FOUR TIMES #1 = 50 CENT

After four weeks of release, 50 Cent is still tops on the album chart. The riddled rapper’s The Massacre (Shady/Aftermath/Interscope) easily took the #1 slot again this time around, selling over 330k for the week—a mere 10% decline from last week’s number.

50’s continued strong performance put him some 67k units ahead of the week’s #2 album, Epic’s Now 18 compilation, which dipped 22% in its second week to 263k and change. But that was still more than double the week’s #3 album, which also happened to be the top debut for the week: Frankie J’s The One (Columbia), which notched over 130k.

Meanwhile, thanks to continued massive radio play for two singles, Green Day’s American Idiot (Reprise) gained a hefty 44% to just under 105k, keeping it at #4 for the week, while Jack Johnson’s In Between Dreams (Brushfire/Universal) dipped just 8%, landing it at #5 on around 94k. Both albums worked to squeeze the week’s second-highest debut, Lullabies to Paralyze from Queens of the Stone Age (Interscope), out of the Top Five. That album came ion the chart at #6 on sales of 91k.

Overall, album sales for the week were up approximately 7-8% compared to the week before, thanks in part to Easter. As would be expected, kid-oriented titles did well: Razor & Tie’s Kidz Bop 7, for example, saw a 96% increase to nearly 51k for the week, moving it #37-17. Hollywood’s Jesse McCartney also saw a major 89% bump for Beautiful Soul, which moved #28-15 on sales of 56k.

Other notable increases included Gwen Stefani, whose Saturday Night Live appearance and participation in a Target promotion helped Love, Angel, Music, Baby (Interscope) jump 66%, moving #16-9 on over 67k sold. And Kenny Chesney’s Be As You Are (BNA) saw a 73% lift, moving #32-30 on nearly 49k in sales.

Other notable debuts this week included the self-titled Lifehouse album (DreamWorks) at #10, Trace Adkins’ Songs About Me (Capitol Nashville) at #11 and Tweet’s It’s Me Again (Elektra) at #16.

Next week, watch for Beanie Sigel, Beck, 112, Will Smith and The Bravery to hit the Top 50.