Lewis Capaldi claims the UK’s Official biggest new release album of 2023 so far with Broken by Desire to be Heavenly Sent, Official Charts can confirm, while The Weeknd’s The Highlights leads the pack overall.
Released in May of this year and the eighth biggest LP of 2023 thus far, Lewis’s second studio album saw him clinch the biggest opening week of his career; Broken by Desire… shifted 95,000 chart units in its first seven days of release.
The record, which houses Number 1 singles Forget Me, Pointless and Wish You the Best, is 2023’s most physically purchased album so far, selling 100,000 copies on physical formats since its release, and the year’s biggest seller overall when including downloads too. Lewis’s debut album, 2019’s Divinely Uninspired to a Hellish Extent also makes the list at Number 12.
Canadian singer-songwriter The Weeknd, born Abel Tesfaye, tops the year-to-date list. His career-spanning album The Highlights, which includes Number 1 hit Blinding Lights and a selection of his 35 Top 40 singles, is the UK’s Official biggest album of the year so far. The collection peaked at Number 2 on the Official Albums Chart upon its release.
The Weeknd’s 2016 record Starboy also secures a place on the year-to-date list at Number 29 thanks, in part, to the success of a 2023 remix of its single Die for You featuring Ariana Grande, which peaked at Number 3 earlier this year.
Elsewhere in the Top 5 of 2023 so far, Harry Styles’ third studio release Harry’s House holds steady at (3), and Elton John’s headline Glastonbury Pyramid Stage performance in back in June ensures his 2017 Diamonds compilation upholds its Top 5 position for another quarter (4). SZA’s 2022 record SOS also retains its Top 5 placing as Q3 closes out (5).
After just 12 weeks on chart, Taylor Swift’s Speak Now (Taylor’s Version) earns a spot on the list at Number 20. Hitting Number 1 on its release in July 2023, the fully re-recorded version of Taylor’s 2010 record Speak Now out-peaked its original release, the first issue having reached a high of Number 6. In the process, Taylor’s Version more than doubled the opening week figure of the original album.
As her career-celebrating The Eras Tour gets well under way in the US, Taylor enjoys a further four entries inside the year-to-date Top 40. At Number 2 is 2022’s Midnights, which saw Taylor break Official Chart records last year as she became the female solo artist to claim nine chart-topping albums in the fastest succession ever; surpassing previous record-holder Madonna.
Other Taylor appearances come courtesy of 2014 LP 1989 at Number 11 (soon to be re-released with re-recordings and previously unheard material ‘from the vault’ as 1989 (Taylor’s Version)), 2020’s folklore at Number 19 and 2017 release Reputation at Number 24.
Pink earns another of 2023’s biggest new release records with TRUSTFALL at Number 21. Alicia Moore’s ninth studio album, housing Top 20 singles Never Gonna Not Dance Again, and its Fred again..-produced title track TRUSTFALL, claims the title of the UK’s most downloaded album of the year so far.
Olivia Rodrigo’s second studio album GUTS is one of 2023’s biggest albums so far after just three weeks of release. The former Number 1, which contains chart-topping single vampire and Top 10 tracks bad idea, right? and get him back!, lands at Number 36 in the year-to-date Top 40. Additionally Olivia’s chart-topping debut, 2021’s SOUR, holds strong in 2023’s Top 20 so far at Number 17.
Lana Del Rey’s 2023 release Did you know that there’s a tunnel under Ocean Blvd makes the year-to-date list at Number 37. The album topped the Official Albums Chart on its release in April, providing Lana her sixth UK Number 1 record and earning her strongest opening week since 2014’s Ultraviolence.
Another new 2023 release, Post Malone’s hits compilation The Diamond Collection, rounds out the list at Number 40. The New York multi-hyphenate’s collection includes 2017 Number 1 single rockstar ft. 21 Savage, plus a curated tracklist of some of his further 19 UK Top 40 songs.
