Rihanna rings in 2011 at No. 1

R&B superstar Rihanna started off the new year with a big bang, despite the usual post Christmas retail blues on the charts.

Her fifth studio effort, “Loud,” remained at No. 1 for a second straight week, selling just over 11,000 copies (down from 24,000 last week), according to Neilsen SoundScan figures.

The album has now sold over 130,000 copies since its release seven weeks ago.

Many artists took a big hit in sales, with most posting more than a 50 per cent drop during the last week of 2010 and the first few days of 2011.

The Black Eyed Peas were one of those hanging on to No. 2, but seeing their sales of “The Beginning” drop by 59 per cent.

Meanwhile, with all the holiday albums all but disappearing from the top of the charts, some old faces returned. Kanye West’s “My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy” came up from No. 19 to No. 3, Eminem’s “Recovery” No. 15 to No. 4, and Bruno Mars’ “Doo-Wops & Hooligans” No. 11 to No. 5.

“MuchDance 2011″ held on to No. 6, Taylor Swift sank for spots to No. 7, and Katy Perry’s “Teenage Dream” appeared the No. 8 slot.

Rounding out the top 10 was Justin Bieber’s “My Worlds Acoustic” at No. 9, and Pink’s “Greatest Hits So Far” at No. 10.

In the U.S., Taylor Swift came in first, followed by Eminem in second, Rihanna in third, Nicki Minaj’s “Pink Friday” in fourth, and Kanye West in fifth.

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