The Official Charts Company has revealed details of a new weekly chart designed to celebrate the impact of albums by British acts.
Launching today (September 11), the Official Homegrown Albums Chart will appear on the OCC website each week, with highlights to be aired on BBC Radio 1’s Official Chart First Look from Sunday (September 13).
The list will showcase the biggest albums from UK artists released within the previous 12 months, ranked using Official Charts Company data encompassing consumption across the UK market.
With eligibility based on the same criteria used by the BRIT Awards, the new chart aims to “measure the success of homegrown talent and provide a regularly updated snapshot of the UK artists connecting most strongly with music fans”.
We hope the chart will become an important new measure of success for UK artists, from exciting emerging talent through to some of our biggest established names
Chris Austin & Becca Monahan, OCC
The initiative was developed with support from across the music industry, including representatives from both major and indie labels and bodies such as AIM and the MMF.
Chris Austin and Becca Monahan, co-managing directors of the Official Charts Company, said: “The UK remains one of the world’s leading music markets and is home to an extraordinary pipeline of creative talent. The Official Homegrown Albums Chart has been developed to highlight the strength and breadth of British artists making a real impact with fans across the albums market. We hope the chart will become an important new measure of success for UK artists, from exciting emerging talent through to some of our biggest established names. We’re grateful to AIM, the MMF, stakeholders from across both the independent and major label communities, and BBC Radio 1 for their support in bringing the chart to life.”
MMF CEO Annabella Coldrick added: “This is really great news for British artists. For the past two years, the MMF’s members have advocated for a homegrown chart which would spotlight UK artists and help accelerate fan engagement with a domestic audience. We are delighted to see the OCC respond so positively, and that the Official Homegrown Albums Chart will receive prominent support on BBC Radio 1. It is potentially a real boost for UK talent.”
This is really great news for British artists
Annabella Coldrick, MMF
Coldrick recently spoke to Music Week about the difficulties MMF members are reporting when it comes to breaking domestic talent.
Meanwhile, Aled Haydn Jones, head of BBC Radio 1, commented: “A huge part of what we do at Radio 1 is champion British artists who are shaping the sound of music right now, from exciting new voices breaking through to established acts. We’re really pleased to support the launch of the Official Homegrown Albums Chart, giving these artists another opportunity to be discovered and celebrated by our listeners every week. It’s a great addition to the Official Charts offering, and we’re excited to bring it to life on Radio 1’s new First Look show with Lauren Layfield.”
We’re really pleased to support the launch of the Official Homegrown Albums Chart, giving these artists another opportunity to be discovered and celebrated by our listeners every week
Aled Haydn Jones, BBC Radio 1
This news follows the recent announcement of a new weekly OCC chart dedicated to UK R&B, which you can read more about in the new issue of Music Week, on sale September 15.
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