Erasure (/ɪˈreɪʒər/) are an English synth-pop duo, consisting of singer and songwriter Andy Bell and songwriter and keyboardist Vince Clarke. They formed in London in 1985. Their debut single was "Who Needs Love Like That". From their fourth single, "Sometimes", the duo established themselves on the UK Singles Chart, becoming one of the most successful artists of the late 1980s to mid-1990s. Erasure have penned over 200 songs and have sold over 28 million albums worldwide. From 1986 to 2007, Erasure achieved 24 consecutive Top 40 hits in the UK. By 2009, 34 of their 37 chart-eligible singles and EPs had made the UK Top 40, with 17 climbing into the Top 10. At the 1989 Brit Awards, Erasure won the Brit Award for Best British Group. They also had three Top 20 US hits with the songs "A Little Respect", and "Always", the highest charting US single (on the Billboard Hot 100) being their 1988 single "Chains of Love", which hit number 12 on the chart. The duo is most popular in their native UK and mainland Europe (especially Germany, Denmark, and Sweden) and also in South America (especially Argentina, Brazil, Chile, and Peru).[citation needed] The band is also popular within the LGBT community, for whom the openly gay Bell has become an icon.