Rihanna Projected To Debut Number One Next Week

Hits Daily Double is calling it!....

WHEN BLACK FRIDAY COMES: Today's HITS album sales chart has just closed and we’re already peering into our crystal ball for next week, folks, thanks to one-day sales reports from those retailers around the country who haven’t succumbed to tryptophan shock. Heading into holiday weekend, our retail experts ask for your indulgence, with a greater than usual margin of error due to cranberry consumption. Look for Def Jam/IDJ chanteuse Rihanna’s Unapologetic to sell between 240-260k, her biggest debut ever, which is probably good enough to make her #1 next week. Atlantic’s Kid Rock takes advantage of his availability at iTunes for the first time with an estimate of 160-180k for his new, pro-Mitt Romney album, Rebel Soul. 19/Interscope American Idol winner Phillip Phillips’ The World from the Side of the Moon will bow with between 140-160k. Atlantic/Rhino’s Led Zeppelin CD/DVD7 Celebration, recorded at their much-ballyhooed reunion show at London’s 02 Arena in 2007, should do in the 90-100k range. Geffen diva Keyshia Cole’s Woman to Woman is on target for 75-85k, while 19/RCA Idol album Kelly Clarkson’s greatest hits compilation looks good for 45-50k. RCA Latin star Pitbull’s Global Warning should do 35-40k, while Capitol stalwart Coldplay’s Live 2012 CD/DVD will sell in the 30-35k range. (11/20p)

Rihanna is projected to debut with the highest first week sales in her career AND reach the top of the Billboard 200; all of this using an un-conventional radio mid-tempo as lead single and a slightly messy promotional campaign. Werk hunny.

Granted, HDD doesn't talk about how "Take Me Home," One Direction's album, will sell in its second week and with Black Friday playing a major role in album sales, anything is possible. However, 1D selling a little more than 50% of their first week sales figure is asking a lot, and not likely.

Personally, I'm loving "Unapologetic" a bit more than "Talk That Talk" and as a whole, more than "Loud" - so this is very much well deserved.

That Rihanna reign just won't let up!