‘Best of Both Worlds’ Is One Album Title That May Not Be Hyperbole

Singer R. Kelly’s last album, “TP-2.com,” has sold 3.4 million copies in the U.S.

Jay-Z’s last album, “Blueprint,” has sold 1.9 million. So an album by the two together should sell 5.3 million.

That’s not how it works, of course. But “Best of Both Worlds,” an album pairing the R&B; and rap stars and due March 26 from Island Def Jam Records, is easily the consensus pick for the biggest new release expected between now and the beginning of summer in a survey of music insiders.

Is that a sure thing? More than ever, the radio programmers and retail executives periodically polled by Pop Eye to predict the top sellers of coming months are shying away from absolute statements.

“The challenge right now is that there’s a very fickle marketplace where a lot of the big records that had a lot of hype around them for the holiday season didn’t pan out,” says Bob Bell, new music buyer for the Wherehouse chain. “So there aren’t any sure things now.”

The only other albums that panelists deemed safe bets are Celine Dion’s return from maternity leave, “A New Day Has Come,” tentatively due March 26, and Eminem’s follow-up to the 8.6-million-selling “The Marshall Mathers LP,” expected for April release.

This season is looking pretty fallow for new superstar product. That can be blamed partly on Sept. 11, which delayed a lot of production schedules so that more of 2002’s big albums will be released in summer and fall than in most years.

That opens the field for some new developments. On one front, a sizable brigade of established female artists is returning to the marketplace. In addition to Dion’s collection, new albums are coming from Sheryl Crow, Brandy, Bonnie Raitt, Alanis Morissette and Cher, all of whom have had some dramatic ups and downs with past records.

There’s also a lot of effort at record companies to position new and emerging women artists as singer-songwriters--in pop to separate the acts from the flagging teen world, and in R&B; to suggest they could be the next Alicia Keys or India.Arie.

Labels are also taking advantage of the dearth of new superstar collections to release reworked versions of old items. Remix albums are coming from Jennifer Lopez (the third version of her “J-Lo” album), Destiny’s Child and Linkin Park, while a new edition of Mary J. Blige’s “Mary,” with added songs, is on the way. No one expects these to rival the sales of the original versions, but a radio hit or two could drive any one of them to impressive levels.

Here’s a breakdown of the spring horse races, with only as many picks per genre as justified, and comments from panelists where appropriate. Release dates are subject to change.

Pop

Win--Jay-Z and R. Kelly. “This will be huge,” says Michael Steele, music director of Los Angeles pop powerhouse KIIS-FM (102.7). “The R. Kelly song from ‘Ali’ has turned out bigger than the movie, so there’s a lot of momentum here.”

Place--Celine Dion. “I’ve heard the single and a couple of mixes,” Steele says. “I was impressed.”

Show--Cher, “Living Proof” (Feb. 26). “I love the single,” Steele says of the follow-up to Cher’s “Believe” comeback. “Nothing groundbreaking, but Cher fans will love it, and the two songs I’ve heard are better than anything on the last album.”

Dark horse--Kylie Minogue, “Fever” (Feb. 26). Capitol Records is going hard on the breakthrough from the Australian former teen star. “It’s got four potential hit singles,” Steele says. “It’s a lot more than just candy pop.”

Rock

Win--The debut album from the still unnamed group teaming former Soundgarden singer Chris Cornell with Rage Against the Machine’s Tom Morello, Tim C. and Brad Wilk (release date to be announced). Korn’s next album would have been the runaway winner, but its release has apparently been pushed back to summer. This choice is a tenuous one as well: Will it make it by Memorial Day and what will it be when it arrives?

“I haven’t heard any music yet,” KROQ-FM (106.7) music director Lisa Worden says. “I think listeners are curious. None of us knows what to expect.”

Place--Weezer, “Maladroit,” date TBA.

Show--Coldplay, title TBA (late spring). “Coldplay stands out from the hard stuff we play, and every song we’ve played from the first album has worked for us,” Worden says.

Dark horse--New Found Glory, “Sticks and Stones” (June 4).

Hip-Hop

Win--Jay-Z and R. Kelly.

Place--Eminem.

Show--Xzibit, “Man vs. Machine” (April 2). “This might be the one to take him to the top,” E-Man, music director of KPWR-FM (105.9), says of the veteran rapper.

Dark horse--Royce Da 5’9”, title to be announced. (Feb. 26). The release from Eminem’s latest Detroit protege has production by the controversial rapper, who also appears on the first single, “Rock City.”

R&B;

Win--Jay-Z and R. Kelly. “This is actually my only bet this poor sales period,” Wherehouse urban music buyer Violet Brown says.

Place--Brandy, “Full Moon” (March 5). “The single’s incredible, and from the rest of the album, it’s not a fluke,” says Dorsey Fuller, music director at KKBT-FM (100.3).

Show--Raphael Saadiq, “Instant Vintage” (May 28). “Several songs have a chance to be big,” Fuller says of the solo debut by the former Tony Toni Tone singer. “The first is a collaboration with D’Angelo, and there’s one with T-Boz from TLC.”

Dark horse--Tweet, “Southern Hummingbird” (April 2). Working with Missy Elliott and Timbaland, a strong entry in the new soul sweepstakes.

Adult

Win--Celine Dion.

Place--Sheryl Crow, title TBA. (April 9). “She seems to be an artist’s artist, no real negative baggage as far as the public’s concerned,” Steele says.

Show--Alanis Morissette, “Under Rug Swept” (Feb. 26). “Now that she’s the underdog, I’m really rooting for her,” Wherehouse’s Bell says.

Country

Win--No pick. “There’s no word on when the Dixie Chicks album will be and that would be the most anticipated,” says KZLA-FM (93.9) music director Tonya Campos. “And there’s talk that Shania Twain might come out with something, but not until later in the year.”

Dark horse--Shannon Lawson, “Chase the Sun,” (early June). “No one knows who he is, but he can sing,” Campos says of the Kentucky native. “If the rest of his stuff is as good as the single, ‘Goodbye on a Bad Day,’ which we’re already playing, the album will be phenomenal.”

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Steve Hochman is a regular contributor to Calendar.