In the biggest shocker since Tom Cruise and Katie Holmes announced they were divorcing, we kid, AdeleNicki Minaj and One Direction have some of the biggest-selling albums of 2012 according to the Neilsen SoundScan. So far. But don’t be surprised if these two stay on top for the long haul, because the youngins and not so youngins seem to love One Direction, Minaj, and Adele.

Slightly nudging the boy band heartthrobs out of the way though is Adele, with her album ’21.’ Released in the U.K. in January 2011 and the U.S. a month later, the album has sold 3.67 million copies in 2012 alone, and over 9 million since its release. One Direction actually came in third on the list, selling just under a million copies of ‘Up All Night.’ So who’s standing in between these two? Lionel freakin’ Richie. That normally would make us LOL, but his song ‘Angel‘ is still on heavy rotation on our iPod, so we simply shrug our shoulders at this glitch.

Adele is no stranger to surpassing records. She usurped Michael Jackson’s ‘Thriller’ on the best selling albums list in the U.K., passed Pink Floyd on the same list, and ya know, knocked Lady Gaga from the top gay icon spot. Also remarkable? Adele’s ’19′ is at No. 10, moving 540,000 copies this year alone.

In the hip-hop realm, Nicki Minaj and Drake held it down. The Harajuku Barbie coming in at No. 8 with ‘Pink Friday: Roman Reloaded,’ shilling roughly 560,000 copies, just ahead of Drizzy at No. 9 for ‘Take Care’ with 550,000 units sold.

Top Album Sellers of 2012:

1. Adele – ’21′ (3.67)

2. Lionel Richie – ‘Tuskegee’ (0.91)

3. One Direction – ‘Up All Night’ (0.90)

4. Whitney Houston, – The Greatest Hits’ (0.82)

5. Various Artists – ‘Now 41′ (0.71)

6. Carrie Underwood – ‘Blown Away’ (0.60)

7. Luke Bryan, -’Tailgates & Tanlines’ (0.58)

8. Nicki Minaj – ‘Pink Friday: Roman Reloaded’ (0.56)

9. Drake – ‘Take Care ‘(0.55)

10. Adele -’19′ (0.54)

And for fun, here are the top selling digital songs of the year (in millions). For once, Adele isn’t on a list!

Top Selling Digital Songs of 2012

1. Gotye Feat. Kimbra – ‘Somebody That I Used to Know’ (5.50)

2. Fun. featuring Janelle Monae – ‘We Are Young’ (5.09)

3. Carly Rae Jepsen – ‘Call Me Maybe’ (4.06)

4. Kelly Clarkson – ‘Stronger (What Doesn’t Kill You)’ (3.32)

5. Nicki Minaj – ‘Starships’ (3.16)

6. Maroon 5 Feat. Wiz Khalifa – Payphone’ (3.08)

7. The Wanted – ‘Glad You Came ‘(2.892)

8. One Direction –’What Makes You Beautiful’ (2.885)

9. Flo Rida featuring Sia – ‘Wild Ones’ (2.79)

10. Justin Bieber – ‘Boyfriend’ (2.60)

Did your favorite songs and albums make the list of the best-selling albums so far of 2012? Tell us in the comments!

Watch the Adele ‘Someone Like You’ Video

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