Los Angeles: Former One Direction singer Harry Styles successfully beat Ed Sheeran on The UK’s Top Hits of 2022 chart with his best-selling track ‘As It Was’.
‘As It Was’ became the most listened-to single of the year in the UK, according to the British Phonographic Industry (BPI), based on its analysis of Official Charts Company data. It was streamed 180.9 million times and spent ten consecutive weeks at No.1 in the U.K. and 15 weeks at the top spot on the Billboard Hot 100, a new record for a British artist, reports aceshowbiz.com.
Official Charts’ website also stated that Styles “leads an all-British takeover of the Top 10 biggest tracks of the year in the U.K., marking the first time in 50 years that all ten of the year’s most successful singles were released by British artists.”
In the meantime, Ed bagged the second and third spots on the list with his singles ‘Bad Habits’ and ‘Peru’, a collaboration with Nigerian artist Fireboy DML. He also secured the fifth spot with his song ‘Shivers’.
London-born singer ‘Cat Burns’ single ‘Go’ is in fourth place after it went viral on TikTok, while Kate Bush’s 1985 classic ‘Running Up That Hill’ is in sixth place after it made a surprising chart return when it featured in Netflix show ‘Stranger Things’.
Oxford-based Glass Animals sleeper hit ‘Heat Waves’ took No. 7 and former ‘Britain’s Got Talent’ contestant Calum Scott’s collaboration with Belgian artist Lost Frequencies on ‘Where Are You Now’ finished eighth. The Top 10 is rounded off by Scottish duo LF System’s ‘Afraid To Feel’ and singer Sam Fender’s Ivor Novello-winning song ‘Seventeen Going Under’.
This success by British artists comes as the UK recorded music consumption increased for the eighth consecutive year in 2022, with annual audio streaming figures breaking through the 150 billion mark for the first time in the UK.
“At a time when streaming has created unprecedented competition coming from every corner of the globe, it is astonishing that in 2022 British artists were involved in all of the Top 10 calendar year’s biggest hits in the U.K.,” said BPI’s Leon Neville.
“This outstanding achievement is a testament to the rich music talent that continues to emerge from across the U.K.’s nations and regions, fuelled by the passion, investment and skills of U.K. record labels.”
–IANS