Teen boy band One Direction have hit the top of the charts in the US with the fastest selling single by a British act.
The
band, runners up in the seventh series of the X Factor, have taken the
US by storm, and their single Live While We're Young sold 341,000 copies
in one week.
The achievement comes as the group, made up of Niall
Horan, Liam Payne, Harry Styles, Zayn Malik and Louis Tomlinson, failed
to top the UK charts, making it to number three behind Rihanna's
Diamonds at number one. The single is expected to drop out of the top
five on Sunday.
But the band were thrilled by their success in the US, which has proved difficult, if not impossible, for UK acts to break.
Horan
said: "We're so happy with the success of the single in the USA and
can't wait for everyone to hear our new album. Thank you to all the fans
once again."
The single has also proved popular online. The promo
for the single became the most viewed video within 24 hours on video
site Vevo.
Earlier this year the quintet became the first UK group
to enter the US Billboard chart with their debut album, Up All Night –
the first British act to hit that position with a debut.
After
signing with Simon Cowell's Syco Records following their appearance on
the music reality show, the band subsequently signed with Columbia
Records.
Nick Gatfield, chair and chief executive of Sony Music Entertainment UK, has said the band could represent up to $100m business by next year, made up from sales – currently including a number one album in 16 countries – merchandising and tours.
"What
you might not know about One Direction is that they already represent a
$50 million business," Gatfield said. "And that's a figure we expect to
double next year."
The band's new single also makes them the
fastest ever selling overseas act in the US, with some labelling them
part of a new British invasion, last seen in the 1960s when the Beatles
and the Rolling Stones made their name in America.
British acts
from Oasis to Take That have attempted to break the US. More recently
the singer Adele has also seen success there. Her second album, 21, held
its position on the US Billboard 200 longer than any other album since 1985.
On One Direction's image and success in the US, one commenter wrote
that they had much to thank for the prominence of teen pop star, Justin
Bieber, who showed their was a gap in the market for "clean cut,
wholesome, whiter-than-white, middle class parent friendly pop: cute
boys advocating puppy love. It is safe sex for dangerous times."
One Direction became
the first UK group to enter the US Billboard chart with their debut
album earlier this year. Photograph: Brian Rasic/Rex Features
