Atmosphere’s “Lemons” earns a sweet No. 5 spot

The Minneapolis hip-hop group landed right behind Ashlee Simpson with its new album, by far its best chart position ever.

By Chris Riemenschneider, Star Tribune

Last update: April 30, 2008 - 4:48 PM

Minneapolis hip-hop group Atmosphere’s efforts to stave off illegal downloading of its new album apparently paid off. “When Life Gives You Lemons…” was the No. 5 bestseller nationwide this past week, according to Billboard — Atmosphere’s best ranking ever by far, and the highest by a Twin Cities artist since Prince’s last one.

Issued by Atmosphere’s Minneapolis-based label, Rhymesayers Entertainment, “Lemons” sold 36,000 U.S. copies in its first week, landing it just behind Ashlee Simpson’s new album and only four spots below Mariah Carey’s No. 1 mega-hit “E=MC².” Within the Twin Cities metro area, Atmosphere did top Carey, taking the No. 1 spot, according to local Nielsen/SoundScan figures.

By contrast, Atmosphere’s last record in 2005 debuted at No. 66. This time the record got distribution from Warner Bros. that landed it in Target and other big-box retailers. Another difference: Rhymesayers did not send out advance copies of “Lemons” to press and radio outlets, which presumably cut down on illegal downloads of the album.

“Not having the album leak until a week before it came out was definitely a factor,” said Rhymesayers vice president of operations Jason (J-Bird) Cook. “But there was also a bigger marketing plan this time, with a strong setup on the Internet. It all came together.”

For now, Atmosphere is sticking to its usual road-hound game plan. It had a sold-out show at the Henry Fonda Theater in Los Angeles on Tuesday night when the charts came out, and now it’s headed to its umpteenth gig at the punk-rock mega-bar Emo’s in Austin, Texas, on Thursday.