Topline
As 2021 comes to a close, music giants like Apple Music, iHeartRadio, Billboard and more are releasing their lists for the most-listened and best-selling songs and albums of the year, and acts like BTS, Dua Lipa, Ariana Grande and Adele have the lead on several charts—here’s a rundown of the most popular music this year.
(L-R) V, Suga, Jin, Jungkook, RM, Jimin, and J-Hope of BTS, winners of the Favorite Pop Song, … [+]
Key Facts
Apple Music: BTS’ “Dynamite” was the most-played song on the streaming service between October 16, 2020, and October 15, 2021, followed by Olivia Rodrigo’s “drivers license,” Ariana Grande’s “positions,” Pop Smoke, Lil Baby and DaBaby’s “For The Night” and The Weeknd’s “Blinding Lights”; the most Shazamed song—when users ask Siri to identify a song that’s playing—was Masked Wolf’s “Astronaut in the Ocean,” which was requested 11.7 million times.
iHeartRadio: Dua Lipa’s “Levitating” was the most-played song on the country’s largest radio network, garnering 1.2 billion listens, followed by The Weeknd’s “Save Your Tears,” Ariana Grande’s “34+35,” Doja Cat and Sza’s “Kiss Me More” and Lil Nas X’s “Montero (Call Me By Your Name)”; Ariana Grande was the network’s most-played artist, getting 2.6 billion listens, followed by Lipa, The Weeknd, Olivia Rodrigo and Pop Smoke.
Billboard: Though Billboard hasn’t released its official end-of-year numbers yet, Adele’s new album 30 sold over 500,000 copies in its first three days and is the best-selling album of 2021 so far.
Key Background
Billboard’s Hot 100 Songs of the Year chart, which is based on sales, streams and radio plays , was topped by familiar names: The Weeknd’s “Blinding Lights” ranks first, followed by Post Malone’s “Circles,” Roddy Ricch’s “The Box,” Dua Lipa’s “Don’t Start Now” and DaBaby and Roddy Ricch’s “Rockstar.” The most-popular album of the year, according to Billboard, was Post Malone’s “Hollywood Is Bleeding.” “Blinding Lights” was also the most-streamed song on Spotify last year.
Further Reading
Old Music—From Dua Lipa, Ariana Grande—Outperforms New Music In 2021 On Biggest Radio Network (Forbes)
Adele’s ‘30’ Becomes The Bestselling Album Of 2021 In Just Three Days (Forbes)
