‘The Voice’ Marks 20 Million Singles Sold

Pictured (L-R): Blake Shelton, Adam Levine, Gwen Stefani, Pharrell Williams, Carson Daly. Photo: NBC

During Monday’s (Dec. 1) episode of The Voice, host Carson Daly announced the NBC music competition has “reached a major milestone in its seventh season” by hitting the 20 million mark for iTunes downloads.

Four judges–Blake Shelton, Adam Levine, Gwen Stefani and Pharrell Williams–stood by the host to kick off Monday’s show in front of a plaque reading “20,000,000 Singles Sold.”

“That is a testament to our talented artists, amazing band and the guidance of all of our coaches,” said Daly. “To all The Voice fans, thanks for all your support.”

According to Billboard:

• The show hit 10 million downloads in May 2013
• Downloads are tallied by iTunes
• The milestone includes only songs performed on the weekly show, not those released post-competition (e.g. Cassadee Pope, Danielle Bradbery etc.)
• Republic Records releases the music during the show
• Unlike American Idol, sales figures for The Voice have allowed tracks from the show to appear on the iTunes and Billboard charts
• The Voice stands as TV’s No. 1 reality series, averaging 13.9 million viewers each episode (Nielsen)

Performances entering Billboard’s Hot Digital Songs chart have included Bradbery’s Pam Tillis cover, “Maybe It Was Memphis” (167,000 sold) and the Swon Brothers‘ take on Kenny Loggins‘ “Danny’s Song” (158,000 sold), reports the industry magazine’s Phil Gallo. Pope’s version of Miranda Lambert‘s “Over You” stands out as the top-selling track (363,000 sold), while her remake of Keith Urban’s “Stupid Boy” also made a substantial mark (202,000 sold).