Next week on the Billboard 200 albums chart, it's looking like rapper B.o.B may enter at No. 1 on the chart with his debut effort, "The Adventures of Bobby Ray," perhaps selling around 80,000 to 85,000 by week's end on May 2, according to record label sources.
Listen to B.O.B.'s 'The Adventures of Bobby Ray' album
Watch B.o.B. Do 'Nothin' Live, Talk Mainstream Success
B.o.B. Weaves Way to Hot 100 No. 1
If B.o.B's set sells that much, it could be the lowest sales week for the country's top selling album since last May, when Chrisette Michele's "Epiphany" debuted in the penthouse with 83,000.
Figuring out Nos. 2-4 on next week's chart is a bit difficult, though we're suspecting a couple familiar faces will be in the mix. It's looking like either Lady Antebellum's "Need You Now" and Justin Bieber's "My World 2.0" could take the runner-up slot, depending on how their sales erode this week. This past week, "Need" sold 83,000 with a 27% increase to land at No. 2, while Bieber's set dropped from No. 1 to No. 3 with 81,000 (down 12%).
The chart's second-highest debut looks likely to come from rock band Bullet For My Valentine with its new "Fever" set. Industry prognosticators think it could sell around 60,000 to 65,000 copies.
Other albums in the hunt for high debuts on next week's chart include Melissa Etheridge's "Fearless Love," Miranda Cosgrove's "Sparks Fly" and Hole's "Nobody's Daughter." Etheridge and Cosgrove may each sell perhaps 40,000, while Hole's set looks safe for a start somewhere in the 15,000 to 25,000 range.
