What a Time! Music Streaming in 2024: Viral Hits and Record-Breaking Moments

What a time. Bitcoin broke the $100,000 threshold and peaked at nearly $104,000 on Thursday for the first time in the cryptocurrency’s 15-year history. The token has more than doubled in value this year after trading at around $45,000 when 2024 started.

Music Streaming in 2024: Viral Hits and Record-Breaking Moments
As 2024 winds down, music fans are looking back at the standout moments of the year, with Spotify, YouTube, and Apple Music leading the way in celebrating the best tracks, albums, and creators. Taylor Swift‘s dominance on global charts, MrBeast’s YouTube success, and Billie Eilish’s groundbreaking year exemplify a transformative time for the industry, with fresh collaborations and viral hits defining the cultural landscape.

Let’s dig into the data.

Spotify Wrapped

Spotify‘s latest highlights showcase a dynamic year in music. Rising stars like Chappell Roan and Sabrina Carpenter, alongside genre-blending artists like Beyoncé and Post Malone, achieved significant chart success. Historic collabs like Billie Eilish with Charli XCX and Lady Gaga with Bruno Mars also dominated the charts, with the latter’s hit “Die With A Smile” being the most shared song from Spotify to social platforms.

Spotify Wrapped’s top artists lists for 2024 reveal notable contrasts between global and US listeners. Globally, Taylor Swift, The Weeknd, and Bad Bunny lead, with Peso Pluma and Feid reflecting strong Latin representation. In the US, country stars Zach Bryan and Morgan Wallen join Swift and rap notables like Kendrick Lamar, Drake, and Future to top domestic listeners.

Swift was named Spotify’s top global artist for the second year in a row, and for good reason, seeing as three of her albums appeared among the top 10 most-streamed albums globally. Swift received 26.6 billion total streams on Spotify in 2024, and her latest accolade will be celebrated with the first-ever special badge on her Spotify artist profile.

The Top 10 Most-Streamed Albums Globally

1. THE TORTURED POETS DEPARTMENT: THE ANTHOLOGY by Taylor Swift
2. HIT ME HARD AND SOFT by Billie Eilish
3. Short n’ Sweet by Sabrina Carpenter
4. MAÑANA SERÁ BONITO by Karol G
5. eternal sunshine by Ariana Grande
6. 1989 (Taylor’s Version) by Taylor Swift
7. SOS by SZA
8. Lover by Taylor Swift
9. Fireworks & Rollerblades by Benson Boone
10. Starboy by The Weeknd

Only five of the top 10 most-streamed albums globally were released this year; overall, eight of those albums come from women artists. The top 10 most-streamed albums in the US vary a bit, with diverse pop stars and country singers breaking onto the list.

The Top 10 Most-Streamed Albums in the US

1. THE TORTURED POETS DEPARTMENT: THE ANTHOLOGY by Taylor Swift 
2. One Thing At A Time by Morgan Wallen
3. Short n’ Sweet by Sabrina Carpenter 
4. Stick Season by Noah Kahan
5. The Rise and Fall of a Midwest Princess by Chappell Roan 
6. HIT ME HARD AND SOFT by Billie Eilish 
7. SOS by SZA
8. Dangerous: The Double Album by Morgan Wallen
9. Zach Bryan by Zach Bryan 
10. 1989 (Taylor’s Version) by Taylor Swift

Although Taylor Swift dominated album streams, only one of her songs ranked on the most-streamed global list, and none made the US list. Sabrina Carpenter’s “Espresso” viral sensation topped the list globally and in the US.

Most-Streamed Songs Globally 

1. “Espresso” by Sabrina Carpenter
2. “Beautiful Things” by Benson Boone
3. “BIRDS OF A FEATHER” by Billie Eilish
4. “Gata Only” by FloyyMenor, Cris Mj 
5. “Lose Control” by Teddy Swims 
6. “End of Beginning” by Djo
7. “Too Sweet” by Hozier
8. “One Of The Girls (with JENNIE, Lily Rose Depp)” by The Weeknd 
9. “Cruel Summer” by Taylor Swift
10. “Die With A Smile” by Bruno Mars, Lady Gaga

Most-Streamed Songs in the US

1. “Espresso” by Sabrina Carpenter
2. “Not Like Us” by Kendrick Lamar
3. “A Bar Song (Tipsy)” by Shaboozey 
4. “I Had Some Help (feat. Morgan Wallen)” by Post Malone 
5. “MILLION DOLLAR BABY” by Tommy Richman
6. “Good Luck, Babe!” by Chappell Roan
7. “Beautiful Things” by Benson Boone
8. “BIRDS OF A FEATHER” by Billie Eilish
9. “I Remember Everything (feat. Kacey Musgraves)” by Zach Bryan 
10. “Stick Season” by Noah Kahan

Spotify teamed up with Google’s NotebookLM platform to create Spotify Wrapped AI podcasts for listeners, a personalized audio recap of each user’s listening habits. The podcast features an AI host and explores favorite tracks, artists, and musical trends.

YouTube Music

YouTube also unveiled its annual end-of-year report, highlighting trending topics, creators, and music. YouTube’s US trending topics for 2024 highlight a mix of cultural, political, and entertainment themes, including the US presidential election, Kendrick Lamar, and Sean Combs’ scandal. Users also wanted to know about Sabrina Carpenter, Jujutsu Kaisen, Hazbin Hotel, Deadpool & Wolverine, and gaming titles like Helldivers 2. 

Lamar’s “Not Like Us” single took over the No. 1 spot on the US Top Songs Chart across 20 separate weeks on YouTube. Tommy Richman’s “MILLION DOLLAR BABY” took social media by storm this year and peaked at No. 2 on the Billboard Hot 11, some big wins for the new artist on the scene.

Top Songs on YouTube

1. “Not Like Us” by Kendrick Lamar
2. “Lose Control (Live)” by Teddy Swims
3. “Beautiful Things” by Benson Boone
4. “A Bar Song (Tipsy)” by Shaboozey
5. “Wanna Be” by GloRilla, Megan Thee Stallion
6. “MILLION DOLLAR BABY” by Tommy Richman
7. “Si No Quieres No” by Luis R Conriquez, Netón Vega
8. “La Diabla” by Xavi
9. “Like That” by Future, Metro Boomin, Kendrick Lamar – Like That
10. “I Had Some Help (feat. Morgan Wallen)” by Post Malone

Top Songs on YouTube Shorts

1. “MILLION DOLLAR BABY” by Tommy Richman
2. “Tell Ur Girlfriend” by Lay Bankz
3. “Pop like this Pt. 2 (Slowed)” by prodbycpkshawn
4. “KEEP UP” by Odetari
5. “What You Won’t Do for Love” by Bobby Caldwell
6. “Bounce (I Just Wanna Dance)” by фрози, Joyful
7. “SLAY!” by Eternxlkz
8. “Mamushi (feat. Yuki Chiba)” by Megan Thee Stallion
9. ” Disco” by Surf Curse
10. “Static” by Steve Lacy

MrBeast remains YouTube’s top creator, outpacing his nearest competitor by a staggering 232 million subscribers. Cristiano Ronaldo’s rapid rise to third place is equally remarkable, achieving this milestone just months after launching his channel in August.

 Top Creators on YouTube

1. MrBeast (329M subs)
2. Stokes Twins (97M subs)
3. UR · Cristiano (66.6M subs)
4. CaseOH (6.03M subs)
5. Zack D. Films (16.6M subs)
6. Nick DiGiovanni (21.3M subs)
7. Jordan Matter (26.2M subs)
8. Mark Rober (59.3M subs)
9. The Trench Family (9.71M subs)
10. Camilla Araujo (7.68M subs)

I’m not going to dive into podcast stats today, but in 2024, the Club Shay Shay podcast attracted more than 528 million views on YouTube, more than 83 million of which came from one episode featuring Katt Williams.