Big Time Rush Debuts At #3 On Billboard Top 200 Album Chart

NEW YORK, Oct. 20 /PRNewswire/ -- BTR, the debut album from Nickelodeon/Columbia band Big Time Rush, enters the Billboard Top 200 chart at #3 in its first week of release with over 66,000 units sold.  The set exploded at both physical and digital retail outlets, making the album one of the highest charting debut albums in the U.S. this year.  The band has also now sold one million digital tracks to date, an incredible milestone for a new artist to reach on the heels of their debut album's release.

Big Time Rush – Kendall Schmidt, James Maslow, Carlos Pena, Logan Henderson – kicked off their release week with a 2-song performance on NBC's The Today Show, which marked the start of a whirlwind week of promotional events that saw the band visit 8 major markets in just 6 days.  The band brought "Big Time Mania" to in-store signings in every market they visited – drawing thousands of frenzy-filled fans to each event.  The busy week culminated with a massive performance and signing at the Best Buy Rotunda in the Mall of America, which drew over 7,000 screaming fans.

Big Time Rush will continue their 13 market promo tour on October 25, with an in-store signing event at the FYE in the Hard Rock Cafe Hollywood at Universal Citywalk.  Other cities on the schedule include San Francisco, Phoenix, St. Louis, Chicago, and Boston. Details on Big Time Rush events can be found on BTRband.com.

BTR consists of original songs from the hit Nickelodeon series Big Time Rush, including the current hit "Til I Forget About You."  For their debut album, Big Time Rush teamed up with some of the top producers and writers today, such as Kevin Rudolf (Leona Lewis, Lil Wayne), Claude Kelly (Miley Cyrus, Britney Spears), S*A*M and Sluggo (Boys Like Girls, We The Kings, Gym Class Heroes) and OFM (Jay Sean).

Since the launch of the show – the highest-rated and most-watched live-action series premiere with kids, tweens and total viewers (6.8 million) in the history of Nickelodeon – the members of Big Time Rush have ridden a wave of success.  In this week's special Halloween episode – airing this Friday at 8pm EDT on Nickelodeon – the band performs the new song "Big Night," which is already a fan favorite from the new album.

Big Time Rush, produced in partnership with Sony Music, follows four best friends from Minnesota – Kendall, James, Carlos and Logan – as they trade in their hockey sticks and parkas for a chance at music superstardom in Los Angeles.  With a few misadventures along the way, the boys quickly find out that life in Hollywood is not all about hanging at the pool and attending parties.  After proving to themselves and their record label that they are serious about their musical career, Big Time Rush are now ready for the next phase of their personal and professional lives.  Between juggling the demands of their newfound fame, romantic relationships, finding their own personal musical style and homework the group learns that success comes with hard work and dedication – and the support of one another.

SOURCE Nickelodeon/Columbia Records