Although everyone was expecting that Guns N’ Roses new album “Chinese Democracy,” which was finally released on November 23 after years of delays would hit the no.1 position on album charts, it seems that Kanye West has stolen the iconic rock band’s thunder.

West’s album, called “808s & Heartbreak,” which was rolled out one day after „Chinese Democracy,” topped the Billboard Album Chart with opening sales exceeding 450,100 units.

As for Axl Rose and company, their album sold only 261,200 copies within the first week since it was released, putting an end to a 17-year-old silence that has shrouded the band until this year.

Nevertheless, Guns N’ Roses did not manage to score the second position on the chart either, since country pop artist Taylor Swift climbed her way up from no.4 to no.2 this week with her album „Fearless.” The latter hit the markets three weeks ago and it has sold almost 267,400 copies so far.

So it appears that „Chinese Democracy” will enter the Billboard album chart at no.3, marking the rock band’s comeback in style, but not quite as fans had hoped.

Billboard’s Top 200 also features Ludacris’s „Theater of the Mind” album at no.5, with sales of 213,500 units, followed by The Killers’ „Day & Age,” which has sold 93,400 copies until now.

Among the newcomers for this week are Coldplay’s „Prospekt’s March” EP, which entered at no.15 with 76,700 units sold, Linkin Park’s „Road to Revolution: Live at Milton Keynes” (no.41 with 30,900 copies) and E-40’s „Ball Street Journal,” on the 42nd position, having sold 30,400 units.