by Robbie Williams has confirmed he pushed back the release of his new record, Britpop, to avoid a chart battle with Taylor Swift.
In May, Williams announced his new album would be released on October 10th. However, shortly after Swift revealed that her record, The Life of a Showgirl, would arrive on October 3rd, the former Take That member delayed his LP.
Although his album was originally due to arrive a week after Swift, she is expected to spend a significant number of weeks at the top of the charts in both the UK and the US due to streaming, as well as the various versions of The Life of a Showgirl that have subsequently been released.
Williams’ upcoming album will now arrive on February 6th, 2026. On October 9th, he performed an intimate show at Dingwalls in London, which was supposed to be a launch party for Britpop, and at the concert, he addressed the elephant in the room.
Per Billboard, Williams said, “We’re all pretending [the scheduling change] is not about Taylor Swift, but it fucking is, you can’t compete with that.”
He continued, “I was worried about making you all wait for the record. But then I was like, ‘Fuck it’. I’m sorry, but I’m fucking being selfish. How many times in your life do you get to have the most number one albums the UK has fucking ever had.”
Williams is referencing a chart record that he’s in touching distance from owning, which is the most number one albums in UK history. He is currently tied with The Beatles on 15.
During an interview with BBC Radio 1 on October 10th, he said of possibly surpassing the Fab Four to achieve the record, “It’s an alternative reality that I step into when I think about my career and I think about that particular record.”
Last week, Williams’ planned performance in Istanbul was cancelled due to public safety concerns amid his past performances in Israel. He told his followers on social media, “City authorities have cancelled the show, in the interests of public safety. The last thing I would ever want to do is to jeopardise the safety of my fans – their safety and security come first.”
