It has been confirmed that Harry Styles has secured a seventh week at number one within the UK singles chart; the singer’s hit “As It Was” has remained this week’s number one single. Styles’ popular track has racked up over 6.4 million streams track and has been crowned the longest running number one single of this year thus far. “As It Was” shares this title with “We Don’t Talk About Bruno” taken from Disney’s Encanto.
This week saw a tough competition to claim the UK’s number one single, with Styles’ smash hit and Eurovision contender Sam Ryder’s “Space Man” going head-to-head to reach the throne. Placing at number two within the charts, the latter was the UK’s 2022 entry into the Eurovision song contest and placed second within the Grand Final results. This week’s chart placement marks the first Eurovision entry to chart high in over twenty-five years, Gina G’s “Ooh Ahh.. Just A Little Bit” last took the charts by storm in 1996.
Originally released on 22nd February 2022, “Space Man” has also been named the UK’s most downloaded song of the week and has placed at number one within the Official Download Chart. Ryder has spoken to Officialcharts.com concerning a sense of stigma which some have placed on the Eurovision, “We wanted to take on this negative Eurovision stigma in the UK – this habitual loop of cynicism and telling ourselves Europe doesn’t like the UK. That was absolutely not the case, we don’t subscribe to that narrative whatsoever. The result gives strength to that idea. We’ve stripped away at the negativity and shone a bit of light in its place. Eurovision is my favourite thing in the world – I’m so stoked that I got to be a part of this story with my friends and my team.”
Ryder then continued to discuss the chart competition with Styles and the final placement of his single, “I feel like what Harry stands for, as a fan of his and listening to his music, he stands for the same things that Eurovision celebrates; a freedom of expression, of inclusivity. A celebration of music, joy and togetherness.”
Scott Mills, Official Chart presenter for BBC Radio 1 and Eurovision has also spoken on Ryder’s chart success, “I’m so proud of Sam Ryder for securing the UK’s Official Number 2 spot with Space Man. It’s the UK’s first Eurovision chart contender from this millennium and Sam deserves it so much after his incredible performance in Turin. We at Radio 1 have got behind Sam like no other Eurovision entry and the support for him right from the start has been amazing!”
