Our very own Gotye is continuing on his quest to conquer the world unheeded. Whether or not that was his masterplan when he penned Somebody That I Used to Know, it certainly seems to be the end result. The yearly numbers are in and the US has been the latest to declare ol’ Wally their supreme leader.
Top selling single of the year…supreme leader, it’s all good. Either way, Gotye’s mega hit has come in as the #1 tune in terms of sales for the US. It’s been a long time between drinks for an Aussie artist to take out this title, with the last instance happening back in 1982 with Liv Newton-John and her 80’s anthem Physical.
On top of this accolade, the song has also garnered Gotye with the titles of No.1 radio song of 2012 in the US, the No.1 digital song, No.1 adult pop song, and No.1 alternative song according to News.com.au.
The track seems to be somewhat of a stand-alone off its birth record Making Mirrors. The whole album came in at #27 in the charts after selling around 2 million copies. The single on, the other hand, racked up a total of 14 million sales internationally.
Also adding some Aussie flavour to the list is Radelaidian Sia, who features on two tracks that made the cut – Flo Rida’s Wild Ones at #11 and Titanium with David Guetta at #24. Despite what you may think, PSY’s Gangnam Style didn’t really find the traction in the US that it did in Aus and the UK, coming in at #47.
Gotye has been seeing 2012 out with a run of sold-out headlining shows across Australia before he takes a breather. He will then be hitting 2013 hard with the Grammy’s as well as new music.
It seems to be the season for lists about things, so we’ve included a couple of lists below for you to get your list fix. You’ll notice Adele’s album 21 is still the most popular album for the 2nd year in a row. The only time that has ever happened was when Mike released Thriller.
Top 10 selling singles of 2012 in the US
1. Somebody That I Used to Know – Gotye featuring Kimbra
2. Call Me Maybe – Carly Rae Jepsen
3. We Are Young – Fun
4. Payphone – Maroon 5 featuring Wiz Khalifa
5. Lights – Ellie Goulding
6. Glad You Came – The Wanted
7. Stronger (What Doesn’t Kill You) – Kelly Clarkson
8. We Found Love – Rihanna featuring Calvin Harris
9. Starships – Nicki Minaj
10. What Makes You Beautiful – One Direction
Top 10 selling albums of 2012 in the US
1. 21 – Adele
2. Christmas – Michael Buble
3. Take Care – Drake
4. Red – Taylor Swift
5. Up All Night – One Direction
6. Tailgates & Tanlines – Luke Bryan
7. Babel – Mumford & Sons
8. Talk That Talk – Rihanna
9. Tuskeegee – Lionel Richie
10. El Camino – The Black Keys
