScan figures that will be released this morning. The total establishes a new SoundScan-era record for sales in a single week, beating the previous record holder, Garth Brooks' "Double Live," which moved 1.08 million units when it was released last November. "Millennium's" extraordinary sales ensure that the album will debut tomorrow atop The Billboard 200.
Unofficial numbers from the larger retailers suggest that "Millennium" sold 500,000 copies on May 18 alone, the first day the set was available in the U.S.
To support the album, the Boys will continue to be omnipresent in the coming weeks. They have announced details for a world tour, which kicks off June 2 in Ghent, Belgium, and will star in a Disney Channel special, "Backstreet Boys In Concert," slated to air July 10 at 7 p.m. ET/PT.
-- Geoff Mayfield, L.A
Backstreet Boys Head for Main Street
Source: LA Times http://www.latimes.com/
Early Millennium Sales Projection-Eclipsing Garth Brooks' Record!
Sure, Ricky Martin is the man of the moment, but are the Backstreet Boys about to become a group for the ages? The heartthrob squad's sophomore album, "Millennium," is a lock to debut at No. 1 this week, knocking Martin out of the album chart's top spot after a brief reign. In fact, early sales projections indicate that the first-week sales of "Millennium" could eclipse the single-week record held by Garth Brooks, whose "Double Live" sold 1.08 million copies in a single week last November. "Millennium" mania has not only been stoked by an intense hype campaign (which continues with the B-Boys' performance tonight on "The Tonight Show With Jay Leno"), but may also have gotten help from a less obvious force: "The 'Star Wars' movie," said Scott Levin, an executive with the Musicland chain. "It has a lot of people in the malls with theaters, and while they're there they say, 'Let's buy that Backstreet Boys album'.
Millennium is certified gold/ platinum in the following countries:
NRM Scores with Backstreet Boys
Source: National Record Mart, Inc.
Thursday May 20, 9:47 am Eastern Time
Company Press Release
SOURCE: National Record Mart, Inc.
PITTSBURGH, May 20 /PRNewswire/ -- NATIONAL RECORD MART, INC. (Nasdaq: NRMI - news) announced that Tuesday's new release ``Millennium'' by the Backstreet Boys (Jive Records Label/BMG Distribution Co.) represented the largest one day sale for a new release in the Company's history.
John Grandoni, Vice President of Purchasing stated, ``With many merchants underestimating the demand for this release, sales for the recording should remain strong for the balance of the month. What began as a lackluster month has seen a sharp reversal with the release of the Latin sensation Ricky Martin and the record-breaking release of the Backstreet Boys.''
William A. Teitelbaum, President and CEO commented, ``We would hope that these two powerful releases so early in the calendar year will balance out the recent historical dominance of mega releases all being released around the Christmas quarter. We are hopeful that all of the major distribution companies will reassess the common wisdom of Christmas releases by the stunning and early success of these two new releases.''
National Record Mart, Inc. is a specialty retailer of pre-recorded music and entertainment products. The Company currently has 181 stores and is the nation's fourth largest specialty retailer of prerecorded music.
This press release contains statements of a forward-looking nature regarding future events. These statements are only predictions and actual events may differ materially. Please refer to documents that National Record Mart files from time to time with the Securities and Exchange Commission for a discussion of certain factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those contained in the forward-looking statements.
SOURCE: National Record Mart, Inc.
