‘Pitch Perfect’ hits high notes on charts

6/13/2013

NEW YORK — They say it’s not over till the fat lady sings — and that means Fat Amy isn’t ready to put down her microphone.

The movie Pitch Perfect, which was released in September and grossed $65 million domestically, is also a success on the music charts, where the film’s soundtrack has peaked at No. 3 on the Billboard 200 and has sold more than 713,961 units so far, according to Nielsen SoundScan. The film stars Rebel Wilson (Fat Amy) and Anna Kendrick (Beca) as members of the all-girl a cappella group the Barden Bellas, who are battling other a cappella groups in a national competition.

Kendrick’s folk-pop tune “Cups” is helping push the soundtrack to musical heights: It has sold one million tracks and is No. 27 on the Hot 100 chart.

“It’s totally surprising,” she said. “I always figured soundtrack sales would be a part of a movie that has so much music in it ... but I had no idea we’d be into summer of the next year and people would still be talking about the album [and] buying the album.”

The gold-selling “Pitch Perfect: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack” was released the week the film hit theaters. Kendrick, 27, an Oscar-nominated actress, was in New York last week to receive a platinum plaque for “Cups,” which is also a viral hit thanks to the cup routine she performed in the film, in the song’s music video — which has 17 million views — and others imitating it in their own videos and posts online.

“Cups” was originally just 76 seconds long, but Kendrick recorded a version that is just over 2 minutes for a second soundtrack from the film dubbed “More from Pitch Perfect,” which was released last week.

The albums feature mash-ups and covers of songs like Kelly Clarkson’s “Since U Been Gone,” Rihanna’s “S&M,” and La Roux’s “Bulletproof.”

Bruce Resnikoff, head of Universal Music Enterprises, the label that released the soundtrack, said the reason for the soundtrack’s winning moment is that its audience includes teenagers who are constantly listening, streaming, and buying music online. “This was an album that was completely launched through a digital medium,” he said. “I do think some of the same things that have hurt the soundtrack business — the digital marketplace — were essential in creating the bigger opportunities here.”