After a bleak noughties, the British are back in the American charts! And it’s not all down to Adele. According to an analysis of the Billboard singles chart by secondary ticketing site Ticketbis.net, the presence of British artists in the US Top 10 has increased nearly tenfold since 2010.
In the first decade of the century, the analysis says, only 1.25% of US Top 10 singles were made by British artists. Since the start of this decade, however, that figure has risen to 12.17%, with artists such as One Direction, Calvin Harris, Ed Sheeran, Sam Smith and Adele becoming staples of the Billboard Hot 100. The current US Top 10 contains just one UK artist, Adele, who sits at No 1 with Hello.
However, despite the surge in popularity for UK artists, the situation remains a long way removed from the levels of success British acts achieved in the past. In the 80s, the US Top 10 was on average 27.16% British, while in the 90s it was 18.75% British.
Since 2010, British artists have scored nine US No 1s, though that figure comes down if you discount Lauren Bennett, who was a guest on LMFAO’s Party Rock Anthem, and Charli XCX, who featured on Iggy Azalea’s Fancy. Of the remaining seven, four are by Adele. One Direction, though they have had five Top 10 hits in the US, have not had a Billboard No 1.
