Beyonce’s ‘4’ Album Bounds in at No. 1

Beyonce's fourth solo studio album, '4,'  took the No. 1 spot on the Billboard 200 albums chart, selling 310,000 copies in its first week, according to Nielsen SoundScan.

This mark's the impressive R&B diva's fourth solo No. 1, making her only the third artist and second woman to have her first four studio albums debut atop the Billboard 200. According to Billboard, Britney Spears shares the achievement with her first four releases, and DMX had his first five albums chart at No. 1 in five consecutive years.

'4' nabbed the top spot selling the least amount of units as compared to her previous three releases. 2008's 'I Am ... Sasha Fierce' clocked in with 482,000; 2006's 'B'Day' earned the ranking with 541,000 and 2003's 'Dangerously In Love' initially sold 317,000. However, with industry record sales down overall, '4's' first-week sales are comparable.

The unstoppable songstress has released several tracks from the album, however, its lead song didn't make as big of a splash as the first singles from Beyonce's previous LPs. 'Run the World (Girls)' peaked at No. 29 on the Billboard Hot 100, which is the first time one of the 29-year-old's lead singles has not cracked the Top 10.

Beyonce's new album still marks the third-largest sales week of 2011, after Lady Gaga's 'Born This Way' (1.1 million) and Adele's '21' (351,000).

Watch the Beyonce 'Run the World (Girls)' Video