U.K. MIDWEEKS: ED & BIEBER START AT THE TOP

Ed Sheeran and Justin Bieber have entered straight in at #1 on the U.K.’s Official Singles midweeks with “I Don’t Care” (Atlantic) with more than 4.7m streams. Over on albums, Whitesnake are today’s highest new entrants at #3 with Flesh & Blood (Frontiers).

Beyond streams, Sheeran and Bieber have sold more digital downloads than the rest of the Top 5 combined at the halfway stage. On Friday, the track should become Sheeran’s sixth #1 and Bieber’s seventh.

The second highest new entry today comes from Skepta with “Greaze Mode” (BBK) at #18, followed by “Bullet From a Gun” at #34, both of which are taken from his upcoming fifth album, out on 5/31.

Meanwhile, Europa—the collaborative project of Jax Jones and Martin Solveig—are #11 with “All Day and Night” f/Madison Beer (Polydor); James Arthur’s “Falling Like The Stars” (Syco) starts at #24 and Ellie Goulding’s “Sixteen” (Polydor) rises six places to #25.

On the Official Albums midweeks, P!nk’s Hurts 2B Human (RCA) is on course for a third week at the top. Billie Eilish’s When We All Fall Asleep, Where Do We Go? (Polydor)is 1.6k sales behind at #2.

The 13th studio album from Whitesnake is set to become the band’s fourth Top 5 at #3, and Mac DeMarco could claim his first Top 10 album with the self-released Here Comes the Cowboy at #9.

Logic’s Confessions of a Dangerous Mind (Virgin EMI) starts at #10, and Howard Jones’ new release, Transform (MofoHifi), is on course to be his first Top 20 album in 33 years at #16.