One Direction have topped the IFPI's new Global Recording Artists Chart for 2013
In 2014, IFPI published its first ever global recording artists chart to accurately capture the popularity of artists across a wider range of channels, including digital downloads, physical format sales and streaming services. The chart gives a fuller picture of the popularity of artists across the many different formats and channels through which fans now listen to music.
The inaugural chart was topped by One Direction, the IFPI Global Recording Artists of 2013, on the back of the success of their third studio album Midnight Memories, which contained the hit singles Best Song Ever and Story of My Life. The album topped the US Billboard Top 200 chart, making One Direction the first group in the charts history to debut at No. 1 with its first three albums. The video for Best Song Ever attracted almost 200 million views on YouTube and Story of My Life more than 100 million views. The band’s music was also heavily streamed on services such as Deezer and Spotify.
One Direction also topped the global albums chart, with Midnight Memories selling four million units. The album was the fastest selling of 2013 in the UK and sold more than a million copies in its first five weeks of release in the US. It topped the charts in dozens of countries worldwide, from Australia to Sweden.
