"Life is Good" for Nas with new No. 1 album

(CBS News) Nas scored his sixth No. 1 album on Billboard's 200 chart this week with "Life is Good," which sold 149,000.

The hip hop star beat expectations, which were estimated at 125,000 albums sold for his 10th studio release.

Nas is no stranger to the top of the charts. His 1996 set, "It Was Written," hit No. 1, as did his 1997's "The Firm." According to Billboard, Nas' other No. 1 albums include: "I Am" (1999), "Hip-Hop Is Dead" (2007) and "Untitled" (2008).

Last week's No. 1, Zac Brown Band's "Uncaged," slipped to No. 2 this week with 78,000, and the latest "Kidz Bop 22" album entered at No. 3 with 64,000.

It's not too surprising that Nas' album bowed at No. 1; it's been getting rave reviews from critics.

The New York Times noted: "'Life Is Good' would probably have been among the best hip-hop albums of 1993 and, as it happens, is likely to be one of the best hip-hop albums of 2012."

The Associated Press explained: "A coherent necklace made of discreet gems. Old mixes with new, noir enters the flow and the lyrics are tinged with both vulnerability and brutality. Nas is the same master wordsmith as he was when he first bowled over critics with his 1994 debut 'Illmatic.'"