ABC/Kelsey McNealIt’s safe to say that 2014 saw more than a few misses among all the hits. Here’s a round-up of studio projects that wound up being commercial disappointments:
Robin Thicke spent most of the year trying to win over his estranged wife, Paula Patton, and even named an album after her. However, Paula endured a lackluster sales start following his chart-topping Billboard Hot 100 hit, “Blurred Lines.” The singer’s latest set sold 25,000 copies in its opening week back in July, a sizable decline from those for his previous effort, 2013’s Blurred Lines, which debuted at number one with first-week sales of 177,000 copies. In addition to later losing his marriage, Paula served as the smallest debut for Thicke since 2007’s The Evolution of Robin Thicke, which bowed with 20,000 copies sold.
Mariah Carey‘s latest album, Me. I Am Mariah … the Elusive Chanteuse, entered the Billboard 200 chart at #3, with first-week sales of 58,000 copies, according to Nielsen SoundScan. Mariah’s last non-holiday studio album, Memoirs of an Imperfect Angel, also debuted at #3, back in 2009, but as Billboard notes, the first-week sales on that effort were 168,000 copies. These are the smallest first-week sales figures for a non-holiday album by Mariah since SoundScan was instituted in 1991. The sales were also a bit surprising since Carey hired Jermaine Dupri to serve as her manager, a man who was responsible for Mariah’s biggest hit songs, including “We Belong Together” and “Always Be My Baby.” After stepping down from that job in the wake of the album’s disappointing release, Dupri told Rap-Up TV that “first-week sales sometimes don’t really matter,” adding, “I actually feel like it’s probably one of her best albums she’s ever made.” Still, a determined Mi Mi has spent the latter part of the year on her international tour to further support the album.
50 Cent not only had a terrible pitch at a New York Mets game, he also didn’t hit the ball out of the park with his much-hyped album, Animal Ambition. The rapper’s fifth studio effort debuted at #4 and sold 47,000 copies in its first week in stores. His prior album, 2009’s Before I Self Destruct, moved 160,000 units and entered at #5. Animal Ambition is 50’s first independent release after departing from Interscope Records earlier this year. The project includes his hit single, “Smoke” featuring Trey Songz, as well as contributions from Yo Gotti, Jadakiss, Styles P, and ScHoolboy Q.
Jennifer Hudson‘s JHUD landed at number ten on the Billboard 200 chart in September. Despite major televised performances, the singer’s third album sold 24,000 units in its first week. Although the set has become Hudson’s third top-10 album, it marks her lowest sales start of her career; 2011’s I Remember Me debuted at number two and sold 165,000 copies its first week. JHUD includes contributions from Iggy Azalea and R. Kelly, as well as her Pharrell-produced single, “I Can’t Describe (The Way I Feel),” featuring T.I., and “Walk It Out,” which was produced by Timbaland.
After recruiting French Montana on “I Luh Ya Papi,” Jennifer Lopez revisited her urban roots on her latest album, A.K.A, but endured a slow sales start. Following a heavy promotional campaign, and even after filming a steamy video for “Booty” featuring Iggy Azalea, the disc opened with 33,000 units sold and has not exceeded 71,000 copies since its release in June. Jennifer probably isn’t too concerned: in addition to recording her next effort and gearing up for American Idol, she recently told Billboard for a cover story, “I don’t feel like I have anything to prove anymore.”
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