Kylie Minogue’s Tension (BMG) is outselling the rest of the U.K. Official Albums Top 30 combined at today’s halfway point. Over on singles, Kenya Grace is challenging Doja Cat.
Tension should afford Minogue her ninth chart-topping LP on Friday.
Doja Cat’s Scarlet (Ministry of Sound) is new at #3 today, while STRENGTH TO STRENGTH (One Thousand8) by Headie One and K-Trap is set for a #4 debut.
Teenage Fanclub are at #5 with Nothing Lasts Forever (PEMA) and Bakar’s Halo (Black Butter) is #8.
On the U.K.’s Official Singles midweeks, “Paint the Town Red” (Ministry of Sound) by Doja Cat is still #1. However, with “Strangers” (FFRR) by Kenya Grace rising one place to #2, the top spot is in play.
Tom Odell looks set to earn this week’s highest new entry with “Black Friday” (UROK) on track to land at #15.
The title track from blink-182’s upcoming album, ONE MORE TIME (Columbia), could score the band their highest-charting single in 19 years at #17.
Busted have earned their first U.K. Official Albums #1 with Greatest Hits 2.0 (Absolute Label Services). Over on singles, Doja Cat claims a third week at the summit.
Busted, with 78% of the album's tally being physical sales, make it to the top 20 years after their debut. The set is accompanied by an anniversary U.K. arena tour.
At #2 is last week’s #1, GUTS (Geffen) by Olivia Rodrigo, which is the most-streamed LP of the last seven days. Mitski lands a career best at #4 with The Land Is Inhospitable and So Are We (Dead Oceans).
Ash’s Race the Night (Fierce Panda) debuts at #14, their highest charting set in 19 years. Corey Taylor’s CMF2 (BMG) is his second solo Top 20, at #17.
A 50th anniversary reissue of The Who’s chart-topping '71 album, Who’s Next (Polydor), is #18 today.
On the U.K.’s Official Singles Chart, “Paint the Town Red” (Ministry of Sound) by Doja Cat scores a third consecutive week at #1 with 6.2m streams.
“Strangers” (FFRR) from breakout singer and producer Kenya Grace is up nine places to #3. cassö, RAYE and D-Block Europe’s “Prada” (Ministry of Sound) is also on the rise, jumping one to #4.
Tate McRae’s “greedy” (RCA) is this week’s highest new entry at #8. Drake and SZA’s “Slime You Out” (Republic) is another debut at #10.
Busted look set to earn their first U.K. Official Albums #1 with Greatest Hits 2.0 (Juno Music). Over on singles, Doja Cat is still on top.
Busted lead a number of new entries on today’s midweek albums chart.
Mitski could claim a career best with The Land is Inhospitable and So Are We (Dead Oceans) at #3. Corey Taylor’s CMF2 (BMG) starts at #4 followed by Thirty Seconds to Mars’ It’s the End of the World but it’s a Beautiful Day (Concord).
At #6 is a 50th anniversary release of The Who’s chart-topping '71 album Who’s Next (Polydor). The record could return to the Top 10 for the first time since its year of release.
Other new entries in today’s Top 10 are The Pretenders at #7 with Relentless (Parlophone); Ash’s Race the Night (Fierce Panda) at #8; and Steve Hackett’s recording of Foxtrot at Fifty + Hackett Highlights: Live in Brighton (InsideOutMusic) at #10.
Madison Beer is aiming for a U.K. career best with Silence Between Songs (Epic) starting at #12.
On the U.K.’s Official Singles midweeks, “Paint the Town Red” (Ministry of Sound) by Doja Cat looks set for a second week at #1.
Breakout singer and producer Kenya Grace could score her first Top 5 single with “Strangers” (FFRR) rising nine to #3. cassö, RAYE and D-Block Europe’s “Prada” (Ministry of Sound) is set to jump one to #4. Tate McRae’s “Greedy” (RCA) is expected to debut at #9.
Academy Music Group has been permitted to retain its license of London’s Brixton Academy. It can reopen the venue after meeting a number of conditions.
The decision was made by the venue’s local authority, Lambeth Council, which outlined 77 “extensive and robust” conditions it must meet in order to promote public safety, according to a BBC report.
Conditions include stronger doors, more detailed risk assessments, and a new ticketing system, crown management system and security and management.
They are designed to avoid a repeat of the crowd crush at an Asake gig in December, which resulted in two deaths and the venue’s license being suspended. Last week, AMG's future running of the academy was hanging in the balance after the MET Police recommended a different operator take over during a two-day hearing.
The academy will reopen with a series of test events.
Olivia Rodrigo claims her second U.K. Official Albums #1 with GUTS (Geffen) while Doja Cat has a second week at the top of singles.
GUTS is the best-selling and most-streamed album of the week with 60.3k chart sales. It outsold the rest of the Top 10 combined. The set scores Rodrigo the fourth-biggest opening week for an album in 2023 so far, following releases by Lewis Capaldi, Ed Sheeran and Taylor Swift.
Holding strong at #2 is Travis Scott’s former #1, Utopia (Epic), followed by The Coral’s Sea of Mirrors (Modern Sky/Run On), a new entry at #3.
Roisin Murphy’s sixth set, Hit Parade (Ninja Tune), is #5, while The Chemical Brothers’ For That Beautiful Feeling (EMI) bows at #6. M Huncho’s My Neighbours Don’t Know (EGA) lands at #9.
On the U.K.’s Official Singles Chart, “Paint the Town Red” (Ministry of Sound) by Doja Cat is still #1.
Rodrigo completes the Top 3 with “vampire” at #2 and “bad idea right?” at #3. She also has this week’s highest new entry with “get him back!” debuting at #7.
“adore u” (Atlantic) by Fred again.. and Obongjayar rises to a new high, up five places to #4; Cassö, RAYE and D-Block Europe’s “Prada” (Ministry of Sound) jumps two to #5.
Outside the Top 10, Kenya Grace rises eight with “Strangers” (Warner Records) to #12, while Troye Sivan’s “Rush” (EMI) claims a new peak at #21.
European independent music body IMPALA has raised concerns with Deezer and UMG’s proposals for an artist-centric streaming model, saying the plans could lead to a “two-tier” market.
After the unveiling of the plans, which aim to create a streaming model that better rewards artists, IMPALA members have raised several questions. The org is concerned that the model could negatively impact the work of independent labels (who it says account for 80% of new releases), as well as label decisions on which services they choose to deal with.
IMPALA also points to the exclusive nature of the plans, “developed in a vacuum with a market leader instead of the sector generally,” as a source of contention. Unless other stakeholders agree, the org says it doesn’t see how the proposal could apply outside of UMG repertoire.
IMPALA’s Executive Chair Helen Smith welcomed “Deezer’s commitment to improve the streaming market” while noting “it will be interesting to see the modelling and understand if this has been discussed with other stakeholders, as well as with regulators.
“The gap between bigger and less-streamed artists should be addressed and our plan sets out a number of different ways to achieve that. If Deezer’s approach were to create a two-tier market that would have a negative impact on our members, that would not be good for diversity.”
IMPALA has its own 10-point plan to improve streaming, which includes using AI to detect fraud, increasing subscription prices and for labels to increase digital royalty rates for artists.
AIM CEO Silvia Montelllo said: “AIM welcomes efforts to review the current streaming economics model. But whilst there are many positives to takeaway, including Deezer’s continued intention to combat streaming fraud, boosting royalties for artists who meet certain consumption thresholds could encourage a ‘two-tier system’ that would disadvantage those navigating the first steps of their careers or working within emerging genres. Considering these proposals were agreed without industry consultation, more collaboration and transparency around modelling is needed to ensure they work for rightsholders operating at all levels of the business.”
London’s Brixton Academy could reopen under a new operator with the MET Police recommending a replacement of Academy Music Group following the crowd crush at Asake’s gig last year.
The future of the venue, which has remained closed since December, was debated at a licensing hearing in London this week. There, the MET Police said it didn’t believe AMG should continue as the licensee, without going further into the reasons.
The local council, however, said it supported Brixton Academy’s reopening under AMG “in principle” as long as certain conditions are met, among them a new entry system and barriers on the adjacent highway to better manage crowd control.
The crush at the Asake concert resulted in two deaths after reports said that thousands of fans tried to force their way in, leading to overcrowding.
Since then, AMG has overhauled its security procedure, installing stronger doors, a “better” queuing system and “more secure” ticketing. A petition to keep the 5k capacity venue has reached more than 115k signatures. A decision on the venue's future should be made next week.
Anti-secondary ticketing campaign group FanFair Alliance is urging the U.K. Government to adopt new legislation to outlaw the resale of tickets for profit.
A host of music business companies support the campaign, among them managers and teams for Ed Sheeran, Arctic Monkeys, PJ Harvey, Noel Gallagher, Iron Maiden, Pixies and Biffy Clyro.
FanFair is also urging Google and other online platforms to stop promoting ticket touts. It’s calling on the live music industry to boost consumer-friendly resale services, making it easier for fans to resell tickets for the price they paid or less.
Proposed legislation would mirror similar laws in countries such as Ireland, France and Australia.
FanFair Alliance campaign manager Adam Webb said that despite “substantial progress” to improve online ticket touting in the U.K. since the group was launched in 2016, “it is now clear we need a reset.”
“We need fresh legislation and fresh thinking, ending once and for all the parasitical practices of online ticket touts, while doing more to proactively promote capped consumer-friendly ticket resale. The U.K. is rightly proud of its live music culture, and this is an area we should and could be leading the world."
