Harry Styles had the biggest song and album in the U.K. in 2022, with Ed Sheeran right behind him.
Styles’ “As it Was” (Columbia) was last year’s biggest-selling song, shifting 1.57m chart units since its arrival in April. The track was the longest-running #1 of the year, holding the top spot for 10 weeks. It’s also the most-streamed song of 2022—totaling over 180.9m audio and video streams—and was the bestseller in physical and digital sales with 65k.
Sheeran’s “Bad Habits” (Atlantic) came in second place with 1.18m in sales, followed by his collaboration with Fireboy DML, “Peru” (YBNL Nation/Empire/Island), at #3.
“Go” (RCA/Since 93) by breakthrough artist Cat Burns is #4, succeeded by another hit from Sheeran, “Shivers,” at #5. As noted in year-end consumption figures, 2022’s Top 10 singles all featured British artists for the first time in 50 years.
UMG had the most entries in the singles Top 10 with four, followed by Sony and Warner with three apiece.
On the Top 10 albums list, Styles’ Harry’s House won out with 460k. Of those, 160k were pure sales (150k physical and 10k downloads). Like its lead single, the album spent the most time of any full-length at #1 in 2022, tallying six nonconsecutive weeks at the top.
Sheeran’s = landed in second place with 433k in sales. Taylor Swift’s Midnights (EMI), which claimed the title of fastest-selling album overall after shifting over 417k units in less than three months, came next at #3.
The Weeknd’s The Highlights (Republic/Island) and SOUR (Geffen/Polydor) by Olivia Rodrigo complete the Top 5.
UMG has five albums in the Top 10; Sony and Warner have two each.
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