Grime MC Stormzy has capped a whirlwind 10 days by hitting the top of the albums chart with his debut release.
Gang Signs And Prayers knocked Rag’n'Bone Man’s Human off number one as it racked up the most first-week streams for a number one album in history.
The 16-track record, which features a notable appearance from Lily Allen, captured the top spot with combined streams and sales of 69,000.
Stormzy, real name Michael Omari, said he wanted to individually treat everyone who had streamed or purchased the record.
“It hasn’t sunk in yet. Honestly, I wish I could take every person who bought and streamed the album out with me, have dinner with them, dedicate a whole night to them.
“I don’t take your support for granted. I can’t thank you enough,” he told Official Charts.
Clinching the number one spot continues the 23-year-old’s dizzying rise into the mainstream over the past two weeks. The rapper has performed with Ed Sheeran at the Brits, held several impromptu gigs around London, and invaded a Manchester United press conference.
He also delivered pizza to Nick Grimshaw and Rita Ora on Radio 1′s breakfast show hours after his Brits performance, and flipped pancakes with world renowned chef Raymond Blanc on Shrove Tuesday.
Behind Rag’n'Bone Man in the album charts is Sheeran’s 2014 release Multiply which rises one place in anticipation for the Suffolk singer-songwriter’s third album, released Friday.
Stormzy also made an impression in the official singles chart with the release of his Brits collaboration with Sheeran on Shape Of You, helping it to remain at number one for an eighth straight week.
And the rapper follows in the exclusive footsteps of Justin Bieber, Beyonce and The Weeknd with every single song from Gang Signs And Prayer making the top 100. The highest placed track is Big For Your Boots which climbs 11 places to sixth.
Second in the singles charts is another Brits collaboration with The Chainsmokers and Coldplay’s Something Just Like This vaulting 28 places to second.
The rest of the top five remains as it was with Sheeran’s Castle On The Hill in third, Rag’n'Bone Man’s Human in fourth and Katy Perry’s politically-charged Chained To The Rhythm in fifth.
