• Taylor Swift No. 2 All Time for Weeks at No. 1 with '1989'; No New Albums to Interrupt Nicki Minaj, Pentatonix and One Direction Post-Christmas

    Another week and another run at history by Taylor Swift: Her album 1989 managed to top the Billboard 200 for the seventh time during its nine weeks on the charts, selling 326,000 full copies and generating 430 multi-metric equivalent albums (MME's). That no. 1 spot moves her into second place all-time for women atop the Billboard 200 with 31 weeks at no. 1, trailing only Whitney Houston and her crazy 46 week total.
  • Rich Homie Quan, Yo Gotti Appear on SBOE's 'Better Than Them' with Boosie Badazz [LISTEN]

    Queens hip-hop group SBOE — Slow Bucks Over Everything — have shared a new track titled "Better Than Them," featuring guest appearances by Rich Homie Quan, Yo Gotti and Boosie Badazz, which you can check out below. According to "Hot New Hip-Hop," this track originally appeared earlier this year on an SBOE mixtape, only without the guest spots from Quan, Gotti and Boosie, so this seems like a deliberate attempt to turn this into a hit. The hook is decent enough, so it might actually work — though the "Scarface" sample at the beginning is almost laughably clichéd at this point in the history of hip-hop.You can check out SBOE's "Better Than Them" featuring Rich Homie Quan, Yo Gotti and Boosie Badazz here:Here is SBOE's original version of "Better Than Them," just in case you were curious:
  • Taylor Swift Continues Reign on 'Billboard' 200 with '1989'; Nicki Minaj's 'The Pinkprint' Hits Number Two

    Taylor Swift's "1989" moved back into the No. 1 spot on the "Billboard" 200, bringing its total, nonconsecutive weeks at the top to six. It sold 375,000 copies last week, bringing the total for the year to 3.34 million. The record is on pace to overtake the "Frozen" soundtrack, which sold 3.46 million so far. Nicki Minaj's "The Pinkprint" sits comfortably at the No. 2 spot, "Billboard" notes.Swift is tied with Mariah Carey for total weeks at No. 1 with 30. Only one other woman has them beat with 46: Whitney Houston. The Beatles are still in first for all artists with 132 weeks at No. 1.Pentatonix has the No. 3 spot with "That's Christmas to Me." Minaj was able to crack the top 10 recently, and D'Angelo's new "Black Messiah" hit No. 5. "The Pinkprint" did not perform as well as the artist's previous effort "Pink Friday: Roman Reloaded." The former sold 244,000 in its first week while the latter hit 253,000 — it also debuted at No. 1.
  • J. Cole '2014 Forest Hills Drive' Goes Gold in Second Week

    The holiday buying season has been kind to J. Cole. It has been so kind that he just received a large delivery of gold to his doorstep. That gold comes in the form of an RIAA-certified gold record, which reportedly is for his new, critically acclaimed album "2014 Forest Hills Drive."Last week, his album sold 371,000 copies and earned him the No. 1 spot on the charts, the third consecutive time he has done that. Second-week sales reportedly have dropped to 135,000, which is the fourth highest for the week and earns him his third gold record at more than 500,000 albums sold. The album sales include equivalents from album streams.
  • J. Cole Performs Ferguson Protest Song 'Be Free' on 'Late Show with David Letterman'

    J. Cole released his third studio album, "2014 Forest Hills Drive," Tuesday, Dec. 9, and went on the "Late Show with David Letterman" to perform "Be Free," which is not on the album. Cole's commentary on Ferguson and tribute to Michael Brown, he used the stage to make his voice heard on the current issues facing the African-American community. His performance captured the sentimentality of "Be Free," as Cole delivered each word with poise and emotion. A simple performance with little fanfare, Cole stood on stage moving little but still showed his time-tested charisma, while a keyboardist played the simple and moving instrumental in the background, reported "Complex." He even wrote a new verse for the occasion and elicited a positive reaction from Letterman, who invited him back anytime."Be Free" has been the No. 1 trending song, according to "Billboard," since it came out. Cole has been one of the few artists who have been using his status to protest the grand jury decisions in Ferguson and New York City, writing a song and going out on the streets and protesting.
  • J. Cole's '2014 Forest Hills Drive' Set To Be Third Consecutive No. 1

    Even with very little promotion around the album, J Cole's 2014 Forest Hills Drive has been the talk of the music industry over the past couple weeks. How Cole is able to authentically reconnect with his childhood and tell a nostalgic story of his past has resonated with fans new and old for what could be his greatest work to date. That critical acclaim and buzz is translating into sales, according to a report from Billboard. According to industry forecasters, Cole could sell over 300,000 copies of 2014 Forest Hills Drive in the first week. This would catapult him to the top of the overall album charts.
  • J. Cole Doesn't Disappoint With New Album '2014 Forest Hills Drive,' May Have Biggest Hip-Hop Sales Week [ROUND-UP REVIEW]

    Last month, J. Cole officially announced the iTunes preorder for his "2014 Forest Hills Drive" album and fans had been anticipating its release ever since. The album ended up leaking before its official release and fans contemplated whether or not to listen early. Buzz surrounding a track called "Fire Squad," where Cole calls out Eminem, Justin Timberlake, Macklemore and Iggy Azalea for appropriating black culture, made the album hard to resist. Whether fans decided to take a listen early or wait for the official drop, all can agree the North Carolina rapper did not disappoint. It has been reported that the album may have the biggest hip-hop sales week of the year.