http://www.mtv.com/news/a...lines=true

Prince Crowned Billboard King, Scoring Very First #1 Debut

The chances are good that Prince is going to party like its 1989 — the last time he hit #1 on the Billboard albums chart — only this time the victory is even sweeter. The musical icon sold 183,000 copies of his 3121 to earn the chart's crown, marking the first time one of his LPs has hit the top spot its first week in stores.

It's tough to imagine that Prince hasn't done it all over the course of a career that's coming up on its 30th anniversary. There couldn't be an unattained milestone left for him to shoot for as an artist, right? Wrong. This week Prince's 3121 became the very first batch of funk-fueled tracks in his entire catalog to debut in Billboard's #1 slot, according to the latest SoundScan totals.

It's his first #1 disc since the "Batman" soundtrack — he also hit the top with 1985's Around the World in a Day and spent a good chunk of 1984 at #1 with 1984's Purple Rain — to reach the albums chart's apex. Musicology, for instance, racked up a higher week-one-sales tally than 3121 — the 2004 album sold 191,000 copies — but failed to climb past the #3 spot.

Perhaps it was the prospect of seeing Prince perform live inside his Minneapolis manse later this year that bolstered album sales. Taking a cue from Willy Wonka, Prince's label placed purple tickets inside an undisclosed number of 3121 copies, which will admit those fortunate fans to the private gig.

*additional chart discussion snipped*