U.K. CHARTS: KASABIAN HIT #1
Columbia rockers Kasabian (pictured) have knocked Ed Sheeran from the Official Albums top spot with 52k combined sales of For Crying Out Loud. On the singles list, Luis Fonsi, Daddy Yankee and Justin Bieber are top with “Despacito” (Polydor) securing 31k downloads and 6.2m streams.
The LP, Kasabian’s sixth, is their fifth #1 album in a row. The set finished 5k sales ahead of Sheeran with ÷ (Atlantic), whose stint at #1 has ended at nine. Will he return to the top?
The second-highest debut is Blondie with Pollinator (BMG) at #4 this week. It’s the band's first Top 15 in 18 years. Elsewhere, Rag’n’Bone Man is #3 with Human (Columbia), Gorillaz are #5 with Humanz (Parlophone) and Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds have their 5th U.K. Top 10 album with greatest hits Lovely Creatures (BMG) at #8.
On the Official Singles Chart, Fonsi and Yankee are the first Puerto Rican artists to score a #1 single since 1999 when Ricky Martin (remember him, ladies?) spent three weeks at #1 with “Livin’ La Vida Loca.”
Taking second place is another Bieber collaboration—“I’m the One” (Black Butter/Def Jam) by DJ Khaled, Quavo and Chance the Rapper.
Clean Bandit move down one place with “Symphony” (Atlantic) f/Zara Larsson, followed by “Shape of You” (Atlantic) by Sheeran. Shawn Mendes secures his second Top 5 hit, as “There’s Nothing Holdin’ Me Back” (Virgin EMI) rises two places to #5.
