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Christmas Number 1 2022: LadBaby’s Food Aid takes early lead but hopes for fifth win challenged by Wham! and Mariah
It's all to play for in the biggest chart race of the year.
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LadBaby take an early lead with Food Aid in the race for the most important Number 1 of the year – the coveted Official Christmas Number 1 2022 – the Official Charts Company can confirm, but early data shows they’re in for a tussle.
Festive title holders Mark and Roxanne Hoyle have this year joined forces with money-saving expert Martin Lewis for Food Aid, to raise money for food bank charity The Trussell Trust and the Band Aid foundation. The highest entry of the week after 48 hours, Food Aid has so far racked up 27,000 chart sales according to Official Charts Company data, predominantly driven by pre-orders and downloads, putting them 16,000 units ahead of the nearest competition on tonight’s Official Chart First Look.
While it may sound like a promising lead, the duo are off to a relatively modest start compared to their previous campaigns. The daily trend indicates that holding off the sheer streaming might of Christmas classics by Wham!, Mariah Carey, Ed Sheeran & Elton John, along with the popularity of current releases from Stormzy, RAYE and Lizzo will prove a significant challenge for the internet stars in the latter half of the week as more streaming data arrives in.
Never one to be underestimated though, should LadBaby’s momentum accelerate enough to fend off their rivals however, they would become the first act in history to land a record-breaking fifth Christmas Number 1.
MORE: The Official contenders for Christmas Number 1 2022
Of the exciting race currently forming, Official Charts Company chief executive Martin Talbot said: “It’s that time of the year again, the big race for the Official Christmas Number One, and LadBaby has started the week out in front. But it already looks like it is going to be a tight race and one which will be worth keeping an eye on through the week.”
Christmas classics from Wham! and Mariah Carey are set to close the gap sharply as the week progresses. Last Christmas (2) and All I Want For Christmas Is You (3) have each hit the top spot this December already, with their biggest week of streams still to come as the UK reaches peak festive fever ahead of the big day. While both records missed out on Number 1 upon their original release in 1984 and 1994 respectively, they finally hit the top of the Official Singles Chart in recent years thanks to the enduring popularity on streaming platforms. Neither have ever managed to nab the coveted Christmas Number 1 however, could 2022 finally be their year? It looks more than possible based on the current forecast for the week ahead. Just 270 chart units separate the two on the Official Chart: First Look.
Trailing in fourth place after 48 hours is Ed Sheeran & Elton John’s successful 2021 bid to create a modern yuletide classic - Merry Christmas is less than 250 units behind queen of Christmas Mariah Carey. The chart-topping song was given a sausage roll rework last Christmas and went on to secure the festive top spot too with LadBaby.
Stormzy's Firebabe (5) continues its ascent up the chart, up three places after 48 hours and on track to break the Top 5 for the first time this Friday.
Lizzo’s Amazon Music Original track Someday At Christmas catapults a whopping 16 places since Friday, breaking into the Top 10 for the first time (6). RAYE’s Escapism slips four places midweek, currently riding at Number 7.
The second highest new midweek entry comes courtesy of a surprise new drop from Central Cee with Let Go at Number 11.
Just 175 chart sales outside of the Top 10 resides this year’s sweary political campaign from The K**ts with F*ck The Tories (12), another to keep an eye on as the week plays out, having successfully finished in the Top 5 in each of the past two years with Boris Johnson Is A F**king C**t (5) and 2021 follow-up Boris Johnson Is Still A F**king C**t (5).
Further down, touted as early race contenders Sidemen, the YouTube group featuring KSI, rise seven to Number 34 with Christmas Drillings.
And finally, the highest Top 40 climber of the week so far is Eurovision hero and reigning king of the Official Albums Chart, Sam Ryder, Jingle Bells surges 35 places northbound to crash into the midweek Top 40 at Number 31, while further down Mariah Carey, Ariana Grande and Jennifer Hudson’s Oh Santa shoots 47 spots to Number 43, and BBC Sound Of 2022 nominee Priya Ragu leaps 45 places to Number 46 with Rockin’ Around The Christmas Tree.
The 2022 Official Christmas Number 1 will be announced on Friday, December 23. The full Christmas Top 40 will be counted down on BBC Radio 1's Official Chart Show with Jack Saunders from 4pm.
The full Top 100 Official Christmas Singles Chart and Albums Chart will be published on OfficialCharts.com from 5.45pm.
Official Chart First Look Top 20 - December 18 2022
| LW | POS | TITLE | ARTIST |
| NE | 1 | FOOD AID | LADBABY |
| 1 | 2 | LAST CHRISTMAS | WHAM |
| 2 | 3 | ALL I WANT FOR CHRISTMAS IS YOU | MARIAH CAREY |
| 4 | 4 | MERRY CHRISTMAS | ED SHEERAN & ELTON JOHN |
| 8 | 5 | FIREBABE | STORMZY |
| 22 | 6 | SOMEDAY AT CHRISTMAS | LIZZO |
| 3 | 7 | ESCAPISM | RAYE FT 070 SHAKE |
| 5 | 8 | ROCKIN' AROUND THE CHRISTMAS TREE | BRENDA LEE |
| 9 | 9 | FAIRYTALE OF NEW YORK | POGUES FT KIRSTY MACCOLL |
| 7 | 10 | IT'S BEGINNING TO LOOK A LOT LIKE | MICHAEL BUBLE |
| NE | 11 | LET GO | CENTRAL CEE |
| NE | 12 | F**K THE TORIES | K**TS |
| 11 | 13 | JINGLE BELL ROCK | BOBBY HELMS |
| 16 | 14 | DO THEY KNOW IT'S CHRISTMAS | BAND AID |
| 21 | 15 | STEP INTO CHRISTMAS | ELTON JOHN |
| 14 | 16 | SANTA TELL ME | ARIANA GRANDE |
| 13 | 17 | MERRY CHRISTMAS EVERYONE | SHAKIN' STEVENS |
| 17 | 18 | UNDERNEATH THE TREE | KELLY CLARKSON |
| 6 | 19 | ANTI-HERO | TAYLOR SWIFT |
| 20 | 20 | DRIVING HOME FOR CHRISTMAS | CHRIS REA |
©2022 Official Charts Company. All rights reserved.
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Kelly trowell
Wow wow wow so many of you knocking the actual song are blind to what it is actually for!!!the Trussell trust food banks and band aid are to receive the profits from this. Remember if you need to use the food banks in this period of recession where they got the money to feed you!!!
RO
Roy Owens
if ladbaby get to number one again this year then the charts are rigged and people who made them number one are deaf and stupid.letting two idiots ruin a classic
thierry henon
No surprise there!! awful number 1 single on the way!! but so happy to see LIZZO at number 6 mid week!! hope she won't drop much by Friday as she was, last week at number 9 mid week but only made to number 22 but Friday!! Will be over the moon if she can claim her 3rd Top 10 this Friday!!
Matthew Sanctuary
Totally unfair and biased to put a direct link to the sausage roll scammer’s song in this article; when you of course know that this will generate more streams. It’s getting less streams this year because people are fed up with it; simple as that. Let someone else have a chance.
Blank
Who the are the people who still find it funny enough to bother buying it?!
It wasn't even that funny the first time.
LL
Lil Lou
its not about the song its about the charities
Blank
It's too easy to give to charity to make that an excuse. You don't need the record to give to charity, and it's already done it's publicity in the previous years.
Rob Parkinson
Wow still plenty of people who would rather have something for giving money to charity than just the pleasure of donating to charity without having something and without having to let the world know that they have given to charity. It defeats the object of being charitable when you receive something for it, kind of the reason they stopped sending celebrities to poor countries as its making a mockery of them paying loads of money to go over and for people with nothing to see somebody with everything gaining popularity on their account. You don't need a terrible download, to make record companies money and make YouTubers gain popularity to give money to charity please just donate direct so the charity gets all the money and you can feel like you actually helped a charity and nobody needs to know, you've helped and that is what charity is.
Tosyma
This is a mockery to Band Aid. LOL.
LL
Lil Lou
actually Band Aid Trust are getting 50% of the donations made from this years single.
R
River
Im sorry, but this is really annoying now. I mean come on, we haven't had a proper Christmas #1 in 5 years now, since 2017, it's ridiculous! And "Fees the UK", idk why they changed world to UK, pretty sure the rest of the world needs feeding to? I would rather have any of the other 99 songs be #1 this week, even if it's sidemen or heat waves! I'd rather have heat waves at #1 than ladbaby again!
Also glad to see The Kunts here :) Hope they can be top 10 by the end of the week!
GS
Sidemen have been in the top 5 on itunes since monday & have had streaming too, but they are not in this top 20.
The K**ts have had like 12 versions in the top 40 on itunes and are only at #12
Somehow, the amazon songs manage to get top 5/10 every year and they are only avaliable on amazon music, which barely anyone uses
It's all fake
Piran
It's all Amazon influenced! Friday's chart will look a lot different. 🤔
GS
lets hope so
rayever
Sidemen aren’t doing that great on streaming though, iirc it isn’t even top 40 + LadBaby had CD singles this year
Piran
Hopefully! That's what happened in previous First Looks anyway & this only takes into account a very small part of the tracking week. :)
rayever
plus The K**ts have done literally nothing on streaming (15K per version, although tbf LadBaby have only managed 85K streams)
Rob Parkinson
Amazon is used by more people than anybody, it just doesn't get used to play the most modern music throughout the year it plays all kinds of different older music but Xmas time then everybody listened to Christmas music so it effects the charts way more
Piran
The K**ts are lower than in the last couple years! 😬
I mean, say what you will about the song itself, but the title of it is probably what most of the country are thinking right now.
C
Conor
tbh they always climb by the end of the week. i think they'll be safe for top 10
Piran
I thought they would've been higher today since they had a lot of sales, but then again, the First Look is heavily Amazon-based, so I think they'll climb because of other tracks being knocked back. 🤔
rayever
it was hoping they didn’t have #1
C
Conor
luckily they have much smaller lead than last/ previous years so thats a good sign they might still get knocked off
rayever
Wham decreased the gap by 3K in a day so there’s still hope!
Piran
I really miss the days when the Christmas Number One race used to be exciting & unpredictable! 😔
Those sausage rolls are definitely past their sell-by date now...
C
Conor
they're fking mouldy
Piran
They need to be thrown out! 👀
Zimowski
oh, people always complain about christmas number one. They didn't like X Factor winners, they didn't like Clean Bandit, they don't like these people too... Why is it even so important? Or is British Christmas isn't British enough without complaining about something ridiculous
PeranW Media
It not about sausage rolls this year
Piran
The title might not mention them, but there are definitely a couple of references in the lyrics! 😩
Piran
Because that's my own personal opinion on it? If you enjoy it, then good for you.
Besides, at least with The X Factor winners, we had a different artist at #1 every year & some of them went onto achieve chart success beyond Christmas, same with Clean Bandit!
I've loved a lot of Christmas Numbers One over the years, even most recent ones, but 'Food Aid' is an awful song. :/
Personally, I'd love to see another NHS charity single top the chart like in 2015!
Funky Frazzled
Sausage rolls are still mentioned though. They can't seem to let them go.
Funky Frazzled
In addition to this, the singalong/karaoke video uses a sausage roll as your cue to follow the lyrics.
Piran
Oops, didn't know that, but yeah, what more proof do you need? 😅
Funky Frazzled
The contestants on The X Factor were kept under really tight contacts between Sony and SYCO (Simon Cowell). Former contestants have came out about their negative experiences on the programme, such as Zoe Alexander and Jedward.
LL
Lil Lou
I bet your fun at parties
Piran
you're*
GS
rigged
⁉️
we won