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Chart Beat

The Weeknd Reclaims No. 1 Spot With Top Monthly Listeners in the World on Spotify

The Scarborough native dethrones Bruno Mars, who falls to the No. 2 spot.

The Weeknd
The Weeknd
Holly McCandless Desmond

The Weeknd is reclaiming the top spot on Spotify.

The Canadian-Ethiopian superstar, born Abel Tesfaye, is back as Spotify’s most listened to artist with 111 million monthly listeners. He dethrones pop singer Bruno Mars, who now sits at No. 2.


Since the montly listens feature was made public in 2015, The Weeknd has previously held the No. 1 spot at various points — most recently in 2024. Back in February 2023, the Scarborough native was the first artist to hit 100 million monthly listeners on the platform.

Throughout the past decade, fellow Canadians Drake and Justin Bieber have held the No. 1 spot for Spotify’s top monthly listeners around the world.

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Last September, The Weeknd's track “After Hours” hit one billion streams. The After Hours chart-topping hit, “Blinding Lights,” remains the most-streamed song on Spotify, with nearly 4.9 billion streams. In 2020, it held the No. 1 spot on the Billboard Hot 100 for four weeks and nearly doubled its ranking on the Billboard Canadian Hot 100, sitting at the top for seven weeks.

Tesfaye isn't the first Canadian to make Spotify history — Drake's "One Dance" was the first song on the streaming platform to reach one billion plays.

Currently, The Weeknd has 25 songs in Spotify’s Billions Club, making him the artist with the most tracks on the list, which includes hits like “Save Your Tears, “Can’t Feel My Face,” and “The Hills.” At the end of last year, he celebrated the win with a one-night-only Billions Club Live concert in Los Angeles for nearly 2,000 fans.

Tesfaye has since released a concert film of the Billions Club show, his sixth studio album, Hurry Up Tomorrow, as well as a psychological thriller film of the same name.

He's currently on his After Hours Til Dawn tour, which includes Canadian stops in Vancouver, Edmonton, Toronto and Montreal — which may account for some of his recent surge in streams.

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NorthSideBenji Talks Returning to Music For New Album 'Misery Loves Company'
Rb Hip Hop

NorthSideBenji Talks Returning to Music For New Album 'Misery Loves Company'

The Brampton, Ontario rapper is returning with his first album in over two years on Sept. 19, a project about loss, struggle and the pursuit of success. Later this fall, he will hit the road for his first-ever solo tour.

After a series of delays, NorthSideBenji is officially back.

The Brampton, Ontario rapper is returning to music with his new album Misery Loves Company, releasing Sept. 19, his first full-length project in over four years. He spoke to Billboard Canada about the record, which is heavily rooted in dealing with loss, struggle and the pursuit of success. The long-awaited project has been in the works for more than two years and includes collaborations with NAV, Tory Lanez, Nafe Smallz and NoCap.

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