This week Spotify turned ten since its official launch in Europe. In that time, the platform has helped fight piracy by creating a legal alternative for music fans through streaming. Between October 2008 and October this year, Spotify has become the world’s largest music streaming service, with a library of more than 40 million songs and podcasts and more than 3 million playlists created by users.
Spotify now has more than 180 million active users, including more than 83 million premium subscribers, across up to 65 countries. The platform features more than 2,000 music genres, and listeners’ tendency towards discovering new artists has grown by an average of 8% a year since 2008. In the last three years in particular, listening diversity has increased by around 40% thanks to editorial and personalised playlists.
To celebrate its figures and the diversity of the service, the Swedish company has revealed lists of the most played and most influential artists, songs and genres of its first decade. In these ten years the platform has paid more than €10 billion to the industry’s rights holders.
Most streamed songs year by year since Spotify’s launch
2008: The Killers – ‘Human’
2009: The Black Eyed Peas – ‘I Gotta Feeling’
2010: Eminem, Rihanna – ‘Love The Way You Lie’
2011: Don Omar – ‘Danza Kuduro’
2012: Gotye – ‘Somebody That I Used To Know’ (feat. Kimbra)
2013: Macklemore & Ryan Lewis – ‘Can’t Hold Us’ (feat. Ray Dalton)
2014: Pharrell Williams – ‘Happy’ – from Despicable Me 2
2015: Major Lazer – ‘Lean On’ (feat. MØ & DJ Snake)
2016: Drake – ‘One Dance’
2017: Ed Sheeran – ‘Shape of You’
Most streamed songs in Spain year by year since Spotify’s launch
2008: Coldplay – ‘Viva La Vida’
2009: The Black Eyed Peas – ‘I Gotta Feeling’
2010: Eminem – ‘Love The Way You Lie’
2011: Don Omar – ‘Danza Kuduro’
2012: Gotye – ‘Somebody That I Used To Know’ – feat. Kimbra
2013: Macklemore & Ryan Lewis – ‘Thrift Shop’ (feat. Wanz)
2014: Enrique Iglesias – ‘Bailando – Spanish Version’
2015: Nicky Jam – ‘El Perdón’
2016: Enrique Iglesias – ‘Duele el Corazón’
2017: Luis Fonsi – ‘Despacito’ (Featuring Daddy Yankee)
Most streamed artists of all time
Drake
Ed Sheeran
Eminem
The Weeknd
Rihanna
Kanye West
Coldplay
Justin Bieber
Calvin Harris
Ariana Grande
Most streamed artists of all time in Spain
J Balvin
Melendi
Daddy Yankee
Ozuna
Bad Bunny
Juan Magán
Shakira
Pablo Alborán
Enrique Iglesias
Ed Sheeran
Most streamed songs worldwide
Ed Sheeran – “Shape Of You’”
Drake – “One Dance”
The Chainsmokers – “Closer”
Post Malone – “rockstar” (feat. 21 Savage)
Ed Sheeran – “Thinking Out Loud”
Major Lazer – “Lean On” (feat. MØ & DJ Snake)
Luis Fonsi, Daddy Yankee – “Despacito – Remix’”
Justin Bieber – “Love Yourself”
Justin Bieber – “Sorry”
The Chainsmokers – “Don’t Let Me Down”
Most streamed songs in Spain
Danny Ocean – ‘Me Rehúso’
Luis Fonsi – ‘Despacito (Featuring Daddy Yankee)’
Ed Sheeran – ‘Shape of You’
CNCO – ‘Reggaetón Lento (Bailemos)’
Maluma – ‘Felices los 4’
Nicky Jam – ‘El Perdón’
Zion & Lennox – ‘Otra Vez (feat. J Balvin)’
Gente De Zona – ‘La Gozadera’
Carlos Vives – ‘La Bicicleta’
Enrique Iglesias – ‘Duele el Corazón’
First 10 artists to reach one billion streams
Rihanna (2013)
David Guetta (2013)
Eminem (2013)
Kanye West (2014)
Avicii (2014)
Coldplay (2014)
JAY Z (2014)
Katy Perry (2014)
Drake (2014)
Pitbull (2014)
Most streamed female artists worldwide
Rihanna
Ariana Grande
Sia
Beyoncé
Nicki Minaj
Adele
Taylor Swift
Selena Gomez
Katy Perry
Shakira
Total time listened on Spotify: 16,858,080 years
Total songs now available on Spotify: more than 40 million
Total playlists now available on Spotify: more than 3 billion
Flashback to October 2008 – global top song and artist:
Most streamed song: Coldplay – ‘Viva La Vida’
Most streamed artist: Lady Gaga
Flashback to October 2008 – top song and artist in Spain:
Most streamed song: Coldplay – ‘Viva La Vida’
Most streamed artist: Coldplay
