A pair of prototype Nikes worn by Kanye West during his performances of 'Hey Mama' and 'Stronger' at the Grammy Awards in 2008 has been sold for $1.8 million in a private sale, al Jazeera reports. The sale marks the highest publicly recorded price for a sneaker sale and the first pair of sneakers to top $1 million. The buyer was sneaker investing platform RARES, the leader in fractional ownership, allowing users to invest in sneakers by buying and trading shares in them.

Plenty of records set by Taylor Swift on Billboard 200 chart this week, according to Billboard. Re-recorded version of her 2008 album 'Fearless', titled 'Fearless (Taylor’s Version)' scores the biggest week of 2021 for any album with 291,000 equivalent albums. She's the first woman with three new No. 1 albums in less than a year - in August 'Folklore' debuted at No. 1 with 846,000 units, while 'Evermore' arrived at No. 1 in December with 329,000 units. 'Fearless (Taylor’s Version)' is the only No. 1 album of its kind: a re-recording of an artist’s (own or another’s) previously released album. Album sales of 'Fearless (Taylor's Version)' comprise 179,000, making it the top-selling album of the week. The three largest weeks for an album in the last eight months all Belong to Swift. She is also the first woman with three new No. 1 albums in less than a year. Swift also becomes the first woman in the 65-year history of the chart with three new No. 1s in less than 12 months; Donna Summer held that record since 1979/1980.

Queen have officially moved 10 million units in streaming and track sales of their anthem 'Bohemian Rhapsody' in the US, making them the first UK band to be RIAA-certified diamond, Blabbermouth reports. 'Bohemian Rhapsody' also recently became the most-streamed song from the 20th century, surpassing a collective 1.6 billion streams globally across all major streaming services.

Cardi B's major-label debut single 'Bodak Yellow' has been certified diamond by the Recording Industry Association of America, meaning it has moved 10 million units, Complex reports. The New York native is the first female rapper to achieve a diamond single award. One equivalent song unit is equal to a single digital song sale, or 150 on-demand audio and/or video streams.

The Weeknd 'Blinding Lights' becomes the first song in Billboard Hot 100's history (which started in 1958) to spend a year in the top 10, as it logs its 52nd week in the region, Billboard reports. After debuting at No. 11 on the chart dated Nov. 14, 2019, it reached the top 10 on Feb. 29, 2020, and has spent all but two frames in the top tier since (ranking at Nos. 11 and 18 for two weeks in December).

An unknown track 'Choose Your Weapon' by the unknown British electronic producer Scaramanga Silk has sold for over $41,000 (£29,800) on Discogs, making it the site’s most expensive record ever, and one of the most expensive records ever sold anywhere, Guardian reports. The vinyl was self-released in 2008, and there were only 20 copies made of the edition. It is the only time 'Choose Your Weapon' has been sold on the site, and artist, who earns nothing from the sale, is baffled by the price - “It is very difficult to understand why the release went for that kind of money, as I do not believe that any record is worthy of such a valuation”. Previous Discogs record was $27,500 paid for Prince's 1987 record 'The Black Album' that he had deleted before it went on sale.

The Toronto singer/rapper has become the first artist ever to surpass 50 billion combined streams on Spotify, with his 2018 song ‘God’s Plan’ racking up 1.67 billion streams alone, NME reports. Drake has clocked up 35.72 billion streams of his own songs and 14.30 billion streams of “featured streams” (such as tracks he has guested on).

Morgan Wallen’s 'Dangerous: The Double Album' debuts at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 albums chart with the largest streaming week ever for a country album, Billboard reports. The 30-song album starts with 265,000 equivalent album units earned in the U.S. in the week ending Jan. 14, including 240.18 million on-demand streams of the album’s songs, the largest streaming week ever for a country album. Jazmine Sullivan hits a career-high on the Billboard 200 as 'Heaux Tales' bows at No. 4 with 43,000 equivalent album units earned.

There were 1.842 million LP’s sold in the US during the week leading up to Christmas, ending on December 24th, which made it the biggest week the format has had since 1991, Billboard reports. The previous record was achieved just a week prior, when 1.445 million vinyl records were sold between December 10th and December 17th. The top-selling vinyl album last week was Paul McCartney’s new solo effort 'III', which sold a 32,000 units, making it the third-largest sales week for a vinyl record since 1991.

Tones And I's breakthrough hit 'Dance Monkey' moved past two billion streams on Spotify, which makes the Australian singer the first female artist to reach the milestone, Billboard reports. Just two tracks have accumulated more streams on the platform, Ed Sheeran’s 'Shape of You' (at 2.7 billion) and Post Malone’s 'Rockstar' featuring 21 Savage (2.079 billion).

A record number of 1.253 million vinyl albums were sold in the week of Nov. 27-Dec. 3 in the U.S., enough for the largest sales week since 1991, when electronic tracking music sales began, Billboard reports. It’s only the second week in 39 years that weekly vinyl album sales surpassed 1 million - the last time it happened was a year ago when 1.243 million were sold in the week ending Dec. 26, 2019. Half of the sales is attributed to Record Store Day Black Friday festivities at independent record stores, as indie physical store sales accounted for 542,000 vinyl LPs sold in the week. The top-selling vinyl was Harry Styles’ 'Fine Line', with 15,000 copies sold.

The music video for System of a Down’s classic 'Chop Suey!' has surpassed 1 billion views on YouTube, making it the first metal song to hit that illustrious mark, Loudwire reports. 'Chop Suey!' joins the company of songs in the YouTube billion club that fall into the hard- or alter-rock category - Guns N’ Roses’ 'November Rain' and 'Sweet Child O’ Mine', Linkin Park’s 'In the End' and 'Numb', and Nirvana’s 'Smells Like Teen Spirit'...

Kylie Minogue has become the first female artist to have a number one album in the UK in five separate decades, next to boys such as Paul McCartney, John Lennon, Paul Weller and David Gilmour. Her new album, 'Disco', topped the charts with 55,000 sales, making for the best opening week of any new release in 2020 so far, the UK Official Charts reports. It is her eighth number one, meaning she has overtaken Elton John, Cliff Richard and George Michael in the all-time chart leaderboard. Minogue's chart-topper was made in the middle of the lockdown, with the star forced to buy recording equipment and learn computer software so she could record her vocals at home.

Catchy children’s song 'Baby Shark', recorded by South Korean company Pinkfong, has become the most viewed video ever on YouTube with 7.04bn views over four years after it was first uploaded, Inquirer reports. It surpasses 'Despacito', the 2017 single by Puerto Rican pop stars Luis Fonsi and Daddy Yankee. Catchy 'Baby Shark' has prompted a spin-off live tour, merchandise, books and more, plus reworkings of the song, including one featuring - Luis Fonsi...

Rock musician Jason Barnes started drumming at age 14, but lost his arm in an accident. He learned that he can continue drumming with drumsticks taped to his stump. With the help of Gil Weinberg, a Georgia Tech professor and inventor of musical robots, the pair utilized electromyography and ultrasound technology to make a bionic hand for Barnes. Now, the "super-able" Barnes holds the world record for most drumbeats in one minute (2400) using a drumstick prosthetic. Big Think brings the encouraging story.

Very successful 1995 Oasis single 'Wonderwall' has reached billion stream on Spotify, becoming thus the first 90s song to ever surpass one billion streams on that streaming service, Stereogum reports. 'Wonderwall' was originally released as a single on October 30, 1995. It was released on Oasis' '(What's the Story) Morning Glory?' album, the UK’s third best selling album of all time.

Nikki Patterson, of Aberdeen, has set a Guinness World Records for the most tattoos of Eminem - she has 16 portraits of the American rapper tattooed on her body, according to BBC. She got her first Eminem tattoo at 19, now, aged 35, she has 52 tattoos in total and 28 - including the 16 portraits - are based on The Slim Shady.

Canadian rock musician Daniel Romano has released nine different albums this year. His latest, 'How Ill Thy World Is Ordered' is a baroque-pop/indie-rock album, and the first one released in a physical format since the live album 'OKAY WOW' from March (listen to 'How...' on Bandcamp; which PopMatters thinks highly of). Most of his releases this year have wrestled with specific genres, like punk, power-pop, or prog - for that one, a 22-minute song 'Forever Love's Fool', he got a hand from Danny Carey of Tool.

Korean boy band BTS has set a YouTube record with their new video 'Dynamite' with 101,1 million views in 24 hours after its releases last Friday, Variety reports. This marks the first video to achieve 100 million views in one day. More than three million fans also tuned in to watch the clip's live premiere - almost double the previous record, held by Blackpink's 'How You Like That'.

The world's most valuable 7in single, 'Do I Love You', by Frank Wilson, has been bought by 38-year-old Lee Jeffries for an undisclosed sum, but it went for more than it did when it was last sold, 11 years ago. In 2009 the disc with "the most famous northern soul record" fetched a record-breaking £25,742. It was, and remains, the most expensive seven inch 45rpm labeled record ever sold.

K-pop girl band Blackpink has set a new record for the biggest music video premiere on YouTube with a total of 1.65 million fans tuning in for the unveiling of their new song 'How You Like That'. They broke a record set by fellow K-pop stars BTS in February, Soompi reports. Last year, the Blackpink became the first K-pop group to have a video reach a billion views on YouTube.

Captain Tom Moore, UK war veteran who walked laps of his garden to raise money for the NHS, has become the oldest person ever to score a number one single in the UK, the UK Official Charts reports. At the age of 99, his duet with Michael Ball covering 'You'll Never Walk Alone' sold 82,000 copies, with proceeds going to the NHS Charities Together fund. Capt Tom's birthday is next Thursday, meaning he will still be number one when he turns 100. The Weeknd almost beat Captain Tom but in a gallant move, he asked his UK fans to support the aged.

The Weeknd leads the Billboard 200 chart with his fourth #1 album 'After Hours', Hot 100 chart with his fifth #1 single 'Blinding Lights', and he also sits at #1 on the current Artist 100 chart, Hot 100 Songwriters chart, and the Hot Producers chart. This makes him the first act to hold the #1 spot on those five rankings at the same time. He told Billboard how he refused to postpone his album, because - "hopefully it can help some people escape our reality, if only for an hour out of their day". So, people massively escaped...

Last week, all 18 songs from Lil Uzi Vert's 'Eternal Atake' broke onto the Hot 100 chart. This week, all 14 songs from 'Eternal Atake (Deluxe) - LUV Vs. The World 2' (new songs, outtakes from 'Eternal Atake') made it onto the Hot 100 too, making Lil Uzi Vert the first act to have every song from two full projects chart on the Hot 100 in consecutive weeks, All Hip Hop reports.

Drake scored his 208th Billboard Hot 100 entry this week, making him the artist with the most US chart hits in history, Billboard reports. The rapper broke the record, previously set by the cast of the TV show Glee, with the track 'Oprah’s Bank Account' by Lil Yachty and DaBaby, which he guests on. It reached No 85 off the back of 10.5m streams. His first US chart entry was 'Best I Ever Had', which debuted at No 92 in May 2009. His 207 chart placements since have been bulked out by frequent guest spots on tracks by artists including Rihanna, Nicki Minaj and Travis Scott, as well as his solo hits.

"Heavy metal Mardi Gras" was held yesterday in Perth - Canning Highway in west Australia city was closed to all vehicles except eight trucks that hosted eight different bands all singing their own version of AC/DC songs to commemorate the death of AC/DC frontman and Perth lad Bon Scott’s funeral 40 years ago. ABC reports that an estimated 150,000 people lined the route between Applecross and Fremantle waiting for the world’s longest stage, and before the AC/DC convoy began its journey, an air guitar world record was set when more than 3500 people rocked out to 'Highway To Hell', Louder reports. The Highway to Hell concept was big and weird and it was a gamble but it paid off massively and is something we can proudly write in history books - WA today writes.

Billie Eilish’s official James Bond theme ‘No Time To Die’ has gone straight in at Number One on this week’s Official Singles Chart in the UK with 90,000 chart sales across the past seven days including 10.6 million streams. This made for the biggest opening week for a Bond theme of all time, the biggest opening week for a single so far this year, Eilish's first UK Number One single. The result means Billie Eilish is now the youngest artist and the first female to take a Bond theme to the top of the Official Singles Chart.

A-ha’s classic 1985 music video for 'Take On Me' has passed the one billion views threshold on YouTube, making them the first 1980s pop band and the first continental European act to step into the billion club. It’s one of the few pre-‘90s music videos to join the billion-views club alongside Guns N’ Roses' 'November Rain' and Queen’s 'Bohemian Rhapsody'. 'Take On Me' was recently restored and upgraded to 4K resolution.

The first episode of Justin Bieber's docuseries 'Seasons' has broken a record for YouTube with 32,65 million views in its first week. That beat out original comedy 'Liza On Demand' Season 2 debut (25.4 million) and the first episode of 'Cobra Kai' Season 2 (21 million). YouTube paid upwards of $20 million for the 10-part Bieber docuseries, making it YouTube’s most expensive content acquisition to date.

'Dance Monkey' cruises to a 16th week at No. 1 on the Australian singles chart, breaking the all-time record for longest stint at the summit. Tones And I's second single eclipses the previous mark set by Ed Sheeran’s 'Shape of You' which spent 15 non-consecutive weeks at the top of the chart. The Industry Observer...