Scottish singer-songwriter Lewis Capaldi has broken a UK chart record having spent his 77th consecutive week in the Top 10 with his 2019 album, ‘Divinely Uninspired To A Hellish Extent.‘ The result on Friday November 6th meant that the album has broken Ed Sheeran’s record, who held the longest running solo album space in the top 10 for 76 weeks.
The album sat outside the Top 10 in the beginning of the week, but then gained 6,866 sales which secured his position for another week. Capaldi’s album beat the other two competitors which were Amy Macdonald’s ‘The Human Demands‘ and Black Stone Cherry’s ‘The Human Condition.’
The album has spent 77 weeks in the U.K. top ten since it came out, absolutely unbelievable to see. Thanks team ❤️ https://t.co/I3KodTsC25
— i don’t even know who lewis capaldi is (@LewisCapaldi) November 6, 2020
EMI MD Clive Cawley said to NME, ““77 weeks in the Top 10, who’d have thought that was even possible for an artist these days? To hit that landmark and to topple that Ed Sheeran chap – who’s had a few hits in his day – is an eye-watering achievement. I feel we’re running out of quotes about what an exceptional and unique artist Lewis really is.”
He continued, “I believe we only have Simon & Garfunkel ahead of us now. But I think we’ll all happily concede to their timeless and incredible legacy and just see how much further we can keep this run going for – as a bit of fun as much as anything. Divinely inspired stuff.” Having already passed over a million sales, ‘Divinely Uninspired To A Hellish Extent’ was the biggest selling album of last year at the half way mark. The debut LP by Capaldi features chart topping singles such as ‘Someone you loved‘ and ‘Before You Go.’
Although Capaldi’s album has spent longer in the charts than Ed Sheeran’s 2017 album ‘Divide’, it has a way to go before it beats the overall album sales figures. To date, Sheeran’s album was number No.1 for 20 weeks, compared with Capaldi’s which had 10 at the number 1 spot. There are only 9 other albums that have ran for longer in the Top 10 album charts. All of these were soundtrack albums except from Simon and Garfunkel’s ‘Bridge Over Troubled Water’ which remained in the top 10 for 92 weeks.
Along with his latest achievement, Capaldi won ‘The Brits Critics Choice Award,’ in 2019 and his hit song, ‘Someone You Loved’ spent 7 weeks at the top of the charts in the UK, Europe and the US. Capaldi is modest when it comes to his success.
He told NME in a recent interview, “When I read my interviews back, I always think if I wasn’t me I’d think: ‘you’re full of shite’.” He continued, “Like, stop saying you can’t believe it. You can believe it! But it is so surreal and it seems like almost quarterly it kicks up a notch. Like, yesterday with the Grammys, yet again all this shit’s getting more and more mental, more beyond belief.”
There is no doubt that Lewis Capaldi is one of the hardest working touring artists having performed over 250 shows last year including an outstanding performance at Glastonbury. Last week he performed for the ‘I’m Lovin It’ virtual gig presented by Macdonalds, alongside other artists such as Stormzy and Jess Glynne. There is no doubt that Capladi’s latest record achievement affirms his dedication to his music and is well and truly deserved.
