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Beyonce has sold almost a million copies of her self-titled fifth album in the three days since its release, smashing iTunes records in the process.
The album, which was dropped unexpectedly at midnight on Friday (December 13) with zero promotion, sold 80,000 copies within three hours of its release - and it has now sold over 828,773 copies worldwide, with 617,213 of those being US sales.
Beyonce, described as a 'visual album' thanks to the accompanying 17 videos that accompany the 14 tracks, is now the fastest selling album on iTunes of all time.
Watch the video for 'XO' below
To put the numbers into perspective, the other huge pop albums of the year (that arrived with fanfare and a steady drip feed of promotion) barely sold the amount Beyonce has in a week, let alone three days. Miley Cyrus' Bangerz shifted 270,000 in its first week, whilst ARTPOP by Lady Gaga sold 258,000 units.
Beyonce unveiled two of the videos from her album yesterday (December 16); the black and white visuals from 'Drunk In Love', featuring Jay Z, and the funfair-set 'XO'.
Beyonce's new UK 2014 February and March tour dates are as follows:
February 20 - SSE Hydro Arena, Glasgow
February 21 - SSE Hydro Arena, Glasgow
February 23 - LG Arena, Birmingham
February 24 - LG Arena, Birmgingham
February 25 - Manchester Arena, Manchester
February 26 - Manchester Arena, Manchester
February 28 - The O2, London
March 1 - The O2, London
March 2 - The O2, London
March 4 - The O2, London
March 5 - The O2, London
March 6 - The O2, London
March 8 - The O2, Dublin
March 9 - The O2, Dublin
March 11 - The O2, Dublin
Tickets are on sale now. For more information vist Gigwise gig tickets.
Below: the best bits from all 17 of Beyonce's new videos
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