King Harry has a certain ring about it. And if his debut album continues to perform well in the days ahead, Harry Styles will indeed be crowned king of the U.K. albums survey.
The British singer is hurtling towards No. 1 on the U.K. Albums Chart at the first attempt without his One Direction bandmates. According to the Official Charts Company, Harry (Columbia) is 24,000 equivalent sales ahead of the No. 2-ranked set at the midweek point of the chart week, Ed Sheeran’s Divide (Asylum).
Styles, who has kicked off a weeklong residency on James Corden's Late Late Show, is no stranger to life at the top. As a member of 1D, Styles hit No. 1 on the U.K. albums chart on four occasions (the band’s debut Up All Night is their only album to miss the summit; it peaked at No. 2). Styles’ debut solo album includes “Sign Of The Times,” which opened at No. 1 on the Official Singles Chart last month. 1D also hit the summit of the singles chart on four separate occasions.
Also opening high on the Official Albums Chart Update are Paramore’s After Laughter (Atlantic/Fueled By Ramen) at No. 3, and Paul Weller’s A Kind Revolution (Parlophone) at No. 4 while Rag'N'Bone Man’s former chart-leader Human (Best Laid Plans/Columbia) is at No. 5.
The race for the U.K. singles chart title is led by last week’s No. 1, Luis Fonsi and Daddy Yankee's “Despacito” (Def Jam/RBMG/Republic/UMLE). “Despacito” holds at No. 1 on the Official Singles Chart Update with a 13,000 combined chart sales advantage over DJ Khaled’s “I'm The One” (Black Butter/Def Jam) in the midweek sales flash, while Styles’ “Sign Of The Times” surges to No. 3. With a No. 7 entry on the midweek singles chart, Miley Cyrus’ “Malibu” (RCA) is the week’s best performing new title.
The U.K. singles and albums charts are published every Friday.
