MADONNA WANNABE #1

Her final studio album for the Bunny, Hard Candy, is on track to sell between 275-300k, which will handily end Mariah Carey’s two-week reign with E=MC2, according to one-day sale reports from those retailers still standing around this great country of ours.

The Material Gal has one more album, a greatest hits collection, to go before splitting for a long-term deal with concert promoter Live Nation. The album’s her first since 2005’s Confessions on a Dance Floor, which sold more than 8 million worldwide. In the U.S., it debuted at #1, selling 351k copies in its first week, taking the top spot from Carrie Underwood’s Some Hearts. In its second week, Confessions on a Dance Floor sold 210k copies and slipped to #4 with a 39% sales decrease. To date, the album has sold over 1.7 million copies in the U.S.

Columbia R&B star Lyfe Jennings’ Lyfe Change, his third album, is on track to sell between 75-80k, which should be good for a Top 5 bow, fueled by the single, “Never Never Land.” His last disc, 2006’s The Phoenix, debuted at #2 and went on to sell 450k.

Veteran Def Jam rappers The Roots return with Rising Down, their first since 2006’s Game Theory, with a first-week sales number in the 50-60k range

Hair metal mainstays Def Leppard’s Universal album Songs from the Sparkle Lounge is doing better than expected, thanks to the band’s appearance on last night’s Dancing with the Stars, where they performed their new single, “Nine Lives,” which features Tim McGraw. One-day sales estimates peg their total at 45-50k. The band’s U.S. tour with Styx and REO Speedwagon is already underway.

Island Records trip-hop pioneers Portishead return with their first studio album in a decade, and third overall, the cleverly dubbed Third, on track for an impressive 40-45k in sales after their critically acclaimed performance at Coachella last weekend.

Tom Petty’s Mudcrutch album on Warner Bros. looks set for 25-30k after a string of intimate performances with his one-time Gainesville, FL, bandmates at the Troubadour in L.A., his old stomping grounds.

Epic Records' SoCal atmospheric pop-rockers Augustana’s Can’t Love, Can’t Hurt is on target for 20-25k

The market was down 8% vs last week, down 11% vs same week last year and now down 11% year-to-date…. as Hollywood continues to burn outside HITS’ Sunset and Vine headquarters.