Rihanna’s ‘Rude Boy’ boosts Rated R in slow sales week. By Gil Kaufman Sade’s Soldier of Love Photo: Epic Sade ‘s fans have clearly missed her. Soldier of Love, her first album since 2000, hangs onto the #1 spot for a second week on the Billboard 200 charts. That’s despite a drop to 190,000 copies sold, 62 percent less than its debut week, according to figures provided by Nielsen SoundScan. Even with that drop-off, Sade was able to hold off former #1 Lady Antebellum , whose Need You Now slipped 31 percent in week four to 144,000, pushing the country group over the 1 million mark in just one month. The rest of the top 10 are the Black Eyed Peas ‘ The E.N.D. (Energy Never Dies) (#3, 65,000), Lady Gaga ‘s Fame (#4, 63,000), Lil Wayne ‘s Rebirth (#5, 58,000), Susan Boyle ‘s I Dreamed a Dream (#6, 51,000), Alicia Keys ‘ The Element of Freedom (#7, 39,000), Jaheim ‘s Another Round (#8, 36,000), Josh Turner ‘s Haywire (#9, 33,000) and Taylor Swift ‘s Fearless (#10, 32,000). Rihanna ‘s latest single, “Rude Boy,” appears to have boosted her prospects, as Rated R jumps 17 slots to #18 on sales of 25,000, and its total sales nearly reach 664,000. Meanwhile, former boyfriend Chris Brown ‘s Graffiti continues to struggle, stalling out at #117 on sales of just over 5,000, with less than 300,000 in sales to date. The only debut in the top 40 came from Winter Olympics opening ceremony crooner k.d. lang , whose compilation Recollection bows at #36 on sales of 15,000. Nick Jonas & the Administration ‘s Who I Am continues its freefall, dropping more than 20 spots to #51, as sales were halved to 12,000. That’s not as steep as the cliff that the Dave Matthews & Tim Reynolds Live in Las Vegas album drove off of, plummeting 49 spots in week two to #66 (9,000), as 75 percent of sales dried up. Things aren’t likely to pick up much next week: The only major chart debuts will be from late country icon Johnny Cash and punkers Alkaline Trio . Related Artists Sade Lady Antebellum
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Sade Holds #1 Billboard Spot In Week Two
