British music sales boosted by outstanding BRITs performances

26 February 2015 - Press release

Royal Blood, Paloma Faith, and the ‘Holy Trinity’ of British male artists – Ed Sheeran, Sam Smith and George Ezra have all seen an immediate sales surge following last night’s BRIT Awards.
 

 
In an exciting night that showcased the outstanding success of British music of the past 12 months, led in particular by Ed Sheeran and Sam Smith with two BRITs each, other acts with cause to celebrate the BRIT Awards 2015 with MasterCard include Royal Blood, Paloma Faith and George Ezra.
 
Their stand out performances enabled them to reach a much wider national audience and enjoy significant week-to-date sales lifts, according to Official Charts Company data.  The uplift was driven by digital downloads, although with the remainder of the week still to come, the impact will also be felt across audio streaming services and on the high street and online via increased sales of CDs and vinyl.
 
Rock band Royal Blood, who received the BRIT Award for British Group from Led Zeppelin icon Jimmy Page before thrilling the audience with their bone-shaking performance of ‘Figure it Out’, saw demand for their self-titled album surge 209 per cent – it is now on course for a top 5 finish in the Official Albums Chart this week, having been at No.18 last week.
 
Paloma Faith, who was voted British Female Solo Artist, enjoyed an equally impressive 130 per cent lift in sales of her acclaimed album ‘A Perfect Contradiction’ (according to Official Charts company data), while the single she performed so memorably against a rain-drenched backdrop, ‘Only Love Can Hurt Like This’, leapt a massive 189 per cent.
 
George Ezra, who was nominated for 4 awards including British Male Solo Artist and British Breakthrough Act, saw sales of his debut album ‘Wanted On Voyage’ rise 75 per cent, though demand for British Single-nominated ‘Budapest’, which he also performed on the night, doubled (108 per cent).
 
Ed and Sam also saw big sales lifts to go with their double awards triumph.   Ed Sheeran’s ‘X’ saw a 73 per cent increase in sales, while the song he so brilliantly performed, ‘Bloodstream’, saw the largest increase of all the songs performed on the night – up a massive 211 per cent.  Five-times nominated Sam Smith benefitted hugely also – his album ‘In the Lonely Hour’ is up 78 per cent, and the song he performed so beautifully, ‘Lay Me Down’, rose 95 per cent.
 
Madonna, who underlined her status as an icon with her impressive professionalism, has also seen sales of her greatest-hits album ‘Celebration’ rise 62 per cent, while Taylor Swift, who opened the show to such great effect, has seen a 52 per cent pick-up in demand for her album ‘1989’.   
 
BPI & BRIT Awards Chief Executive Geoff Taylor, comments:  “The BRITs always have a galvanising effect on artist sales, and with nine stand-out performances generating huge social engagement, we’re seeing a significant lift in demand for a lot of the music that was featured in the show.  With the remainder of the week still to come, this is shaping up to be one of the most impactful BRITs of recent years.”
 
TOP 10 performing acts to benefit most from the BRITs effect * based on sales % lift in album release only
 
Pos.       Artist                                     Album                                   +/- %  change in week-to-date sales                       
 
1.            Royal Blood                        Royal Blood                               209 per cent                       
2.            Paloma Faith                     A Perfect Contradiction               130 per cent
3.            Sam Smith                          In the Lonely Hour                     78 per cent
4.            George Ezra                       Wanted on Voyage                      75 per cent
5.            Ed Sheeran                         x                                                73 per cent
6.            Madonna                            Celebration                                 62 per cent         
7.            Ed Sheeran                         +                                                59 per cent
8.            Taylor Swift                        1989                                          52 per cent
9.            Take That                            III                                              45 per cent
10.          Mark Ronson                     Uptown Special                            42 per cent
 
Source:  Official Charts Company/BPI