Jay-Z’s ‘Blueprint’ Still Unchallenged for Top Spot

Jay-Z holds the top spot on the nation’s album sales chart for the third straight week, but he was lucky there was no new blockbuster release to challenge him.

The rapper’s “The Blueprint” finished No. 1 despite selling only 174,000 copies, a drop of nearly 100,000 from the previous week. It’s only the third time this year that an album with less than 200,000 sales has topped the charts, according to SoundScan.

The only newcomer in the Top 10 is “Totally Hits 2001,” a compilation featuring best-selling tracks by such artists as Craig David, Dido, Missy Elliott, Alicia Keys and Usher.

The album, the fourth volume in a joint venture between Arista Records and the Warner Music Group, sold 139,000 copies last week to come in at No. 3. Another hits compilation, volume seven of the “Now That’s What I Call Music” series, is No. 10. The package has sold almost 2.1 million copies since its release two months ago.

The only other new releases to make the Top 40 are Christian music star Steven Curtis Chapman’s “Declaration,” which finished No. 14, and the self-titled debut from the satiric duo Tenacious D, No. 33.

Country singer Lee Greenwood’s “American Patriot” sold enough last week to be No. 25--but it’s ineligible for the main Billboard magazine album chart because it was released in 1992. The album is enjoying a sales resurgence because of the song “God Bless the USA,” which is getting lots of radio airplay in the aftermath of the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks. The tune was first a hit in 1991. “American Patriot” sold 51,000 copies last week, up from 29,000 the previous week. It is No. 1 on the magazine’s catalog chart, which tracks sales of older product.

Enya’s “A Day Without Rain” is another album being turned to by consumers for comfort after the attacks. The collection, which includes the inspirational song “Only Time,” moves up three places on this week’s chart to No. 7.

The other artists claiming spots in the Top 10: Alicia Keys (No. 2), Nickelback (No. 5), P.O.D. (No. 6), Linkin Park (No. 7), Staind (No. 8) and Usher (No. 9).

Albums experiencing noticeable drops on the chart this week are Diana Krall’s “The Look of Love” (No. 9 to No. 17), Macy Gray’s “The Id” (No. 11 to 19), Gerald Levert’s “Gerald’s World” (No. 6 to 23) and Tori Amos’ “Strange Little Girls” (No. 4 to No. 27).

The nation’s best-selling single is Christina Milian’s “AM to PM,” edging out the re-release of Whitney Houston’s “The Star Spangled Banner,” which finished second. The Houston track was a Top 20 single in 1991.

Geoff Mayfield, director of charts for Billboard, expects another rapper, Ja Rule, to enter the charts at No. 1 next week with his new album, “Pain Is Love.” The rapper’s last album, 2000’s “Rule 3:36,” sold 280,000 copies in its first week.

Looking ahead, Mayfield sees the debut from another hip-hop entry, Bubba Sparxxx, as a strong candidate for the top spot the following week.