BPI data shows ‘heritage acts’ Elton John and Fleetwood Mac also had top 10 albums
Adele and Ed Sheeran may have topped the UK sales charts in 2021, but it was decades-old songs by “heritage acts” such as Queen and Fleetwood Mac that helped millions of Britons through the pandemic, music industry figures suggest.
British artists accounted for eight of the top 10 albums listened to in the UK last year, and many will not be surprised to learn that the No 1 and No 2 spots were taken by Adele and Ed Sheeran respectively with their blockbuster releases 30 and =. Both achieved more than 500m streams in 2021 in the UK alone, plus billions more globally, according to data released by the record labels’ association the BPI on Tuesday.
