He didn’t even win American Idol, but Clay Aiken still managed to sell 613,000 copies of his debut album “Measure of a Man” in the U.S. this week. This was easily the top album in the U.S.

In Canada, Aiken sold 25,200 copies. This would usually be enough for the top spot, but Celine Dion sold 44,500 copies of “1 Filles & 4 Types” in its opening week.

Aiken’s U.S. numbers are astonishing. Compare them to these figures:
-Justin Guarini, the runner-up in the first season of Idol (Aiken was runner-up in the second season), sold 54,000 copies of his debut album in June.
-Kelly Clarkson, the winner of the first season, sold 297,000 of her album in her first week in April.
-The second place album this week in the U.S. was Ludacris’ “Chicken and Beer,” which sold 194,000 copies, over three times less than Aiken.
-Ruben Studdard, who beat Aiken, hasn’t even released an album yet






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