Usher's 'Here I Stand' Is The #1 Album In The Country
Highest First Week Sales Of The Year For A Male Artist
Scores Third Consecutive No. 1 Album On The UK Albums Chart
Debuts No. 1 In Canada, Japan And Australia
LaFace/Zomba recording artist Usher debuts at No. 1 on SoundScan's Pop and R&B Albums charts with his fifth studio album, Here I Stand. This is the highest debut of the year for a male artist.
Here I Stand is the Atlanta-based singer's second No. 1 debut on the Top 200 Albums chart and his third No. 1 debut on the R&B Albums chart. This week Usher dominates international charts as well, bowing at No. 1 in Canada, Japan (International Chart), Australia, and for the third time in a row, debuts at No. 1 on the UK Albums chart. Additionally, Here I Stand enters Top 5 on album charts in Ireland, Switzerland, New Zealand and the Netherlands.
Fans and critics have praised the singer/songwriter's newest effort: The New York Times declares, "Usher knows what works in the suave come-ons that have made him the male R&B sex symbol for a generation;" Entertainment Weekly raves, " ... Stand's tunes deserve a place in the dance-floor pantheon;" The Los Angeles Times observes, " ... [Here I Stand] a more accomplished version of 'Confessions,' the hooks more effortless, the singing even better, the songwriting more consistent."
Usher's latest certified hit, "Love In This Club" featuring Young Jeezy, has remained a top 10 staple on Billboard's Hot 100 Singles chart for 14 consecutive weeks and has sold close to 3 million digital units (digital singles, ringtones and ringbacks) to date. The poignant follow-up single, "Moving Mountains" is rapidly climbing the singles charts and the riveting video, filled with breath-taking special effects, recently debuted on MTV and BET.
Usher Raymond IV started his multi-faceted career at the age of 15 years old, and over the span of his 14-year career, the five-time Grammy winning singer, songwriter, dancer, actor, and entrepreneur has sold 26 million albums worldwide.
Source: LaFace/Zomba Label Group
NEW YORK, June , 20084 /PRNewswire/ --
U.S. Teens Pick Usher to Win Two Top Honors at GRAMMY Awards, According to New Harris Interactive Survey
ROCHESTER, N.Y., Jan. 18, 2005 /PRNewswire/ -- If teenagers could decide, the race for the 47th Annual GRAMMY(R) Awards would result in a big day for R&B recording star Usher, according to a new Harris Interactive(R) survey.
This year's results show that teens have little appreciation for the work of the late Ray Charles, as they give Usher the nod over Charles for both Record of the Year and Album of the Year by a five-to-one margin.
"The Reason" by Hoobastank is teen's pick for Song of the Year while Los Lonely Boys is favored by teens as the Best New Artist.
The Harris Interactive YouthQuery(SM) Omnibus of 622 teens in the United States, aged 13 through 18, was conducted online from December 15 through 22, 2004.
The poll covered the four most popular GRAMMY categories and gave teens an opportunity to pick their favorites.
Results include:
Record of the Year: "Yeah!" By Usher Featuring Lil' Jon and Ludacris (40%); "American Idiot" by Green Day (27%); "Let's Get It Started" by The Black Eyed Peas (16%); "Heaven" by Los Lonely Boys (9%); and "Here We Go Again" by Ray Charles and Norah Jones (8%).
Album of the Year: "Confessions" by Usher (41%); "American Idiot" by Green Day (28%); "The Diary of Alicia Keys" by Alicia Keys (14%); "The College Dropout" by Kanye West (9%); and "Genius Loves Company" by Ray Charles and various artists (8%).
Song of the Year: "The Reason" by Hoobastank (28%); "Live Like You Were Dying" by Tim McGraw (20%); "Jesus Walks" by Kanye West (19%); "If I Ain't Got You" by Alicia Keys (19%); and "Daughters" by John Mayer (13%).
Best New Artist: Los Lonely Boys (45%); Maroon5 (6%); Joss Stone (27%); and Kanye West (11%).
"This is the fifth year Harris Interactive has conducted a teen GRAMMY poll," said John Geraci, vice president of Youth Research. "In the past, we have found that teenager's preferences on who should win are not usually reflected in the views of GRAMMY voters. Teens are widely acknowledged as trendsetters when it comes to new music, but the industry has yet to embrace their views, at least when it comes to GRAMMY night. That may be something the industry wants to reconsider, considering teen's purchases of music and their affect on the music tastes of the nation."
The 47th Annual GRAMMY(R) Awards will air February 13, 2005, live from the Staples Center in Los Angeles, on the CBS television network.
Methodology
The Harris Interactive YouthQuery(SM) omnibus was conducted online within the United States between December 15 and 22, 2004 among a nationwide cross section of 622 teens, aged 13-18 years. Figures for age, sex, race, education, region and urbanicity were weighted where necessary to bring them into line with their actual proportions in the population.
In theory, with a probability sample of this size, one can say with 95 percent certainty that the results have a sampling error of plus or minus 4 percentage points of what they would be if the entire U.S. teen population (ages 13-18 years) had been polled with complete accuracy. Unfortunately, there are several other possible sources of error in all polls or surveys that are probably more serious than theoretical calculations of sampling error. They include refusals to be interviewed (non-response), question wording and question order, and weighting. It is impossible to quantify the errors that may result from these factors. This online sample was not a probability sample.
These statements conform to the principles of disclosure of the National Council on Public Polls.
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About Harris Interactive(R)
Harris Interactive Inc. (http://www.harrisinteractive.com/), the 15th largest and fastest-growing market research firm in the world, is a Rochester, N.Y.-based global research company that blends premier strategic consulting with innovative and efficient methods of investigation, analysis and application. Known for The Harris Poll(R) and for pioneering Internet-based research methods, Harris Interactive conducts proprietary and public research to help its clients achieve clear, material and enduring results.
Harris Interactive combines its intellectual capital, databases and technology to advance market leadership through U.S. offices and wholly owned subsidiaries: London-based HI Europe (http://www.hieurope.com/), Paris-based Novatris (http://www.novatris.com/), Tokyo-based Harris Interactive Japan, through newly acquired WirthlinWorldwide (http://www.wirthlinworldwide.com/), a Reston, Virginia-based research and consultancy firm ranked 25th largest in the world, and through an independent global network of affiliate market research companies. EOE M/F/D/V.
To become a member of the Harris Poll Online(SM) and be invited to participate in future online surveys, visit http://www.harrispollonline.com/.
