In one of the tightest Billboard races in recent memory, Eminem's Recovery narrowly edged out Rick Ross' Teflon Don to stay in the top position on the chart. It's Eminem's fifth straight week on top, bringing the total sales of Recovery up to 1,700,000 copies sold. Ross held his own with 176,000 copies shifted in his first week, but he couldn't knock Eminem out of the top spot. Will Fat Joe or Avenged Sevenfold find a way to climb up top next week? Will Ricky Rozay find his way top the top in his second week? Will the premiere of the video for Eminem's "Love the Way You Lie" kick start another sales surge that keeps Eminem on top for the rest of the summer? The album chart hasn't been this compelling in years, and it feels good to speculate again.
Eminem can chalk up at least part of his success to the collaborations on Recovery, including tag team efforts with Rihanna, Pink and Lil Wayne. On Tuesday (July 27), we asked who Slim Shady's next collaborator should be, and in something of a surprise, Ludacris topped the voting with 40 percent of the total vote. People seemed to be really enthusiastic about Em and Luda coming together on a rapid-fire smash that would complete Eminem's down south trifecta (which includes T.I. and Weezy).
Nicki Minaj ended up in second place, which was not particularly surprising considering she is currently enjoying a massive hit with "Your Love." She finished with 25 percent of the total vote, just ahead of Katy Perry (who nabbed 13 percent). In another shocking twist, Justin Bieber earned himself eight percent, ahead of both the Clipse (six percent) and Ross (five percent).
What producer would you pair up with Ludacris and Eminem? Let us know in the comments!