Susan Boyle is indeed Number One!

YouTube sensation and former "Britain's Got Talent" contestant Susan Boyle's debut album "I Dreamed a Dream" opens at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 albums chart with 701,000 copies sold in its first week according to Nielsen SoundScan -- the best sales week for an album in the U.S. this year.

The arrival of "I Dreamed a Dream" also marks the best opening week for a female artist's debut album since SoundScan began tracking sales in 1991. Boyle beats out Ashanti for the title, as her self-titled debut began with 503,000 in 2002.

Boyle wasn't the only artist to drop an album in the very busy Thanksgiving shopping week, as the reality TV star led a packed release schedule.

2009 "American Idol" runner-up Adam Lambert's debut "For Your Entertainment" starts at No. 3 on the Billboard 200 with 198,000 copies. Last week, "Idol" champ Kris Allen saw his self-titled debut bow at No. 11 with 80,000.

Rihanna's fourth album "Rated R" climbs in at No. 4 with 181,000 -- the young diva's best sales week yet. Her previous best came when her third album "Good Girl Gone Bad" started with 162,000 at No. 2 in 2007.

Lady Gaga's new eight-song quasi-EP "The Fame Monster" bows at No. 5 with 174,000 while her first album "The Fame" rises from No. 34 to No. 6 (151,000; up 429%). The latter "Fame's" total jumps this week because it combines sales of her debut set in addition to a two-disc deluxe "The Fame" package that contains both "The Fame" and the new "Monster" disc.

As for holdovers in the top 10, Andrea Bocelli's "My Christmas" stands strong at No. 2 for a third week as it shifts 218,000 (up 18%) while Miley Cyrus' Wal-Mart-exclusive EP "The Time Of Our Lives" vaults from No. 29 to No. 7 with 150,000 (up 385%) thanks in part to its $5 sale tag at the retailer last week. Taylor Swift's "Fearless" moves from No. 10 to No. 8 with 125,000 (up 48%), Carrie Underwood's "Play On" holds at No. 9 with 124,000 (up 44%) and Norah Jones' "The Fall" falls from No. 3 to No. 10 with 110,000 (down 39%).

Last week's Billboard 200 No. 1, John Mayer's "Battle Studies," slips to No. 13 in its second week with 92,000 (down 68%).

Overall album sales in this past chart week (ending Nov. 29) totaled 10.73 million units, up 34% compared to the sum last week (7.99 million) and down 12% compared to the Thanksgiving sales week of 2008 (12.21 million). Year to date album sales stand at 320.2 million, down 13% compared to the same total at this point last year (369.9 million).

source