Adele's 21 Closing in on Billboard Charts Record

Adele's inching towards breaking another record. According to the Hollywood Reporter, her highly successful sophomore album, 21, has claimed the No. 1 spot on the Billboard 200 charts for the 17th week, coming in second only to The Bodyguard soundtrack, which holds the record at 20 weeks.

The Bodyguard: Original Soundtrack Album is the best-selling soundtrack of all time. The album, which accompanied the film The Bodyguard starring Kevin Costner and Whitney Houston, featured five hit singles from Houston: "I Will Always Love You," "I'm Every Woman," "Queen of the Night," "I Have Nothing" and "Run to You." The soundtrack is certified Diamond with more than 45 million copies sold worldwide and has held the record for most weeks at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 since May 1993.

Last week 21 sold more than 95,000 copies and will have to face off with new albums including Tim McGraw's Emotional Traffic, Celtic Woman's Believe, Kellie Picker's 100 Proof and the 2012 Grammy nominees compilation, all new to the charts next week.

Adele is nominated for six Grammys, including Album of the Year, Song of the Year and Best Pop Vocal Performance. She'll join a growing roster of performers who will hit the stage February 12, including Nicki Minaj, Bruno Mars, Taylor Swift and more.

That the 23-year-old singer-songwriter has been confirmed as a performer at the awards ceremony is noteworthy because of the vocal chord issues she suffered through much of 2011. Adele canceled several tour dates and appearances last year due to hemorrhaging in her throat, which doctors operated on in November.

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