This time in his native country, Sheeran sets yet another new record.Ed Sheeran consistently breaks records, much like the rest of us do when we relax on the weekend.
He is the only artist to sell one million tickets on a single Australian tour, and his 2017 hit “Shape Of You“ holds the Spotify streaming record for most streams ever. He also holds the record for the longest climb to No. 1 in the U.K. (19 weeks with “Thinking Out Loud” from 2014).
Sheeran makes another history in his native country, as he is the first performer to have four albums simultaneously appear in the Official Albums Chart Top 10 for an entire year.
All four of those albums by Sheeran, + (Plus), x (Multiply), (Divide), and = (Equals), have now spent at least 52 weeks in the top 10 of the Official U.K. Albums Chart.
According to the Official Charts Company, he is the only musician to ever do this.
Only one other act, Simon and Garfunkel, with two LPs, has had more than one record survive since the weekly tally was originally published on July 22, 1956.
Sheeran has an impressive five out of five top albums in the national albums poll, and 2019’s Collaborations Project, which debuted at No. 6, also reached its goal. Additionally, he has a total of 13 No. 1 singles, which puts him on par with Madonna and just one No. 1 hit behind Cliff Richard and Westlife (14), the Beatles (17), and Elvis Presley, the all-time chart king (21).
The Englishman hinted this week about a 2023 album release, which Sheerios believe may be titled Subtract in keeping with the mathematical motif of those past successful album names.
Sheeran has a busy year ahead of him. Aside from the possibility of new music, he’ll embark on a massive stadium tour around the world called the “+ – = x Tour,” which is scheduled to begin on February 2 at Sky Stadium in Wellington, New Zealand, and include stops in Australia and North America.
