Plan B Works A Treat

18/04/2010

Plan B – aka East London native Ben Drew – leaps straight to the top of the Official Albums Chart with his second album The Defamation Of Strickland Banks, the Official Charts Company confirms today.
 
The Defamation Of Strickland Banks had a narrow lead over the Scouting For Girls album Everybody Wants To Be On TV when the Official Chart Update was revealed last Wednesday.  But since then Strickland Banks increased the margin over its nearest rival to over 40% by the close of the chart week at midnight last night.

The hard-edged soul of The Defamation Of Strickland Banks follows Plan B’s 2006 hip-hop based debut album Who Needs Actions When You Got Words which peaked at number thirty.

Between albums Ben Drew has had acting roles in Noel Clarke’s acclaimed Adulthood (2008) and last year’s British thriller Harry Brown, starring Michael Caine.  

He’s also had three Top 10 singles; last year’s End Credit, a collaboration with drum ‘n’ bass duo Chase and Status for the soundtrack to Harry Brown, and this year’s Stay Too Long and She Said.

While Scouting For Girls’ Everybody Wants To Be On TV have had to settle for number two in the Official Albums Chart, their 2007 debut and former number one album, also called Scouting For Girls, which re-entered the chart two weeks ago, has climbed another two places to number twenty-six.  Their latest single This Ain’t A Love Song is number two in this week’s Official Singles Chart.
 
There are two other new entries in the Official Albums Chart Top 10, both from US acts: MGMT’s Congratulations, the follow-up to their 2008 debut Oracular Spectacular, straight in at number four, and singer-songwriter Joshua Radin’s Simple Times straight in at number nine.

The Official Singles Chart also has a new number one this week as R’n’B superstar Usher’s OMG featuring Black Eyed Peas’ Will.I.Am climbs to the top spot from last week’s number two.

OMG entered the Official Singles Chart four weeks ago at number thirteen.  The single is taken from Usher’s sixth album Raymond v. Raymond set for release next week.

Usher’s previous UK hits include three number one singles; You Make Me Wanna (1998), Yeah! feat. Lil John and Ludacris (2004), Burn (2004) and three number one albums; 8701 (2001), Confessions (2004) and Here I Stand (2008).

The Tennessee-born, Atlanta-raised singer-songwriter, actor, producer and dancer has sold close to 26 million albums worldwide and won five Grammies.

There are three new entries in this week’s Official Singles Chart Top 10: UK Rapper Professor Green’s I Need You Tonight (based on the INXS song of the same name) featuring Ed Drewett is straight in at number three, Kelis’s Acapella is straight in at number five, and seventeen-year-old Disney Actress Selena Gomez and The Scene’s debut Naturally is straight in at number seven.

Notes to Editors:

1.   Chart information quoted from this release must be credited to The Official Charts Company

2.  The Official Charts Company (OCC) is a joint venture between record labels’ body the BPI and ERA, the Entertainment Retailers Association.   The OCC is responsible for the commissioning, marketing, distribution and management of the UK’s industry standard music and video charts and is endorsed by the BVA (British Video Association).

3. The Official Charts Company compiles its charts from sales information gathered across all key distribution (or entertainment) channels including all major high street retail chains, independent stores, supermarkets, mail order internet retailers and digital music service providers. This market research sample equates to 99% of the total UK Singles market; 98% of the total UK Albums market and 90% of the total UK DVD market.

For further information contact:
Amy Howard, Official Charts Company.
T: 01480 860 530  M. 07768 891 264
E: amy@theofficialcharts.com
W:www.theofficialcharts.com

The Official Chart Update with Greg James, 3.30pm-4pm, BBC Radio 1

The Chart Show with Reggie Yates, Sunday 4pm-7pm, BBC Radio 1.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio1/chart/


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