BOX POPULI

Ever since last summer, when Tag Team's ''Whoomp! (There It Is)'' became an unexpected smash (with a lot of help from airplay on the Video Jukebox cable channel), industry insiders have been wondering if the Box can challenge MTV's hit-making potential. Judging from this week's pop album chart, it can: Diary of a Mad Band, the current release by the new-jack quartet Jodeci, continues its upward climb, thanks to a No. 1 R&B hit (''Cry for You'') that is also in the Box's top 10. Coincidentally, the video is nowhere to be seen on MTV's top 50 playlist. Hey, maybe Kurt Loder can do a news story about it. Last Weeks On Week Pop Albums Chart 1 1 Mariah Carey Music Box, Columbia 20 2 4 Snoop Doggy Dogg Doggystyle, Death Row/Interscope 8 3 2 Pearl Jam Vs., Epic Associated 13 4 3 Michael Bolton The One Thing, Columbia 9 5 8 Jodeci Diary of a Mad Band, Uptown/MCA 4 6 7 Bryan Adams So Far So Good, A&M 10 7 6 Janet Jackson janet., Virgin 35 8 5 Meat Loaf Bat Out of Hell II: Back Into Hell, MCA 18 9 10 Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers Greatest Hits, MCA 9 10 12 Toni Braxton Toni Braxton, LaFace/Arista 27

Jazz Albums 1 1 Tony Bennett Steppin' Out, Columbia 9 2 2 Harry Connick Jr. 25, Columbia 31 3 3 Joshua Redman Wish, Warner Bros. 17 4 5 Cassandra Wilson Blue Light 'Til Dawn, Blue Note 11 5 4 Soundtrack Swing Kids, Hollywood 15 6 7 Shirley Horn Light Out of Darkness, Verve 15 7 11 Charlie Watts Warm & Tender, Continuum 9 8 6 Miles Davis and Quincy Jones Live at Montreux, Warner Bros. 23 9 8 Nina Simone A Single Woman, Elektra 23 10 9 Ella Fitzgerald The Best of the Songbooks, Verve 9

Music Videos 1 1 Eazy-E ''Real Compton City G's,'' Ruthless/Relativity 10 2 2 Salt-n-Pepa Featuring en vogue ''Whatta Man,'' Next Plateau/London/PLG 3 3 4 DRS ''Gangsta Lean,'' Capitol 16 4 3 Salt-n-Pepa ''Shoop,'' Next Plateau/London/PLG 13 5 5 Masta Ace Inc. ''Born to Roll,'' Delicious Vinyl 6 6 - Xscape ''Understanding,'' So So Def/Columbia 1 7 6 Jodeci ''Cry for You,'' Uptown/MCA 6 8 11 K7 ''Zunga Zeng,'' Tommy Boy 5 9 8 Bloods & Crips ''Steady Dippin','' Quality 15 10 7A Tribe Called Quest ''Award Tour,'' Jive 13

c1994 BPI COMMUNICATIONS INC./SOUNDSCAN INC. USED WITH PERMISSION FROM BILLBOARD,JAN.29,1994

c1994 VIDEO JUKEBOX NETWORK, INC. USED WITH PERMISSION , FOR WEEK ENDING JAN. 14,1994