She’s Higher Than Heaven – Ellie Goulding scores the coveted Official Chart Double for the first time in her career today.
Thank you for reading this post, don't forget to subscribe!Ellie tops both the Official Singles and the Official Albums Chart this week, securing a second week at Number 1 with Calvin Harris collab Miracle, while her fifth album, dance opus Higher Than Heaven becomes her fourth chart-topping LP.
Higher Than Heaven joins Ellie’s other Number 1 records, debut Lights (2010), dark pop delight Halcyon (2012) and the introspective Brightest Blue (2020). Her maximalist pop epic Delirum also reached Number 3 in 2015.
With this newest chart-topper, Ellie now joins Adele as the British female solo artists with the most Number 1 albums to their name, with four apiece. Higher Than Heaven also ends the week as the biggest seller across independent record shops in the UK, topping the Official Record Store Chart.
And joining in on the fun is trance banger Miracle, Ellie’s high-octane trilogy-completing track with frequent collaborator Calvin Harris retains Number 1 on the Official Singles Chart for a second week, once more the most-streamed track in the country of the last 7 days.
Speaking exclusively to Official Charts while accepting her Number 1 Awards for the Official Chart Double, Ellie Goulding says: “Guys, I am so, so happy to be holding these two awards for Number 1 album and Number 1 single. I’m speechless. This has made me so happy.
“Thank you so much to everyone for supporting my album, buying it and streaming it, and for supporting Miracle. It’s such a lovely surprise. It’s been such a good day. Thank you so much, everybody!”
Albums
American rapper, singer-songwriter and producer NF nets a career-best as his sixth studio album HOPE debuts at Number 2. Prior to this, the Michigan export, born Nathan John Feuerstein, claimed two Top 40 records with 2019 release The Search (7) and 2021 mixtape Clouds (12).
The Weeknd’s greatest hits collection The Highlights lifts one back into the Top 3 this week (3). Just last week, The Highlights was revealed as the UK’s Official biggest album of 2023 so far.
Following the release of his candid Netflix documentary How I’m Feeling Now, Lewis Capaldi sees his debut LP Divinely Uninspired to a Hellish Extent leap 13 spots back into the Top 5 in its 204th week on chart (4). The record originally topped the chart upon its release in 2019 before spending ten non-consecutive weeks at Number 1.
As she continues to wow audiences stateside on The Eras Tour, four Taylor Swift albums experience a surge this week: 2022’s Midnights lifts one (5), 2014 release 1989 is up three (17), and 2019’s Lover (20) and 2020 LP folklore (25) both climb nine.
A 20th anniversary re-issue of Linkin Park’s second album Meteora sees the record vault back into the Top 10 at Number 7. This re-release of the group’s former Number 1 LP includes previously unreleased material featuring vocals from the late Chester Bennington, who died in 2017.
And, finally, indie folk trio Daughter celebrate a new career high with Stereo Mind Game (12). The group’s first studio album in seven years, it surpasses Elena Tonra, Igor Haefeli and Remi Aguilella’s previous success with 2013’s If You Leave (16) and 2016 release Not to Disappear (17). Stereo Mind Game also tops the Official Vinyl Albums Chart, proving the most popular record on wax this week.
Singles
Libianca’s breakthrough hit People reaches its highest position yet at Number 2, setting itself up as a potential challenger for Number 1 in the coming weeks.
Drake secures this week’s highest new entry on the Official Singles Chart with Search & Rescue (5). The viral rap track – which includes the voices of Kim Kardashian and Kris Jenner, igniting social media discussion – becomes the Canadian superstar’s 38th Top 10 entry in the UK.
Following the release of his emotional new Netflix documentary How I’m Feeling Now, three tracks by Lewis Capaldi race up the Top 40; Forget Me rockets into the Top 10 for the first time in nearly five months (8), Pointless scores a Top 20 re-entry (17), and title track How I’m Feeling Now boosts up 13 (24).
One of the biggest rising hits in the country right now, Bakar’s Hell N Back, leaps up eight spots to crack the Top 20 for the first time (20), while Zara Larsson’s Can’t Tame Her continues to gain ground, up two (25).
David Guetta, Anne-Marie and Players hitmaker Coi Leray are another new entry at Number 26 with Baby Don’t Hurt Me, which samples Haddaway’s influential 1993 house single What Is Love. It marks Leray’s second Top 40 single, Anne-Marie’s 17th, and David Guetta’s 46th.
Finally, two acts achieve their first ever UK Top 40 singles today; South Korean girl group Fifty Fifty with viral single Cupid (34), and – already a superstar in his native US – country singer-songwriter Morgan Wallen’s Last Night becomes his first major UK hit (35).
