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Christina Aguilera's Dud Album Rattles Label Christina Aguilera's new album, "Bionic," is doing so poorly, music insiders say her label RCA is in "rescue mode." Sales for Aguilera's fourth album have barely hit 200,000 in five weeks of release. It debuted at No. 3 on the Billboard charts and quickly fell out of the Top 10. (In comparison, Drake's "Thank Me Later" sold about 450,000 in its first week.) The tepid sales come as Aguilera canceled her summer tour, citing inadequate rehearsal time between the album release and the tour dates. Plus, with the release of her sexually charged video for "Not Myself Tonight" -- in which she wore bondage gear and kissed women -- critics slammed her as a Lady Gaga knockoff. Music-industry insiders said Aguilera misjudged the market. Her early albums seemed rebellious and edgy compared with Britney Spears' and Jessica Simpson's, but she's now competing against more avant-garde acts such as Gaga, Rihanna and M.I.A. In the four-year lag since her last album, "Back to Basics," Aguilera has had a child, Max. Now, a source said, she "wants to compete with her peers, but there is a disconnect because, over the years, she's been a mother and a wife, not a rocker." Plus, said insiders, Aguilera has not been willing to adapt. "The label has done its part, but she's headstrong. There have been candid conversations between her and the label about connectivity, but it doesn't seem that she's been open to that dialogue." An RCA rep denies any panic, saying Aguilera "is a pillar of the RCA Music Group and is an undeniable talent with one of the greatest voices of our time. She continues to push herself as an artist, and we are behind her efforts 100 percent." Her manager, Irving Azoff, added, "I am the one who deals with the label, and this couldn't be further from the truth." |
