Will.I.Am and Britney Spears leading race to Number 1

Will.I.Am and Britney Spears’ Scream And Shout has taken an early lead over James Arthur’s Impossible in this week’s race to Number 1.

According to today’s Official Charts Company sales data, Will.I.Am and Britney Spears’ Scream And Shout is currently ahead of James Arthur’s Impossible in the race to Number 1 on Sunday’s Official Singles Chart.

The US duo’s track, which has been in the Top 3 ever since it was released five weeks ago, failed to topple the 2012 X Factor winner’s debut single last Sunday, with Impossible holding onto the top spot with just over 6,000 more sales than Scream And Shout. In today’s Official Singles Chart Update, that lead is almost fully reversed, with Scream And Shout currently 5,000 copies ahead at this midway stage.

If the pair can maintain their lead, Scream And Shout will be Britney’s highest charting UK single since 2004’s Every Time, and Will.I.Am’s second Number 1 as a lead artist.

Following her alleged split with One Direction’s Harry Styles, Taylor Swift’s I Knew You Were Trouble climbs two places to Number 3, while Rihanna’s Stay FT Mikky Ekko is up three places to Number 4. This week’s Official Singles Chart Top 5 is completed by Bruno Mars’ Locked out Of Heaven (5).

Official Singles Chart Update: New Entries and High Climbers

Dutch producer Vato Gonzalez and London grime MC Lethal Bizzle are set to score this week’s highest new entry with Not A Saint new in at Number 19.

New Jersey rockers Bon Jovi are one place behind with their latest single, Because We Can (20). The track is taken from their forthcoming twelfth studio album, What About Now?, which is due for release in March.

Kanye West and Jay-Z’s Clique is this week’s highest climber, up 29 places to re-enter the Official Singles Chart Update Top 40 at Number 34. LA female trio Haim, who won the BBC’s Sound Of 2013 poll last week, are up 22 places to Number 29 with their second UK single, Don't Save Me, while Emeli Sande’s Read All About It Part 3 climbs 21 places to Number 23.

This week’s high climbers are completed by Ellie Goulding’s Anything Could Happen (up 18 places to Number 18) and Jake Bugg’s Lightning Bolt (up 14 places to 28).

David Bowie's Where Are We Now?

Owing to chart rules which are agreed in partnership with UK record companies and retailers, data relating to the David Bowie single Where Are We Now? cannot currently be counted towards the official singles charts, as the release is linked to an album pre-order promotion and it is not possible to distinguish album sales from track sales from the retail data received. Should it become possible in the future for regular track sales to be distinguished from album pre-order incentive purchases, then these sales can be counted towards the chart.

The New Face Of The Official Chart

In related news, this Sunday will see Jameela Jamil take over Radio 1’s Official Chart show, succeeding long-time host Reggie Yates. Jameela, who currently presents the station’s Request Show, will become the first solo female presenter of the Official Chart since Radio 1 began broadcasting the chart in 1967.

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