Good News: BEYONCE GOES BEYOND, ALBUM LOOKS TO SOAR PAST 600K

New Columbia Record a Slam Dunk at #1, Audioslave #2

September 6, 2006

Steve Barnett's Team Columbia are hitting their groove in the nick of time.
With new Sony Music chief Rob Stringer in the building (and unlike some colleagues, not taking credit for the surge), the suddenly mean machine on Madison is kicking into gear, following up this week’s chart-topping Bob Dylan album with what looks like another huge album on deck in Beyonce's B'Day, which is on target to soar past 600k and could approach 650k, based on first-day sales reports from our crack retail reporters around this great country of ours.

All that and a $1 million 1959 Rolls Royce from boyfriend Jay-Z makes for a pretty nifty birthday, if you ask us.

The week's other big album, Audioslave’s Revelations (Epic/Interscope) appears pretty good in a down market for rock, with a first-week total estimated between 130-140k. Sanctuary Music Group’s metal perennials Iron Maiden is up next with 60k, give or take a screaming guitar solo and a medieval torture device.

Meanwhile, back to reality. As we head into the prime selling season, the industry was down between 1-2% last week, down more than 10% from same week last year and now down more than 5.5% to year-to-date.

Source - Hits Daily Double

Bad News: Is Paramount Pictures worried that Beyonce Knowles' heavy hype for her new album - released yesterday - is hurting promotional plans for the December blockbuster "Dreamgirls"?

A knowledgeable insider insisted yesterday that Beyonce's album "B'Day," marking the singer-actress' 25th birthday Monday, could threaten the movie, which Paramount acquired last December when it absorbed DreamWorks SKG.

"Beyonce's oversaturation in the marketplace has thrown a major monkey wrench in the 'Dreamgirls' rollout campaign," the insider told Lowdown, claiming that her album was originally planned for next year, but Beyonce - concerned that the film won't be the star vehicle she'd hoped for - secretly recorded it this summer, without the knowledge of Paramount or even her manager-father, Matthew Knowles.

"It will take away from the anticipation of the 'Dreamgirls' soundtrack," said my source. "She has left Paramount with not a lot of options for rolling out this film....All her solo attention is making Paramount reposition their strategy at the last minute."

Yesterday, a Paramount spokesman scoffed at this account, claiming, "The buzz created by the album's release has only raised awareness of the film," noting that Beyonce's "Dreamgirls" original tune, "Listen," is on her new CD. "Paramount and DreamWorks are nothing but thrilled with Beyonce," the flack said.

Beyonce's PR rep, Alan Nierob, also disputed the insider: "I guarantee you that the publicity campaign for the film is in place, and nothing relating to the publicity for her solo album has affected that campaign."

But the insider insisted: "She rushed that album out in part because she realized she's not going to be the one to shine in 'Dreamgirls.' Apparently she didn't come to terms with the fact that the Effie White character" - played by "American Idol" contestant Jennifer Hudson - "is the focal point of the film."

Nierob countered: "The movie is not only the vehicle she'd hoped it would be, it has surpassed what she hoped it would be."

Source: nydailynews.com

Click to Read a Positive Review of B'Day (it's been so rare...)