Teddy Usurps Drizzy's Spotify Crown

By FYI Staff

Now that streaming has become the de facto benchmark of success, Canada’s homegrown fleet of stars find themselves trounced by global superstars and their own hard-won success on Canadian radio and the Canadian sales charts diminished or overshadowed by a small number of big money acts that seem to rule the world.

It would be thoughtful if Spotify and others like it paid closer attention to localized markets and were able to provide aggregated data for in-market artists, but these are global platforms that pander to global tastes and directly or indirectly are marketing adjuncts for a select number of major labels that have the power and the influence to sway what we hear.

It’s a bygone era when one could walk into someone’s office and make a case to be heard.    

Spotify released its annual Year in Music lists on Tuesday, and unsurprisingly Ed Sheeran is the most streamed artist of 2017 globally and remains the #1 most streamed artist on Spotify with 47 million monthly listeners.

Sheeran’s ÷ (Divide) was the most streamed album of the year worldwide with 3.1 billion streams, and "Shape of You" became the most streamed track of all time on Spotify, now with over 1.4 billion streams. The red head's dominance usurps Drake who was the most streamed artist in 2015 and 2016, but comes in second place in 2017.

Despite Ed Sheeran’s success, hip-hop continues to play a significant role in music. Overall, the genre’s listening increased 74% over the past year according to the music platform that boasts more than 60M paying subscribers worldwide.

In what was a landmark year for Latin music, its listening increased by 110%, with two Latin tracks hitting #1 on Spotify for the first time: “Despacito” and “Mi Gente”, as well as 10 Latin songs appearing on Spotify’s Global Top 50. “Despacito – Remix” by Luis Fonsi and Daddy Yankee featuring Justin Bieber was named Spotify’s ‘Song of the Summer,’ showing the culture’s reach. Yankee also held the #1 position on Spotify in July — a first for a Latin artist.

Check out the full breakdown below of this year’s rankings and musical trends and head to spotify.com/2017 for the top playlists of 2017, Year in Music playlists, videos, and more.

And, in addition to Spotify’s Year in Music top lists, visitors can check out their personalized list of their most-streamed artists and songs this year by visiting 2017wrapped.com.

Most Streamed Artists Globally

Ed Sheeran was the world’s most streamed artist with over 6.3 billion streams this year, dethroning Drake who took the top spot in 2015 and 2016. In fact, Drake is the only top 5 artist carried over from last year, with Ed Sheeran, The Weeknd, Kendrick Lamar and The Chainsmokers all new to the top 5 list of artists this year.

1. Ed Sheeran

2. Drake

3. The Weeknd

4. Kendrick Lamar

5. The Chainsmokers

Most Streamed Artists in Canada

1. Drake

2. Ed Sheeran

3. Kendrick Lamar

4. The Weeknd

5. Future

Most Streamed Female Artists

For the third year in the row, Rihanna takes home the title of most streamed female artist, continuing her reign at the top. Pop superstars Taylor Swift, Selena Gomez, Ariana Grande and Sia round out the top 5.

1. Rihanna

2. Taylor Swift

3. Selena Gomez

4. Ariana Grande

5. Sia

Most Streamed Female Artists in Canada

1. Rihanna

2. Niki Minaj

3. Taylor Swift

4. Selena Gomez

5. Ariana Grande

Most Streamed Male Artists

Ed Sheeran naturally dominates the Most Streamed Male Artists list, but for the first time Daddy Yankee claims a spot in the Top Five Most Streamed Male Artists list this year.

1. Ed Sheeran

2. Drake

3. The Weeknd

4. Kendrick Lamar

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5. Daddy Yankee

Most Streamed Male Artists in Canada

1. Drake

2. Ed Sheeran

3. Kendrick Lamar

4. The Weeknd

5. Future

Top Five Breakout Artists

2017 was a big year for artists in groups breaking out on their own to go solo. Camila Cabello, Harry Styles and Liam Payne all went solo and hit it big on their own as the top 3 breakout artists of the year. Rappers Lil Pump and Trippie Red round out the list.

1. Camila Cabello

2. Harry Styles

3. Liam Payne

4. Lil Pump

5. Trippie Redd

Most Streamed Groups

This year, Coldplay’s collaboration with The Chainsmokers on ‘Something Just Like This’ catapulted them to the top of the group list, followed by Imagine Dragons bringing the ‘Thunder’ with Maroon 5, Linkin Park and Migos closing out the list.

1. Coldplay

2. Imagine Dragons

3. Maroon 5

4. Linkin Park

5. Migos

Most Streamed Tracks

Ed Sheeran’s ‘Shape of You’ surpassed Drake’s ‘One Dance’ by becoming the most popular song ever on Spotify with over 1.4 billion streams.

1. Shape of You – Ed Sheeran

2. Despacito – Remix – Luis Fonsi, Daddy Yankee feat. Justin Bieber

3. Despacito – Luis Fonsi feat. Daddy Yankee

4. Something Just Like This – The Chainsmokers & Coldplay

5. I’m the One – DJ Khaled feat. Justin Bieber, Quavo, Chance the Rapper, Lil Wayne

Most Streamed Tracks in Canada

1. Shape of You – Ed Sheeran

2. Despacito – Remix – Luis Fonsi, Daddy Yankee feat. Justin Bieber

3. Humble – Kendrick Lamar

4. Unforgettable – French Montana

5. XO Tour Llif3 – Lil Uzi Vert

Most Streamed Albums

After dropping ÷ (Divide) in March, Ed Sheeran’s album has racked up over 3.1 billion streams on Spotify, making it the most streamed album of the year.

1. Divide – Ed Sheeran

2. More Life – Drake

3. DAMN. – Kendrick Lamar

4. Starboy – The Weeknd

5. Stoney – Post Malone

Emerging 2017 Genres:

1. Melodic Power Metal

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2. Chaotic Black Metal

3. Chillhop

4. Trap Latino

5. Future Funk

6. Jumpstyle

7. Serialism

8. Cinematic Dubstep

9. Vintage Swoon

10. Gamecore