Solo Ladies Lead the 2013 Charts

Solo Ladies Lead the 2013 Charts

Lorde dominates the final chart results; Sol3 Mio makes last-minute run

Lorde has been the name on everyone’s lips this year and that trend continues into the final chart results.

The North Shore teen dominates the 2013 charts, taking out the #2 and #5 Album spots for “Pure Heroine” and “The Love Club EP” respectively. She also claims the #2 Single for “Royals”.

Joining the ranks of leading Kiwi solo female artists is LA-based Ginny Blackmore, who grabbed a top spot on the Singles Chart this year with “Bones”. The X Factor NZ winner Jackie Thomas also had her debut hit “It’s Worth It” at #1 on the Singles Chart for two weeks.

Not to be forgotten, last year’s chart-topper Adele makes the list again - breaking even more records. Her album “21” now holds the record for the most consecutive weeks on the chart with 150. The British songstress holds the #17 spot on the final 2013 Albums Chart.

The Albums Chart this year has been largely dominated by local acts;more than 20 per cent of the year’s bestsellers were local acts and an impressive seven Kiwi artists made it to #1 throughout the year. Artists include Shapeshifter, Fat Freddy’s Drop, Dennis Marsh, Jackie Thomas, Blacklistt, Lorde and Sol3 Mio.

Sol3 Mio also tops the final Albums Chart for the year. After just five weeks on sale the trio’s self-titled recording has overtaken the likes of Lorde, Bruno Mars, Pink and Ed Sheeran to claim the album kudos.

Top Selling Singles
It was a year for the stalwarts of pop on the Singles Chart.

Robin Thicke claimed the #1 spot with “Blurred Lines” feat. TI and Pharrell. The smash hit also saw Thicke claim the title for longest run atop the Singles Chart – tied with Katy Perry’s “Roar” – both hits enjoying 11 weeks at #1. “Roar” lands at #4 on the final Singles Chart for the year.

Thicke proved “Blurred Lines” had longevity with it staying in the Albums Chart for an impressive 30 weeks. Not to be outdone, Lorde’s “Royals” featured in the Singles Charts for 39 weeks making it the longest charted single of the year.

It was a varied year with just three acts logging multiple chart-toppers: Macklemore and Ryan Lewis for “Thrift Shop” and “Same Love”, Lorde for “Royals” and “Tennis Court” and One Direction for “Story Of My Life” and “Strong”.

Top Selling Albums
This year saw the most #1 albums since 2009 with 27 changes to the top spot throughout the year.

Proving there is still love for the classic crooner, Canadian Michael Bublé claims the title of longest ranked #1 album with “To Be Loved” sitting atop the Albums Chart for five weeks. The recording ends the year at #11 on the final Charts.

Perhaps the most impressive feat of the year though is local Samoan-New Zealand trio Sol3 Mio pipping Lorde at the post to claim the #1 Album and #1 NZ Album for the year. The debut album is the year’s fastest selling record – ranking at #1 after being on sale for just five weeks.

2013 was also a year for the return of some great veteran acts. David Bowie logged his first #1 albumin 30 years with “The Next Day”; he claims #42 on the overall Albums Chart for the year.

Fleetwood Mac alsoenjoyed a comeback with the album “25 Years: The Chain” sitting at #1 for two weeks. The 1997 hit “Rumours” also nabbed a Top 10 place in the Singles Chart after a 33 year absence. The 1960s rock-group finishes the year claiming two spots on the final Albums Chart; #9 with “25 Years: The Chain Box Set” and #35 with “Rumours: 35th Anniversary Edition”.

Kiwi Acts
Lorde is without a doubt the Queen of the charts this year. Her hit “Royals” sits atop the NZ Singles Chart with three other hits making the NZ Top 20: “Tennis Court” (#3), “Team” (#7) and “The Love Club” (#11). She also claims #2 on the Top 50 Singles Chart.

“Pure Heroine” and “The Love Club EP” sit at #2 and #3 respectively on the NZ Albums chart – they also claim the #2 and #5 spots respectively on the Top 50 Albums chart.

2013 saw New Zealand host its first The X Factor competition – cue The X Factor influence. Inaugural winner Jackie Thomas enjoyed the #1 spot earlier in the year for her single “It’s Worth It” – it lands at #36 in the final Singles Chart and #5 in the NZ Singles Chart. Her debut self-titled album “Jackie Thomas” also lands at #7 in the NZ Albums Chart and #31 in the Top 50 Albums Chart.

Fellow Top 3 finalists Benny Tipene and Whenua Patuwai both made the NZ Singles Chart – Benny lands at #8 with “Walking On Water” and Whenua at #15 with “Something Special”.

Stan Walker – also a judge on the hit show and co-host of the 2013 Vodafone NZ Music Awards – scored two hits on the Singles Chart this year with “Take It Easy” at #17 and “Bulletproof” at #42. His recording “The Complete Collection” also claims the #47 spot on the Albums Chart and #10 on the NZ Albums Chart. “Inventing Myself” lands at #12 on the NZ Albums Chart and #50 on the Top 50 Albums Chart.

Recorded Music NZ chief executive officer Damian Vaughan says Kiwi success on the charts provides an encouraging boost for local artists.

“There’s no denying the ever-growing success of Lorde. She claimed four Tuis at the recent Vodafone NZ Music Awards as well as the APRA Silver Scroll Award and now dominates the final chart results for 2013.

“Her reaching these heights in NZ and abroad is incredibly encouraging for our other talented local acts – you only have to look at the official charts every week [www.nztop40.co.nz] to see the roll-on effect; look at Sol3 Mio for example. I look forward to seeing what 2014 brings for Kiwi music with this kind of recognition.”

About The Chart: The Chart is produced by Recorded Music New Zealand from statistics gathered from data collection agency RadioScope. Lists are based on the year-to-date chart-eligible sales figures as collated from January 1 to December 20 (inclusive).

For more information on the Official NZ Top 40 Chart, please see:
• www.nztop40.co.nz
• www.facebook.com/officialnzmusicchart
• www.twitter.com/officialnzchart

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