Miley Cyrus has achieved a rare feat in the UK charts, topping the singles and album charts in the same week. Their eighth studio album Endless Summer Vacation debuts at the top of the chart, while their song Flowers remains at the top for a ninth week.
It is the artist’s first number one album since 2013’s Bangerz. With the multi-platinum hit Wrecking Ball, this album also achieved double chart success.
Flowers, which is rumored to be about her divorce from actor Liam Hemsworth, is currently tied with Olivia Rodrigo’s Driver’s License for the longest-running number-one song by a female solo artist this decade.
Last Friday’s release of Endless Summer Vacation (which includes two Flowers covers) ensured that the song regained its position as the most streamed song of the previous week, surpassing PinkPantheress and Ice Spice’s viral hit Boy’s A Liar Pt. 2 .
The album has received generally excellent reviews, with critics praising Cyrus’s directness and songwriting while lamenting that some of her harsher edges have been softened.
Consequence of the sound indicated,
“The current of directness that runs through Endless Summer Vacation compels the listener to click play on the album again, and the stories grow even better with a second or third listen.” It’s unified without becoming repetitive.”
The album “holds the spotlight despite not being Cyrus’ most daring or imaginative,” according to NME, which called the songs a “remarkably intriguing” look at her post-divorce mental state.
According to Pitchfork, the album is separated into “AM” and “PM” halves, with the “AM” side, co-written by Harry Styles and Kid Harpoon, overshadowing the “maddening” and “irritating” “PM” side.
River and Jaded, two of the album’s standout singles, also appear in this week’s Top 40.
Eurovision feat
Elsewhere, Calvin Harris and Ellie Goulding’s new trance collaboration Miracle is this week’s hottest new entry.
The song debuts at number three on the chart, becoming Calvin’s 29th top 10 single and Ellie’s 12th. It is also their third album as a couple, after I Need Your Love (2012) and Outside (2014).
The Miracle is a strong contender for next week’s number one spot, but he only has one chance. The Eye’s Closed, Ed Sheeran’s comeback track, will be released next week.
Meanwhile, Mae Muller’s Eurovision campaign gets off to a strong start as her single I Wrote A Song debuts at #30.
This is an improvement on last year’s competitor, Sam Ryder, who didn’t even crack the top 40 despite placing second in Turin.
In fact, Muller is the first UK artist to chart ahead of Eurovision since Blue in 2011.
I Wrote A Song is her first solo single to reach the Top 40. As vocalist on Better Days, a 2021 collaboration with producer Neiked and American rapper Polo G, she previously reached number 32 in the United States in 2021.
Muller was announced as the UK representative last week, but in an interview with the BBC’s Eurovisioncast podcast, she admitted she had been keeping the secret for several months.
“That was difficult because I am very talkative and very open,” she said.
Still, I notified my parents because I didn’t want to surprise them too much.