Music

Selling 210,000 copies in its first week, the album gives the British singer his best sales week and posts the largest debut for a pop album in 2014.

• Jul 3, 2014

AceShowbiz - Ed Sheeran's latest album, "X" (pronounced "multiply"), has come out at No. 1 on Billboard 200. Nielsen SoundScan reports that the record, marking the British redhead's second studio effort, makes its debut at the chart's top spot after selling 210,000 copies.

The album gives Sheeran his best sales week so far. It also posts the largest debut for a pop album this year and the fourth highest overall behind Coldplay's "Ghost Stories" (383,000), Eric Church's "The Outsiders" (288,000) and Brantley Gilbert's "Just As I Am" (211,000).

Additionally, "X" becomes Sheeran's first LP to land at No. 1 on the chart. Its predecessor, 2011's "+", peaked at No. 5 with 42,000 sold in its first week.

Next on Billboard 200, Sam Smith's "In the Lonely Hour" keeps its position steady at No. 2 after selling additional 67,000 in its second week. At No. 3, rapper G-Eazy's "These Things Happen" debuts with 46,000, his best sales week yet.

Falling from last week's top position, Lana Del Rey's "Ultraviolence" is at No. 4 with 44,000. Closing out the top 5 is the soundtrack of "Frozen (2013)" that sells another 38,000.

At No. 6, Mastodon's "Once More 'Round the Sun" opens with 34,000 sold. That's the rock band's highest-charting album, but not their best sales week as their "Crack the Skye" managed to sell 41,000 copies back in 2009.

Phish becomes another rock act to land an album in Billboard 200's top 10. The band's "Fuego" arrives at No. 7 with 32,000. Miranda Lambert's "Platinum" slips two rungs to No. 8 with 29,000. Linkin Park's "The Hunting Party" plunges from No. 3 to No. 9 with nearly 29,000 while the "Now 50" album jumps to No. 10 with 22,000.

1. "X" - Ed Sheeran (210,000)
2. "In the Lonely Hour" - Sam Smith (67,000)
3. "These Things Happen" - G-Eazy (46,000)
4. "Ultraviolence" - Lana Del Rey (44,000)
5. "Frozen (2013)" Soundtrack - Various Artists (38,000)
6. "Once More 'Round the Sun" - Mastodon (34,000)
7. "Fuego" - Phish (32,000)
8. "Platinum" - Miranda Lambert (29,000)
9. "The Hunting Party" - Linkin Park (29,000)
10. The "Now 50" Album - Various Artists (22,000)