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It's the sort of first-day figures that poor old Britney Spears could only dream of, as it has been revealed that Beyonce sold 80,000 copies of her new album in just three hours in America when it was released on 13 December, 2013.
The album is set to score the 'Grown Woman' superstar an easy No.1 in America after chalking up huge sales on the first day of the album's release. The album was released on iTunes on 13 December 2013 without prior announcement, surprising fans the world over - thousands of whom were willing to part with their cash for her new 'visual album'.
In comparison, Britney Spears sold just over 100,000 copies of her new album, Britney Jean, stateside during a week on sale, scoring the 'Work Bitch' singer a No.4 on the US albums chart.
The self-titled album is out now, and features collaborations with husband Jay-Z, daughter Blue Ivy, Drake and Frank Ocean among others. The album is 14 tracks long, but as a visual album, comes with an additional 17 videos.
"I didn’t want to release my music the way I’ve done it,” says Beyonce in a statement about the album. "I am bored with that. I feel like I am able to speak directly to my fans. There’s so much that gets between the music, the artist and the fans.
"I felt like I didn’t want anybody to give the message when my record is coming out. I just want this to come out when it’s ready and from me to my fans.
"I just want to give my album to the people I love and respect and hope that they feel the same thing I felt when I made the music."
The album's surprise release was planned to avoid leaks, and only recently a clip of her track 'Grown Woman' leaked online.
Beyonce worked with a who's who of the r&b and hip hop world on the album, with Jay Z, Timbaland, Justin Timberlake, Pharrell Williams, Drake, The Dream, Sia, Ryan Tedder, Miguel, Frank Ocean, Hit Boy, Ammo, Boots, Detail, Jake Nava, Hype Williams, Terry Richardson, Melina Matsoukas, Jonas Åkerlund, Ricky Saiz, Pierre Debusschere, @lilinternet, Noah “40” Shebib, Francesco Carrozzini, Caroline Polachek, Ed Burke, Bill Kirstein and Todd Tourso all having worked on the album.
Beyonce recently announced a string of huge 2014 UK arena shows. Tickets go on sale Monday, 16 December 2013. For more information, visit Gigwise Gig Tickets.
Below: the best bits from all 17 of Beyonce's new videos
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