Charts Afire: Ciara Evolves, Gwen Slumps and More

Proving that rumors of transexuality do not detrimentally effect album sales, crunk diva Ciara topped the charts with her second album, Evolution. The disc debuted at Number One this week, moving 339,062 units.

In other chart news, Eminem's mixtape The Re-Up did poorly by Shady standards but as mixtapes go, a Number Two charting (with 310,160 units sold) is nothing to sneer at. Golden girl Gwen Stefani scored the Number Three spot with Sweet Escape, though with 310,160 copies sold in its first week, the album fell astoundingly short of its predecessor, last year's multiplatinum Love. Angel. Music. Baby. Inexplicably, Simon Cowell's operatic pop invention Il Divo jumped 10 spots from last week — Siempre landed at Number Six and sold 166,065 copies since its last chart showing at Number Sixteen. And Jay-Z's Kingdom Come has come and gone, falling from Number Six last week to Number 15 this week. Hova, what happened?

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Song Stories

“Youth Knows No Pain”

Lykke Li | 2011

“Like on 'Youth Knows No Pain' — we are the ones that should demonstrate, because we can take it,” Likke Li said. “We can pierce ourselves, take Ecstasy, dance all night and still go to work at our McDonald's jobs.” Despite the hedonistic sentiment in the song, the Swedish singer also admitted in hindsight her youth had repercussions. “I remember when I was 18-19 and feeling that I know it all,” Li said. “I always feel that I know it all. But that song is about realizing you don’t, and reflecting, ‘Boy, if I only knew what would follow.’”

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