Lewis Capaldi performing at TRNSMT 2019 (Gary Mather for Live4ever)
Lewis Capaldi had the UK’s most popular album for the second year in a row.
Divinely Uninspired To A Hellish Extent from Lewis Capaldi was the best selling album in the UK last year, figures from the BPI have revealed.
In its annual breakdown of the British music industry’s performance during 2020, the BPI has noted that a devastating year for live music was not reflected in recorded music consumption, a rise of 8.2% led by streaming which now accounts for 80% of listeners’ habits.
“The performance of recorded music in 2020 was remarkable, and reminds us how important music is to our country, even when our lives are disrupted,” Geoff Taylor, BPI Chief Executive, says.
“But any satisfaction we can take is tempered by the devastating impact of the pandemic on live music. Recorded music is only one element of artists’ incomes, and we renew our calls on government to support our culturally important venues, nightclubs and festivals until they can safely reopen.”
The final standings for the best selling albums on vinyl during 2020 is unchanged from that predicted by the BPI just before the end of the year, with classics from Fleetwood Mac and Oasis leading the way.
Top 10 best selling albums of 2020 (UK):
1/ Lewis Capaldi – Divinely Uninspired To A Hellish Extent
2/ Harry Styles – Fine Line
3/ Dua Lipa – Future Nostalgia
4/ Billie Eilish – When We All Fall Asleep, Where Do We Go?
5/ Stormzy – Heavy Is The Head
6/ Pop Smoke – Shoot For The Stars, Aim For The Moon
7/ Ed Sheeran – No. 6 Collaborations Project
8/ Queen – Greatest Hits
9/ Elton John – Diamonds
10/ Fleetwood Mac – 50 Years – Don’t Stop