Taylor Swift scores an eighth leader in Australia, as Fearless (Taylor’s Version) bows at No. 1 on the new ARIA chart.
Fearless (Taylor’s Version) (Universal), the first in Swift’s campaign to rerecord her albums catalog, sets a swag of records for the U.S. pop superstar.
With her latest crown on the ARIA Albums Chart, Swift becomes the first artist to have three different sets top the tally in a 12-month period, a stretch that includes the releases folklore (No. 1 in August 2020) and evermore (December 2020).
According to ARIA, the 17 weeks that separate evermore first summiting and the debut of Fearless (Taylor’s Version) sets the record for the shortest span between different albums to reach the top, beating Swift’s own mark of 20 weeks between her last two LPs.
Three tracks from it impact the singles chart this week, led by “Mr. Perfectly Fine (Taylor’s Version) (From The Vault)”, new at No. 19.
Swift’s tally of eight No. 1 albums places her second on the all-time leaderboard for female solo artists, behind only Madonna (with 11). She also sits one release behind Eminem (9) for the most consecutive No. 1s.
On the latest ARIA Albums Chart, Justin Bieber’s Justice (Def Jam/Universal) dips 1-2, while veteran Australian artist Richard Clapton starts at No. 3 with Music Is Love (1966-1970) (Bloodlines/Universal), a collection of covers of classic songs by the likes of The Doors, Neil Young, The Band and more. It’s an all-time chart peak for Clapton, whose last album to impact the main chart was 1993’s Distant Thunder, peaking at No. 37.
Following its release on vinyl, Ariana Grande’s Positions (Universal) return to the top tier. It’s at No. 5, having previously peaked at No. 2 last November.
U.K. hip-hop outfit Brockhampton bag a third Top 10 with Roadrunner: New Light, New Machine (RCA/Sony). It’s new at No. 6, and is expected to be bookended with another album release later in 2021. Brockhampton also hit the Top Ten with Iridescence (No. 6 in October 2018) and Ginger (No. 3 in September 2019).
Over on the ARIA Singles Chart, Justin Bieber enters a second week at No. 1 with “Peaches” featuring Daniel Caesar & Giveon, while Lil Nas X’s controversial “Montero (Call Me By Your Name)” (Columbia/Sony) lifts 3-2, for a new high.
Close behind is Polo G’s “Rapstar” (Columbia/Sony), which gives the U.S. rapper his first ARIA Top 10. It’s new at No. 4.
Finally, Doja Cat and SZA make a hot arrival with their collaboration “Kiss Me More” (RCA), arriving at No. 10.
