See Spotify's most-streamed albums to date, from Bad Bunny's 'Un Verano Sin Ti' to Olivia Rodrigo's 'Sour.'

Streaming helped propel Bad Bunny to the top of the charts

For decades, labels believed Spanish-language artists had to sing in English to break into the mainstream. Metrics on YouTube and Spotify, though, have shown that listeners are interested in artists like Bad Bunny, who have intentionally made music in Spanish and have become immensely popular.

Several major artists have embraced manipulating the Billboard charts

Billboard is supposed to be an accurate, objective representation of the country’s listening habits, but artists and their fans have discovered ways to manipulate the magazine’s methodology in order to push tracks to the top of the charts. In 2018, Taylor Swift rewarded fans for purchasing her album multiple times; in 2020, Justin Bieber reposted suggestions that fans repeatedly stream one of his songs while they sleep.

Explore the niche music genres, including 'Spanish synthpop' and 'South Dakota indie,' that Spotify uses to tag its music.

Billboard began incorporating streaming in 2007

For nearly 50 years, the Billboard charts primarily relied on radio airplay and retail sales. But in 2007, the magazine began incorporating early streaming services AOL Music and Yahoo! Music into its methodology, and later worked with Spotify, YouTube, and other platforms. A single stream was not weighed as heavily as a purchase of a physical CD or vinyl record. Still, streaming’s impact became evident when songs with minimal radio airplay began climbing the charts, as seen with Baauer’s “Harlem Shake,” which did exceptionally well on YouTube.

'The Life of a Showgirl' was Swift's 15th chart-topping album

That places her second on Billboard's all-time list, though streaming has significantly changed how "sales" are interpreted. Prior to the shift to digital music, Billboard's album chart relied solely on sales of physical units. Since 2014, the chart has also considered streams from services like Spotify, Apple Music and YouTube.

Read about how Spotify creates niche genres, from 'Webcore' to 'Phonk.'

Billboard’s Hot 100 methodology is notoriously private

The magazine’s singles chart is based on on-demand streams (from platforms like Spotify), digital sales (from stores like iTunes), and radio airplay. Not all of those sources are weighted equally, though—sales are more important than airplay, and airplay is more significant than streams. In 2018, Billboard began weighing streams from premium subscriptions more heavily than free streams (like listening to a song on Pandora).

Winning a Grammy significantly impacts an artist's sales and streaming

2023 album of the year winner Harry Styles returned to the top 10 of the all-genre Billboard 200 albums chart, with "Harry's House." It's also not just the winners; Grammy performers also get a boost, like the 100% increase in Spotify streams that Bad Bunny's "Después de la Playa" saw after he sang it on the telecast.

Around two-thirds of Spotify's revenue goes to rights holders, including record labels, artists, and songwriters.

Taylor Swift was the first artist to occupy all of Billboard's Top 10

Swift's 2022 release "Midnights" led to an unprecedented feat: For the first time in Billboard history, the entire top 10 of the Hot 100 was occupied by the same artist. Two years later, "The Tortured Poets Department" would occupy the first 14 slots on the chart.

The 30 most popular YouTubers

From music superstars like Justin Bieber and Taylor Swift to streamers like PewDiePie and MrBeast, the ranks of YouTube’s most-subscribed-to accounts includes a mix of everything from celebrities whose YouTube presence complements the rest of their persona to stars who made a name for themselves solely from the platform. This ranking from Search Engine Journal breaks down the 30 biggest YouTube accounts as of June 2004.

Blackpink are the most followed female group on Spotify

The widespread popularity of the four-piece girl group Blackpink has built a large community of fans—called Blink—and proven the success of unconventional marketing strategies. Instead of producing a wealth of content and new material, Blackpink releases albums slowly, building tension for their fans. During their musical breaks, the women continue to build on their icon status, working with luxury brands like Chanel or even guest-starring in major American TV shows like “The Idol.”

Read a user's review of the differences between Spotify and its closest rival, Apple Music.

Spotify has long been the subject of criticism over complaints that it doesn't pay enough money to musicians.

Spotify took 18 years to reach profitability—and roughly 70% of its revenue goes to rights holders.

The 2023 lineup featured its first Spanish-language and K-pop headliners

As Coachella moves through its third decade, the festival is continuing to evolve, welcoming its first Spanish-language (Bad Bunny) and K-pop (Blackpink) headliners in 2023.

Spotify's success turned Swedish entrepreneur Daniel Ek into a billionaire in his mid-30s.

Taylor Swift is one of the most successful artists in the world

Few musicians are more popular (or more influential) than Taylor Swift. that's not a broad generalization. The data from this music-industry report backs it up. Luminate not only breaks down Swift’s titanic streaming numbers but also analyzes the strength of her fandom, which the publication considers indicative of “influence.”

TikTok isn't factored into a song's rank on the Billboard charts, but it can have an impact

Billboard ranks a song's chart position based on its radio airplay, its physical sales, and its streaming numbers (across Spotify and other platforms), but doesn't include user-generated content, meaning it doesn't include TikTok videos. Keith Caulfield, Billboard's managing director of charts and data operations, notes that TikTok still has an impact, though, because listeners will often stream the app's most popular songs on other platforms.

Browse over a century of issues of Billboard, the definitive music industry magazine, to trace nearly every American musical trend of the past century.

Country's sound continues to evolve

Country music is having a moment. In 2023, it saw the biggest growth in market share of any genre—up nearly 22%. This overview traces country’s rise from Appalachian folk roots to its current pop, rock, and hip-hop-infused wave, with artists like Beyoncé and Post Malone joining the mix.

YouTube's 10 most viewed music videos of all time

YouTube arrived in 2005 with a short, innocuous video about the San Diego Zoo. Just 20 years later, it's one of the most popular websites and a go-to for countless music fans. This list of the site's most popular music videos analyzes how the videos hold up after reaching billions of views. The biggest takeaway? "Gangnam Style" is still a thrilling watch.

Taylor Swift is one of the world's most successful artists

Swift is one of the best-selling musicians of all time. She has sold more than 200 million records and won multiple Grammy Awards. Known for her storytelling and ability to reinvent her music, she’s expanded her career from country roots to global pop stardom.

The artists with the most No. 1 singles

Scoring a No. 1 single is a difficult task—less than 4% of the songs that have made Billboard's Hot 100 chart have ever reached the top spot. This list breaks down the most elite hitmakers in Billboard history, including the Supremes, Taylor Swift, and the Beatles, who released an incredible 20 No. 1 singles.

Some critics say comparing chart rankings across decades is meaningless

Although Billboard’s charts are presented as objective measures of a given song’s popularity, the company’s changing methodology (alongside changes in technology and listener habits) has made weighing chart success from different eras an imperfect science.

Spotify went public in 2018 with a direct listing rather than a traditional IPO.

Billie Eilish and TikTok helped inspire a bossa nova resurgence

Eilish's 2021 song "Billie Bossa Nova" along with a handful of other younger artists, like Laufey and Beabadoobee, have inspired Gen Z's interest in the genre, with the music soundtracking tens of thousands of videos on TikTok.

Drake has more top-five Hot 100 hits than any other artist

In 2022, the rapper’s collaboration with DJ Khaled and Lil Baby, “Staying Alive,” reached the number five slot on the Billboard Hot 100 chart. That was his 30th track to reach the top five, surpassing the Beatles’ record of 29, which they achieved in 1970 with “The Long and Winding Road.”

Inside the rise of focus music

Any casual YouTube or Spotify user has likely stumbled upon a playlist called "lo-fi beats to study and relax to" while searching for new music. Those "lo-fi beats" actually represent a growing genre of music called "focus music." Spotify, for instance. saw a 50% increase in listening time for focus playlists in its 2023 Wrapped report. This article explains why productivity tunes are on an upswing right now. Read it here.

TikTok's algorithm has changed the way hits are made

Songs aimed at TikTok's algorithm—designed for viral dances or soundtracking common experiences—often find success on the Billboard charts. An early example was Lil Nas X's "Old Town Road," which used his memes and a country-trap beat from the Netherlands to rise to the top of the Billboard charts.

Explore a list of the best album covers of all time, featuring iconic covers by Pink Floyd, Cyndi Lauper, Nirvana, and more.

In 2023 Taylor Swift made history having the most #1 albums of any female artist

Taylor Swift is as much a businesswoman and a marketer as she is a successful musician and performer, all of which has helped her become one of the biggest entertainment stars of the modern era.

80 artists on their favorite Bob Dylan songs

Listen to any rock music from the past century and you’ll likely hear some trace of Dylan’s influence. This massive list, released back on Dylan’s 80th birthday, offers objective data to back that up. Its 80 participants include David Byrne, Michael McDonald, and dozens more. The best part? The article also includes a playlist, so you can listen to the songs while you read about their impact.

The 100 best hip-hop albums of all time

Although it still sounds youthful, hip-hop reached middle age in 2023, reaching its 50th anniversary. This Pitchfork list of the genre's 100 best albums spans the entire history of the genre. Despite a few controversial picks, it's still worth a read, if only to dig back into some classics.

Explore a list of the 40 best obscure albums of the past 40 years, featuring lost classics from Talk Talk, King Sunny Ade, Linda Ronstadt, and more.

Traditional bands largely disappeared from the Billboard charts in the 21st century, mostly replaced by solo artists.

Spotify and AncestryDNA launched a genetic music playlist offering

The playlist offering in 2018 purported to make a unique playlist based on cultural inheritance. The service required users to link their account, select the top five ethnic regions from their AncestryDNA results, and then Spotify would create the playlist based on that data.

Mariah Carey's 'All I Want for Christmas Is You' is the longest-running No. 1 single

In 2025, the 1994 track spent 20 weeks atop Billboard’s Hot 100 chart. The song has been a popular Christmas number since its release, but streaming has elevated it to a perennial chart-topper: Every time someone plays the song on a service like Spotify (something that’s likely to happen every holiday season), they’re effectively casting a vote for it to hit the chart.

In 2025, 'Walk My Walk' by Breaking Rust, an AI-generated artist, topped a Billboard country chart.

YouTube no longer provides data to Billboard

Billboard began using data from YouTube in 2013, tracking the platform’s most popular songs as it became a hub for listeners. That relationship ended in January 2026, when YouTube announced it was ending the partnership, citing a disagreement over how Billboard weighted premium users more heavily than free users.

2025 marked the first time in 35 years a hip-hop song wasn't in the top 40

The Billboard Hot 100 chart dated October 25, 2025, didn't have any rap or hip-hop songs in its top 40 singles, something that hadn't happened since Feb. 2, 1990. One explanation is a Billboard methodology change, and another is Taylor Swift's "The Life of a Showgirl."

Explore a critics' list of the 100 best songs of the 1960s, featuring records by the Beach Boys, the Ronettes, Miles Davis, and more.

Search set lists from more than 10 million live concerts, added and edited by fans

Taking cues from Wikipedia, this Setlist wiki allows fans and concertgoers to share which songs were actually played at live concerts, across genres. The database makes this niche information about what performers choose to play year-round available for the curious.

The album of the year award is the most prestigious Grammy

The Big Four awards—song of the year, album of the year, record of the year, and best new artist—are the only Grammy categories that are genre-agnostic. Some people are confused by the difference between awards, especially song and record. The record of the year primarily honors the performing artist. Song of the year honors the songwriter. (Some users may experience a paywall.)

The world's top streaming services (by subscriber count)

With almost 270 million paying users, Netflix is the dominant force in streaming entertainment. But after enjoying a first-mover advantage for years, competitors are beginning to catch up. Most notable is Amazon, which leverages its Prime subscriptions to bundle Prime Video, and has amassed an estimated 200 million users. See an updated tracker of the world's biggest platforms by audience.

Viral pop artists create systems of participation, not just music

Musicologist (and Swift expert) Paula Clare Harper weighs in on the factors that make music go viral. Tracks designed for shareability that feed well into content algorithms on streaming platforms are able to grow in popularity, with traditional human gatekeepers sidelined.

One writer traces the evolution of a Billboard chart over 25 years

Billboard introduced its Modern Rock Tracks chart in 1988, looking to capture the rising popularity of acts like the Cure, REM, and U2. Music writer and Billboard obsessive Chris Molanphy traces the chart from his earliest days through grunge, alternative, and corporate eras, demonstrating just how much taste changes over time.

The best jazz albums of all time

Diving into the history of jazz can be intimidating, but this list is a helpful guide, highlighting the best of the best, with titanic recordings from Louis Armstrong, Billie Holiday, Miles Davis, Dave Brubeck, Alice Coltrane, Oscar Peterson, and more.

Watch Gayle King interview Spotify CEO Daniel Ek to talk about various issues the company has faced.

Superfans of K-pop group BTS gamed the Billboard chart

In 2021, the boy band scored a number one hit with “Butter,” its second English-language track. As Stereogum writer Tom Breihan points out, though, it rose to the top of the charts without actually being the most popular song in the country. Other songs were considerably more popular on streaming platforms, but BTS’ hyperdevoted fanbase realized that purchasing digital downloads weighed more heavily in Billboard’s methodology. Recognizing an opportunity, BTS dropped the price of a download to 69 cents, securing their place on the top of the charts.