ADELE has made another record-breaking return to the charts, as her latest album “30” claims the title of fastest-selling album of 2021 in both the U.S. and the U.K. Released Nov. 19, the British singer’s fourth studio album also became the most successful album of the year in the U.S. just three days after release, according to MRC data reported by Billboard. Selling more than 660,000 equivalent album units — which includes audio and video streaming and individual track sales — “30” has already triumphed over the other major releases of 2021. In the U.K., Adele debuted at the top spot in the albums chart, with first-week sales of 261,000 according to the Official Charts, which said it was the biggest first week for an album since Ed Sheeran’s “Divide” (÷) in 2017. The album’s lead single “Easy on Me” also claimed a sixth consecutive week at No. 1 on the U.K. singles chart, after breaking the record for most streams in a single week after its release. The Official Charts said Adele was the only female act with three or more studio albums to reach No. 1 with all her records — a title she has now cemented further with “30,” which marks her fourth No. 1. However, “30” has not quite hit the heights of Adele’s third studio album, “25,” which became the fastest-selling album of all time in both the U.S. and the U.K. in 2015 — selling 800,000 copies in the U.K. and 3.3 million in the U.S. Although this week’s album chart is yet to be released in the U.S., it is all but guaranteed that Adele will claim her third consecutive No. 1 album, and “Easy on Me” previously spent four weeks in the top spot of the Hot 100 singles chart. Adele told American Vogue in October that the album was her way of explaining her divorce to her son. (SD-Agencies) | 