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Country's Keith Takes Dave Matthews, Nelly Down Some On Albums Chart

Toby Keith's Unleashed will occupy the top slot on next week's chart, having sold more than 338,000 copies.

It took a cowboy to buck the Dave Matthews Band from atop the Billboard 200 albums chart and a pop compilation to push the group's Busted Stuff -- as well as previous #1 albums by Nelly and Eminem -- further from the mount.

Toby Keith's Unleashed will occupy the top slot on next week's chart, selling more than 338,000 copies in its first week in stores, according to SoundScan figures released Wednesday (July 31). The album likely benefited from mainstream news coverage of Keith's controversial single "Courtesy of the Red, White and Blue (The Angry American)," the track that offended Peter Jennings and resulted in Keith getting pulled from an ABC special.

Happily trailing the country singer by roughly 50,000 copies is Now That's What I Call Music! Volume 10 in the #2 position. The latest in the successful series includes hit singles by Britney Spears, Kylie Minogue, 'NSYNC and Shakira, among others.

Making room for the two newcomers, Busted Stuff will bow down to #4, with a second-week total of 211,000 copies -- a far cry from the 621,000 copies that allowed the jammy band of Virginians to inhabit the top of the previous chart. Nelly's Nellyville, meanwhile, won't make as hasty a retreat. The St. Louis rapper's second album will drop a notch to #3, with 270,000 in weekly sales, down from 304,000 the week before. As a testament to its staying power, the LP has moved more than 2 million copies after five weeks on the chart and hasn't slipped below its lowest, current chart position.

He may be the youngest member of the Cash Money Millionaires, but rapper Lil' Wayne is no chump change. His third album, 500 Degreez, will land at #6 with more than 141,000 copies sold. The LP, boosted by its first single, "Way of Life," looks to resurrect the hot streak started by Wayne's debut, 1999's Tha Block Is Hot, which entered the chart at #3, but was somewhat dampened by its follow-up, 2000's Lights Out, which came in at #24.

Teenage crooner Mario will occupy the #9 position, as his eponymous debut sold more than 91,000 copies in its first week in stores. Following top 10 debuts by a couple of boys comes Full Circle by the reunited Boyz II Men, who, after first breaking on the scene almost a decade ago with their Cooleyhighharmony, clearly lean toward the latter half of their group's name.

The remainder of next week's top 10 includes The Eminem Show, dropping two places to #5 (193,000); Avril Lavigne's Let Go, finally descending after weeks of being on the rise, at #7 (108,000); and the Red Hot Chili Peppers' By the Way, falling four places -- farthest of any top 10 album -- to #8.

Alabama rock quartet Trust Company wrap up the top 20 chart debuts with a hostile takeover on the #11 spot to oust the Vines' Highly Evolved, which will fall to #21. Like the former placeholders, Trust Company's major-label debut, The Lonely Position of Neutral, bore a "try me" suggested retail price tag of $12.98, but could be found as low at $6.99 at some outlets.

Other notable chart debuts include the R&B various-artists collection Monsta Jamz, which features selections from R. Kelly, Aaliyah and Blackstreet, at #22; Mack 10 Presents Da Hood at #40; Public Enemy's Revolverlution at #110; Fourplay's Heartfelt at #128; C-Bo's West Coast Mafia at #136; Solomon Burke's Don't Give Up on Me at #138; B2K Remixes Volume 1 at #146; Crystal Method's Community Service at #160; Haystak's Natural at #164; and Smilez & Southstar's Crash the Party at #181.

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