"Contraband" managed to steal the top slot away from competitors at the weekend box office.
The Universal action drama film starring Mark Wahlbergas a reformed smuggler debuted above expectations at No. 1 with $24 million, while Disney's 3-D rerelease of "Beauty and the Beast" waltzed into the No. 2 position with $18.5 million, according to studio estimates Sunday. Both films helped boostHollywood's business after a sluggish holiday season.
TOP TEN BOX OFFICE
Issue Date : 16 January 2012
Rank Title Weekend Gross Weeks 1 Contraband (2012) $24.1M $24.1M 1 2 Beauty and the Beast (1991) $18.5M $18.5M 1 3 Mission: Impossible - Ghost Protocol (2011) $11.5M $187M 5 4 Joyful Noise (2012) $11.3M $11.3M 1 5 Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows (2011) $8.41M $170M 5 6 The Devil Inside (2012) $7.9M $46.2M 2 7 The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo (2011) $6.8M $88M 4 8 Alvin and the Chipmunks: Chipwrecked (2011) $5.8M $119M 5 9 War Horse (2011) $5.61M $65.8M 4 10 The Iron Lady (2011) $5.39M $5.97M 3
Queen B, Britney Spears ended 2011 on a high note, what with the success of her Femme Fatale mega-tour and a proposal from longtime boyfriend Jason Trawick in December. In an upcoming issue ofV Magazine, the superstar discusses her tour and poses with her team of professionals, giving them glowing reviews as "her second family." Apparently, however, it's not Spears's goodwill that is standing out in this particular article. A commentary in the Daily Mail takes the accompanying photo into scrutiny, remarking on how quickly Spears seems to have slimmed down for this particular shoot.
"She has clearly been working out regularly in an effort to achieve the healthy and lean look," the Daily Mail notes judiciously.
Fans, on the other hand, are less polite about the matter, with an overwhelming amount of comments claiming that the shot clearly has been tampered with. A sampling: "Photoshopped a dillion!" "That's her head on someone else's body," "Even Ray Charles can see the terrible 'Cut and Paste' job that was done on Britney."
Spears has been looking fairly trim these days, so it's not as if the V shot is a tremendous diversion from her usual look--at least, weightwise. The photo does have an odd look to it, though. Compare for yourselves--here's Spears in September, just a short while after the V shoot was reported to have taken place.
V had no comment at the time this blog was written as to whether or not the photo had been altered. The issue with Spears will hit newsstands Thursday. To view more photos, visit the magazine's site.
What do you think? Is this photo simply Spears at her slimmest, or do you agree that it's a work of Photoshop art?
Adele's21 logs its 15th week at #1 on The Billboard 200, which equals the mark set in 1971 by Carole King'sTapestry. Since 1956, when the album chart became a weekly feature, only one other album by a female artist has logged 15 or more weeks at #1: Whitney Houston's 1992 soundtrack to The Bodyguard (which had 20 weeks on top).
Next month, Adele is expected to tie King again. Adele is almost certain to win Grammys for Album, Record and Song of the Year. That would make her only the second female solo artist to win in all three categories. King swept the boards in March 1972 with Tapestry (Album), "It's Too Late" (Record) and "You've Got A Friend" (Song).
21 also returns to #1 in the U.K. This is its 19th week at #1 in that country. That's the longest run at #1 in the U.K. by any album since Simon & Garfunkel'sBridge Over Troubled Water logged 33 weeks on top in 1970-1971.
21 is first album to spend 15 or more weeks at #1 in both the U.S. and the U.K. since the BeeGees'Saturday Night Fever soundtrack, which topped the U.S. chart for 24 weeks and the U.K. chart for 18 weeks in 1978.
Besides 21 and Fever, only four other albums in chart history have logged 15 or more weeks at #1 in both countries. The first to do so was the aforementioned Broadway cast album to My Fair Lady (15 weeks in the U.S., 19 weeks in the U.K.). It was followed by the 1958 soundtrack to South Pacific (31 weeks in the U.S., 115 weeks in the U.K.), Elvis Presley's 1961 Blue Hawaii soundtrack (20 weeks in the U.S., 18 weeks in the U.K.) and the Beatles' 1967 Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band (15 weeks in the U.S., 27 weeks in the U.K.).
Here's the low-down on this week's top 10 Billboard 200 albums :
1. Adele, 21, 124,000. The album logs its 15th week at #1. This is its 46th week in the top 10. The sales tally includes 44K digital copies, which puts the album at #1 on Top Digital Albums for the 10th week. Four songs from the album are listed on Hot Digital Songs, topped by "Set Fire To The Rain," which jumps from #6 to #3.
2. Drake, Take Care, 42,000. The former #1 album holds at #2 in its eighth week. It has been in the top 10 the entire time. Five songs from the album are listed on Hot Digital Songs, topped by "Headlines," which drops from #20 to #29.
3. The Black Keys, El Camino, 42,000. The album jumps from #7 to #3 in its fifth week. It has been in the top 10 the entire time. "Lonely Boy" jumps from #133 to #88 on Hot Digital Songs.
4. Young Jeezy, TM:103 Hustlerz Ambition, 36,000. The album dips from #3 to #4 in its third week. "I Do" (featuring Jay-Z and Andre 3000) drops from #165 to #171 on Hot Digital Songs.
5. Coldplay, Mylo Xyloto, 28,000. The former #1 album jumps from #8 to #5 in its 11th week. This is its seventh week in the top 10. Two songs from the album are listed on Hot Digital Songs. "Paradise" jumps from #37 to #32. "Princess Of China" (featuring Rihanna) re-enters at #158.
6. Rihanna, Talk That Talk, 27,000. The album jumps from #9 to #6 in its seventh week. This is its fifth week in the top 10. Two songs from the album are listed on Hot Digital Songs. "We Found Love" (featuring Calvin Harris) drops from #2 to #4. "You Da One" jumps from #25 to #23.
7. SafetySuit,These Times, 27,000. This new entry is an iTunes exclusive for one week.
8. LMFAO, Sorry For Party Rocking, 25,000. The album drops from #5 to #8 in its 29th week. This is its second week in the top 10. Three songs from the album are listed on Hot Digital Songs, topped by "Sexy And I Know It," which dips from #1 to #2.
9. Various Artists, Now 40, 24,000. The album inches up from #10 to #9 in its ninth week. This is its sixth week in the top 10.
10. Florence + the Machine, Ceremonials, 24,000. The album drops from #6 to #10 in its 10th week.
This is its third week in the top 10. "Shake It Out" jumps from #124 to #73 on Hot Digital Songs.
Adele's 2008 debut album, 19, drops from #11 to #13. This is the 13th time in the past year that Adele has had two albums in the top 20. 19 is #1 on Top Catalog Albums for the 30th week. Only one other debut album has spent this many weeks at #1 on the catalog chart. That's Creed's 1997 album My Own Prison, which topped the catalog chart for 54 weeks in 2000-2001. Will Adele match that long run? At this point I wouldn't bet against her, would you?
Adele's DVD Live At The Royal Albert Hall sold 24K copies this past week. This brings its six-week total to 476K.
Beyonce & Jay Z new baby Blue Ivy Carter. For obvious reasons. But also because the new Princess of Pop, daughter of Jay-Z and Beyoncé, makes her recorded debut, gurgling on the hip-hop star's happy, gospel-ish and clearly rushed "Glory" (the "feat. B.I.C." after Jay-Z's name is a nice touch). Released January 9th, it was too late to make this week's charts and isn't on sale via iTunes. Nonetheless, the most popular version of the video, which arrived on Jay-Z's website two days after the Exalted One's birth, is up to 1.4 million YouTube views. That's probably not enough to boost the song into pop-hit territory, but it's a nice little publicity boost for both singers during an (understandably) inactive time in their careers. Isn't that what children are for?
Rihanna featuring Calvin Harris returns to #1 on the Hot 100, after spending two weeks at #2. This is its ninth week on top. That's the longest run at #1 by any single since Ke$ha's "TiK ToK" had nine weeks on top in early 2010. "We Found Love" also tops the 3 million mark in digital sales this week. This brings Rihanna's total of 3-million-sellers to eight, which is more than any other artist in digital history. Lady Gaga and Katy Perry are in second place with six each. All three women have been in the lead position on six 3-million-sellers. Rihanna's count also includes featured roles on Eminem's "Love The Way You Lie" and T.I.'s "Live Your Life."
TOP TEN BILLBOARD HOT 100 SINGLES
Issue Date : 12 January 2012
1. (2) Rihanna ft. Calvin Harris, "We Found Love" (16weeks on chart,9weeks#1) 2. (1) LMFAO, "Sexy And I Know It." (16weeks on chart,pk#1) 3. (4) Bruno Mars, "It Will Rain." (15weeks on chart,pk#3) 4. (8) Adele, "Set Fire To The Rain." (19weeks on chart,pk#4) 5 (5) Flo Rida, "Good Feeling." (15weeks on chart,pk#5) 6. (3) Katy Perry, "The One That Got Away." (13wkonchart,pk#3) 7. (7) Jay-Z/Kanye West, "Ni**as In Paris." (22weeks, pk#5) 8. (-) Jason Mraz, "I Won't Give Up." DEBUT 9. (6) LMFAO "Party Rock Anthem." (42weeks on chart,pk#1) 10. (9) Adele, "Someone Like You." (27weeks on chart,pk#1)
HOT Shot : #15 J. Cole's "Work Out" (19weeks on charts)
"The Devil Inside" scared up a monstrous $34.5 million opening weekend to help Hollywood exorcise its recent box-office demons, according to studio estimates Sunday. The surprise hit from Paramount Pictures debuted well above industry expectations as horror fans crowded theaters for the low-budget tale about exorcists trying to free a woman possessed by evil spirits.
Between "The Devil Inside" and solid results for holdover films, Hollywood's business soared over the first full weekend of 2012 after a sluggish holiday season that ended a ho-hum year at the box office. Overall domestic revenues totaled $144 million, up 29 percent from the same weekend last year, when "True Grit" led with $14.6 million, according to box-office tracker Hollywood.com.
TOP TEN BOX OFFICE
Issue Date : 9 Januari 2012
Rank Title Weekend Gross Weeks 1 The Devil Inside (2012) $34.5M $34.5M 1 2 Mission: Impossible - Ghost Protocol (2011) $20.5M $170M 4 3 Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows (2011) $14.1M $157M 4 4 The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo (2011) $11.4M $76.8M 3 5 Alvin and the Chipmunks: Chipwrecked (2011) $9.5M $112M 4 6 War Horse (2011) $8.6M $56.8M 3 7 We Bought a Zoo (2011) $8.45M $56.5M 3 8 The Adventures of Tintin (2011) $6.6M $61.9M 3 9 Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy (2011) $5.77M $10.4M 5 10 New Year's Eve (2011) $3.27M $52M 5
The party-minded duo's current hit, "Sexy And I Know It," logs its fifth week at #1. LMFAO's first smash, "Party Rock Anthem," spent six weeks as the nation's top-selling digital song. This total of 11 weeks at #1 in a calendar year is the greatest by any act since the Black Eyed Peas hogged the top spot for 20 weeks in 2009.
"Sexy And I Know It" tops the 3 million mark in digital sales this week. It reached that milestone in just 19 weeks. That's the fastest pace by any song since "Moves Like Jagger" by Maroon 5 featuring Christina Aguilera did the same thing in October.
As of this week, LMFAO has the two best-selling songs by (or fronted by) a duo in digital history. "Sexy And I Know It" leaps over Gnarls Barkley's "Crazy" to take the #2 spot. "Sexy And I Know It" has sold 3,363,000 copies. "Crazy" has sold 3,109,000. "Party Rock Anthem" (which features Lauren Bennett and GoonRock) leads the duo derby with sales of 5,468,000.
TOP TEN BILLBOARD HOT 100 SINGLES
Issue Date : 6 January 2012
1. (1) LMFAO, "Sexy And I Know It." (15weeks on chart,pk#1) 2. (2) Rihanna ft. Calvin Harris, "We Found Love" (15weeks on chart,peak#1) 3. (3) Katy Perry, "The One That Got Away." (12wkonchart,pk#3) 4. (4) Bruno Mars, "It Will Rain." (14weeks on chart,pk#3) 5 (6) Flo Rida, "Good Feeling." (14weeks on chart,pk#5) 6. (9) LMFAO "Party Rock Anthem." (41weeks on chart,pk#1) 7. (5) Jay-Z/Kanye West, "Ni**as In Paris." (21weeks, pk#5) 8. (7) Adele, "Set Fire To The Rain." (18weeks on chart,pk#7) 9. (8) Adele, "Someone Like You." (26weeks on chart,pk#1) 10. (11) Gym Class Heroes/Adam Levine, "Stereo Hearts." (29weeks)
HOT Shot : #51 David Guetta ft. Nicki Minaj "Turn Me On"
Rank Title Weekend Gross Weeks 1 Mission: Impossible - Ghost Protocol (2011) $30M $133M 3 2 Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows (2011) $22.1M $132M 3 3 Alvin and the Chipmunks: Chipwrecked (2011) $18.2M $94.6M 3 4 War Horse (2011) $16.9M $43M 2 5 The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo (2011) $16.3M $57.1M 2 6 We Bought a Zoo (2011) $14.3M $41.8M 2 7 The Adventures of Tintin (2011) $12M $48M 2 8 New Year's Eve (2011) $6.71M $46.4M 4 9 The Darkest Hour (2011) $4.3M $13.3M 2 10 The Descendants (2011) $3.65M $39.7M 7
