Maybe it’s because I’m stuck in my own little bubble of obscure hip-hop, but I had no idea that Boyz II Men had a new album out. They topped the charts this week for urban releases, although Coldplay owned the Billboard 200 this week by selling 447,000 units of their latest album Mylo Xyloto. In my eyes, the real story this week is the success of Jedi Mind Tricks’ seventh studio album, Violence Begets Violence, as it marks the group’s first release without their producer, Stoupe. Despite mixed reviews and reluctance from longtime fans, the album moved nearly 4,500 units in its opening week. Statik Selektah and Freestyle Fellowship also fared well during their albums’ opening week, while Korean rapper/producer/songwriter Tablo had a moderately successful opening week for the international release of his debut EP, Fever’s End Pt 1, which was quickly followed by Pt. 2. Boyz II Men “Twenty 18,385 (46% digital) Jedi Mind Tricks “Violence Begets Violence” – 4,351 (60% digital) [read review] Statik Selektah “Population Control” – 1,520 (45% digital) [read review] Freestyle Fellowship “Promise” – 713 (32% digital) Tablo “Fever’s End, Pt 1″ - 389 (100% digital) Terrace Martin“Locke High 2″ - 369 (100% digital)

Even though he doesn’t have a smash hit, J. Cole killed the game this week with the release of debut, Cole World: The Sideline Story, which debuted at #1 on the Billboard 200.  Although the album has been met with mixed reviews, it didn’t seem to phase consumers as the album moved nearly 218,000 units this week.  Regardless, Sam is still going to hate.  It was a big week for indie hip-hop releases as Phonte, Evidence, and 9th Wonder all moved several thousand units of their respective albums.  I had the chance to listen to “Cats & Dogs,” which is pretty hot, but I’ve been hearing nothing but rave reviews for Phonte’s “Charity Starts At Home.”  Casey Veggies’ stock appears to be continually rising as the commercial re-release of his free mixtape moved 2,223 copies digitally in its first 2 weeks on the charts.  We’ll have to wait until next week to see what Styles P and Exile do next week. J. Cole “Cole World: The Sideline Story” – 217,280  (43% digital)  [read review] Phonte “Charity Starts At Home”  - 7,796 (56% digital)  [read review] Evidence “Cats & Dogs”  - 7,725 (35% digital)  [read review] 9th Wonder “The Wonder Years”  - 6,460 (51% digital) Casey Veggies “Asleep In Class [Deluxe Edition]” - 2,223  (100% digital) *Two Week Total*  [read review] Tabi Bonney “The Summer Years” - 262  (100% digital)