One Direction top the charts of music stars
Guinness World Records has announced the record-breaking popstars featured in the 57th edition of the world's best-selling copyright book, Guinness World Records 2013.
One Direction claimed an incredible record-first as the First UK group to debut at No.1 in USA with a debut album when Up All Night entered at US album chart No.1 on 31 March 2012. In the process, the X Factor boys surpassed the 1997 achievement of The Spice Girls who had been the UK's previous highest entrants and held the title Highest entry into US album chart by a British group when Spice entered at No. 6 on the US album chart.
One Direction said: "Being the first British band to debut at Number 1 in America with a debut album is something that we would have never even have dreamt of. We are incredibly proud to have this achievement included in the Guinness World Record book."
Whitney Houston also made history as she achieved the Most simultaneous hits on UK singles chart by a solo female with 12 new entries on the UK chart following her death on 11 February 2012. This record had previously been held by Amy Winehouse who achieved 8 simultaneously chart entries following her death in 23 July 2011. However, Whitney did not eclipse the achievement of Michael Jackson who posthumously achieved 28 hits on the UK singles chart following his death in June 2009.
Other record-breaking acts making UK history include PJ Harvey who is the first (and only) artist to win the Mercury Prize twice in the Prize's 20-year history, and The Stone Roses whose first concerts in 16 years became the Fastest-selling rock concerts in UK history with all 220,000 tickets selling-out in just 68 minutes.
Across the water young artists are making the biggest splash with Blue Ivy Carter - daughter of Jay-Z and Beyoncé - claiming the Youngest chart entrant title at just two days old, when "Glory" featuring her breathing, cries and coos, debuted on the US R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart on 7 January 2012. Young Ms. Carter inherits the title from Stevie Wonder's daughter Aisha who featured, albeit uncredited, on his 1977 hit "Isn't She Lovely" but did not appear on the Billboard chart until two years after her birth.
Also doing it for the kids is Justin Bieber, who is the First ever solo artist to have three No.1 US and UK albums before age of 18, with My World 2.0 (10 April 2010), Never Say Never: The Remixes (5 March 2011) and Under the Mistletoe (19 November 2011) - no other artist has come close with their album successes. Only Donny Osmond can compete as the First ever solo artist to have three No.1 singles before age of 18 (UK).
Another iconic album achievement was scored by septuagenarian Leonard Cohen with the title Longest gap between Top 10 UK albums when his 12th album, Old Ideas, debuted at No.2 on 11th February 2012 - 40 years, 8 months and 2 weeks after his previous Top 10 album, Songs of Love and Hate. With his return to the UK Album chart, Canadian septuagenarian takes the title from Louis Armstrong, whose gap in appearances in the UK Top 10 had stretched 38 years 5 months.
Continuing her record-breaking reign is Adele, who appears in the 2013 edition with new record achievements:
Biggest-selling digital album in US and UK with 21 selling 1.8 million digital copies in the US and 700,000 in the UK by the end of 2011. By March 2011, Adele's second offering had surpassed Lady Gaga's The Fame as the biggest-selling UK digital album on record
First female, the First UK artist and the Fastest to reach digital sales of one million in the US - Adele eclipsed Eminem's Recovery, the first album to sell one million digital copies in the US, within five months of 21's launch and it went onto to become the biggest-selling digital album in US chart history
Biggest-selling digital track in a calendar year (US) with "Rolling in the Deep" which was downloaded 5.81 million times in 2011, the only other track to ever have exceeded 5m digital sales in a single year is LMFAO's "Party Rock Anthem" also in 2011
Yet the title for Best-selling digital artist (US) has been scooped by Rihanna who, by the end of 2011, had sold an incredible 47.57 million digital tracks in the US during her career. The 24-year-old singer beat off competition from The Black Eyed Peas (42.4 million career digital sales), Eminem (42.29 million), Lady Gaga (42.08 million) and Taylor Swift (41.82 million).
Lady Gaga is not without her own accolades as Born This Way is crowned the Fastest selling US digital album on record, with her second studio offering selling 1.1 million copies in its first seven days (w/e 11 June 2011).
All these records and many, many more feature in the new Guinness World Records 2013 edition - available from 13th September 2012 across the UK.