Win, place, show for hip-hop

Led by Jay-Z’s new “The Blueprint 2: The Gift & the Curse” album, hip-hop claims the top three spots on this week’s national sales chart, according to Nielsen SoundScan.

The New York rapper’s album sold 545,000 copies in its first week in the stores to top the chart, and he appears on the two runners-up: The “8 Mile” soundtrack and Missy Elliott’s “Under Construction.”

The soundtrack to the Eminem movie sold 400,000 in its third week on the chart, while Elliott’s album sold 259,000 copies in its first week.

Other new releases that entered the Top 10 this week were Pearl Jam’s “Riot Act” at No. 5 (166,000 copies) TLC’s “3D” at No. 6 (143,000 copies) and 3 Doors Down’s “Away From the Sun” at No. 8 (115,000 copies).

“The Eminem Show” remains the year’s biggest seller, with almost 6.7 million albums sold since its release in May, followed by Nelly’s “Nellyville,” which has sold 4.1 million since June.

-- Robert Hilburn