British soul star ADELE has been crowned America's chart queen of 2012 after scoring the official top-selling album of the year.

The singer's record 21 was the best-seller in the U.S. for two years in a row, a first since Nielsen SoundScan chart compilers began tracking music sales in 1991.

The Grammy-winning album sold 4.41 million copies last year (12), and 5.82 million in 2011.

Taylor Swift's Red was runner-up with 3.11 million albums shifted, while One Direction's Up All Night rounded out the top three with 1.62 million sold.

Gotye's smash hit Somebody That I Used to Know was 2012's top-selling digital song with 6.8 million sold, while Carly Rae Jepsen's breakthrough single Call Me Maybe and fun.'s We Are Young came in second and third places, respectively.