Ahead of Record Store Day, physical sales surge in Q1 as UK artists make a chart impact

Ahead of Record Store Day, physical sales surge in Q1 as UK artists make a chart impact

by Andre Paine

April 1st 2025

Physical music sales have surged in Q1 for 2025, Music Week can reveal.

The results come ahead of Record Store Day this month, which has traditionally delivered a huge boost for physical music early in the second quarter of the year.

Sam Fender, who is the Record Store Day UK ambassador, had the biggest-selling physical release in Q1 with People Watching (Polydor). The UK singer-songwriter moved 103,101 physical units of his third album (142,419 units in total).

People Watching is the biggest album of Q1 among titles released in 2025. It is No.2 overall behind fellow Polydor artist Sabrina Carpenter’s 2024 LP Short N’ Sweet (196,059 units in 2025 – 596,016 in total).

There were also strong Q1 results in the albums rankings for UK acts Ed Sheeran, Central Cee, Elton John and Charli XCX, while Lola Young had the biggest single of the quarter with Messy (see below).

According to BPI figures based on Official Charts Company data, overall music consumption combining all formats (Album Equivalent Sales – AES), was up 6.2% year-on-year in Q1. That compares to growth of 10.0% in the first quarter of 2024.

Vinyl was the star performer in Q1 of 2025 with an increase in consumption of 15.4% to 1,702,360 units – an improvement even on the 11.5% growth for the format in the first quarter of 2024.

“Physical’s performance was welcome, with vinyl giving a particularly strong account of itself, and CD continuing its trend of only slightly being down on the year,” said BPI CEO Dr Jo Twist. “ We’re often asked when demand for vinyl might start to slow, but, for now at least, it keeps defying such expectations, and this Q1 it was given a timely boost by a number of artists enjoying marked success on the format, including a returning Sam Fender, who was one of the stars of the BRIT Awards. We know that this year’s BRITs, with its accent on rising talent, also helped to generate Official Albums Chart uplifts for the performing artists and award winners.”

It follows the full year figures for 2024, which showed that vinyl unit sales increased by 9.1% to 6.7 million units – the 17th consecutive year of growth. That almost coincides with the launch of Record Store Day in 2007.

“The indie retailers who launched it should be applauded for what they have done,” said RSD coordinator Megan Ogleby-Page, head of operations at the Entertainment Retailers Association (ERA) in the latest edition of Music Week. “They put vinyl back on the map at a time when it was forgotten.”

With CD sales down slightly year-on-year in the first quarter of 2025 (-2.6%), overall physical sales managed an substantial increase of 5.7% (4,112,208 units) compared to 2.4% a year earlier.

2024 was the first year in two decades when overall physical sales (vinyl, CD, cassette and others) registered year-on-year growth – although that was a mere 1.4%.

Cassette sales were up 204.7% in Q1 of 2025, although with 63,288 units it remains a niche format.

Streaming growth slows in 2025

Based on the BPI/OCC data, streaming consumption (streaming equivalent albums) increased by 6.6% year-on-year in Q1 2025. While that represents solid growth it’s well down on the 11.3% increase in the first quarter of 2024.

The slide in streaming growth (units) in Q1 comes amid alarm calls about the slowdown in streaming revenue increases.

IFPI’s Global Music Report showed streaming revenue growth dipping below double-digits in 2024.

Meanwhile, MIDiA’s recent report underlined the maturing of key markets in relation to streaming with figures suggesting that lower value emerging markets are now driving music subscriptions globally. As a result, labels will be keen to drive the superfan agenda with potential higher value tiers on DSPs.

UK artists on the rise in 2025

After a challenging 2024 for UK talent on the singles chart, things are looking up this year.

Lola Young’s global smash Messy (Island) dominated in Q1 of 2025 in the UK with 596,657 units this year (and 775,343 units to date).

Messy spent four weeks at the summit in January and February and continues to occupy a Top 20 position. But for chart rules on ACR which penalise older songs in decline, Lola Young’s hit would still be in the Top 3.

Lola Young was not alone among UK acts making a singles chart impact in Q1. The Days (Polydor) by Chrystal is the other track by a UK act to make the overall Top (No.5, 374,901 units in 2025 – 532,770 in total to date).

RCA-signed Myles Smith actually has two hits in the overall Top 40 for the quarter – Nice To Meet You (No.19, 250,766 units in 2025 – and 361,806 units in total to date) and Stargazing (No.22, 241,549 units in 2025 – and 1,254,248 in total to date).

Elsewhere, BRITs-nominated Sonny Fodera – a UK-based Australian DJ – made No.29 overall with Irish dance star Jazzy and UK DJ DOD on Somedays (216,263 units in 2025 – 686,276 in total to date), released in partnership with ADA.

Another dance smash, Kisses (Atlantic) by Bl3ss, CamrinWatsin & Bbyclose, is at No.38 (179,844 units in 2025 – 831,685 in total to date).

Sam Fender’s album title track People Watching is at No.33 overall in Q1 (198,962 units).

Lola Young is so far the only UK artist to hit No.1 in 2025 – but her four-week spell at the top is not far off the six weeks at the summit for UK acts in the whole of 2024.

Only one UK-only new single release made No.1 last year – Backbone by Chase & Status and Stormzy.

Charli XCX was the first UK act to hit No.1 in 2024 with Guess (feat. Billie Eilish) – but that didn’t happen until August. Wham! also had their customary No.1 with Last Christmas.

In the overall albums Top 10 for Q1 of 2025, in addition to success for UK artists Sam Fender, there were appearances from Ed Sheeran’s + - = Divide X - Tour Collection (Atlantic) at No.3 (105,660 units in 2025); Central Cee’s Can’t Rush Greatness (Columbia) at No.6 (94,636 units) and Elton John’s perennial Diamonds (Island EMI/UMR) at No.8 (85,587 units in 2025). Diamonds hit No.1 for the first time in Q1 – more than seven years on from its first release – and is now on total consumption to date of 1,739,445.

Anglo-American legends Fleetwood Mac’s 50 Years – Don’t Stop (Rhino) remains in the Top 10 for Q1 (80,554 sales this year).

Following her BRITs triumph, Charli XCX continued to stream well in Q1 with No.1 album Brat (Atlantic), which was just outside the overall Top 10 (No.12, 75,516 units in 2025 – 364,505 units in total to date).

from musicweek.com