Paloma Faith: “A lot of people in my position would have given up”
22/09/2014
By Rob Copsey
As the singer plays down her success, we reveal her impressive chart stats.
Last week, OfficialCharts.com interviewed Paloma Faith to celebrate the success of Changing, the Number 1 single by Sigma on which she is a guest feature.
Aside from explaining excitedly how grateful she was to be involved with the track, we noticed that she seemed less sure of her own chart history. Watch what she had to say below:
She later told us: “I think a lot of people in my position would have given up a long time ago, or been dropped. But luckily, due to my kindness and the kindness of those around me, I’m still here and it’s my biggest achievement in the UK to date, so I’m really pleased!”
While it will come as surprise to some that Paloma has never had a UK Number 1 album or song as a lead artist (her highest charting single is this year’s Number 6 peak of Only Love Can Hurt Like This), we can reliably inform her (and you) that her chart stats are in fact rather impressive!
Paloma's total track sales to date amount to a mighty 1.8 million, which includes her six UK Top 40 hits. Her biggest-selling single is 2012’s Picking Up The Pieces, which peaked at Number 7 on the Official Singles Chart and has so far sold 350,000 copies. Check out her Top 5 best sellers below:
1 PICKING UP THE PIECES 350,000
2 ONLY LOVE CAN HURT LIKE THIS 305,000
3 NEW YORK 270,000
4 NEVER TEAR US APART 180,000
5 UPSIDE DOWN 138,000
© 2014 Official Charts Company. All rights reserved.
Better known for her success in the albums market (all three have entered the Top 10), her sales in that department currently stand at 1.7 million in the UK alone; no mean feat for an artist only three records into their career.
Interestingly, her best-selling record so far is also her lowest charting; 2009’s Do You Want The Truth Or Something Beautiful? peaked at Number 9 but recently just tipped over the 700,000 sales mark. By comparison, 2012's Fall To Grace has shifted 620,000 copies, and her latest, A Perfect Contradiction - released in March this year - is currently on 331,000.
What’s more, she can expect that overall figure to increase significantly with the re-release of A Perfect Contradiction later this year. The repackage – released November 3 – features five new songs including forthcoming single Ready For The Good Life.
So there you have it, Paloma – proof that your success is definitely worth celebrating!
A #55 peaking single outselling one that reached the Top 10 ('Can't Rely On You')!
Pleased to see 'Upside Down' has sold so well, definitely one of my favourites. So jolly and jazzy.
Did that full interview that was mentioned get posted by them yet? I did a quick search but couldn't find anything.
She really has built up her success impressively and it's nice to see someone so amazingly talented earn this, and also sell albums consistently.
I'm completely shocked 'Upside Down' sold that much though.
I had no idea Picking Up The Pieces had sold so much!
There's this part from the sales thread which indicates it's either incorrect or outdated:
I'm presuming the article here doesn't include streaming figures whereas the Music Week one does? Could be wrong though!
Only Love That Can Hurt Like This has a new total 366,359 MW have announced today in the sales report.
Can't rely on you is her worst single in my view so not surprised it didn't sell great. Just goes to show working with famous producers like Pharrel doesn't always guarantee high sales.
She is so amazing
Probably her best 3 songs in that top 3- they are all 11/10 songs. And I am listening to the beautiful PUTP at the moment
I have really enjoyed her progress over the years. She has really impressed me, especially after Stone Cold Sober came out and I wasn't sure whether she would ever get past album#1. Her singles have pretty much all been great since and her albums have sold consistently which is something most artists would kill for. How well DYWTTOSB has held up with album sales always surprises me. Has sold consistently since it was released and still selling! Very happy to see Upside Down in the top 5.
When you think Pixie Lott started her chart career shortly beforehand and you compare where they both are on album#3, Paloma should definitely be proud of what she has accomplished.
I'm so happy to see Paloma receiving all of this recognition and attention, she fully deserves it, what a talented woman! As for Can't Rely On You and songs like Just Be and Stone Cold Sober, surely they can't be that far off of the Top Five, I remember for sure, seeing that the former has sold upwards of 100k thus far.
Fell in love with her the first time I heard Stone Cold Sober, it was on some music show that used to be o chanel 4 at like 7am in the morning. New York just made me love her even more, and from then she has been and still is one of my favorite Female artists of all time.
Did she really think she'd get dropped? I was under the impression all her albums sold decently and she's had a fair few hit singles spread out over time as well (it's not like they were all in 2009 and she couldn't get any afterwards). There are hundreds of other artists with record deals who are less successful.
I do like changing, i am delighted it got Paloma a number 1 with impressive opening sales but i am slightly elated that it will most likely end up becoming her biggest selling single for which i am not truly happy with. Songs like New York, Upside Down and and Only Love Can Hurt Like This are much better and are more deserved status for her best selling.
Unless this upcoming single from her re-release ends up becoming her 'Burn'.
I imagine she'll also get an X-Factor slot this year as well and that the album will go stratospheric saleswise in Q4.
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