Streaming colossus Spotify has released its annual Year in Music lists, revealing the artists and songs that were the most popular with music fans around the world in 2015. As expected, the usual list of offenders populate the top categories, with chart-dominators Drake, Rihanna, Bieber and The Weeknd drawing billions of collective streams throughout the year. Listen to the Spotify Year in Music playlist here.
As for playlists, Today’s Top Hits was the most popular this year with close to 70 million hours of listening. This year, more music was listened to by more music fans than ever before around the world, with over 75 million listeners enjoying over 20 billion hours of music and with over 2 billion playlists now created.
Fans also discovered more new music and artists this year: streams of Spotify’s Discover Weekly personalized playlists, which are refreshed to Spotify users every Monday, reached 1.7 billion streams in 5 months. The new feature has revolutionized the way people discover and enjoy new music, a major boost for artists and fans alike.
Using Spotify’s data, we compiled a few more interesting facts on how the streaming numbers stack up:
Spotify’s Global Year in Music 2015
Most Musical Day of 2015:
June 19 was the biggest day for streams on Spotify in 2015.
Most Streamed Artist of 2015: Drake
Drake is the world’s most streamed artist of 2015 with over 1.8 billion streams this year and 48 million listeners, beating Ed Sheeran, last year’s most streamed artist. It’s been a banner year for the “Hotline Bling” artist, whose gif-baiting video was among the most talked about of 2015.
Most Streamed Female of 2015: Rihanna
With over 1 billion streams and 57 million listeners this year, Rihanna is 2015’s most streamed female artist. While we still wait for her new record Anti to drop, she’s not waning in popularity whatsoever.
Most Streams in a Single Day: Justin Bieber
A lightning rod for controversy, Justin Bieber’s numbers are undeniable. He set a record with the most streams in a single day of all time with 36 million streams on November 13.
Most Streamed Song of 2015: Lean On (ft. MØ and DJ Snake) by Major Lazer
2015 was arguably the year of Diplo. With “Lean On” (ft. MØ and DJ Snake) by Major Lazer earning title of the most streamed song of 2015, Spotify users listened to it over 540 million times this year. This popular track also ranks as the most streamed song of all time on Spotify.
Major Lazer thanked fans and said “One Love, One Lazer!! Thanks to you: our friends, fam and global squad, ‘Lean On’ is the world’s most streamed track!!”
Most Streamed Album of 2015: The Weeknd – Beauty Behind The Madness
The Weeknd’s 60 million listeners made Beauty Behind The Madness the most streamed album of the year. Drake’s If You’re Reading This It’s Too Late comes in at #2. Spanning all demographics, “I Can’t Feel My Face” has become an inescapable smash hit, one which will undoubtedly earn some Grammy gold when ceremonies are held again.
“It’s been an insane year working with some really talented people. Thank you to the fans on Spotify for making Beauty Behind the Madness the most streamed album of 2015”, said The Weeknd.
Most Streamed Artist of All Time: Ed Sheeran
Ed Sheeran is now the most streamed artist of all time on Spotify, with more than 3 billion streams to date, and with over 59 million listeners this year. Meanwhile, a great many people have no idea whatsoever who this guy is. His goofy Muppet presentation defies the groomed superstar persona we’ve seen time and time again, but Sheeran has concretely established himself as an industry fixture for years to come.
Breakout Artist of 2015: Kygo
Norwegian DJ and producer, Kygo, is crowned breakout artist of the year, becoming the first Spotlight artist to reach 1 billion streams, with hits including Firestone and Stole the Show.
Kygo said “2015 has been a crazy year for me, and Spotify have supported me right from the start. It’s an honor to be their Breakout Artist of the year, and I’m super excited to see what we can do together in 2016!”
Global Results
Top Five Global Artists
- Drake
- Ed Sheeran
- The Weeknd
- Maroon 5
- Kanye West
Top Five Global Males
- Drake
- Ed Sheeran
- The Weeknd
- Maroon 5
- Kanye West
Top Five Global Females
- Rihanna
- Ariana Grande
- Nicki Minaj
- Beyoncé
- Ellie Goulding
Top Five Global Tracks
- Lean On (feat. MØ & DJ Snake) – Major Lazer
- Cheerleader – Felix Jaehn Remix Radio Edit – OMI
- Uptown Funk – Mark Ronson
- See You Again (feat. Charlie Puth) – Wiz Khalifa
- Love Me Like You Do – From “Fifty Shades Of Grey” – Ellie Goulding
Top Five Global Albums
- Beauty Behind The Madness – The Weeknd
- If You’re Reading This It’s Too Late – Drake
- Peace Is The Mission – Major Lazer
- Stories – Avicii
- Title – Meghan Trainor
Top Five Global Viral Tracks
- Sugar (feat. Francesco Yates) – Robin Schulz
- Hotline Bling – Drake
- Ain’t Nobody (Loves Me Better) – Felix Jaehn
- Can’t Feel My Face – The Weeknd
- Here – Alessia Cara
Top Five Global Playlists
- Today’s Top Hits
- Afternoon Acoustic
- Baila Reggaeton
- Hot Country
- RapCaviar
MARKET SPECIFIC – U.S.
Top Five Artists in U.S.
- Drake
- The Weeknd
- Kanye West
- Ed Sheeran
- Eminem
Top Five Males in U.S.
- Drake
- The Weeknd
- Kanye West
- Ed Sheeran
- Eminem
Top Five Females in U.S.
- Nicki Minaj
- Beyoncé
- Rihanna
- Ariana Grande
- Lana Del Rey
Top Five Tracks in the U.S.
- Trap Queen – Fetty Wap
- The Hills – The Weeknd
- Earned It (Fifty Shades Of Grey) – The Weeknd
- Uptown Funk – Mark Ronson
- Lean On (feat. MØ & DJ Snake) – Major Lazer
Top Five Albums in the U.S.
- If You’re Reading This It’s Too Late – Drake
- Beauty Behind The Madness – The Weeknd
- Fetty Wap – Fetty Wap
- Dark Sky Paradise – Big Sean
- SremmLife – Rae Sremmurd
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Photos: Getty
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