The Soundtrack of 2018: J Balvin and Drake take no.1 in annual streams

New York, NY [December 3, 2018]: Deezer today announced that J Balvin is the most streamed artist worldwide in 2018, with Drake the most streamed artist in the US. The global music streaming service has revealed the soundtrack of 2018, using its official user data of the top streamed artists and songs of the entire year in the US and worldwide.

Latin urban artist J Balvin dominated the charts around the world and is the number one streamed worldwide artist of 2018, with his song ‘X’ ranking number 2 in the Deezer global charts. An incredible feat in under 12 months, climbing 25 spots since 2017 from his previous position as 26th most streamed artist globally.

While XXXTentacion grabbed the US’s attention with 4 of the top 10 most streamed songs, Drake kept the crown for the no.1 top streamed artist in the US. Drake was also the third most streamed artist for the entire year worldwide with ‘God’s Plan’ taking the #3 most streamed track worldwide. Drake held the same position in 2017 in the US but newcomers to the Top 10 in the US include XXXTentacion, Post Malone, and two Puerto Rican artists: Bad Bunny and Ozuna.

Across the world, Brazilian singer Anitta entered the worldwide top 10 most streamed charts and is the number one streamed female worldwide. For female artists in the US, Cardi B continued to captivate audiences with her remix of ‘I Like It’ topping the most streamed tracks at #3. Nicki Minaj and Rihanna also proved popular as top 10 female streamed artists this year.

Interestingly, the USA’s top streamed track of 2018 varied across age groups. While  XXXTentacion pulled in the under 25 audience with ‘SAD!’, for 26-35 year olds Cardi B came out on top with the remix of ‘I Like It.  Meanwhile, 36-45 year olds and 46-55 year olds again preferred something different, with Drake’s ‘God Plan’ and the 2017 hit ‘Shape of You’ by Ed Sheeran ranked as no.1 respectively for these audiences.

Deezer’s Global VP of Artist Marketing at Deezer, Sulinna Ong, commented: “The standout act this year is J Balvin, proving that it’s possible for a non-English speaking act to break through internationally and create music that appeals to audiences all over the world – he is a bonafide global superstar. Artist collaborations were huge this year too, with 70% of the top 10 streamed songs globally being collabs. It’s clear that people love hearing artists working together like this. We are also happy to see our Deezer NEXT 2017 artist, Anne Marie, rising into the top 20 and go from strength to strength.”

J Balvin commented :  “2018 has been a spectacular year. It’s been a year where dreams have materialized once again. Where we continue to dream to take this to new heights. We have the ability to make an impact not only musically, which is obviously the medium, but that’s not the end goal. The goal is to be able to motivate the world to keep dreaming, make culture, make statements as latinos on a global scale and show that Spanish is part of the new mainstream. This year we had 3 great moments, I think one of them was to share the stage with Beyonce at Coachella, that was really important, being the number 1 streamed artist on Deezer I also think is really a big cause for a huge globalization, the recognition by Mr. Obama about Reggaeton and what we are doing is something that has a cultural impact that goes beyond music. Wow there are just so many, the Hot 100, X with Nicky Jam, it’s really been a year full of blessings but thank God we always reinvent ourselves and next year is going to be even bigger.”

Want to know your most streamed tracks this year? Later this month, Deezer will reveal your own favorites with its new ‘Top Tracks 2018’ playlist, holding 40 of your most played and favorite songs from the entire year.

Below is the full list of top streamed USA and worldwide artists and tracks in 2018. Head to www.deezer.com to discover more.

Top 10 streamed global artists 2018:

  1. J Balvin
  2. Ed Sheeran
  3. Drake
  4. Jul
  5. David Guetta
  6. Damso
  7. Maître Gims
  8. XXXTentacion
  9. Imagine Dragons
  10. Anitta

Top 10 streamed global bands 2018

  1. Imagine Dragons
  2. Zé Neto e Cristiano
  3. Jorge & Mateus
  4. Coldplay
  5. Matheus & Kauan
  6. Maroon 5
  7. Henrique & Juliano
  8. Linkin Park
  9. Queen
  10. Major Lazer

Top 10 streamed songs globally 2018:

  1. One Kiss – Calvin Harris & Dua Lipa
  2. X – J Balvin & Nicky Jam
  3. God’s Plan – Drake
  4. Shape of You – Ed Sheeran
  5. Havana (feat. Young Thug) – Camila Cabello
  6. FRIENDS – Marshmello & Anne-Marie
  7. Échame la Culpa – Luis Fonsi
  8. Mafiosa (feat. Caroliina) – Lartiste
  9. Flames (feat. Sia) – David Guetta
  10. SAD! – XXXTentacion

Top 10 streamed USA artists 2018:

  1. Drake
  2. XXXTentacion
  3. Eminem
  4. Lil Wayne
  5. Kevin Gates
  6. Post Malone
  7. Bad Bunny
  8. Future
  9. Ozuna
  10. Migos

Top 10 streamed songs in the USA 2018:

  1. SAD! – XXXTentacion
  2. God’s Plan – Drake
  3. I Like It – Cardi B
  4. Moonlight – XXXTentacion
  5. Look Alive (feat. Drake) – BlocBoy JB
  6. Better Now – Post Malone
  7. FEFE – 6IX9INE
  8. Taste – Tyga
  9. Jocelyn Flores – XXXTentacion
  10. Fuck Love – XXXTentacion

 

USA top streamed female artists 2018

  1. Cardi B
  2. Nicki Minaj
  3. Rihanna
  4. Ariana Grande
  5. Beyonce
  6. Halsey
  7. Taylor Swift
  8. Camila Cabello
  9. Ella Mai
  10. Shakira