Kylie Minogue’s ‘Tension’ Racing to U.K. Chart Title

Kylie Minogue won’t be beaten in the race to No. 1 in the U.K.

Australia’s “princess of pop” races to the lead on the midweek chart with Tension (via BMG), her 16th studio album, which is currently outselling the rest of the top 20 combined, the Official Charts Company reports.

When the Official U.K. Albums Chart is published late Friday, Sept. 29, Kylie should have her ninth U.K. No. 1, across a career spanning 35 years.

Along the way, Kylie has set several chart records.

Tension is the followup to 2020’s Disco, which debuted at No. 1, making Minogue the first female artist to score a leader on the U.K. albums chart in five consecutive decades, doing so in the 1980s, ‘90s, ‘00s, 2010s and ‘20s.

The first track from her latest album, “Padam Padam,” recently peaked at No. 8 on the Official U.K. Singles Chart, completing a run of top 10 hits that spans five decades –1980s, 1990s, 2000s, 2010s and ‘20s.

The only other female solo artists to land top 10 hits in five consecutive decades are Cher, Diana Ross and Lulu, who each achieved the feat in the 1960s, 1970s, 1980s, 1990s and 2000s.

Meanwhile, Olivia Rodrigo’s sophomore LP Guts (Geffen) will drop to No. 2 following two weeks at the U.K. summit, while Doja Cat’s fourth and latest studio album Scarlet (Ministry of Sound) is set to arrive at No. 3.

Rounding out the top five on the chart blast are Headie One and K-Trap’s new collaborative mixtape Strength To Strength (One Thousand8), at No. 4; and Scottish alternative rock veterans Teenage Fanclub with Nothing Lasts Forever (Pema), new at No. 5. If Teenage Fanclub’s new record holds its spot, it’ll give the band their highest-charting album in 26 years, since 1997’s Songs from Northern Britain reached No. 3. Nothing Lasts Forever should become Teenage Fanclub’s 10th U.K. top 40 album.

Finally, North London experimental artist Baker (real name: Abubakar Baker Shariff-Farr) is cooking up a first-ever top 10 with Halo (Black Butter), predicted to bow at No. 8. Baker’s previous best was No. 31 for 2022’s Nobody’s Home.