It’s time for another look at upcoming albums that have had their release dates pushed back, a condition that’s growing ever more chronic as the bottom seemingly falls out of the music industry. Today, we look at albums by Busta Rhymes, Girlicious, and LL Cool J that are allegedly coming soon, although not as soon as originally thought.
Busta Rhymes, Blessed
Old date: July 1.
New date: Unknown.
Official reason: None given, although an “official statement” is expected from Interscope soon.
Real reason: Was he dropped over the weekend after a heated discussion with Jimmy Iovine? Is he waiting for another Ne-Yo “A Milli” freestyle to drop before he makes another move? Developing…
Girlicious
Old date: July 1.
New date: Unknown.
Official reason: It probably has something to do with the soft response to these Pussycat Dolls-sponsored reality-show winners’ first single, “Like Me,” which peaked at No. 102… on the Hot 100.
Real reason: They really are trying to follow in Nicole Scherzinger’s footsteps.
LL Cool J, Exit 13
Old date: July 8.
New date: Aug. 26.
Official reason: None given, but this is the third push-back for the album since the end of May.
Real reason: What better way for LL Cool J to claim he’s the “G.O.A.T.” than to beat the Game in a not-quite-Kanye/50 sales battle?
If only Girlicious had gone with their more subtle, sophisticated track,
“>”Stupid Shit.”
I have to call foul — I think it’s against the laws of physics to debut at No. 102 on the Hot 100.
@Chris N.: It peaked at No. 2 on the “Bubbling Under” chart.
@Chris N.: There’s a “Bubbling Under” chart that tracks songs that are (theoretically) about to penetrate the big chart. However, as you can imagine, numerous songs end their lives there. Joel Whitburn, in his comprehensive Billboard chart archive books, even publishes peak positions over 100 for certain famous songs.
Heh heh, “penetrate.”