U.K. CHRISTMAS RACE HAS BEGUN

The race is on for the U.K's Christmas #1 single with two weeks to go until the official winner is crowned on 12/20. Bets are currently being placed on tracks by Stormzy, Lewis Capaldi and Tones & I.

Unless a new release garners enough hype to go straight in at #1, which is getting rarer and rarer these days—there have been 11 #1 singles in Blighty so far this year—the Christmas top spot is likely to be nabbed by someone who has already gained traction.

With eight weeks at #1 already, Tones & I could very well hold on for the next two with "Dance Monkey" (Parlophone). Capaldi is currently 15k combined sales behind at #2 with "Before You Go" (Capitol), while Stormzy, Ed Sheeran and Burna Boy sit a close third with "Own It" (Atlantic). The bookies' favourite is currently Capaldi, followed by Stormzy, whose sales are likely to be boosted by the arrival of his second album on 12/13, and Tones & I.

Beyond that, there's a few classics currently making their way up the charts: "All I Want for Christmas is You" (Sony) by Mariah Carey sits at #8; "Last Christmas" (Sony) by Wham! is at #13; and "Fairytale of New York" (Warner) by The Pogues f/Kirsty MacColl at #22.

Will a surprise release or charity campaign disrupt the current status quo? Stay tuned.