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Ed Sheeran and Elton John’s Merry Christmas secures second week as the UK’s Number 1 single, as #XmasNo1 race officially begins
It's a record-breaking week for Christmas songs this week!
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Ed Sheeran and Elton John’s Merry Christmas enters its second week at Number 1 on the Official Singles Chart today, and its sights seem set on next week’s Official Christmas Number 1 - the biggest and most exciting chart battle of the year.
With a rework of the song by LadBaby - titled Sausage Rolls For Everyone - released today, the track features both Ed and Elton, meaning the pair double their chances of clinching a taste of Christmas Number 1 victory, either in their own right or on LadBaby’s sausage roll-themed recreation.
For LadBaby, it would be their fourth consecutive Christmas chart-topper, and break a long-held Official Charts record (the YouTube duo currently tie The Beatles and Spice Girls with three apiece). See the full list of this year’s Christmas Number 1 contenders here.
MORE: The race for 2021's Christmas Number 1 has begun!
New chart record as 24 Christmas songs land in the Official Singles Chart Top 40
Meanwhile, despite the Christmas party season hanging in question right now, Official Charts Company data shows that the British public are remain keen to usher in some festive cheer regardless. A new all-time chart record is set this week as a total of 24 Christmas songs land in the Official Singles Chart Top 40 - the most ever featured in the chart a week prior to the Official Christmas Number 1 race.
Inside the Top 10 today, hits by Wham! (3), Mariah Carey (4), Shakin’ Stevens (6) and The Pogues featuring Kirsty MacColl (7) all hold steady from last week, while Brenda Lee’s Rockin’ Around The Christmas Tree is up two to Number 8.
The sole non-festive gainer in the Top 10 this week comes courtesy of Sam Fender, who comes crashing back into the upper echelons of the chart with Seventeen Going Under, rebounding six places to Number 9.
Outside the Top 10, George Ezra’s Amazon exclusive track Come On Home For Christmas reaches a new peak this week, vaulting 11 to Number 15. At Number 17 it’s Chris Rea, up 10 with Driving Home For Christmas.
There are further jumps for Wizzard’s I Wish It Could Be Christmas Everyday (22), Bobby Helms and Jingle Bell Rock (26), Paul McCartney’s Wonderful Christmastime (27), Leona Lewis’ modern classic One More Sleep (28), Slade’s Merry Xmas Everybody (30) John Lennon and Yoko Ono’s Happy Xmas (War Is Over) (34) and The Ronettes’ Sleigh Ride (35). Olivia Dean’s The Christmas Song reaches a new peak (38) and entering the Top 40 for the first time this year are Michael Buble’s Holly Jolly Christmas (39) and Jose Feliciano’s Feliz Navidad (40).
Finally, two non-festive risers are present in the Top 40 this week. D Block Europe and AJ Tracey jump 17 to Number 25 with Make You Smile - D-Block Europe’s 19th Top 40 song and AJ Tracey’s 17th - and Imagine Dragons’ League of Legends anthem Enemy with JID rises three spots to Number 37.
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Greg
Can someone explain the appeal of Ladbaby? I'm American, so type slow. I mean, it's as if Weird Al popped in every December 18th for a week, hit #1, then crawled back under a rock. Do people actually "like" them? Or just like to hate them? Shouldn't their 15 minutes of fame have expired, like, 45 minutes ago? Please advise.
C
Cat
They are not a significant part of British culture. They aren't on TV or anything. It seems to be a YouTube thing. I'm 26 and have never encountered their YouTube videos and I have never heard their music played anywhere. I don't know anyone who buys it. Not sure what their market is, but they clearly have one. Maybe it's little kids, but I suspect it's Facebook mums and dads who are buying this.
It's a charity record, so I can only imagine people are just buying the track rather than streaming it or actually listening to it. Sales count more than streams in the chart, I believe. Unlike in America, the British singles charts are often topped by charity records. Well-wishers buy them and play it once maybe, but I don't know how it works now there is streaming. Very occasionally, they are actual legit pop cultural artefacts that are played by people, like Amarillo or BandAid, but LadBaby isn't in that camp. I guess a good chunk of people must actually stream the track like it's a real song, which blows my mind.
I have just listened to this year's offering; it's the first time I have heard Ladbaby. For an artist that has been recording music every year and has roped in serious musicians like Ed and Elton, it shocks me how cheap-sounding and poorly produced the track is. I imagined they would sing over the instrumental backing track from the Ed and Elton single, but, no, it sounds like something out of a karaoke bar.
I feel as if this might be the year they don't manage to top the chart, because I cannot understand why anyone would listen to an alternative - objectively worse - version of the current number one song, which is already a charity record itself.
Greg
Thank you. That was as thorough an answer as I could have hoped for. It's certainly ok to buy a charity single. It's another thing to feel like you got taken in the process, or like a fool for doing so.
Daryl Grant Rideout
They are Mark and Roxanne a couple of jokesters on youtube, %100 of the proceeds goes to support the food banks in the UK. Its a charity song. It has nothing to do about professionalism, it has to do with charity.BTW they now have a record for most #1 christmas time song so They are clearly doing something right . Ed and Elton got in on the number 1 action.
NN
Nu No
The UK chart is becoming ridiculous!
Never before so many christmas songs charted. As streaming gains power on the charts the more "holiday"/events influenced the charts became.
On sales charts only 1 older christmas song is inside the TOP 10 (at #10) and only 2 older christmas songs are inside the TOP 20. Of course the new Ed Sheeran and Elton John song is also at #01 on Single Sales Chart (that is the same way the charts were done before including streaming).
Sure streaming is important but 80% of the strreams are as passive as radio plays and replaces it coming from streams playlists.
Charts are giving streams so much value that in when we get to 10 years streams we will have more equivalent sales in streams than in real sales since the 50's!!!! That's how insane this is! But in value each stream equivalent single gives 20 to 60 times less money than a song pure sale!!! (depending on price and if it's download or physical sales).
C
Cat
I guess Christmas songs are being streamed because it's Christmas. When it's not Christmas, people will stream non-Christmas songs. Please remain calm.
Piran
Seven Christmas songs in the Top 10 & ‘Seventeen Going Under’ is back in the region yet again! 😍
We love to see it. :)