Ed Sheeran’s ‘X’ the U.K.’s Best-Seller for 2014…So Far
British talent dominates the top 10, with Pharrell Williams the only foreigner making the cut.
Ed Sheeran’s X is the best-selling artist album in the U.K. so far this year.
Music sales tracker The Official Charts Company said the release leads the charts after the first nine months of the year with more than 634,000 copies sold, ahead of Sam Smith’s debut album In the Lonely Hour (487,000 copies) and Coldplay’s Ghost Stories (470,000 copies).
Ed Sheeran Backstage Q&A at iHeartRadio Music Festival 2014
Released in June, X became the singer’s second chart-topping album in Britain and spent eight weeks on the top of the country’s albums charts. It sold more than 182,000 copies during its first week alone. Sheeran was recently booked to perform at the MTV EMAs in Glasgow in November.
The Official Charts Company quoted Sheeran as saying: “I’m so happy people have been enjoying my album so much…Looking forward to playing it live to my U.K. fans when the tour starts next week!”
Overall, British acts dominate the top of the album charts after the first three quarters. The Official Charts Company said that 90 percent of the top 10 sellers of the year are from the U.K., with only one international act, Pharrell Williams, making the cut. His hit “Happy” recently became the most downloaded track ever in the U.K.
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Coldplay had led the album charts as of mid-year. Rounding out the top five are Paolo Nutini’s Caustic Love (440,000 copies sold) and Paloma Faith’s A Perfect Contradiction (342,000).
Other high-ranking releases from female stars include Ellie Goulding’s Halcyon in the sixth spot, Beyonce’s Beyonce in the 11th and Dolly Parton’s Blue Smoke in the 12th spot.
This article originally appeared in THR.com.
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