Drake and rap were big winners when it comes to streaming singles in 2018, according to year-end data on on-demand audio and video streaming from BuzzAngle, an analytics company that tracks music consumption.
Drake enjoyed the most-streamed single of the year, “God’s Plan,” and was a presence in four of the top ten (“In My Feelings,” Travis Scott’s “Sicko Mode” and Blocboy JB’s “Look Alive.”) Meanwhile, just five tracks without a rapper on them appeared in the top 25: Camila Cabello’s “Havana,” Ariana Grande’s “Thank U, Next,” Ed Sheeran’s “Perfect,” Imagine Dragons’ “Believer” and Bazzi’s “Mine.”
In addition to Drake — who also has “Nice for What” and his feature on Migos’ “Walk It Talk It” in the top 25 — the big winner was Post Malone. “Psycho,” “I Fall Apart” and “Better Now” were collectively streamed over 1.5 billion times in 2018. (BuzzAngle incorporates tallies from Apple, Spotify, Apple, Google, YouTube and Vevo.)
Some songs achieved an impressively high rank on the year-end list with remarkable speed. Scott’s “Sicko Mode” earned 624 million streams in just five months, while 6ix9ine and Nicki Minaj’s, released only a few weeks before, also amassed almost 579 million streams. But no song racked up streams more quickly than Grande’s “Thank U, Next,” which accumulated 451 million in less than two months, growing even faster than “God’s Plan.”
Finally, examining the top streamed songs shows the importance of collaboration for artists hoping to achieve big numbers. Seven of the top ten tracks in 2018 included featured vocalists. Even if they’re uncredited, like Drake on “Sicko Mode,” it helps to have two or more fanbases converge around a track.
Most Streamed Songs of 2018:
Drake, “God’s Plan” – 1.2 billion streams
Drake, “In My Feelings” – 736.8 million streams
Juice WRLD, “Lucid Dreams” – 717 million streams
Travis Scott, “Sicko Mode” – 624.1 million streams
Post Malone featuring Ty Dolla $ign, “Psycho” – 614.6 million streams
6ix9ine featuring Nicki Minaj, “Fefe” – 578.9 million streams
Blocboy JB featuring Drake, “Look Alive” – 523.9 million streams
Camila Cabello featuring Young Thug, “Havana” – 494.9 million streams
Cardi B featuring J Balvin and Bad Bunny, “I Like It” – 488.6 million streams
Maroon 5 featuring Cardi B, “Girls Like You” – 486.7 million streams
Note: Penske Media has a controlling share in BuzzAngle.