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As the calendar flips to August, the music industry is officially in the dog days of summer, when sales traditionally slow. But quite a few 2014 albums have already rolled over and played dead. Here are 15 prime cases. Who let these dogs out? - Paul Grein
Robin Thicke's PaulaThere are peaks and valleys in every career, but rarely has an artist gone from career-high to butt-of-jokes so quickly. Thicke's seventh studio album spent just one week in the top 40. His best hope is it was such a bomb that his wife will feel sorry for him and take him back.
Jennifer Lopez's A.K.A.J.Lo's eighth studio album sold 33K copies in its first week. That's the lowest first-week tally for a Lopez studio album to date. It's even lower than her 2007 Spanish-language album, Como Ama Una Mujer. This was J.Lo's first English-language studio set not to spawn at least one top 40 hit.
Mariah Carey's Me. I Am Mariah…The Elusive ChanteuseCarey's 11th studio album sold 58K copies in its first week. That's Carey's lowest first-week tally since Nielsen SoundScan began tracking sales in 1991. (Between J.Lo and Mariah, it's starting to look like that Idol chair is jinxed.)
Lea Michele's LouderThe Glee star's debut album spent just two weeks in the top 40. It probably would have done better if it had been released a few years ago, when Glee was at its peak. The first single, "Cannonball," stalled at No. 75. (The song's co-writer, Sia, would fare much better with her own single, "Chandelier.")
Hunter Hayes's StorylineThe country star's sophomore album spent its first two weeks in the top 10, but it hasn't shown the staying power of his eponymous debut album. The singles "Invisible" and "Tattoo" couldn't match the first album's hits, "Wanted" and "I Want Crazy."
50 Cent's Animal Ambition: An Untamed Desire to WinNow there's an ironic title for you. The rapper's fifth studio album sold just 37K copies in its first week. That's a big drop not only from his smash early albums, but even from his previous studio album, Before I Self-Destruct (which sold 160K in its first week).
Foster the People's SupermodelThe group's sophomore album failed to generate a single as catchy as its 2011 earworm "Pumped Up Kicks." None of the album's singles even cracked the Hot 100. As a result, this album spent just two weeks in the top 40.
Candice Glover's Music SpeaksThis album by American Idol's Season 12 winner spent just two weeks in the top 40. The aptly-titled single, "Cried," failed to crack the Hot 100. (This probably reflects more on Idol's fading fortunes than on Glover.)
Phillip Phillips's Behind the LightSophomore albums by American Idol winners are tricky, but Phillips seemed likely to overcome the odds. Alas, no. The album spent just two weeks in the top 20. The single, "Raging Fire," stalled at No. 58. That may qualify as a fire, but it's hardly raging.
Santana's CorazonThe veteran band's 22nd studio album marks a return to the collabo-heavy format of its most successful albums of the past 15 years. Even so, Corazon spent just four weeks in the top 40. Time for another comeback!
Tessanne Chin's Count on My LoveChin's first album after winning The Voice in December debuted at No. 41 and plummeted to No. 197 in its second week. The first albums by two other recent winners of The Voice, Cassadee Pope and Danielle Bradbery, fared much better.
Linkin Park's The Hunting PartyThe band's sixth studio album sold 110K copies in its first week. That's less than half of what the band's previous studio album, Living Things, sold in its first week. The Hunting Party debuted and peaked at No. 3, breaking a string of four consecutive No. 1 studio albums by the band.
The Fray's HeliosThe fourth album by the once-potent group spent just one week in the top 40. The first single, "Love Don't Die," stalled at No. 60.
Jennifer Nettles's That GirlThis was Nettles's first solo album after four hit studio albums with the country duo Sugarland. This should have propelled her to the top tier of female country solo stars (along with Taylor, Carrie, and Miranda), but it didn't. It wasn't a flop, just a disappointment.
Marsha Ambrosius's Friends & LoversThe R&B star's sophomore album debuted and peaked at No. 12 and plunged to No. 45 in its second week. That's a big drop from her 2011 album Late Nights & Early Mornings, which reached No. 2.
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