Spotify reveals what the world listened to in 2020
Stockholm, Sweden - Spotify released the most-streamed songs and artists of 2020. What music did the world listen to during the coronavirus pandemic?
Billie Eilish (18) continues her legacy as the most-streamed female artist for the second year in a row, according to Spotify's annual Wrapped data. Taylor Swift (30) and Ariana Grande (27) follow her in the rankings.
Bad Bunny (26) undoubtedly took the lead in 2020. The Puerto Rican rapper, known for his reggaeton and Latin trap beats, amassed more than 8.3 billion streams around the world this year.His 2020 album YHLQMDLG claims the top spot with around 3.3 billion streams. The Weeknd’s After Hours, Post Malone’s Hollywood’s Bleeding, Harry Styles’ Fine Line, and Dua Lipa’s Future Nostalgia also made the top five albums list.
In most popular artists, Bad Bunny is followed by Canadian rapper Drake, Latin star J Balvin, and late rapper Juice WRLD. The fifth most-streamed artist is The Weeknd.
With almost 1.6 billion clicks, Bad Bunny's Blinding Lights is the most-streamed song of the year and the second most-streamed song of the summer.
Spotify was founded in Sweden in 2008 and has become the biggest music streaming service worldwide with over 320 million users and 144 million paying subscribers in over 90 countries.
Spotify trends in the US
In the US, late rapper Juice WRLD was the most popular artist. His album Legends Never Die was the platform's most-streamed album in the nation.
Juice WRLD, whose real name was Jarad Anthony Higgins, was a native of Chicago, Illinois. He died in December 2019 after having a seizure. Fans mourned the loss of the young musician, whose death came just days after his 21st birthday.
Roddy Ricch’s (22) The Box was the most-streamed song in the US. The accomplishment is one more addition to the rapper's recent string of successes, including a 2019 Grammy Award for Best Rap Performance and 2020 American Music Award.
The widespread Black Lives Matter protests for racial justice, sparked by the death of George Floyd in May 2020, left their mark on American musical consumption habits. Spotify reported that this year witnessed "the amplification of Black voices across songs, playlists, and podcasts."
Over 64 million people streamed Spotify's BLM playlist, and nearly 65,000 users created their own.
Billie Eilish is the most successful female artist on Spotify
Bad Bunny is the most successful artist worldwide
Podcasts are becoming ever more popular
Spotify's data revealed that the Joe Rogan Experience takes the number one slot for the most popular podcast of the year globally. TED Talks Daily and The New York Times' The Daily come in second and third place, respectively. The Michelle Obama Podcast took fourth place, followed by the comedy show Call Her Daddy.
In the US, where NPR News Now is the number one podcast, Rogan only managed to come in third place.
Cover photo: imago images / MediaPunc