Among the top artists were SZA (centre), Morgan Wallen (right) and, of course, pop princess Taylor Swift (left). Photo / AP
Among the top artists were SZA (centre), Morgan Wallen (right) and, of course, pop princess Taylor Swift (left). Photo / AP
Country singer Morgan Wallen‘s Last Night topped Apple Music’s global song chart in 2023 as the giant music streamer released year-end lists and provided listeners with data on their own most-listened-to tunes.
Wallen’s hit emerged as the country song with the most time atop the chart — 52days at No. 1 on the Global Daily Top 100 chart.
Nigerian rapper Rema’s Calm Down remix with Selena Gomez was No. 12 on the global songs chart, the highest entry ever for an African song. (Calm Down was No. 1 on the streamer’s Shazam chart.)
Joining Last Night at the top of the global songs list wereFlowers by Miley Cyrus in second, Kill Bill by SZA in third, Rich Flex by Drake and 21 Savage in fourth, and another SZA track in fifth slot: Snooze, which was followed by Taylor Swift’s Anti-Hero.
SZA, who leads the 2024 Grammy nominations, topped Apple’s most-read lyrics in 2023 for her smash single, Kill Bill.
Wallen’s Last Night stayed atop the Billboard Hot 100 for 16 weeks this year, beating Harry Styles’ As It Was for the record of longest No. 1 run for a non-collaboration. It also tied Luis Fonsi & Daddy Yankee featuring Justin Bieber’s Despacito for the title of second-longest reign in Hot 100′s 65-year history.
Harry Styles in his music video for 'As It Was'. Photo / Supplied
New to 2023′s suite of year-end charts is the inclusion of an Apple Music Sing chart, which allows users to view which songs fans sang along the most to this year. On the inaugural chart, J-pop duo YOASOBI hit No. 1 with their song アイドル(Idol).
Apple’s data also shows the growing presence of Música Mexicana globally. Peso Pluma and Eslabon Armado’s history-making Ella Baila Sola made it to No. 18 on the Global Daily Top 100, which also featured Grupo Frontera and Bad Bunny’s un x100to, Peso Pluma and Natanael Cano’s PRC, and Fuerza Regida and Grupo Frontera’s Bebe Dame.
Also available is Replay — Apple’s alternative to Spotify’s Wrapped playlist — which allows Apple Music subscribers to engage with what music was most popular on the streaming service this year.
In November, Apple Music named Taylor Swift its artist of the year, after the pop superstar broke incredible records: In the first 10 months of 2023, 65 of Swift’s songs reached Apple Music’s Global Daily Top 100. The Eras Tour was a catalyst: Streams grew 61 per cent globally when she kicked off her landmark concert tour in March, and continued to build.
“Taylor Swift’s impact on music is absolutely undeniable — not just this record-breaking year, but throughout her entire career,” Oliver Schusser, Apple’s vice president of Apple Music and Beats, said in a statement. “She is a generation-defining artist and a true change agent in the music industry, and there is no doubt that her impact and influence will be felt for years to come.”
