OLLY MURS: ADD RADIO TO U.K. CHARTS

The debate over the U.K. Singles Chart is raging on in Blighty as battle lines draw wider between radio and streaming. Sony act Olly Murs has told Digital Spy the charts formula has prevented his latest single from reaching No.1. But is it really that simple?

Murs argues that the Official Charts Company should combine radio, streaming and download numbers. Their current formula doesn’t include radio. Murs’ latest single, “You Don’t Know Love” (RCA), peaked at #19, but has been #1 on the Radiomonitor charts for four weeks. It’s #17 on iTunes, and #47 on Spotify’s U.K. Top 50.

It’s not impossible to hit #1 on the U.K. Singles Chart straight out the bat, as Major Lazer and Drake have proved in recent months. It’s just easier to stay there for a long time if the public really gets behind a track, therefore leaving fewer opportunities to hit #1. The Official Charts’ Chairman Kevin Brown recently told MBW that adding radio airplay isn’t the answer, and more long-term A&R and sophisticated marketing is the key to breaking new acts.

The current Top 5 on the Radiomonitor charts are tracks that have already peaked on the Singles Chart. Would adding that data really better reflect what the public is choosing to listen to?