It's unfortunate the music industry is constantly changing with time and we can't compare songs' success well outside of their time period. But I reckon in the long run, decades into the future, things will balance out, because with each year that passes the late 10's streams become a smaller proportion of overall streams and older songs can gradually catch up. I think we're already seeing this to some extent.

So what is the next big technology to replace streaming?

Figure that out and you will become a millionaire (in pounds, not streams).

How many pure sales has As It Was had?

Edited August 4, 20231 yr by chartjack2

So what is the next big technology to replace streaming?

Figure that out and you will become a millionaire (in pounds, not streams).

 

Something to do with AI, no doubt

I’m with Jay on this one. It is obviously an extremely popular song but sales awards feel meaningless these days and we’re in a place where having our first 10x platinum single doesn’t really feel like a moment at all

Streaming should have always been 1x300 sales ratio, not 1x100

Something to do with AI, no doubt

Only like 80k. Flowers seems to have slightly outsold it.

That’s not even nearly true, do you actually have an example of that happening or are you just stirring?

 

Oh please you can always go back to all the posts here telling Ed off about his many different versions of songs , sighned copies etc that help him sell more and get more streams and when Swift does the same and even worse nobody says anything.. If you dont rememebr it then you must be new here cause i am tired of reading those.

Whilst it was a massive hit in its own right I do think a lot of big hits in 2016-17 benefited from the fact that free streams were counted in the same way as premium (which honestly I don’t even know why it ever was or still is at a lower rate but hey ho). So it’s going to make it hard to compete with it for a long while. The streaming sales ratio is a joke and is way to inflated for sales but that’s another matter.

Sales vs streaming - With a sale you had to make a trip to a town centre, physically walk into a shop, find £3.99 and then go all the way home, to get x number of people to do this especially in times of hardship was a mighty achievement and any act who managed this should be praised.

 

Streaming go to spotify, find a song play it done in 4 minutes.

 

This is why in my opinion streaming sales and downloads should not be compared to physical sales they should be two separate things, imagine all the actual sales from 1950s to 2005 that never happened as people never got to purchase a song they liked.

 

There are songs I hear now and I think, why was that not in my record collection and why did I not buy it.

Edited August 5, 20231 yr by steveh31

It's unfortunate the music industry is constantly changing with time and we can't compare songs' success well outside of their time period. But I reckon in the long run, decades into the future, things will balance out, because with each year that passes the late 10's streams become a smaller proportion of overall streams and older songs can gradually catch up. I think we're already seeing this to some extent.

I agree, I was looking into it earlier this year and tweeted a graph I made, showing that not only are more older songs breaking into the list, but also the lion's share of Spotify era hits are just getting stuck in the same late 2010s period, a time frame which the present is drifting further and further away from.

@1621160710763069440

 

In the time since I made that, "ROCKSTAR" (2020), "Despacito" (2017) and "Sugar" (2014) have been replaced by "Die For You" (2016), "Just The Way You Are" (2010) and "Don't Stop Me Now" (1975). A lot of the older songs in the list have also moved up about 10 spots. "Flowers" will be lucky to sneak through in December but even that's starting to drop off a fair amount. Newer songs just have less audience reach and more often fall off the wheel.

Oh please you can always go back to all the posts here telling Ed off about his many different versions of songs , sighned copies etc that help him sell more and get more streams and when Swift does the same and even worse nobody says anything.. If you dont rememebr it then you must be new here cause i am tired of reading those.

 

Yeah I’m clearly new, coming for that record posters chart no.1 with over 26,000 posts just this week. Just feels like I’ve been here since 2006.

 

But seriously, did you miss the hate directed at Taylor for having her TV albums counted as separate from the originals? People were ripping into her all week even though the album she had at no.1 was a new no.1 regardless. She certainly gets people complaining about her just as Ed gets loads of support on here to counteract people who don’t like him.

 

And do you know what? What is wrong with having and expressing opinions on artists on here? Why can’t people want Taylor to get records because they like her music but not want Ed to get them because they don’t like his music? Why does everything have to be so clinical and passionless on here where the only opinion allowed is not having any opinion?

 

The days when we could moan about artists we don’t like without coming under criticism are long behind us it seems.

But how may of those "sales" are down to streams?

 

THIS!!

 

Song is just okay. Definitely doesn't deservw 10x plat!! It's no Wannabe, Viva Forever, Hollier Beautoful Stranger, Frozen, I AM! A walrus, Yellow Submarine, etc.

 

God Cheeys Fad has the worst music since Westshite and LM5

At least there hasn't been a Ed Sheeran ft Drake collaboration, that would be most awful on here..

It’s one of his best songs. I’m not a fan of Sheeran particularly but I do like this song. Nonetheless, 10 x platinum is a major achievement but let’s remember there is no real comparison here to massive hits like Bryan adams and wet wet wet who achieved their feats through pure physical sales.

Bryan Adams and Wet Wet Wet were "only" long-running #1. Their sales weren't particularly huge.

Bryan Adams and Wet Wet Wet were "only" long-running #1. Their sales weren't particularly huge.

 

Pre-streaming they were both top 20 of all time, Love Is All Around was even top 10. Seems pretty huge to me.

^^

 

Exactly, selling anything above 1 million in CD's era, was definitely huge!!!

Today, Ed Sheeran has made history. His 2017 single, "Shape Of You", has achieved something that is now measured in a drastically different way than it had been for over 50 years.

Pre-streaming they were both top 20 of all time, Love Is All Around was even top 10. Seems pretty huge to me.

 

It’s accumulation of sales was huge but I get where SC is coming from it was more a consistent weekly seller than a stellar weekly seller due to the movie release during its run at the top. Sales as a whole were low between 1989-94 as cds took time to take over vinyls.

 

For example out of Bryan’s 16 weeks at the top 4 weeks we’re over 100k sales the highest being 119k and there were quite a few when sales were below 75k.