Chart Beat
Iron Maiden Battles Drake For U.K. Chart Crown
In the first half of the cycle, 8,000 combined sales separate the two albums, according to the OCC. Bruce Dickinson and Co. have five U.K. No. 1 albums from a 40-year career, with their latest two studio LPs Final Frontier (from 2010) and The Book of Souls (2015) going-back-to-back. Meanwhile, Drake has three career U.K. No. 1 albums and, with CLB, he should snag his tenth Top 10. Coming in at No. 3 on the albums chart blast is London rapper Little Simz’s Sometime I Might Be Introvert (Age 101), while Newcastle rockers The Wildhearts are set for a career high with 21st Century Love Songs (Graphite), new at No. 4 on the midweek chart. Kanye West’s Donda (Def Jam) falls 1-5, as ABBA’s Gold (Polydor) is fueled by the Swedish pop greats’ comeback announcement and the release of two songs. The ...
Remembering Sarah Harding and Her U.K. Chart Hits With Girls Aloud
Sarah Harding, who died on Sunday (Sept. 5) after a battle with breast cancer, aged just 39, left behind a massive impression on the U.K. charts as part of the pop outfit Girls Aloud. The five-piece, consisting of Harding, Kimberley Walsh, Nadine Coyle, Nicola Roberts and Cheryl Cole, was a pop juggernaut through the noughts, collecting four Official Chart U.K. No. 1s singles and 21 Top 10s. Twenty of those Top 10s were consecutive — a feat no female group has come close to matching, and the singers’ roaring success was confirmed by Guinness World Records, which in 2011 declared Girls Aloud as the “Most Successful Reality TV Group”. You Deserve to Make Money Even When you are looking for Dates Online. So we reimagined what a dating should be. It begins with giving y...
Halsey Scores Third No. 1 on Billboard’s Top Album Sales Chart With ‘If I Can’t Have Love, I Want Power’
The new Sept. 11, 2021-dated chart (where If I Can’t Have Love debuts at No. 1) will be posted in full on Billboard‘s website on Sept. 8, one day later than usual, owed to the Labor Day holiday in the U.S. on Monday, Sept. 6. For all chart news, follow @billboard and @billboardcharts on both Twitter and Instagram. Of If I Can’t Have Love’s sales of nearly 70,500 in the week ending Sept. 2, physical album sales comprise just over 52,500 (with 25,300 on vinyl, 27,200 on CD and a negligible sum on cassette) and 18,000 via digital download. If I Can’t Have Love also debuts at No. 1 on Billboard’s Vinyl Albums chart. It additionally starts at No. 1 on the Tastemaker Albums chart, which ranks the top-selling albums of the week at independent and small chain record stores, having sold ...
Kanye West’s ‘Donda’ Debuts at No. 1 In U.K.
Also new to the Official U.K. Albums Chart is Maisie Peters’s debut album You Signed Up For This (Gingerbread Man), which starts at No. 2, while Scottish synth-pop outfit Chvrches bow at No. 4 with Screen Violence (Virgin), their fourth studio effort. Halsey completes the Top 5 with If I Can’t Have Love I Want Power (EMI), her fourth LP. It’s the U.K.’s best-selling album on vinyl in the latest cycle. British singer and songwriter Becky Hill enjoys a Top 10 start with her debut Only Honest At The Weekend (Polydor), new No. 7, while KSI’s All Over The Place (BMG) vaults 20-10 following the release of a deluxe edition. With ABBA making a much-hyped comeback, fans of the Swedish pop legends are digging for Gold. ABBA’s Greatest Hits (Polydor) lifts 14-12 following news of their new...
ABBA Eyeing Return to U.K. Top 10
Both songs have been streamed over 500,000 times this weekend, the OCC reports, and “Don’t Shut Me Down” is the most downloaded song so far this week. The tracks, should they hold their momentum, will mark ABBA’s first U.K. Top 10 singles since “One Of Us”, which peaked at No. 3 in December 1981. The two new singles are taken from Voyage, ABBA’s first new studio album in 39 years, due out Nov. 5. The foursome will support the LP with a 2022 concert event, featuring avatars of Agnetha, Björn, Benny and Anni-Frid, accompanied by a 10-piece live band, in a custom-built arena at Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park, East London. Tickets go on sales Tuesday (Sept. 7). Currently, ABBA has nine U.K. No. 1 singles and 19 Top 10s. They’ve also landed nine No. 1 albums in the territory. Meanwhile, Dra...
Kanye West Lands 10th No. 1 Album on Billboard 200 Chart With ‘Donda’
Donda keeps up a hot streak for West on the Billboard 200, as he once again ties Eminem for the most No. 1 debuts in a row on the chart. Donda is West’s 10th straight charting album to bow atop the list. Eminem earned his 10th straight No. 1 debut with his last release, Music to Be Murdered By in 2020. (Overall, Jay-Z has the most debuts at No. 1, with 14, although they were not consecutive.) West also ties Eminem for the most consecutive No. 1 albums on the Billboard 200, each with 10. Both West and Eminem have only missed No. 1 once in their chart careers on the Billboard 200, each with their debut chart effort. West peaked at No. 2 with The College Dropout in 2004, and Eminem peaked at No. 2 with The Slim Shady LP in 1999. Donda was surprise-released on an off-cycle Sunday, Aug. 29 (ins...
Pepe Aguilar’s ‘Jaripeo Sin Fronteras’ Tour Hits the Road With Billboard Chart Hits
The 18-date experience, starting on Friday (Sept. 3), features Aguilar family members, Banda MS & El Mariachi “El Zacatecano.” Pepe Aguilar‘s enthusiasts are in for a treat as the Tejano singer-songwriter returns with the Jaripeo Sin Fronteras 2021 tour, resuming Friday night (Sept. 3) at the Honda Center in Anaheim, Calif., and traveling through 17 other cities before wrapping Dec. 5 in San Jose, Calif. Produced by Live Nation, the tour picks up after its run in the U.S. and Mexico in 2018-19. The 18-date leg sports a crew of 150, including 40 stage musicians, backed by Aguilar’s band El Mariachi “El Zacatecano,” the musical accompaniment of Sinaloa’s Banda MS and his brother Antonio Aguilar, daughter Angela Aguilar and son Leonardo Aguilar. T...
Elton John Makes Record Return to Pop Airplay Chart With Dua Lipa Mash-Up ‘Cold Heart’
And, the No. 1 song on Pop Airplay at the time of John’s last visit until this week? Savage Garden’s “Truly Madly Deeply,” which took over for Chumbawamba’s “Tubthumping.” John never got knocked down: He’s grossed $1.27 billion in touring since the start of 1998, according to Billboard Boxscore; tallied four top 10 albums on the Billboard 200 in that span; and, in 2019, he celebrated the release of his hit musical biopic Rocketman. But, he’s certainly back up again at pop radio. “Top 40 thrives when it’s diverse, and listens to its audience,” says Alex Tear, SiriusXM and Pandora vp of pop music and programming. “We’re excited to have Sir Elton John back.” In “Cold Heart,” released Aug. 13 ...
Shontelle Norman-Beatty Tops Gospel Airplay Chart With Debut Single ‘Jesus Will Fix It’
“Having a No. 1 record is an amazing feeling,” Norman-Beatty, who began singing at age 2, tells Billboard. “The past few years have been challenging. From battling and overcoming the coronavirus to losing my mom and my brother, both to COVID-19, life has been difficult. Despite all the things that I have been through, God has been good to me.” Norman-Beatty scores the second rookie No. 1 on Gospel Airplay within three weeks. On the chart dated Aug. 21, Melvin Crispell, III reigned with “Wonderful Is Your Name.” Until this week, the last time a woman and no accompanying artists topped Gospel Airplay in a first visit to the chart was in May 2020 when Nia Allen’s “Wait (2020)” led for a week. ‘HOUSE’ MUSIC Phil Wickham earns hi...
Bad Bunny Scores His 15th No. 1 on Latin Airplay Chart With ‘Yonaguni’
“Yonaguni” marks Bad Bunny’s fourth Latin Airplay leader without another artist among his compendium of 15 No. 1s. It follows three in 2020: “Vete” (one week at No. 1, March 14), “La Dificil” (one, August) and “Yo Perreo Sola” (two, June). Bad Bunny first led Latin Airplay for a week in February 2018 as featured on Becky G’s “Mayores,” also his first chart entry. He logged his longest stay at the summit to-date with “Mia,” featuring Drake, for six weeks starting in December 2018. Over on Hot Latin Songs, “Yonaguni” remains at No. 4, led by 7.6 million U.S. streams in the week ending Aug. 26. You Deserve to Make Money Even When you are looking for Dates Online. So we reimagined what a dating...
Chvrches Leads Maisie Peters, Kanye West In U.K. Albums Chart Race
Close behind on the chart blast is Maisie Peters’ debut studio album You Signed Up For This (Gingerbread Man), new at No. 2. Meanwhile, Kanye West’s long-delayed Donda (Def Jam) album comes in at No. 3, a solid start despite its late release on Sunday (instead of the typical Friday drop), and the fact it’s not available in physical formats. According to the OCC, Donda is leading on both downloads and streaming, and if it can lift to the top spot when the chart is published this Friday (Sept. 3), it’ll mark West’s third U.K. No. 1 album. Closing out an all-new midweek Top 5 is Halsey’s fourth studio effort, If I Can’t Have Love I Want Power (EMI), and Becky Hill’s debut Only Honest On The Weekend (Polydor), respectively. Just 2,000 chart sales currently separate the Top 5, the OCC rep...
Ed Sheeran’s ‘Bad Habits’ Racing to 10th Week Atop U.K. Chart
“Bad Habits,” lifted from Sheeran’s forthcoming LP = (equals), is his second-longest reigning single in the U.K. behind only “Shape of You,” which ruled the U.K. chart for 14 weeks back in 2017. Meanwhile, Joel Corry and Jax Jones’ club tune “Out Out,” with assists from Charli XCX and Saweetie, lifts 10-5 on the Official Chart: First Look, which ranks singles based on streaming and sales activity in the first 48 hours of the chart week. Also, Tones And I’s “Fly Away” looks set for its first stint in the Top 10, lifting 13-9 on the chart blast, while “Butter” by BTS could return to the weekly survey following the release of a version featuring Megan Thee Stallion. It’s at No. 14 on the early tally. The Official U.K. Singles Chart is published late Friday, local time. You Deserve to Make Mon...
