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Harry Styles really did own the keys to 2022. The British pop singer’s third studio album Harry’s House was the biggest LP of the year in the U.K., according to new data published by the Official Charts Company.
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The ex-One Direction singer leads the year-end albums survey with Harry’s House, which shifted north of 460,000 U.K. chart units over the year, including 160,000 sales (150,000 physical and 10,000 downloads), the OCC reports.
Harry’s House logged six non-consecutive weeks atop the Official U.K. Albums Chart in 2022, more than any other album, and the lead single from it, “As It Was,” tops the U.K.’s year-end singles survey.
Compatriot Ed Sheeran comes in at No. 2 on the year-end albums list with = (Equals), which snaffled upwards of 433,000 U.K. chart units during the calendar year. Sheeran has made a career habit of racking up big numbers. In November, the OCC announced all four of his solo studio albums — (Plus), x (Multiply), ÷ (Divide) and = (Equals) — had spent a total of at least a year inside the Official Albums Chart top 10.
Completing the 2022 podium is Taylor Swift’s Midnights, which, in less than three months, captured more than 417,000 U.K. chart sales, including 217,000 sales (206,000 physical copies and11,000 downloads). Midnights got away to a particularly explosive start. First-week U.K. chart sales exceeded 204,000, more than double her previous best, 2014’s 1989 (90,300 chart units).
It’s hard to keep a good thing down. That’s certainly the case with ABBA and Queen’s barnstorming career retrospective albums. ABBA Gold became the first album in U.K. chart history to log 1,000 weeks on the chart, a feat it achieved in July 2021. It’s still going strong. Powered by the ABBA Voyage virtual residency in London, the LP appears at No. 10 on the year-end U.K. chart. Indeed, Gold improves 20-13 on the latest Official U.K. Albums Chart, doing so in its 1,078 week.
Queen’s 1981 release Greatest Hits reached the 1,000-week milestone on the U.K. chart in 2022, and it finished the year in 11th place on the year-end tally. Greatest Hits is the best-selling album in U.K. recorded music history, shifting more than seven million combined units.
Music streaming reached new heights in 2022, the BPI reports. Across digital and physical formats, the equivalent of 166 million albums were streamed or purchased during the year, up 4.3% on 2021.
Official Top 40 biggest albums of 2022
Harry’s House, Harry Styles
=, Ed Sheeran
Midnights, Taylor Swift
The Highlights, The Weeknd
Sour, Olivia Rodrigo
Curtain Call – The Hits, Eminem
Diamonds, Elton John
50 Years – Don’t Stop, Fleetwood Mac
Between Us, Little Mix
Gold – Greatest Hits, ABBA
In the year that saw King Charles ascend the throne, it was Harry Styles who was crowned on the U.K. charts.
The pop superstar rules 2022’s year-end singles and albums charts, with “As It Was” and its parent, Harry’s House, respectively, according to new data published by the Official Charts Company.
Released in April 2022, “As It Was” reigned over the Official U.K. Singles Chart for 10 weeks, and went on to shift 1.57 million combined units, the OCC reports.
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“As It Was” also finished the year as the most-streamed song in the U.K., with more than 180.9 million audio and video streams, and it was the best-seller across combined physical and digital formats, raking-in 65,000 units.
The former One Direction singer leads an all-British sweep of the top 10 tracks of 2022 in the U.K. — a first in the 50-plus year history of the year-end singles chart.
Coming in at No. 2 on the Official Top 40 Biggest Singles of 2022 is Ed Sheeran “Bad Habits,” with 1.18 million chart units. “Bad Habits” was the No. 1 song in the U.K. in 2021.
Afrobeats star Fireboy DML lands at No. 3 with “Peru” (featuring Sheeran), BRITs Rising Star nominee Cat Burns is at No. 4 with “Go,” and Sheeran completes the top 5 with “Shivers.”
2022 was a remarkable year for Kate Bush and her 1985 song “Running Up That Hill (A Deal With God)” which roared off the back of Netflix’ Stranger Things, in which is was synced to several pivotal moments. The song was embraced a new generation as it finally reached No. 1, some 37 years after its release. As it completed the path to the top, Bush broke a trio of records, including the longest journey a single to reach No. 1 in the U.K.
Also, notes the OCC, LadBaby bagged the fastest-selling single in its first week based on pure sales, “Food Aid,” which pulled-in more than 59,000 first-week sales. The charity fund-raising single was the most-downloaded song of the year, and a record-breaker, as it delivered the husband-and-wife Hoyle duo a fifth consecutive Christmas No. 1.
The OCC’s year-end reports are published as the BPI announces 159 billion music tracks were streamed in the U.K. last year, a new record which represents a 8.2% gain on 2021, and more than double the volume from five years ago.
Official Top 40 biggest songs of 2022
“As It Was,” Harry Styles
“Bad Habits,” Ed Sheeran
“Peru,” Fireboy DML & Ed Sheeran
“Go,” Cat Burns
“Shivers,” Ed Sheeran
“Running Up That Hill (A Deal With God),” Kate Bush
“Heat Waves,” Glass Animals
“Where Are You Now,” Lost Frequencies/Calum Scott
“Afraid To Feel,” LF System
“Seventeen Going Under,” Sam Fender
Wham’s “Last Christmas” (via RCA) is the gift that keeps giving, as the ‘80s classic returns to No. 1 in the U.K.
The holiday standard lifts 2-1 on the Official U.K. Singles Chart, published Dec. 30, for its second stint at the summit in 2022.
According to the Official Charts Company, “Last Christmas” scoops over 79,000 combined chart units, including a market-leading 18 million streams, to bag the last No. 1 of the year.
Less than a year earlier, “Last Christmas” was finally crowned on the survey, setting a new mark for the longest journey to the top, at 36 years.
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The latest survey is brimming with Christmas spirit. Indeed, holiday numbers swamp the Top 40, taking out 34 spots, including nine of the top 10. Mariah Carey’s “All I Want For Christmas Is You” (Columbia) improves 4-2; Ed Sheeran & Elton John’s “Merry Christmas” (Atlantic) is up 5-3; Brenda Lee’s 1962 hit “Rockin’ Around The Christmas Tree” (MCA) lifts 8-4, for a new peak; Michael Bublé’s “It’s Beginning To Look A Lot Like Christmas rebounds” (Reprise) is up 11-6; Bobby Helms bags a posthumous top 10 — his first in the U.K. — with “Jingle Bell Rock” (MCA) up 14-7; Lizzo lifts 15-8 with her Amazon Music “Original Someday At Christmas” (Atlantic); The Pogues featuring Kirsty MacColl’s “Fairytale of New York” (Warner Bros) gains 13-9; and Andy Williams’ “It’s The Most Wonderful Time Of Year” (Sony Music) soars 21-10.
LadBaby set a new chart record when “Food Aid” (BMG) bowed at No. 1 last week, the husband-and-wife duo’s fifth Christmas leader. The charity fundraised falls sharply in its second week, down to No. 85.
Expect an entirely different looking chart this Friday (Jan. 6), as Christmas songs make their annual exodus.
The highest charting non-Christmas-themed song belongs to Stormzy, whose This Is What I Mean ballad “Firebabe” (0207/Merky) lights up 10-5, for its equal peak position.
LadBaby lands the ultimate Christmas present with “Food Aid” (via BMG) earning the coveted Christmas No. 1 in the U.K. — and doing so in record-busting fashion.
The charity single debuts at No. 1 on the Official Singles Chart with more than 65,000 chart sales, the Official Charts Company reports, for the fastest-selling week of any recording in 2022.
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The husband-and-wife duo of Mark and Roxanne Hoyle become the first act to nab five Official U.K. Christmas No. 1 singles, beating the old mark held by the Beatles, who bagged four non-consecutive Christmas leaders in 1963, 1964, 1965 & 1967.
Previously, LadBaby ruled the Christmas chart with “We Built This City” (in 2018), “I Love Sausage Rolls” (2019), “Don’t Stop Me Eatin’” (2020) and 2021’s “Sausage Rolls For Everyone” with Ed Sheeran and Elton John.
Proceeds from the single, a re-interpretation of Band Aid’s ‘80s classic “Do They Know It’s Christmas?,” are split equally between food bank charity The Trussell Trust and the Band Aid Trust.
“It only seems yesterday that LadBaby turned up with their first festive campaign four years ago, so it feels slightly surreal to be sending hearty congratulations on their fifth successive Official Christmas No. 1,” comments Martin Talbot, chief executive of the OCC. “Securing one Christmas No. 1 is a huge achievement in itself – to do it five times, in successive years, is unprecedented and frankly incredible.”
There’s Christmas cheer to be found up and down the chart, as Wham’s “Last Christmas” (RCA) dips 1-2, but racks up a market-leading 12.9 million streams. Meanwhile, another fundraising holiday number, Sidemen’s “Christmas Drillings,” is the highest climber, blasting 41-3; while yuletide favorites from Mariah Carey (“All I Want For Christmas Is You” down 2-4 via Columbia), Ed Sheeran and Elton John (“Merry Christmas” down 4-5 via Atlantic) and Brenda Lee (“Rockin’ Around The Christmas Tree” down 5-8 via MCA) impact the top 10.
It’s the season to be jolly, and it’s also the season for punk act the K**ts to stage a return with a protest song. At No. 7, “F**k The Tories” (via Tactical Voting) is the highest new entry on the chart, published Dec. 23. It’s the English act’s third consecutive Christmas top 10, following “Boris Johnson Is Still A F**king C**t” in 2021 and “Boris Johnson Is A F**king C**t” in 2020, both peaking at No. 5.
The Christmas albums crown belongs to Taylor Swift, whose 2022 smash Midnights (EMI) lifts 3-1 on the Official Chart, with over 17,000 chart units, according to the OCC.
Midnights joins 2020’s Folklore as Swift’s only LPs to log three weeks at the U.K. summit, and it’s the only non-Christmas album to inhabit the current top 3, as Cliff Richard’s Christmas With Cliff (EastWest/Rhino) lifts 8-2, and Michael Bublé’s Christmas (Reprise) improves 4-3.
The Christmas takeover is about to begin on the U.K. chart, with three holiday classics jostling for the crown.
Based on sales and streaming data published by the Official Charts Company, Mariah Carey’s “All I Want For Christmas Is You” (Columbia) holds the edge at the halfway point, ahead of Wham’s “Last Christmas” (RCA) and Ed Sheeran & Elton John’s “Merry Christmas” (Atlantic), respectively.
Just 1,000 chart sales separate the three tracks at the midweek point, the OCC reports.
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All three tracks have led the Official U.K. Singles Chart, with Carey’s 1994 classic the current No. 1.
They’ll face some stiff competition for the coveted Christmas No. 1 in the form of LadBaby. The husband and wife duo of Mark and Roxanne Hoyle last year made history with a fourth consecutive U.K. Christmas No. 1, a streak they intend to extend with a fundraising cover of Band Aid’s “Do They Know It’s Christmas?”
The single will drop this Friday (Dec. 16), with proceeds from it divided equally between food bank charity The Trussell Trust and the Band Aid Trust.
This year’s countdown to the Christmas No. 1 will be revealed on Friday, Dec. 23.
Meanwhile, the original Band Aid all-star recording is one of many Christmas songs which stuff the Official Chart Update, as classics by Brenda Lee, Michael Buble, the Pogues featuring Kirsty MacColl, and Bobby Helms rise in the top 10.
Also noteworthy is Lizzo’s cover of Stevie Wonder’s “Someday At Christmas” (Atlantic), an Amazon Music “Original,” which eyes a new peak, up 21-13 on the chart blast, while Kelly Clarkson’s “Underneath The Tree” (RCA) could land its highest spot on the chart, at No. 14.
The highest debut on the chart should belong to SZA, whose “Kill Bill” (RCA/Top Dawg) bows at No. 24 at the midweek point, and “Nobody Gets Me” is set to start at No. 28. Both are lifted from the U.S. R&B artist’s long-awaited sophomore album, SOS, which dropped last Friday.
Sam Ryder is up, up and away in the U.K. albums chart race.
The hirsute Eurovision contestant leads the midweek chart with There’s Nothing But Space, Man! (via Parlophone), his debut album.
Space, Man holds an advantage of almost 2-to-1 over its nearest competitor, SZA’s SOS, the Official Charts Company reports.
Ryder represented England at Eurovision 2022 in May, his entry “Space Man” raking in 466 points for second place behind the winners from Ukraine, Kalush.
“Space Man” went on to peak at No. 2 on the Official U.K. Singles Chart in the same month, losing out to Harry Styles’ mega-hit “As It Was.”
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If it maintains its trajectory, There’s Nothing But Space, Man! would become the first debut album by a solo artist to hit No. 1 in the U.K. since Oliva Rodrigo’s Sour in March 2021, according to the OCC.
Coming in at No. 2 on the Chart Update is SZA’s long-awaited second LP SOS (via RCA/Top Dawg), which is on track to land the U.S. singer a career chart peak and her first U.K. top 10. Regardless of where it enters, SOS should top the No. 45 best for her critically-regarded debut Ctrl from 2017.
English singer and songwriter Sam Fender could nab two top 10 titles this week, with Live From Finsbury Park (Polydor) set to debut at No. 7, and his former leader Seventeen Going Under on course to lift 45-9. Earlier in the week, Fender was announced as a headliner for the 2023 edition of Britain’s Reading and Leeds Festivals.
Also eying a top 40 U.K. debut is A Boogie Wit Da Hoodie’s fourth album Me Vs Myself (Atlantic), which currently sits at No. 21. The U.S. rapper hit No. 11 with his previous collection, 2020’s Artist 2.0.
As the U.K. enters a cold snap, Christmas tunes are dominating playlists at home. No less than four holiday-themed albums appear in the top 10 of the chart blast, led by Michael Buble’s Christmas (via Reprise), up 5-4.
All will be revealed when the weekly chart is published Friday.
Olly Murs lands his fifth U.K. No. 1 with Marry Me (EMI), which bows at No. 1.
Marry Me is the British singer and songwriter’s seventh album, with In Case You Didn’t Know (2011), Right Place Right Time (2012), Never Been Better (2014), 24 HRS (2016) and now Marry Me all reaching the summit of the weekly survey.
The X Factor alum brushed-off controversy surrounding the lyrics to album track “I Hate You When You’re Drunk” to lead at the halfway point, and then on Friday, Dec. 9 when the chart proper was published.
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Murs outpaces Taylor Swift‘s former leader Midnights (EMI), which lifts 3-2 on the latest survey, published Dec. 9.
Meanwhile, Atlanta recording artist and producer Metro Boomin blasts to No. 3 with Heroes & Villains (Island). That’s easily his highest charting album in the U.K., ahead of 2018’s Not All Heroes Wear Capes, which peaked at No. 16, and 2020’s Savage Mode II, a collaborative LP with 21 Savage that enjoyed a No. 10 best.
The U.K. singles chart is dominated by holiday singles, and, in particular, one “queen of Christmas.” It’s a similar tale on the albums survey, where festive sets by Cliff Richard (Christmas With Cliff down 2-4 via EastWest/Rhino), Michael Bublé (Christmas up 13-5 via Reprise), André Rieu and the Johann Strauss Orchestra (Silver Bells up 8-6 via Decca) and the Bocellis (A Family Christmas down 4-7 via Decca) impact the top 10.
As fans of Fleetwood Mac digest the sad news of Christine McVie’s death Nov. 30, aged 79, two of the Rock Hall-inducted band’s LPs appear in the U.K. top 20: Rumours (up 24-11 via Rhino/Warner Bros) and career retrospective 50 Years – Don’t Stop (up 23-15 via Rhino).
Finally, veteran electronic act Leftfield land in the top 20 with This Is What We Do (Virgin Music), their first studio album release in seven years. The duo (Neil Barnes and Adam Wren) have three previous top 10 appearances, starting with their classic debut from 1995’s Leftism (No. 3), followup Rhythm And Stealth in 1999 (No. 1) and 2015’s Alternative Light Source (No. 6).
The Christmas invasion is in full swing on the U.K. singles chart, as Mariah Carey‘s “All I Want For Christmas Is You” (via Columbia) returns to the summit.
Carey’s 1994 holidays classic took 26 years to reach No. 1 on the Official U.K. Singles Chart, a record-setting feat it finally achieved in 2020. It’s right back at the top, having returned to the top 40 earlier than usual.
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“All I Want For Christmas Is You” rockets 8-1, with 10.8 million streams during the latest cycle, the Official Charts Company reports, to unseat Taylor Swift’s “Anti-Hero” (down 1-5 via EMI) after six weeks.
It’s the second stint at No. 1 for Carey’s “Christmas,” which, in 2020, set a new mark for weeks spent in the top 40 before reaching the summit.
As the mercury dives in the U.K., Christmas songs warm the chart. No less than five yuletide numbers impact the top 10, including Wham’s “Last Christmas” (up 9-3 via RCA), Ed Sheeran & Elton John’s “Merry Christmas” (up 15-4 via Atlantic), Brenda Lee’s “Rockin’ Around The Christmas Tree” (up 18-6 via MCA) and Michael Buble’s “It’s Beginning To Look A Lot Like Christmas” (up 20-10 via Reprise).
A total of 24 Christmas songs, new and old, impact the top 40, published Dec. 9. It’s a list that includes Shakin’ Stevens’ “Merry Christmas Everyone” (up 26-12 via RCA), The Pogues ft. Kirsty MacColl’s “Fairytale of New York” (up 30-14 via Atlantic), Ariana Grande’s “Santa Tell Me” (up 28-16 via Republic Records), Kelly Clarkson’s “Underneath The Tree” (31-17 via RCA), Band Aid’s “Do They Know It’s Christmas?” (up 34-18 via Mercury) and Bobby Helms’ “Jingle Bell Rock” (up 36-19 via MCA).
The highest debut on the latest chart belongs to Raye, with “Escapism” (Human Re Sources) featuring 070 Shake. “Escapism” lifts 6-2, a new solo career high for the British singer and songwriter.
Grime star Stormzy bags a 14th top 10 single with “Firebabe” (0207/Merky), a ballad lifted from his third and latest No. 1 album, This Is What I Mean. “Firebabe” rises 11-9.
U.S. producer and artist Metro Boomin bags two top 40 debuts with “Creepin’” (via Republic Records) featuring The Weeknd and 21 Savage, new at No. 13, and “Superhero” “(Heroes & Villains)” with Future and Chris Brown, new at No. 39. Both appear on Metro Boomin’s new album Heroes & Villains.
Finally, Scottish singer and songwriter Lewis Capaldi scores a seventh top 40 appearance with “Pointless” (Vertigo), co-written with Ed Sheeran. It’s new at No. 20.
The queen of Christmas is here to reclaim her crown.
Based on midweek data published by the Official U.K. Charts Company, Mariah Carey’s classic “All I Want For Christmas Is You” (Columbia) is the race leader, lifting 8-1.
Proving that Brits are in the mood for the holiday season, Carey’s “Christmas” leads an all-yuletide top three on the midweek survey, ahead of Wham’s “Last Christmas” (RCA) and Ed Sheeran’s “Merry Christmas” (Atlantic), respectively.
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All three singles have led the Official U.K. Singles Chart, with “All I Want For Christmas Is You” and “Last Christmas” taking the long route to the top – and smashing records along the way.
Originally released in 1994, Carey’s “Christmas” finally reached the summit in December 2020 to complete a 26-year journey. According to the OCC, no other song has spent more weeks in the top 40 before reaching the top.
Wham’s enduring pop hit also set a new record when, last Christmas, the single was crowned for the first time in its 36-year history. No other track has taken such a long stroll to the chart apex, an effort that eclipsed the 33-year effort of Tony Christie’s “(Is This The Way To) Amarillo.”
As Christmas playlists around the country get a solid work out, holiday tunes flood the chart blast, including top 10 reentries for Brenda Lee (“Rockin’ Around The Christmas Tree” up 19-7 via MCA), Michael Buble (“It’s Beginning To Look A Lot Like Christmas” up 24-8 via Reprise) and Shakin’ Stevens (“Merry Christmas Everyone” up 29-10 via RCA), while musical gifts from the Pogues and Kirsty MacColl, Ariana Grande, Kelly Clarkson and Band Aid, Bobby Helms and Chris Rea are eying the top 20.
The highest new entry on the chart blast belongs to Lewis Capaldi with “Pointless” (Vertigo), at No. 18. Co-written with Ed Sheeran, it’s the second single taken from his upcoming studio LP Broken By Desire To Be Heavenly Sent, and it should give the Scottish artist his seventh top 40 appearance.
The Official U.K. Singles Chart is published late Friday.
Olly Murs‘ Marry Me (via EMI) is walking up the aisle for a U.K. No. 1.
The English pop singer’s seventh studio LP leads the midweek chart, and is heading for a fifth U.K. No. 1 following In Case You Didn’t Know (from 2011), Right Place Right Time (2012), Never Been Better (2014) and 24 HRS (2016).
The X Factor alum has brushed off controversy surrounding the lyrics to Marry Me song “I Hate You When You’re Drunk,” to take pole position on the Official Chart Update, ahead of Taylor Swift’s Midnights (EMI) and Cliff Richard’s Christmas With Cliff (EastWest/Rhino), respectively.
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Meanwhile, Atlanta hip-hop producer Metro Boomin could score a career-best with Heroes & Villains (Republic Records), his sophomore solo studio album. It’s new at No. 4 on the Official Chart Update.
Metro Boomin (real name Leland Tyler Wayne) previously impacted the chart with 2018’s Not All Heroes Wear Capes (No. 16) and 2020’s Savage Mode II with 21 Savage (No. 10).
Veteran British electronic music duo Leftfield could snag a fourth top 10 with This Is What We Do (Virgin Music), their first new studio record in seven years. It’s new at No. 8 on the chart blast. The duo of Neil Barnes and Adam Wren hit No. 3 with their classic debut from 1995, Leftism; No. 1 with 1999’s Rhythm And Stealth; and No. 6 with 2015’s Alternative Light Source.
BTS star RM’s solo debut Indigo (BigHit Entertainment) could enter the top 40 at the first attempt. It’s new at No. 27 on the chart blast. As a member of BTS, the South Korean rapper has enjoyed U.K. No. 1s with Map Of The Soul – Persona in 2019, and Map Of The Soul – 7 in 2020.
Christmas has already arrived on the U.K. charts, with several titles making an impression on the midweek albums survey.
Behind Cliff Richard’s first yuletide offering in almost 20 years is Michael Bublé’s Christmas (Reprise), which is on track for its annual return to the top 5, up 11-5; Andrea, Matteo and Virginia Bocelli’s A Family Christmas (Decca) dips 6-5; Andre Rieu & Johann Strauss Orchestra’s Silver Bells (Decca) is up 10-7; Aled Jones & Russell Watson’s Christmas With Aled & Russell (BMG) lifts 37-29; and the Corrs’ lead vocalist Andrea Corr could grab a solo career-best with The Christmas Album (Atlantic), new at No. 32 on the midweek chart.
Finally, Fleetwood Mac is staging a return to the top ten, following Christine McVie’s death Nov. 30, aged 79. The Rock Hall inductees’ 1977 LP Rumours (Rhino/Warner Bros) experiences a 200% week-on-week gain, and is on track for a top 10 return, up 28-9; while 50 Years – Don’t Stop (Rhino) could lift 29-14.
All will be revealed when the Official U.K. Albums Chart is published Friday.