Atlanta rapper Young Jeezy debuts at No. 1 on The Billboard 200 with his second Def Jam album, "The Inspiration," The set sold 352,000 copies in the United States, according to Nielsen SoundScan, more than doubling the 172,000-unit first week for his 2005 debut, "Let's Get It: Thug Motivation." First single "I Luv It" is top 30 on both the Billboard Hot 100 and the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs charts.
At No. 2 on The Billboard 200 is 2006 "American Idol" winner Taylor Hicks, whose self-titled Arista debut sold 298,000 in its first week. That's a drop-off from 2005 winner Carrie Underwood's debut week with "Some Hearts," which sold 315,000. That album leaps 10-6 in its 57th week on the chart on a 58% increase to 199,000.
In a week where every non-debuting album in the top 10 enjoys a sales increase, the Disney soundtrack to "Hannah Montana" inches up 4-3 on an 18% increase to 274,000, while the "NOW! 23" compilation rises 5-4 on a 27% jump to 235,000. Josh Groban's "Awake" (143/Reprise) is up 11-5 on an 83% increase to 222,000, while Daughtry's self-titled RCA debut holds at No. 7 despite a 17% increase to 181,000. Both Groban and Underwood enjoyed a boost from a Dec. 11 appearance on "The Oprah Winfrey Show."
The Beatles' "Love" (Apple Corps Ltd./Capitol) also remains at No. 8 on a 17% boost to 178,000, followed by Mary J. Blige's "Reflections (A Retrospective)" (Geffen), which is new at No. 9. The set sold 171,000 units, good enough to debut behind Young Jeezy's "The Inspiration" at No. 2 on Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums. Il Divo's "Siempre" (Columbia) slides 6-10 on a miniscule sales increase to 167,000.
Last week's No. 1, Ciara's "The Evolution" (LaFace/Zomba), plummets to No. 11 on a 51.5% drop to 164,000, while last week's No. 2, the Eminem-reared compilation "Eminem Presents: The Re-Up" (Shady/Interscope), slips to No. 13 on a 51% decline to 151,000. Gwen Stefani's "The Sweet Escape" (Interscope), which opened at No. 3 last week, drops significantly (No. 14, 149,000).