Gayle surging towards her first UK Number 1 single with abcdefu on Official Singles Chart

Thanks to a post-Christmas lull, many tracks are lifting up the Official Singles Chart to new peaks - and Gayle's viral hit abcdefu is leading the pack.
gayle_2021_press.jpeg

17 year-old rising US pop star Gayle is heading towards her first UK Number 1 single, as break-up anthem abcdefu surges up the Official Singles Chart.

As Christmas songs vacate the chart this week, abcdefu which rose to popularity on TikTok looks set to gain heavily, it first entered the chart seven weeks ago before peaking at Number 2 in December. The Texas-born singer is currently up 13 places to Number 1 on tonight’s Official Chart First Look. Find out
more about Gayle here.


Meanwhile, a lot of tracks this week experience massive jumps in position in the post-Christmas lull. DJ Acraze eyes his first UK Top 10 entry with Do It To It featuring girlband Cherish, which is currently up 41 places to Number 2, it previously peaked at Number 13. Also coming up close behind, ArrDee and Sam Fender could reach new peaks with Flowers (Say My Name) and Seventeen Going Under currently tracking for the Number 3 and Number 4 positions respectively.

Last week’s chart-topper Ed Sheeran could vault back in to the Top 10 with three tracks this Friday; former Number 1s Shivers and Bad Habits are at Numbers 5 and 7, while new track Peru with Fireboy DML is on the rise, up 18 to a new peak of Number 10.

MORE: Gayle interview - "I like it when people underestimate me"

Outside the Top 10, Joel Corry and Mabel could reach a new peak with I Wish eyeing a jump to Number 11. The track previously peaked at Number 19.

A viral track from Disney’s latest film Encanto, We Don’t Talk About Bruno, could be this week’s biggest climber, tracking to ascend 54 places to Number 12. The track is performed by the film’s cast including Caroline Gaitan, Mauro Catillo, reggaeton artist Adassa, Rhenzy Feliz, Diane Guerrerro and Stephanie Beatriz. 

Another track from the film - Surface Pressure, performed by actress Jessica Darrow - is also set to rise 47 places to Number 18.

Imagine Dragons and JID also look set to reach a new peak with their single Enemy, taken from League of Legends. It could rise 36 spots to Number 17. And finally, Justin Bieber’s Ghost could rise 42 spots to a new peak of Number 19, it previously peaked at Number 29.

The Official Singles Chart Top 100 is revealed on OfficialCharts.com every Friday at 5.45pm. Follow the Top 40 countdown live on BBC Radio 1’s Official Chart show with Scott Mills.

Official Chart: First Look Top 20 - December 12, 2021

LW POS TITLE ARTIST
14 1 ABCDEFU GAYLE
43 2 DO IT TO IT ACRAZE FT CHERISH
33 3 FLOWERS (SAY MY NAME) ARRDEE
30 4 SEVENTEEN GOING UNDER SAM FENDER
42 5 SHIVERS ED SHEERAN
45 6 COLD HEART ELTON JOHN & DUA LIPA
*** 7 BAD HABITS ED SHEERAN
38 8 EASY ON ME ADELE
36 9 OVERSEAS D-BLOCK EUROPE FT CENTRAL CEE
28 10 PERU FIREBOY DML & ED SHEERAN
47 11 I WISH JOEL CORRY FT MABEL
66 12 WE DON'T TALK ABOUT BRUNO GAITAN/CASTILLO/ADASSA/FELIZ
46 13 MAKE YOU SMILE D-BLOCK EUROPE FT AJ TRACEY
72 14 HEAT WAVES GLASS ANIMALS
62 15 I DRINK WINE ADELE
69 16 STAY KID LAROI & JUSTIN BIEBER
53 17 ENEMY IMAGINE DRAGONS/JID/LEAGUE OF
85 18 SURFACE PRESSURE JESSICA DARROW
64 19 GHOST JUSTIN BIEBER
NEW 20 TELL ME SOMETHING GOOD EWAN MCVICAR

©2021 Official Charts Company. All rights reserved.

Related artists

Join the conversation by joining the Official Charts community and dropping comment.

Already registered?

Log in

No account?

Register

avatar

Half Giant- Ethan

0

I wonder how far GAYLE would drop if SHIvers, Bad Habits,Cold Heart and Easy On Me weren't on ACR!!!

R

RyanT

3

Gayle is mega trash, Do it to it a bop for 1 min, Flowers is so dreadful (hope he disappears soon) but Seventeen by Fender is brilliant and wish that were #1

but atleast the top 4 sound so different from each other

avatar

afrog

3

#20 isnt a new entry lol

H

husk

4

The first number one of January is often the most interesting. Big artists don't release anything after Xmas, so weird things get to the top. Personally I don't like abcdefu at all (it's pretty dull imo), but at least it's better than the rubbish we've had topping the chart over the last month.

I imagine it's rare that a song just sticks in there over December and gets to number one when all the Christmas songs disappear like this, though. Usually a cunning label releases something to get an easy fanbase chart-topper, e.g. Queen or Iron Maiden. I'm surprised Taylor Swift didn't drop something to finally get a second UK number one single.

avatar

Blank

0

A few that did it in the past:
Various - Perfect Day (return to #1)

Chef - Chocolate Salty
Steps - Heartbeat/Tragedy

Joe McEldry - The Climb (appropriately enough)

Streams have brought in a completely different chart pattern to anything in the physical era. You'd have a few Christmas record doing December and slowly drop during January. Streaimng has made the pattern hyperbolic where there is a complete Christmas take over and I'm pretty sure this is the first time the entire top 10 dropped out immediately.
You'd never get a drop out striaght from the top 10 in the physical era - even with Christmas records. Sometimes they'd make it into February!

avatar

GS

0

1. abcdefu (8/10)
2. do it to it (0/10)
3. flowers (6/10)
4. seventeen going under (9/10)
5. shivers (2/10)
6. cold heart (3/10)
7. bad habits (9/10)
8. easy on me (1/10)
9. overseas (10/10)
10. peru (3/10)
11. I wish (0/10)
12. Bruno (-1/10)
13. make you smile (7/10)
14. heat waves (10/10)
15. I drink wine (0/10)
16. stay (8/10)
17. enemy (0/10)
18. surface pressure (0/10)
19. ghost (6/10)
20. tell me something good (-1/10)

best: overseas
worst: tell me something good

avatar

rayever

3

I am genuinely so happy about the top 4, all absolutely amazing songs

avatar

Piran

11

One thing I actually really like about this chart is how the four biggest songs here are all from different genres!

That gives me hope that we'll see a lot of diversity in terms of hit singles throughout this year. :)

avatar

Official Charts

5

Completely agree, Piran! Nice mixed bag of goodies on tonight's First Look. Always good to see.

avatar

Piran

5

"We Don't Talk About Bruno"... huh, someone wasn't a fan of the new Silk Sonic album, I see! :P

J

JK

-1

lazy joke 💤

avatar

Piran

6

Outside of the #1, this was the most unpredictable chart I've ever seen! 😂