Noting an eleventh-hour need to clear a Tracy Chapman sample, Nicki Minaj announced that she was delaying the release of new album “Queen” from August 10 to August 17.
She ended up returning to the original date.
Minaj formally released the 19-track “Queen” at noon on Friday The sudden release, predictably, generated considerable buzz.
It also sparked interest at the US iTunes store. The album flew to the upper reaches of the store’s all-genre album sales chart immediately following its release.
By 1:55PM ET, it had reached #1 on the listing. It remains in that pinnacle position as of press time.
“Queen” seized the throne from Jason Mraz’s new “Know.,” which rose to #1 upon release late Thursday night. That album is now #2 on iTunes, while Trippie Redd’s new “LIFE’S A TRIP” is #3.
