Spotify announced that The Weeknd became the first artist in the history of the platform to reach 100 million listeners per month.
The most popular Spotify song of all time is his hit “Blinding Lights”, which has gained more than 3.4 billion listens. This honor came just a few days after the singer released his new remix of “Die For You” featuring Ariana Grande. The track went viral on TikTok, inspiring the creation of the latest remix. The song has re-entered the top 40 charts and is expected to climb higher as it continues to spread on TikTok.
The Weeknd started his career by uploading his music to YouTube in 2010. His popularity skyrocketed after Drake talked about some of the singer’s early work. After that, The Weeknd released a nine-song mixtape, which he called House of Balloons and released for free. His fourth album After Hours includes the title single “Blinding Lights”, which is the longest-running single in the top five on the US Hot 100 charts.
Data on the most popular Spotify artists — February 2023
| 1. The Weeknd | 100.45 million |
|---|---|
| 2. Miley Cyrus | 82.5 million |
| 3. Taylor Swift | 80.33 million |
| 4. Rihanna | 79.44 million |
| 5. Shakira | 77.46 million |
| 6. Ed Sheeran | 77.43 million |
| 7. Sam Smith | 73.97 million |
| 8. David Guetta | 71.52 million |
| 9. SZA | 69.2 million |
| 10. Drake | 68.63 million |
“Die for you” managed to find a new life thanks to TikTok. Currently, the song sounds like the soundtrack to more than 150,000 videos on the platform, and more are being created every day. There is no dance or meme associated with the song — people just enjoy the sound of the R&B song and use it as support for all kinds of videos.
Over the weekend, the star released The Weeknd: Live at SoFi Stadium, which was filmed during his After Hours‘ Til Dawn tour. This tour is scheduled for the European part this summer. The Weeknd is also gearing up for the upcoming release of his first TV drama, “Idol.” He helped create this drama series with Sam Levinson from Euphoria. The story tells about a self-help guru and a leader of a modern cult who has a complicated relationship with a promising pop idol.
