Billie Is Back: ‘Hit Me Hard And Soft’ Returns to ARIA No. 1

Billie Eilish’s Hit Me Hard and Soft returns to the top of the ARIA Albums Chart this week, reclaiming the No. 1 position for the first time since mid-July.

The album, which previously spent five non-consecutive weeks at the summit in 2024, surged back to the top following her sold-out Australian tour dates.

The record finished 2024 as the No. 2 album of the year in Australia and continues to be a strong performer across streaming and physical formats, now clocking in six non-consecutive weeks at No. 1 since its release.

Blackpink’s Lisa makes a strong debut at No. 5 with her first solo album, Alter Ego. The project features collaborations with Raye, Doja Cat, Future, Rosalia, Tyla, and Megan Thee Stallion. Lisa is the second member of Blackpink to land a solo album in the ARIA Top 10 in the past four months—Rosé’s Rosie peaked at No. 2 in December and is currently at No. 45. Meanwhile, fellow bandmate Jennie just dropped her debut album, Ruby, which is set to make its chart debut next week.

The top five albums on this week’s ARIA Albums Chart are all by female artists. Following Eilish at No. 1, Tate McRae’s So Close To What holds steady at No. 2, Sabrina Carpenter’s Short n’ Sweet is at No. 3, SZA’s SOS climbs to No. 4, and Lisa’s Alter Ego debuts at No. 5.

Architects also make an impact this week with The Sky, The Earth & All Between, debuting at No. 8. The British metalcore band has a strong Australian following, with For Those That Wish to Exist reaching No. 1 in 2021.

Over on the ARIA Singles Chart, Rosé and Bruno Mars’ collaboration “APT” extends its reign at No. 1 for a 13th non-consecutive week. The track is now tied with Lil Nas X and Billy Ray Cyrus’ “Old Town Road” (2019) as the longest-running duet at No. 1 in the past five years. The all-time record for longest-running duet on the ARIA Singles Chart remains The Kid LAROI and Justin Bieber’s “Stay,” which dominated for 17 weeks between 2021 and 2022.

With Eilish reclaiming the top spot and Lisa making a major solo debut, female artists continue to dominate the ARIA charts this year.