Burna Boy’s I Told Them tops UK Albums Chart

I Told Them was released on 24 August via Spaceship/Atlantic. The 15-track offering, his seventh studio album to date, features fellow Nigerian Seyi Vibez, British-Nigerian rapper Dave, American rappers 21 Savage and J. Cole, and Jamaican singer Byron Messia. 

Burna Boy’s 2019 album African Giant reached No 19 and his release Twice As Tall a year later fared even better by peaking at No 11 on the charts. Last year’s Love, Damini secured the No 2 position.

“This right here, this means more to me than any of you can imagine because where I come from is a colony of this place,” Burna Boy told the crowd during his London Roundhouse gig on Friday. “For me to be here today with the No 1, that just tells you that anything is possible. So this right here is a big thank you to every one of you because you made this possible. Without you, none of this is happening.”

“What a fantastic achievement it is by Burna Boy to become the first international artist to take Afrobeats to the top of the UK’s Official Albums Chart,” Official Charts Company CEO Martin Talbot said. “British music fans have always been renowned for their love of new music and embracing cultures from around the world, and the explosion of interest in Afrobeats’ musical culture over the past decade has been a concrete example of this. It has been fantastic to see Burna Boy blazing the trail as part of this – and this week reaching the absolute pinnacle. Congratulations to Burna Boy!”

Atlantic Records UK vice-president Austin Daboh added: “Burna Boy has transformed into a global superstar and this No 1 album reflects his growth over the last few years.”

I Told Them has broken a number of global records since its release, including amassing the most first-week streams for an African album on Apple Music in 100 countries. It also had the most simultaneous No 1 positions in 69 countries and placed 10 songs in Apple Music’s Global Daily Top 100. The Dave-assisted ‘Cheat On Me’ single hit No 44 globally and the top 10 in 32 countries, while ‘City Boys’ reached No 1 in Nigeria and No 16 on Shazam’s Global Charts. 

I Told Them is part of a broader trend where Nigerian artists like Davido and Rema have broken major records on platforms like Apple Music and Shazam. African music, in general, has seen a substantial growth in streams on Apple Music, increasing at four times the rate of overall streams. Shazams for African songs have also doubled year-on-year compared to the global average, with significant growth in countries like France, the UK and US.