Olivia Dean and Dave emerge as contenders as Swift's chart lead eases

Midweek streaming and radio figures for the UK suggest Taylor Swift's dominance on music platforms is easing, with British singer Olivia Dean and rapper Dave emerging as potential challengers to the top of the Official UK Singles Chart ahead of this Friday's announcement. Streaming tallies on major platforms show Dean leading on Spotify midweek while Dave has registered multiple entries on Apple Music following the release of his new album, The Boy Who Played the Harp. The Official UK Top 40 is announced every Friday afternoon on BBC Radio 1.

On Spotify, midweek data place Olivia Dean's track Man I Need as the most-streamed song, and she currently has additional entries So Easy To Fall In Love and Nice To Each Other among the platform's top ten. Taylor Swift remains present with The Fate of Ophelia and Opalite still performing strongly, but her concentration of entries appears reduced compared with the immediate aftermath of her album release. Two tracks by New York singer songwriter Shane Michael Boose, who performs as sombr, have also featured in the lower reaches of the Spotify midweek top ten.

Apple Music figures show a different contender moving up. Dave's album spawned...