blackbob said:

prince sold over 180,000 copies of lotusflower in the first week in the usa...

But you have to consider this worldwide sales, because at the time it was ONLY available in the usa, and every hardcore fan in the world bought an import from the usa. There were A LOT of american sellers on ebay who shipped it worldwide. I bought my copy from one of them.

[Edited 10/8/14 6:53am]

ludwig said:

blackbob said:

prince sold over 180,000 copies of lotusflower in the first week in the usa...

But you have to consider this worldwide sales, because at the time it was ONLY available in the usa, and every hardcore fan in the world bought an import from the usa. There were A LOT of american sellers on ebay who shipped it worldwide. I bought my copy from one of them.

[Edited 10/8/14 6:53am]

yes..but lotusflower was available online worldwide..legal and illegal of course...and 3121 sold over 180,000 in the usa in the first week in the usa as well and that was available worldwide.

RODSERLING said:

blackbob said:

prince has 2 top ten albums in the same week in the usa...japan...holland and switzerland..aoa is top ten in most charts around the world...how is this a flop ?...cds are not selling anymore...i didnt realise that cd sales had fallen soo much in the last few years but i doubt online sales at warners are included in these figures...streaming from spotify and other sites isnt included..

.

prince sold over 180,000 copies of lotusflower in the first week in the usa...so his sales have fallen nearly 75 per cent in five years..so prince fans are getting their music from other sources now...the same for the music industry in general...it wont be long before cds are withdrawn altogether and charts will be compiled from downloads and streaming which should give us a more accurate picture of what people are buying and listening to.

.

i said years ago that a download fee should be added to internet access which allows you to download whatever you want..music..movies..whatever...and the fee should be distributed to the copyright owners depending on the amount of downloads people make of their product..this is the only workable way to do it imo..and would hopefully stop artists like prince from being so anal about his music being freely available on the internet.

[Edited 10/8/14 6:30am]

[Edited 10/8/14 6:31am]

With a music video, performance tv, tv ads, a real presence in social media, a hit in the top 40, and only one album released, Prince would have topped the charts with more than 100 k this week.

LOTUS FLOWER benefited from much more promotion.

With chart based on streaming, Prince would not be relevant anymore. Physical sales is what he needs to be on top.

more promotion would have meant more sales..of course...i dont think a top 40 hit is really going to happen for a 56 year old artist though...he hasn't had a top 40 hit since the mid 90s..i agree that a streaming chart would not help his chart position as its mainly a young market but their is no doubt prince fans are getting his music from other sources other than cds now...i have a sonos wireless music system myself with spotify so i didnt need to buy the cds but i did anyway because i like to have the physical copies of music i really like and i like to support the artists involved.

blackbob said:

RODSERLING said:

With a music video, performance tv, tv ads, a real presence in social media, a hit in the top 40, and only one album released, Prince would have topped the charts with more than 100 k this week.

LOTUS FLOWER benefited from much more promotion.

With chart based on streaming, Prince would not be relevant anymore. Physical sales is what he needs to be on top.

more promotion would have meant more sales..of course...i dont think a top 40 hit is really going to happen for a 56 year old artist though...he hasn't had a top 40 hit since the mid 90s..i agree that a streaming chart would not help his chart position as its mainly a young market but their is no doubt prince fans are getting his music from other sources other than cds now...i have a sonos wireless music system myself with spotify so i didnt need to buy the cds but i did anyway because i like to have the physical copies of music i really like and i like to support the artists involved.

Mj had a top ten this year, and charted another track at #55 on the Billboard hot 100.

Paradoxally, AOA/PE is the greatest flop of Prince's carreer, but it's also his most commercial album since LOVESYMBOL.

RODSERLING said:

blackbob said:

more promotion would have meant more sales..of course...i dont think a top 40 hit is really going to happen for a 56 year old artist though...he hasn't had a top 40 hit since the mid 90s..i agree that a streaming chart would not help his chart position as its mainly a young market but their is no doubt prince fans are getting his music from other sources other than cds now...i have a sonos wireless music system myself with spotify so i didnt need to buy the cds but i did anyway because i like to have the physical copies of music i really like and i like to support the artists involved.

Mj had a top ten this year, and charted another track at #55 on the Billboard hot 100.

Paradoxally, AOA/PE is the greatest flop of Prince's carreer, but it's also his most commercial album since LOVESYMBOL.

i think the album has done as well as could be expected with the promotion it was given..two top ten albums in the usa isnt bad at all..cd sales are well down but they are well down for everyone..but sales are not everything...look at the batman soundtrack or diamonds and pearls album...nowhere near his best albums but huge sellers for him..i think aoa is a strong album and thats what really matters.

blackbob said:

RODSERLING said:

Mj had a top ten this year, and charted another track at #55 on the Billboard hot 100.

Paradoxally, AOA/PE is the greatest flop of Prince's carreer, but it's also his most commercial album since LOVESYMBOL.

i think the album has done as well as could be expected with the promotion it was given..two top ten albums in the usa isnt bad at all..cd sales are well down but they are well down for everyone..but sales are not everything...look at the batman soundtrack or diamonds and pearls album...nowhere near his best albums but huge sellers for him..i think aoa is a strong album and thats what really matters.

BATMAN and DP are far better than PE and AOA, these are great albums i don't really understand the diss on this and the appreciation on AOA. Doesn't make sense. 1st AOA is horribly mixed, distorted.

2 top tens the first week, and out of top 40 the second week, that's why it's a failure. If it could be on the top 40 during ten weeks, it would be good, but we are far from that

[Edited 10/8/14 8:01am]

RODSERLING said:

blackbob said:

i think the album has done as well as could be expected with the promotion it was given..two top ten albums in the usa isnt bad at all..cd sales are well down but they are well down for everyone..but sales are not everything...look at the batman soundtrack or diamonds and pearls album...nowhere near his best albums but huge sellers for him..i think aoa is a strong album and thats what really matters.

BATMAN and DP are far better than PE and AOA, these are great albums i don't really understand the diss on this and the appreciation on AOA. Doesn't make sense. 1st AOA is horribly mixed, distorted.

2 top tens the first week, and out of top 40 the second week, that's why it's a failure. If it could be on the top 40 during ten weeks, it would be good, but we are far from that

[Edited 10/8/14 8:01am]

they wont be out the top 40 next week ...but they wont hang around long without airplay or hits..but thats ok..aoa is better than batman for me.

Rebeljuice said:

KCOOLMUZIQ said:

really sold 64,724 copies! If U combine both albums. Which are both really his. That is really good, with virtually no tv appearances or having to leave his Paisley Park complex. Besides sending 3RDEYEGIRL out to do innerviews & minor overseas appearances. He is sitting pretty.

Prince wouldnt get out of bed for the money that those numbers generate.

He doesn't have to! Why should he? 's REAL money comes from his back catalog(Masters) & his high in demand live per4mances.

being able to still write a aong in his sleep is just an added bonus 4 his REAL fans. Not the bitchie fairweather ones...

GooD NEWS FROM bILLBOARD (and not HDD) :

AOA : 51.000

PE : 26.000

Better than nothing They say : first time in 10 years that an artist/band put two top ten the same week (Nelly with Sweat and Suit, they went #1 and #2)).

But wait...MJ did that in 2009 with maybe 3 or 4 albums...but it wasn't on the official Billboard 200, they changed the rules for MJ and the Beatles reeditions.

If you guys like and appreciate the album(s) and they're bringing you joy, then why do you care how much they sell as long as you own copies? I never understood this mentality: "validate my taste, dammit!". Several classic artists - Hendrix, Zappa, The Grateful Dead, Parliament/Funkadelic, Santana - were never huge chart toppers. I guess those guys all suck. Some of my favorite albums and bands of all time never sold for jack shit (Fishbone, Early Red Hot Chilli Peppers, Love & Rockets, Buckethead, later Beastie Boys). Maybe I shouldn't like those records now since my opinion is so tied to what others make popular.

*Buys a Miley Cyrus and Alan Thick CD*

.

Christ, if Prince debuted at #1 and #2 with both records, half of the people here would be crying about him "selling out".

.

I'm not sure Streisand's huge numbers say more about Prince than they do about the state of the industry and who still buys albums. Hint: it's old people. Like someone else said, traditionally, album sales have always been generated by the 15-30 crowd. Most folks in that demographic are savvy enough to stream/download/copy the music for free. Lord knows they don't have much disposable income these days.

.

Chill the fuck out and quit worrying about whether something you like is popular enough to validate your tastes and opinions. If Prince tours this spring, you'll see how popular he is.

its obvious Warner Bros did zero promotion. they didn't even use the free promotion vehicles on the Internet.

I think it's just time we faced facts and acknowledge that Prince's mainstream popularity has come and gone. Everyone knows who he is and his legend is cemented but bitching about how many records he sells is like listening to our parents moan about how The Supremes, The Beach Boys, The Dave Clark Five, Elvis and The Fifth Dimension used to rule the charts by the when Purple Rain and Madonna came to conquer the musical planet.

.

Turn the page and enjoy the music.

[Edited 10/8/14 11:26am]

herb4 said:

I think it's just time we faced facts and acknowledge that Prince's mainstream popularity has come and gone. Everyone knows who he is and his legend is cemented but bitching about how many records he sells is like listening to our parents moan about how The Supremes, The Beach Boys, The Dave Clark Five, Elvis and The Fifth Dimension used to rule the charts by the when Purple Rain and Madonna came to conquer the musical planet.

.

Turn the page and enjoy the music.

[Edited 10/8/14 11:26am]

The sad thing about that is that he was outsold this week by hot newcomers Barbra Streisand and Tony Bennett.

renfield said:

herb4 said:

I think it's just time we faced facts and acknowledge that Prince's mainstream popularity has come and gone. Everyone knows who he is and his legend is cemented but bitching about how many records he sells is like listening to our parents moan about how The Supremes, The Beach Boys, The Dave Clark Five, Elvis and The Fifth Dimension used to rule the charts by the when Purple Rain and Madonna came to conquer the musical planet.

.

Turn the page and enjoy the music.

[Edited 10/8/14 11:26am]

The sad thing about that is that he was outsold this week by hot newcomers Barbra Streisand and Tony Bennett.

That's poor sales for Babs, seeing how Babs went multiplatinum on every release for 40 years.

[Edited 10/8/14 20:10pm]

SanDiegoFunkDaddy said:

its obvious Warner Bros did zero promotion. they didn't even use the free promotion vehicles on the Internet.

True,but it's up to the artist to do alot of promotion,too.Prince could have been out there doing some high profile TV appearances.Weeks ago,he could have filmed a stunning video for "Clouds".Yes,Warners could have done more,but Prince didn't exactly do his part,either.This situation is similiar to what happened with The Gold Experience.....a brilliant album that didn't receive the proper promotion by Prince or Warners..

SanDiegoFunkDaddy said:

its obvious Warner Bros did zero promotion. they didn't even use the free promotion vehicles on the Internet.

That was a Prince decision. Any and all promotion cost go against Prince's ledger. Why spend that money that is almost uncoupable in today's market?

renfield said:

The sad thing about that is that he was outsold this week by hot newcomers Barbra Streisand and Tony Bennett.

renfield said:

herb4 said:

I think it's just time we faced facts and acknowledge that Prince's mainstream popularity has come and gone. Everyone knows who he is and his legend is cemented but bitching about how many records he sells is like listening to our parents moan about how The Supremes, The Beach Boys, The Dave Clark Five, Elvis and The Fifth Dimension used to rule the charts by the when Purple Rain and Madonna came to conquer the musical planet.

.

Turn the page and enjoy the music.

[Edited 10/8/14 11:26am]

The sad thing about that is that he was outsold this week by hot newcomers Barbra Streisand and Tony Bennett.

Considering the state of today's music, as dull as those two are, they deserve to be on top because they sound better than anything else out there.

You should all do what I do; when I walked into my local Asda's (UK superstore chain owned by Walmart) and saw Prince was the highest new entry.....at no. 13 (PE was nowhere), I just could't help myself, I just picked up the display copy and swapped it with Bab's who was at no. 1. For as long as his album is on display I'll just continue to do this and convince myself that he's the biggest seller. Come on, we should all do this. Honestly, we have nothing to be guilty of.

Darshy said:

You should all do what I do; when I walked into my local Asda's (UK superstore chain owned by Walmart) and saw Prince was the highest new entry.....at no. 13 (PE was nowhere), I just could't help myself, I just picked up the display copy and swapped it with Bab's who was at no. 1. For as long as his album is on display I'll just continue to do this and convince myself that he's the biggest seller. Come on, we should all do this. Honestly, we have nothing to be guilty of.

That's hilarious, Darshy. I wonder if Prince does the same when he sidles past the display with his shopping trolley.

renfield said:

herb4 said:

I think it's just time we faced facts and acknowledge that Prince's mainstream popularity has come and gone. Everyone knows who he is and his legend is cemented but bitching about how many records he sells is like listening to our parents moan about how The Supremes, The Beach Boys, The Dave Clark Five, Elvis and The Fifth Dimension used to rule the charts by the when Purple Rain and Madonna came to conquer the musical planet.

.

Turn the page and enjoy the music.

[Edited 10/8/14 11:26am]

The sad thing about that is that he was outsold this week by hot newcomers Barbra Streisand and Tony Bennett.

I think you missed this part of my long-winded post:

herb4 said:

I'm not sure Streisand's huge numbers say more about Prince than they do about the state of the industry and who still buys albums. Hint: it's old people. Like someone else said, traditionally, album sales have always been generated by the 15-30 crowd. Most folks in that demographic are savvy enough to stream/download/copy the music for free. Lord knows they don't have much disposable income these days.

Meaning that Bennett and Streisand fans, who trend a bit older than your standard Prince fan, tend to buy this stuff while people in our age group and younger have mastered Spotify and streaming avenues. Shit, I heard both records a week before they came out and could have easily grabbed them both for free. (I didn't).

.

My point is, Steisand and Bennett fans are your parents and in-laws. The people who can barely get their internet, new operating system, tablet and HDTV up and running without calling their kids (Prince fans) for assistance and asking us how to burn a CD. They BUY these things. Any younger person (our kids) who might be interested in these albums has already got them in their phone, tablet, Spotify or otherwise figured out a way to listen to them for free.

airth said:

Darshy said:

You should all do what I do; when I walked into my local Asda's (UK superstore chain owned by Walmart) and saw Prince was the highest new entry.....at no. 13 (PE was nowhere), I just could't help myself, I just picked up the display copy and swapped it with Bab's who was at no. 1. For as long as his album is on display I'll just continue to do this and convince myself that he's the biggest seller. Come on, we should all do this. Honestly, we have nothing to be guilty of.

That's hilarious, Darshy. I wonder if Prince does the same when he sidles past the display with his shopping trolley.

That is funny. I do the same shit when I go to book store and swap out all the right wing political books with good ones.

When Eye use to work @ one of the TOP "Wrecka Stow's" back in the day. Eye made sure all of 's cd's and tapes(remember those?) were placed @ the front of each shelve & section. Even if they weren't suppose 2 b..

[Edited 10/9/14 9:47am]

Darshy said:

You should all do what I do; when I walked into my local Asda's (UK superstore chain owned by Walmart) and saw Prince was the highest new entry.....at no. 13 (PE was nowhere), I just could't help myself, I just picked up the display copy and swapped it with Bab's who was at no. 1. For as long as his album is on display I'll just continue to do this and convince myself that he's the biggest seller. Come on, we should all do this. Honestly, we have nothing to be guilty of.

Somewhere now, there is a old dear with poor eyesight sitting down on her armchair next to the CD player, waiting for the next "You don't bring me flowers" and getting "FunknRoll".

One thing Barbera & Tony don't have this week is the number #1 RnB & Rock albums!

Congrats 2 4 that!! Plus placing TWO albums in the Billboard top 100.

Eye knew U would make HISTORY again! My hero ....

TrevorAyer said:

wow .. 2 million likes on facebook but only 40 thousand records sold .. unfortunately it makes sense .. prince has 40 thousand that will buy anything .. the rest is based on the quality of the music .. 2 million people want to like the new prince record but just cant

No. Very few people buy music anymore. It's that simple.

chookalana said:

TrevorAyer said:

wow .. 2 million likes on facebook but only 40 thousand records sold .. unfortunately it makes sense .. prince has 40 thousand that will buy anything .. the rest is based on the quality of the music .. 2 million people want to like the new prince record but just cant

No. Very few people buy music anymore. It's that simple.

And people don't buy movies as much as well.The trend is to spend money on cell phones/internet/video games instead of music and movies.

RODSERLING said:

blackbob said:

prince has 2 top ten albums in the same week in the usa...japan...holland and switzerland..aoa is top ten in most charts around the world...how is this a flop ?...cds are not selling anymore...i didnt realise that cd sales had fallen soo much in the last few years but i doubt online sales at warners are included in these figures...streaming from spotify and other sites isnt included..

.

prince sold over 180,000 copies of lotusflower in the first week in the usa...so his sales have fallen nearly 75 per cent in five years..so prince fans are getting their music from other sources now...the same for the music industry in general...it wont be long before cds are withdrawn altogether and charts will be compiled from downloads and streaming which should give us a more accurate picture of what people are buying and listening to.

.

i said years ago that a download fee should be added to internet access which allows you to download whatever you want..music..movies..whatever...and the fee should be distributed to the copyright owners depending on the amount of downloads people make of their product..this is the only workable way to do it imo..and would hopefully stop artists like prince from being so anal about his music being freely available on the internet.

[Edited 10/8/14 6:30am]

[Edited 10/8/14 6:31am]

With a music video, performance tv, tv ads, a real presence in social media, a hit in the top 40, and only one album released, Prince would have topped the charts with more than 100 k this week.

LOTUS FLOWER benefited from much more promotion.

With chart based on streaming, Prince would not be relevant anymore. Physical sales is what he needs to be on top.

Well, the world bought LF through target directly and indirectly via ebay etc. Thus, the increase in U.S. sales.