• Tower Records is having the biggest sale in its history: Everything must go. Tower’s inventory will sell for about $90 million. Tower owes creditors about $210 million, according to sources. Bidders can offer to purchase the whole company or specific parts and would be free to operate the company or sell off assets and dissolve the firm. Bidders include Trans World Entertainment
• Hardcore/emo act Atreyu leaves Victory Records and has signed a deal with Hollywood Records.
• Rapper Ludacris scored his third No. 1 on the U.S. pop album charts , while Janet Jackson’s new release opened with her lowest numbers in almost a decade, Billboard reported. Janet Jackson’s “20 Y.O.” (Virgin) entered at No. 2 with 296,000 copies, her smallest debut sales week since “The Velvet Rope” started at No. 1 with 202,000 in 1997.

Sales for 2006 are down 5% compared to 2005 at 393.6 million units.