Hannah Montana Rules Billboard Charts
Disney Channel Show Spawns Top U.S. Album
By Jason Braff -- Multichannel News, 7/5/2007 12:12:00 PM
Move out of the way, Steamboat Willy, Disney found someone else to steer the ship: Hannah Montana.
The series sank the competition in June, scoring the No. 1 selling album in the United States, Hannah Montana 2/Meet Miley Cyrus. It also propelled Disney Channel to second place in household ratings with a 1.5 rating, reaching more than 1.3 million households.
The television show finished out the month on a high note by reeling in a 5.2 household rating, equating to 7.38 million viewers, for the June 24 airing of the show in the 8:30 p.m.-9 p.m. time slot. On iTunes, the two most purchased television shows are two new episodes of Hannah Montana.
Disney Records and Hollywood Records’ Hannah Montana 2/Meet Miley Cyrus scanned more than 325,000 units in its release week (June 24-July 1). The dual-disc debuted at the top the Billboard Top 200 chart and ranks first on its Children’s and Soundtrack charts.
The CD set has also taken over the digital-music scene, ranking No. 1 on the iTunes Music Store.
The success of the album comes after the television show’s first soundtrack came out this past fall, also reaching No. 1 on the Billboard Top 200 chart. It was also the first television soundtrack to ever debut at No. 1 on the chart.
Disney will send the budding star of Hannah Montana, Miley Cyrus, out on the road this summer for a 54-date concert tour. The network will hope to bank on the success the top show on cable television with kids aged 6-14 generates.
