NIELSEN 2019 YEARENDreportUS PDF

NIELSEN MUSIC
YEAR-END
MUSIC REPORT
U.S. 2019
1 Copyright © 2020 The Nielsen Company

INTRODUCTION
Welcome to the 2019 Nielsen Music/MRC Data Year-End Report, which provides an exclusive
glimpse at the industry’s leading trends, data and insights from the past 12 months.
A milestone year for streaming, 2019 marked the first time on-demand streams surpassed
1 trillion during a 12-month period in the United States. The year ended with 1.15 trillion
on-demand streams, fueled by a big year for hitmakers Post Malone, Taylor Swift and Ariana
Grande as well as breakthrough artists like Billie Eilish, Lizzo and Lil Nas X. Tech trends like
TikTok helped usher in a new wave of viral hits, while K-Pop and Latin acts continued the
globalization of music reaching U.S. fans.
Speaking of global, 2019 marked the first full year of Nielsen’s global music measurement
in 2019. Go to pages 20 -22 to find exclusive insights from this year’s findings, including the
dozen-plus songs in the elite 4 Billion+ Stream Clubs (led by “Old Town Road,” the year’s
most-streamed song worldwide) as well as exclusive insights into how music fans’
consumption behaviors vary in Japan, India, Germany and the UK.
In addition to exclusive data from 2019, this report includes charts ranking the most-
consumed artists, songs and albums of the 2010s, with stats revealed her for the first
time. The decade-based chart is topped by superstar artists Adele, Taylor Swift, Drake,
Kenny Chesney and Tim McGraw.
All data cited in this report is compiled by Nielsen Music/MRC Data. This report covers music
consumption for the 12-month period from January 4, 2019, through January 2, 2020
(as compared to January 5, 2018-January 3, 2019).
This year’s report also marks the beginning of a new era for Nielsen Music, which on December
18 was acquired by Valence Media as the anchor unit for the company’s newly established
MRC Data division. The acquisition reunites the industry’s leading music consumption platform
with the preeminent Billboard charts, after a near-decade-long separation, to create the most
comprehensive global provider of data and analytics to the music industry and consumers,
servicing all digital service providers (DSPs), record labels, radio and music retailers. Other
companies in the Valence Media portfolio include dick clark productions, Billboard-The
Hollywood Reporter Media Group, MRC Film, MRC Television and MRC Non-Fiction.
Over the course of the next 40-plus pages, we hope you’ll find lots of datapoints to help inform
and empower your 2020 – and the rest of the coming decade. And as always, we welcome
your feedback to inform how our measurement products can better serve you in music’s
ever-changing landscape. Email us at [email protected].

CONTENTS
2019 YEAR-END HIGHLIGHTS 4
2019 YEAR-END MOMENTS 6
IN MEMORIUM 14
2019 TIMELINE 16
HITS OF THE DECADE 18
2019 YEAR-END GLOBAL INSIGHTS 20
2019 YEAR-END CHARTS 23
THE DECADE IN REVIEW 37
Note: The term “total album equivalent consumption” describes the number of physical
and digital albums that were sold and the total number of album equivalent songs from
downloads and song streaming volume. For the sake of clarity, the definition of album
equivalent consumption does not include listening to music on broadcast radio or digital
radio broadcasts. Unless otherwise noted, all numbers are volume.
Copyright © 2020 The Nielsen Company 3
Copyright © 2017 The Nielsen Company

YEAR-END 2019
HIGHLIGHTS
TOTAL ALBUM EQUIVALENT CONSUMPTION ON-DEMAND SONG STREAMING - VIDEO
(ALBUM + TEA + ON-DEMAND AUDIO/VIDEO SEA)
2019 2018 % CHG.

2019 2018 % CHG.
401.2B 285.1B +40.7%
785.0M 682.0M +15.0%
TOTAL ALBUM SALES + TEA

2019 2018 % CHG.
(ALBUM + TEA + ON-DEMAND AUDIO SEA)
142.9M 178.9M -20.1%
2019 2018 % CHG.
678.0M 608.5M +11.4%
ON-DEMAND STREAMING
(AUDIO + VIDEO) 2019 2018 % CHG.
711.5.M 596.1M +19.4%

2019 2018 % CHG.
1.15T 887.4B +29.3%

TOTAL ALBUM SALES
(PHYSICAL + DIGITAL)
ON-DEMAND SONG STREAMING - AUDIO
2019 2018 % CHG.
%% CHG. 112.7M 138.8M -18.7%

2019 2018 CHG.
745.7B 602.3B +23.8%
*Track Equivalent Albums (TEA) ratio of 10 tracks to 1 album

Streaming Equivalent Albums (SEA) ratio of 1,250 premium streams to 1 album
Streaming Equivalent Albums (SEA) ratio of 3750 ad-supported streams to 1 album
DIGITAL ALBUM SALES
( Album+TEA+On-Demand Audio/Video SEA)
2019 2018 % CHG.
39.3M 52.3M -23.5%
PHYSICAL ALBUM SALES

(INCLUDES VINYL LP)
2019 2018 % CHG.
73.5M 86.4M -15.0%
2019 2018 % CHG.
18.8M 16.5M +14.5%
2019 2018 % CHG.
301.1M 401.4M -25.0%
*Track Equivalent Albums (TEA) ratio of 10 tracks to 1 album

Streaming Equivalent Albums (SEA) ratio of 1,250 premium streams to 1 album
Streaming Equivalent Albums (SEA) ratio of 3750 ad-supported streams to 1 album

YEAR-END 2019
ARTISTS WHO BROKE THROUGH

POST MALONE
The rapper/singer ruled all year with two No. 1
singles and the year’s top-streamed album
365.4 MILLION
FIRST-WEEK ON-DEMAND AUDIO STREAMS
for songs from Post Malone’s Hollywood’s Bleeding,
making it the year’s biggest streaming week
278,000
EQUIVALENT UNITS EARNED
of Hollywood’s Bleeding in its debut week
“Sunflower” - 6 million on-demand streams
“Wow.” - 5 million on-demand streams
“Circles” - 3 million on-demand streams
These were the three biggest hits from the album,

and rank as the 2, 3 and 26 most-consumed songs
of the year, respectively
Post Malone performs onstage during the 2019 American Music Awards on
November 24, 2019. (Photo by Kevin Mazur/AMA2019/Getty Images for dcp)
BILLIE EILISH
Billie Eilish, who turned 18 in December, became the youngest-ever artist
to be named Billboard’s Woman of the Year as well as earn nominations in
all of the Grammys’ top four categories. She made her awards show debut
with a standout performance at November’s American Music Awards.
313,000
EQUIVALENT UNITS EARNED
of Eilish’s debut full-length When We All Fall Asleep Where Do We Go? in its first
week, 2019’s sixth biggest week and third largest for a female artist
176,000
VINYL UNITS SOLD
of When We All Fall Asleep…, making it 2019’s No. 2 best-selling vinyl
release. The album was one of 2 non-catalog titles among 2019’s
top 10 best-selling vinyl albums
1.3 BILLION
ON-DEMAND STREAMS
for “bad guy,” 2019’s No. 3 most-consumed hit
Eilish, who turned 18 on December 18, became the youngest-ever artist

to earn nominations in all of the Grammys’ Big Four categories: Album of
the Year, Song of the Year, Record of the Year and Best New Artist
Billie Eilish performs onstage during the 7th Annual We Can Survive, presented by AT&T, a RADIO.COM event,
6 Copyright © 2020 The Nielsen Company at The Hollywood Bowl on October 19, 2019. (Photo by Kevin Winter/Getty Images for RADIO.COM)
LIZZO
Surprise synch success and all-star remixes fuel
underground star’s mainstream breakthrough
769%
SPIKE IN CONSUMPTION of “Truth Hurts” the week
ending April 25, following the premiere of Netflix’s
romantic comedy “Someone Great” on April 19
736 MILLION
YTD STREAMS of “Truth Hurts,” which tied Iggy Azalea’s
record for most weeks (seven) spent at No. 1 on the
Billboard Hot 100 for a song by a female rapper
79%
SPIKE IN CONSUMPTION of Lizzo’s “Good As Hell”
the week ending Oct. 31 following the premiere of
remix with Ariana Grande on Oct. 25
Lizzo is the 2020 Grammys’ most nominated

artist, with nods in eight categories
including all of the Big Four
Lizzo performs at the 2019 American Music Awards, November 24, 2019, in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Kevin Winter/Getty Images for dcp)

K-POP WON’T STOP
Korean acts from BTS and
beyond find success across
multiple formats
236 MILLION
ON-DEMAND STREAMS
for “Boy With Luv” (featuring Halsey), BTS’ most-consumed song to date
981 MILLION
ON-DEMAND STREAMS
for “Baby Shark” by Pinkfong, whose videos of the popular children’s song
have been viewed globally over 3 billion times
168,000
FIRST-WEEK CONSUMPTION UNITS
for SuperM’s The First Mini-Album, which became the fourth Korean-language
album to top the Billboard 200 in October
WHO IS THE U.S. K-POP FAN?

K-Pop fans skew YOUNGER and are more likely to
be TEENS and MILLENNIALS
K-Pop fans are almost twice as likely to be

HISPANIC as the general population
K-Pop fans skew MALE and are more likely to be

NONWHITE than the general population
BIG SPENDERS: THE U.S. K-POP FAN

K-Pop fans are listening to more MUSIC-RELATED
PODCASTS than the rest of the U.S. population
K-Pop fans are OUTSPENDING the general population on

total music spend across digital, physical and live music
BUNDLED DEALS on albums with concert tickets

or merchandise appeal strongly to K-Pop fans
K-Pop fans spend MORE HOURS per week listening to

music than the average music listener”
Source: 2019 Nielsen Music/MRC Data U.S. Music 360

THE YEAR IN VIRAL HITS
TikTok’s U.S. success mints crossover hits and overnight music sensations
LIL NAS X’S “OLD TOWN ROAD”*

2.5 BILLION
ON-DEMAND STREAMS
made this the year’s No. 1 most-consumed song and the new
record holder for most weeks spent at No. 1 on
the Billboard Hot 100 (19)
ARIZONA ZERVAS’ “ROXANNE”

17 MILLION
ON-DEMAND STREAMS
the week ending November 7, yielding the highest Hot 100
debut in years for a then-independent artist
(Zervas has since signed with Columbia)
SAWEETIE’S “MY TYPE”**

8.56 MILLION
ON-DEMAND STREAMS
the week ending July 4, following the success of
Saweetie’s #MyTypeChallenge on TikTok
*Lil Nas X attends the 53rd annual CMA Awards, November 13, 2019, in Nashville, Tennessee. (Photo by Jason Kempin/Getty Images)
**Saweetie performs at the REVOLT X AT&T on October 27, 2019, in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Phillip Faraone/Getty Images for REVOLT)

YEAR-END 2019
MUSIC 360 HIGHLIGHTS
U.S. 2019 MUSIC LANDSCAPE

Listening to music continues to be a popular way
to spend leisure time, especially among Teens and
Millennials. The average general population
consumer is embracing more digital channels for
its weekly music listening, and Teens are setting
the pace for streaming engagement this year. Radio
continues to be the top source of music discovery.
TEENS
Streaming accounts for 53% of their weekly share

of music time, compared to 41% for the average
music listener
31% of all Teens turn to social media for music

discovery, while 54% of Teen music listeners
reportthat “new technologies (e.g., voice assistants,
smart TV, specialized headphones, etc.) have made
it easier for me to discover new musicians/songs
that I like”
TikTok usage (past 12 months) is highest among

Teens (17%) and Millennials (13%)
MUSIC PODCASTING CARVING OUT ITS OWN NICHE

Podcasts now have a broad reach, with 41% of Gen Pop
expressing an interest
Interest is even higher among those ages 35-44 (60%)
Music is the most listened to podcast genre among those interested

in podcasts and is even more popular among Teens (44%)
and Hispanics (44%)
Source: 2019 Nielsen Music/MRC Data U.S. Music 360

COUNTRY’S STREAMING COUP
New releases from Luke Combs, Blanco Brown and
Thomas Rhett help genre reach new digital thresholds
74 MILLION
FIRST-WEEK AUDIO ON-DEMAND STREAMS
for songs from Luke Combs’ November release What You See Is What
You Get, the highest-ever single-week streaming activity for a country
album
461 MILLION
Luke Combs performs at the ATLIVE Concert 2019, November 17,
2019, in Atlanta, Georgia. (Photo by Carmen Mandato/Getty Images)
ON-DEMAND STREAMS
for Blanco Brown’s “The Git Up,” a self-described “trailer trap”
song that spent 12 weeks at No. 1 on Hot Country Songs
76,000
FIRST-WEEK EQUIVALENT ALBUM UNITS
for Thomas Rhett’s Center Point Road, Rhett’s second No. 1 album
on the Billboard 200 and the year’s 11th biggest country album
RADIO SPOTLIGHT:
TOP 40 MINTS NEW STARS
2.2 BILLION 765 MILLION 3.1 BILLION

TOTAL AUDIENCE IMPRESSIONS TOTAL AUDIENCE IMPRESSIONS TOTAL AUDIENCE IMPRESSIONS
LEWIS CAPALDI’S LIL NAS X’S SAM SMITH & NORMANI’S
“Someone You Loved,” “Panini,” “Dancing With A Stranger”
which spent 3 weeks at which became the rapper’s which topped Billboard’s Radio Songs
No. 1 on the Hot 100 on the second top 10 hit after chart and became the Fifth Harmony
strength of its high crossover at Top 40 alum’s biggest solo hit to date with
listenership at radio
478 million in on-demand streaming
Lewis Capaldi performs at TRNSMT Festival, July 14, 2019, in Glasgow, Scotland. (Photo by Jeff J Mitchell/Getty Images)
Lil Nas X performs at WiLD 94.9’s FM’s Jingle Ball, December 8, 2019, in San Francisco, California. (Photo by Steve Jennings/Getty Images for iHeartMedia)
Normani performs at KIIS FM’s Jingle Ball, December 6, 2019, in Inglewood, California. (Photo by Amy Sussman/Getty Images)

THE YEAR IN FEATURES:
HOW COLLABS IMPACTED CONSUMPTION
228% increase in consumption
of Lil Nas X’s “Old Town Road” the week following the
premiere of its official remix with Billy Ray Cyrus on April 5
469 MILLION AND 297 MILLION

YTD streams for Ed Sheeran’s duets with Justin Bieber
(“I Don’t Care”) and Khalid (“Beautiful People”),
respectively, his two most-consumed hits from all-star
duets album No. 6 Collaborations Project
771 MILLION STREAMS

for Shawn Mendes & Camila Cabello’s
“Senorita,” Mendes’ first No. 1 hit on the Hot 100
and Cabello’s second
VINYL’S CONTINUED RESURGENCE

Record Store Day drives new sales milestones for the format.
The two Record Store Day events of 2019 helped yield vinyl’s third-, fourth- and fifth-largest best-
selling weeks as of Dec. 23, respectively, since Nielsen Music/MRC Data began measuring the format in 1991.
The first Record Store Day on April 13 saw 827,000 vinyl albums sold industry-wide during the week ending
April 18, up 12.8% from Record Store Day 2018, when 773,000 vinyl albums were sold the week ending April 26,
2018. The second event, Record Store Day Black Friday on Nov. 29, drew an even larger 855,000 vinyl albums
sales during the week of Nov. 28 through 25, making it the best-selling Record Store Day event
of all time and the biggest album sales week of 2019, with 2.8 million albums sold across
all formats (vinyl, CD, cassette, download, etc.). Week ending Dec. 26, vinyl sales hit an
all time record of 1.2 million.
Vinyl now represents 26% of all physical sales in 2019, with 18.8 million units
sold throughout the year, compared to 54.8 million units of CDs.
DABABY VS. LIL BABY

Two of hip-hop’s biggest breakouts also happen to share very similar stage
names. Here’s how their equally impressive consumption stats stack up.
779,000 VS. 576,000 YTD equivalent units earned

of DaBaby’s latest album KIRK vs. Lil Baby’s late 2018 release Street Gossip
820 MILLION VS. 394 MILLION on-demand streams

for DaBaby’s “Suge,” his most-consumed track of 2019, vs. Lil Baby’s
“Baby”, his most-consumed track of 2019
3.8 BILLION VS 3.4 BILLION on-demand streams

for DaBaby’s catalog vs. Lil Baby’s catalog in 2019
394 MILLION on-demand streams

for “Baby,” by Lil Baby feat. DaBaby

R.I.P. JUICE WRLD
The rapper/singer was already one of the year’s
most-consumed artists prior to his death on
December 8. In March, his debut album Death Race
For Love achieved a first-week of 165,000 equivalent
units, and it debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard 200.
215 MILLION
spike in total steams
for Juice WRLD’s catalog the week ending December 12
235%
increase in on-demand streams for
“Lucid Dreams,” his 2018 breakthrough single,
the week ending December 12
7
Number of songs
that entered or re-entered the Billboard Hot 100
the week ending December 12, with combined
streams of 1.6 billion
Juice Wrld performs at the 2019 iHeartRadio Music Festival, September 21, 2019, in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Photo by Bryan Steffy/Getty Images)

2019
IN MEMORIAM 1944-2019
RIC OCASEK
The Cars saw a 580% lift in
catalog consumption during the
week of Sept. 19, following the
Sept. 15 passing of longtime
frontman Ocasek. The group’s
hits “Drive” (5,000) and “Just
What I Needed” (2,000) were
1985-2019
the biggest-selling downloads
on Sept. 16, the first full day
NIPSEY HUSSLE following his passing.
The murder of 33-year-old
rapper and community activist
1939-2019
Nipsey Hussle (born Ermias
Asghedom) sparked a 2,776%
GINGER BAKER
spike in consumption of his
The drummer/co-founder of
catalog on March 31, the day of
Cream and Blind Faith saw a
his death. Victory Lap, his most
154% in those bands’ catalog
recent album at time of death,
consumption during the week
earned 747,000 equivalent 1949-2019
of Oct. 6, the day of the
units YTD, led by 167 million
musician’s death.
on-demand streams for “ EDDIE MONEY
Double Up” featuring Belly and The classic rock singer’s catalog
DOM KENNEDY, Nipsey Hussle’s saw a 1,095% lift in consumption
most-consumed song of 2019. following his passing on Sept. 13.
“Take Me Home Tonight,” his
1986 hit single, was streamed 3.1
million times in the U.S. in the
first three days following the sing-
er’s death, while his songs “Two
Tickets To Paradise,” “Shakin”
and “Baby Hold On” all entered
the top 12 of Billboard’s Rock
Digital Songs chart.

1994-2019
1952-2019
JAMES INGRAM
The R&B singer’s catalog saw a
681% increase in consumption the
week ending Jan. 31, following his
SULLI, F(X) 1937-2019
passing on Jan. 29. The lift was led
The K-Pop singer and actress’ by a 6,500% surge in song sales
passing on Oct. 14 led to a during the three-day time period,
137% increase in catalog including 6,000 copies sold of a
consumption for her band f(x) 1999 re-recording of his 1981 hit
the week ending Oct. 17. with Quincy Jones, “Just Once.”
ART NEVILLE
The Neville Brothers saw a
353% lift in catalog consump-
tion the week ending July 25,
following the July 22 passing of
1958-2019
co-founder Art Neville.
1955-2019
MARIE FREDRIKSSON, ROXETTE
Streaming consumption of Roxette’s MARK HOLLIS (TALK TALK)
catalog increased 770% on Dec. 10 Influential ’80s alt-pop group
and 11, following the Dec. 10 an- Talk Talk saw a 629% increase in
nouncement of lead singer Fredriks- catalog consumption the week
son’s passing. The streaming activity ending Feb. 27, following the Feb.
was led by three of the band’s four 25 announcement of frontman
No. 1 hits on the Billboard Hot 100: Mark Hollis’ passing.
“It Must Have Been Love” (1.4
million, up 560%), “Listen To Your
Heart” (700,000) and “The Look”
(464,000, up 606%).

YEAR-END 2019
TIMELINE
The 2019 CMT Awards

Lady Gaga & Bradley Cooper
air, triggering a 28% lift
perform “Shallow” at the 2019
in sales for the collective
Academy Awards, where it takes
songs featured during the
home the award for Best Original
telecast for the
Song. The buzzy performance
week ending June 6.
prompts a 115% increase in
Zac Brown Band’s
on-demand streams and sends
“Short Skirt Weather”
the song to No. 1 on the Hot 100
(up 723%) &
the following week.
Ariana Grande “Someone I Used
releases thank u, next, the To Know” (up 277%)
year’s 4th most consumed FEBRUARY 24 BTS’ Map of the Soul:
and Tanya Tucker’s
album and sets a temporary “Delta Dawn” (up 245%)
Persona is released to
record for biggest streaming see the biggest gains.
first-week consumption
week for both a pop album
of 230,000 equivalent
and an album by a female
units a career JUNE 5
artist with 307 million
best for the
audio streams
K-Pop group.
FEBRUARY 8
APRIL 12
2019
FEBRUARY 3
Maroon 5 MAY 31
headlines the 2019 Super
Bowl Halftime Show and Elton John biopic
sees downloads of the
FEBRUARY 10 “Rocketman” is released
band’s catalog spike 434% in theaters, sparking
Kacey Musgraves’
from the day prior. an 84% increase in
Golden Hour wins
consumption of the
Album of the Year at the
musician’s catalog the
2019 Grammy Awards.
week ending June 6.
The exposure helped the
album accumulate 436 million
on-demand streams in 2019,
a 254 million increase
from 2018.
MARCH 1
Jonas Brothers
reunite for their first
single in six years, “Sucker.”
The song instantly becomes
the band’s biggest hit to date,
debuting at No. 1 on the
Hot 100 with 42.8 million
first-week on-demand
streams.

Tones & I’s
“Dance Monkey”
debuts at No. 96 on
the Billboard Hot 100
with 7.3 million streams
(up 26%), following the
song’s global success at
No. 1 in Australia and
Beyonce’s the UK, among many
The Lion King: The Gift, other territories.
the R&B superstar’s
second surprise release OCTOBER 19 Mariah Carey’s
of 2019 following April’s The Beatles’ Abbey Road “All I Want For Christmas
live album Homecoming, celebrates its 50th anniversary Is You” finally tops the Bill-
sells 54,000 equivalent with a Super Deluxe edition board Hot 100 25 years after
units in its first week. that features unreleased demos its initial release. The new
and outtakes. The set has sold milestone is driven by 45.6
JULY 28 246,000 vinyl units to become million U.S. streams (up 30%
the year’s No. 1 best-selling from the week prior).
title in the format.
DECEMBER 16
SEPTEMBER 26
2020
SEPTEMBER 1
Taylor Swift’s Lover
achieves the biggest
consumption week for any NOVEMBER 24
album since her previous
release, 2017’s Reputation. The 2019 American Music Awards
The album earned 867,000 air on ABC, inspiring a 95% boost in
equivalent units the downloads for the songs performed
week ending August 29, during the telecast that night.
accounting for 27% of Tracks from Post Malone, Selena
JULY 21 all the country’s total album Gomez, Halsey and others sells
volume that week. a collective 27,000 downloads -
OCTOBER 2 up from 14,000 on Nov. 23.
Ed Sheeran’s
No. 6 Collaborations President Donald Trump
Project becomes the shares a tweet of a meme
singer-songwriter’s featuring Nickelback’s
third No. 1 on the 2005 hit ”Photograph”
Billboard 200, that is later removed due
with first week to copyright violation.
consumption The buzz around the
of 173,000. clip sparks a 4.7% lift in
consumption of the track
during the week
ending Oct. 3.

YEAR-END 2019
HITS OF THE DECADE

DECADE IN REVIEW
*January 1, 2010—January 2, 2019
TOP ALBUM ARTISTS OF THE 2010S

Adele is the top Album Artist of the 2010s, as her albums 21 and 25 are the decade’s No. 1 and No.2
best-sellers, respectively. They are also the only two titles to have sold over 9 million copies each
during the time period, with 21 coming in at 12 million in sales. Adele finishes the decade with
over 23 million total albums sold, nearly 1 million more than the runner-up, Taylor Swift.
Taylor Swift is the only artist to have three titles in the top 10 selling Albums of the 2010s: 1989
(6.2 million), Speak Now (4.7 million) and Red (4.5 million.)
Frozen led the 2010s movie-music revival as the top-selling soundtrack of the decade, and No. 8
best-selling title overall with 4.3 million sold.
Rounding out the top 10 Album Artists of the 2010s are rappers Eminem (No. 3) and Drake (No. 5),
pop star Justin Bieber (No. 4), catalog acts The Beatles (No. 6) and Elvis Presley (No. 10), country
stars Luke Bryan (No. 7) and Lady Antebellum (No. 8) and crooner Michael Bublé (No. 9.)
TOP DIGITAL SONGS OF THE 2010S

Pop stars dominate the top 10 Digital Songs Artists of the
2010s, with Taylor Swift at No. 1, Rihanna at No. 3, Katy
Perry at No. 4, Maroon 5 at No. 6, Bruno Mars at No. 7, the
Glee Cast at No. 8, Justin Bieber at No. 9 and Adele at No.
10. Rappers Eminem (No. 2) and Drake (No. 5) comprise
the rest of the top 10.
Mark Ronson feat. Bruno Mars’ “Uptown Funk” is the

No. 1 Digital Song of the 2010s, with 8.1 million copies sold,
followed by Pharrell Williams’ “Happy” (7.7 million),
John Legend’s “All of Me” (5.99 million) and Ed Sheeran’s
“Thinking Out Loud” (5.96 million.) Meghan Trainor’s
“All About That Bass” (5.8 million) is the 2010s’
highest-selling digital song by a female artist.

TOP STREAMING SONGS OF THE 2010s
Drake dominated on-demand streaming in the 2010s, racking up
a combined 36.3 billion on-demand streams for his catalog during
the decade. Drake’s total is nearly double that of the No. 2 On-De-
mand Streaming Artist, Post Malone (18.9 million), and indicative
of the streaming trend that includes fellow hip-hop acts Eminem
(No. 3, 17.8 billion), Future (No. 5, 13.9 billion), The Weeknd
(No. 6, 13.6 billion) and XXXTentacion (No. 8, 13.1 billion.)
Just one year after its release, Lil Nas X’s “Old Town Road”
totaled enough streaming activity in 2019 to become the No. 1
Streaming Song of the 2010s, with 2.5 billion streams. “Road”
was followed by Luis Fonsi & Daddy Yankee’s “Despacito”
(2.4 billion streams), Post Malone feat. 21 Savage’s “Rockstar”
(2.1 billion), Drake’s “God’s Plan” (2.0 billion) and Mark
Ronson feat. Bruno Mars’ “Uptown Funk” (1.9 billion.)
TOP AIRPLAY SPINS OF THE 2010s

Six of the most-played artists at radio in the decade are Country
acts, including Kenny Chesney at No. 1 (15.75 million spins),
Tim McGraw at No. 2 (15.74 million spins), , George Strait at No. 5
(13.3 million spins), Toby Keith at No. 8 (11.8 million spins),
Alan Jackson at No. 9 (11.7 million spins) and Keith Urban
at No. 10 (11.6 million spins.) Maroon 5 is the top pop act
(No. 3 overall, 15.6 million spins) and Taylor Swift is the top
female act (No. 4 overall, 14.5 million spins.)
Songs released pre-2010 comprise half of the Top Airplay Spins

Songs of the 2010s, led by Carrie Underwood’s 2005 hit “Before
He Cheats” (No. 3 overall, 1.5 million spins), Green Day’s 1997
hit “Good Riddance (Time Of Your Life)” (No. 4, 1.47 million
spins), Kid Rock’s 2007 single “All Summer Long” (No. 8, 1.4
million spins), Red Hot Chilli Peppers’ 1991 hit single “Under The
Bridge” (No. 9, 1.4 million spins) and Goo Goo Dolls’ 1998 single
“Iris” (No. 10, 1.4 million spins).

THE YEAR IN GLOBAL INSIGHTS
2019 marked Nielsen’s first year of measuring streaming
and digital song sales globally.
THE 4+ BILLION STREAMS CLUB (AUDIO & VIDEO)

A snapshot of the most-consumed songs across the globe
Lil Nas X’s “Old Town Road’s” stateside breakthrough fueled billions of streams in other territories,
enough to make it the year’s most globally streamed song on audio platforms by a considerable margin.
One of the year’s most-streamed songs on video platforms? “Baby Shark,” by Pinkfong, whose cover of
the decades-old nursery rhyme made the song a massive viral hit in 2019.
Other top songs this year span a wide variety of genres (Latin, K-Pop, even Bollywood), languages
and release years.
SEE BELOW FOR HIGHLIGHTS:
Lil Nas X Daddy Yankee Dr. Dre Billie Eilish

Old Town Road & Katy Perry Feat. Snoop Dogg bad guy
Feat. Snow The Next Episode
Con Calma
Alan Walker Ariana Grande Pinkfong Shawn Mendes &

Faded 7 Rings Baby Shark Camila Cabello
Senorita
Source: 2019 Nielsen Music/MRC Data Music 360 Reports (UK, Germany, Japan)

GLOBAL GROWTH AREAS
While the U.S., UK, Japan and Germany may be some of the world’s biggest music markets, their music
tastes are also remarkably diverse. Preferred genres and listening behaviors vary significantly by country.
TOP GENRES INCLUDE VARIATIONS OF POP AS WELL AS MORE LOCAL GENRES.
UNITED STATES CANADA UNITED KINGDOM

1. Classic Rock 1. Classic Rock 1. Pop
2. Oldies 2. Oldies 2. Rock
3. Pop/Top 40 3. Pop/Top 40 3. Oldies
4. Holiday 4. Contemporary Rock 4. Easy Listening
5. R&B 5. Easy Listening 5. Singer-Songwriter
GERMANY JAPAN
1. Pop 1. J-Pop Local genres are well
established in Japan
2. Oldies 2. Soundtrack
and Germany. In Japan,
3. Rock 3. Classical 90% listen to local genres,
4. Weihnachtsmusik 4. Kayokyoku with J-Pop being most popular.
(Holiday) Kayokyoku, an earlier, more
5. Western Pop
5. Deutschpop traditional form of Japanese
pop that gained popularity
from the 1950s-1980s,
remains popular among
music fans.
Germany boasts 94% listening to

German music genres, with
38% listening in standard German
and 63% listening to music in a
German dialect or local language.

STREAMING
Music listeners are streaming in large numbers across these key global markets - the UK ahead of
the U.S., Canada, Germany and Japan, with 83% of music listeners streaming music content in the
past year. However, it is in the U.S. that the percentage of music fans likely to start paying for a
streaming service in the next 6 months is greatest. Alongside streaming, in Germany and Japan
physical music purchasing remains a very popular means of consumption.
U.S.
76%
13%
CANADA
79%
12%
UK
83%
PHYSICAL
11%
music remains more
popular in Germany,
GERMANY with 35% intending to
71% purchase physical music
7% in the next 6 months vs.
JAPAN 28% digital, and Japan,
81% with 47% intending to
7% purchase physical music
vs. 27% digital.
music listeners streaming music listeners likely to start subscribing in the

(free & premium services) next 6 months (not currently paying for any service)
OVER-THE-AIR
AM/FM radio is the go-to format for
listening in a typical week among
Music Listeners in most countries.
Radio is the top-used format in
Germany (58%)
YOUTUBE Canada (51%)
is the top-used streaming service globally, UK (51%)
with Spotify in second for most markets, U.S. (44%)
(among those aware of each service.)
But attention should be paid to Amazon The exception is Japan,
Music, which has edged ahead of Spotify in where music video websites (46%)
Japan for preferred usage and ranks close and CDs (45%) reign supreme.
behind Spotify in the UK and Germany.

THE YEAR IN POP (January 4, 2019 - January 2, 2020)
ALBUM + TEA + ON-DEMAND AUDIO SEA
1 Billie Eilish 3,936,000
2Rank Taylor Swift 3,810,000
3 Ariana Grande 3,412,000
4 Ed Sheeran 2,115,000
5 Jonas Brothers 1,420,000
1 Billie Eilish When We All Fall Asleep, Where Do We Go? 2,518,000
2 Taylor Swift Lover 2,191,000
3 Ariana Grande thank u, next 2,056,000
4 Lady Gaga & Bradley Cooper A Star Is Born Soundtrack 1,213,000
5 Jonas Brothers Happiness Begins 1,157,000
1 Rank Billie Eilish bad guy 4,847,000
2 Ariana Grande 7 Rings 4,681,000
3 Halsey Without Me 3,898,000
4 Shawn Mendes & Camila Cabello Senorita 3,285,000
5 Lewis Capaldi Someone You Loved 3,222,000
(Ranked by Airplay Audience)
1 Jonas Brothers Sucker 3,486,467,000 849,000
2 Sam Smith & Normani Dancing With a Stranger 3,134,451,000 772,000
3 Halsey Without Me 3,009,267,000 751,000
4 Ed Sheeran & Justin Bieber I Don't Care 2,898,665,000 731,000
5 benny blanco, Halsey & Khalid Eastside 2,655,414,000 648,000

THE YEAR IN ROCK (January 4, 2019 - January 2, 2020)
1 Queen 2,717,000
2 Beatles 2,262,000
3 Imagine Dragons 1,557,000
4 Panic! At the Disco 1,415,000
5 Twenty One Pilots 1,085,000
1 Queen Bohemian Rhapsody Soundtrack 1,162,000
2 Elton John Diamonds 787,000
3 Queen Greatest Hits Vol 1 732,000
4 Panic! At the Disco Pray For the Wicked 620,000
5 Beatles Abbey Road 611,000
1 Panic! At The Disco High Hopes 2,380,000
2 Queen Bohemian Rhapsody 1,773,000
3 Imagine Dragons Believer 1,550,000
4 Imagine Dragons Natural 1,474,000
5 Imagine Dragons Thunder 1,403,000
1 Panic! At the Disco High Hopes 3,268,351,300 798,000
2 Panic! At the Disco Hey Look Ma, I Made It 1,638,511,900 470,000
3 LovelyTheBand Broken 954,965,000 275,000
4 Portugal. the Man Feel It Still 933,330,300 262,000
5 Journey Don't Stop Believin 853,903,300 132,000

THE YEAR IN R&B/HIP-HOP (January 4, 2019 - January 2, 2020)
1 Post Malone 4,583,000
2 Drake 4,532,000
3 YoungBoy Never Broke Again 2,557,000
4 Khalid 2,502,000
5 Juice WRLD 2,443,000
1 Post Malone Hollywood's Bleeding 3,001,000

TOP 5 ALBUMS
2 Khalid Free Spirit 1,587,000
3 Post Malone beerbongs & bentleys 1,380,000
4 Lil Nas X 7 - EP 1,306,000
5 Drake Scorpion 1,249,000
1 Lil Nas X Old Town Road 8,735,000
2 Post Malone & Swae Lee Sunflower 6,327,000
3 Post Malone Wow. 5,015,000
4 Lizzo Truth Hurts 4,504,000
5 J. Cole Middle Child 4,162,000
1 Khalid Talk 3,321,442,100 821,000
2 Lizzo Truth Hurts 2,482,047,200 674,000
3 Post Malone Wow. 2,377,942,300 651,000
4 Post Malone & Swae Lee Sunflower 2,123,653,300 539,000
5 Chris Brown No Guidance 1,586,631,300 351,000

THE YEAR IN COUNTRY (January 4, 2019 - January 2, 2020)
1 Luke Combs 2,048,000
2 Jason Aldean 1,315,000
3 Thomas Rhett 1,144,000
4 Chris Stapleton 1,057,000
5 Luke Bryan 1,051,000
1 Luke Combs This One's For You 1,163,000
2 Dan + Shay Dan + Shay 759,000
3 Luke Combs What You See Is What You Get 741,000
4 Chris Stapleton Traveller 586,000
5 Morgan Wallen If I Know Me 535,000
1 Luke Combs Beautiful Crazy 2,427,000
2 Morgan Wallen Whiskey Glasses 2,338,000
3 Dan + Shay Speechless 2,288,000
4 Blake Shelton God's Country 2,096,000
5 Dan + Shay Tequila 2,095,000
1 Dan + Shay Speechless 1,616,879,600 445,000
2 Luke Combs Beautiful Crazy 1,358,801,100 342,000
3 Morgan Wallen Whiskey Glasses 1,350,819,300 356,000
4 Dan + Shay Tequila 1,185,098,500 303,000
5 Chase Rice Eyes On You 1,113,948,400 302,000

THE YEAR IN LATIN (January 4, 2019 - January 2, 2020)
1 Bad Bunny 1,020,000
2 Ozuna 868,000
3 Maluma 382,000
4 Romeo Santos 351,000
5 Banda Sinaloense MS De Sergio Lizarraga 310,000
1 Bad Bunny X 100PRE 699,000

TOP 5 ALBUMS
2 Ozuna Aura 283,000
3 J Balvin & Bad Bunny Oasis 268,000
4 Ozuna Odisea 261,000
5 Farruko Gangalee 220,000
1 Bad Bunny Mia 1,570,000
2 Daddy Yankee & Katy Perry feat. Snow Con Calma 1,509,000
3 Bad Bunny Callaita 1,203,000
4 Sech Otro Trago 1,170,000
5 Luis Fonsi & Daddy Yankee feat. Justin Bieber Despacito 1,078,000
1 Bad Bunny Mia 1,278,281,600 264,000
2 Daddy Yankee & Katy Perry feat. Snow Con Calma 818,586,600 194,000
3 Pedro Capo x Farruko Calma Remix 471,801,300 108,000
4 Ozuna Baila Baila Baila 441,213,300 87,000
5 Daniel Caesar Ella Quiere Beber 362,420,700 78,000

2019 YEAR-END CHARTS
POWERED BY NIELSEN MUSIC/MRC DATA
TOP 10 ARTISTS
Artist Total Album Equivalent Streaming
On-Demand
Rank Album Sales Digital Songs
Consumption On-Demand Audio
Audio Streams
1 Post Malone 4,582,700 476,000 1,936,000 5,796,643,000
2 Drake 4,532,100 141,000 893,000 5,440,194,000
3 Billie Eilish 3,935,600 856,000 1,908,000 4,213,612,000
4 Taylor Swift 3,810,200 1,302,000 1,681,000 3,998,001,000
5 Ariana Grande 3,411,600 379,000 1,368,000 3,791,673,000
6 Queen 2,716,500 1,210,000 1,951,000 3,689,636,000
7 YoungBoy Never Broke Again 2,556,700 33,000 268,000 3,117,472,000
8 Khalid 2,501,600 317,000 927,000 2,934,469,000
9 Juice WRLD 2,443,400 80,000 449,000 2,892,550,000
10 Beatles 2,262,400 881,000 962,000 2,615,019,000
TOP 10 ARTISTS - ON-DEMAND AUDIO STREAMS

Rank Artist Streaming On-Demand Audio
1 Drake 5,796,643,100
2 Post Malone 5,440,193,700
3 Billie Eilish 4,213,612,200
4 Ariana Grande 3,998,001,300
5 YoungBoy Never Broke Again 3,791,672,800
6 Juice WRLD 3,689,636,500
7 Taylor Swift 3,117,471,700
8 XXXTentacion 2,934,469,000
9 Khalid 2,892,549,700
10 Travis Scott 2,615,018,900

TOP 10 ALBUMS
(ALBUM SALES + TEA + ON-DEMAND AUDIO SEA)
Total Album
Album Song On-Demand
Rank Artist Title Equivalent
Sales Sales Audio Streams
Consumption
1 Post Malone Hollywood's Bleeding 3,001,000 357,000 1,918,000 3,370,755,000
2 Billie Eilish When We All Fall Asleep, Where Do We Go? 2,518,000 676,000 1,226,000 2,459,589,000
3 Taylor Swift Lover 2,191,000 1,085,000 1,028,000 1,314,964,000
4 Ariana Grande thank u, next 2,056,000 279,000 959,000 2,306,333,000
5 Khalid Free Spirit 1,587,000 226,000 737,000 1,762,922,000
6 Post Malone beerbongs & bentleys 1,380,000 85,000 486,000 1,759,607,000
7 Lil Nas X 7 - EP 1,306,000 12,000 1,695,000 1,593,043,000
8 Drake Scorpion 1,249,000 51,000 269,000 1,595,807,000
Lady Gaga &

9 A Star Is Born Soundtrack 1,213,000 486,000 1,517,000 757,692,000
Bradley Cooper
10 Travis Scott Astroworld 1,201,000 54,000 297,000 1,544,909,000
TOP 10 ALBUMS
(TOTAL SALES)
Rank Artist Title Sales
1 Taylor Swift Lover 1,085,000
2 Billie Eilish When We All Fall Asleep, Where Do We Go? 676,000
3 Lady Gaga & Bradley Cooper A Star Is Born Soundtrack 486,000
4 Jonas Brothers Happiness Begins 469,000
5 Harry Styles Fine Line 458,000
6 BTS Map of the Soul: Persona 454,000
7 Tool Fear Inoculum 388,000
8 Queen Bohemian Rhapsody (The Original Soundtrack) 366,000
9 Post Malone Hollywood's Bleeding 357,000

TOP 10 DIGITAL ALBUMS
1 Taylor Swift Lover 386,000
3 Tool Fear Inoculum 224,000
5 Ariana Grande thank u, next 160,000
6 Kanye West Jesus is King 149,000
7 Post Malone Hollywood's Bleeding 147,000
8 Lizzo Cuz I Love You 141,000
9 Soundtrack The Greatest Showman 120,000
TOP 10 PHYSICAL ALBUMS

1 Taylor Swift Lover 699,000
2 BTS Map Of The Soul: Persona 415,000
4 Jonas Brothers Happiness Begins 379,000
7 Backstreet Boys DNA 303,000
9 Queen Bohemian Rhapsody 293,000
10 Queen Greatest Hits 1 227,000

TOP 10 LP VINYL ALBUMS
3 Queen Greatest Hits 1 139,000
4 Soundtrack Guardians Of The Galaxy: Awesome Mix Vol. 1 123,000
5 Queen Bohemian Rhapsody (The Original Soundtrack) 108,000
6 Beach Boys Sounds Of Summer: Very Best Of 107,000
7 Pink Floyd Dark Side Of The Moon 92,000
8 Michael Jackson Thriller 88,000
9 Bob Marley & The Wailers Legend 84,000
10 Fleetwood Mac Rumours 78,000
TOP 10 DIGITAL SONG CONSUMPTION

Song Sales w/SES Streaming
Rank Artist Song Song Sales
On-Demand Audio On-Demand Audio
1 Lil Nas X Old Town Road 8,735,000 1,536,000 1,001,658,000
2 Post Malone & Swae Lee Sunflower 6,327,000 668,000 800,726,000
3 Post Malone Wow. 5,015,000 469,000 644,384,000
4 Billie Eilish bad guy 4,847,000 577,000 595,891,000
5 Ariana Grande 7 Rings 4,681,000 476,000 575,880,000
6 Lizzo Truth Hurts 4,504,000 686,000 511,930,000
7 J. Cole Middle Child 4,162,000 197,000 578,272,000
8 Halsey Without Me 3,898,000 470,000 478,006,000
9 Khalid Talk 3,685,000 311,000 465,914,000
10 Meek Mill Going Bad 3,586,000 158,000 495,391,000

TOP 10 SONGS ON-DEMAND STREAMS
(AUDIO + VIDEO)
Rank Artist Song On-Demand Streams
1 Lil Nas X Old Town Road 2,499,608,000
2 Post Malone & Swae Lee Sunflower 1,474,828,000
3 Billie Eilish bad guy 1,294,072,000
4 Ariana Grande 7 Rings 1,129,767,000
5 Pinkfong Baby Shark 980,514,000
6 Travis Scott Sicko Mode 962,144,000
7 Lil Tecca Ransom 959,093,000
TOP 10 SONGS ON-DEMAND AUDIO STREAMS

Rank Artist Song On-Demand Audio Streams
4 Billie Eilish bad guy 595,891,000
7 Lil Tecca Ransom 536,291,000
8 Lizzo Truth Hurts 511,930,000
9 Meek Mill Feat. Drake Going Bad 495,391,000

TOP 10 SONGS ON-DEMAND VIDEO STREAMS
Rank Artist Song On-Demand Video Streams
2 Pinkfong Baby Shark 783,943,000
3 Billie Eilish bad guy 698,181,000
6 Travis Scott Sicko Mode 532,728,000
7 Marshmello & Bastille Happier 498,511,000
8 Dr. Dre Feat. Snoop Dogg The Next Episode 484,782,000
10 Blueface Thotiana 442,395,000
TOP 10 SONGS PROGRAMMED AUDIO STREAMS

Programmed
Rank Artist Song
Audio Streams
2 Ed Sheeran Perfect 131,409,000
3 Chris Stapleton Tennessee Whiskey 119,378,000
5 Marshmello & Bastille Happier 113,370,000
6 Lynyrd Skynyrd Sweet Home Alabama 111,199,000
7 Journey Don't Stop Believin' 108,995,000
8 benny blanco, Halsey & Khalid Eastside 108,501,000
9 Khalid Talk 108,404,000
10 Eagles Hotel California 99,487,000

TOP 10 DIGITAL SONG SALES
Rank Artist Song Sales
1 Lil Nas X Old Town Road 1,536,000
2 Lady Gaga & Bradley Cooper Shallow 832,000
3 Lizzo Truth Hurts 686,000
4 Post Malone & Swae Lee Sunflower 668,000
5 Billie Eilish bad guy 577,000
6 Blake Shelton God's Country 513,000
7 Jonas Brothers Sucker 511,000
8 Lewis Capaldi Someone You Loved 501,000
9 Ariana Grande 7 Rings 476,000
10 Halsey Without Me 471,000
TOP 10 RADIO SONGS - SPINS

Rank Artist Song Spins
1 Jonas Brothers Sucker 849,000
2 Khalid Talk 821,000
3 Panic! At The Disco High Hopes 798,000
4 Sam Smith & Normani Dancing With A Stranger 772,000
6 Ed Sheeran & Justin Bieber I Don't Care 731,000
7 Lizzo Truth Hurts 674,000
8 Post Malone Wow. 651,000
9 benny blanco, Halsey & Khalid Eastside 648,000
10 Marshmello & Bastille Happier 634,000

TOP 10 RADIO FORMATS
Rank Genre 2019 2018 2017
1 News/Talk 9.5% 10.0% 9.9%
2 AC 8.1% 8.0% 7.7%
3 Country 6.7% 7.3% 7.6%
4 Pop CHR 6.5% 6.9% 7.6%
5 Classic Hits 5.8% 5.6% 5.3%
6 Classic Rock 5.1% 4.9% 5.4%
7 Hot AC 5.0% 5.5% 5.9%
8 Urban AC 4.7% 4.8% 4.8%
9 All Sports 4.3% 4.4% 4.3%
10 Urban Contemporary 3.6% 3.6% 3.8%
Source: Nielsen Audio PPM Markets Radio Format Trends; January-November 2017, 2018 and 2019
Total
Total Physical Digital Digital Song On-Demand On-Demand
Genre On-Demand
Volume* Album Sales Album Sales Sales Audio Streams Video Streams
Streams
R&B / Hip-Hop 27.7% 10.5% 15.9% 20.5% 30.7% 31.2% 29.6%
Rock 19.8% 42.2% 32.4% 22.3% 14.7% 17.1% 10.2%
Pop 14.0% 11.0% 11.0% 18.8% 14.7% 13.7% 16.5%
Country 7.4% 10.4% 8.1% 11.7% 5.9% 7.2% 3.5%
Latin 5.3% 1.0% 1.0% 2.8% 8.2% 4.8% 14.5%
Dance / Electronic 3.6% 1.0% 2.2% 4.0% 3.9% 3.8% 4.1%
Christian / Gospel 2.3% 4.8% 3.2% 3.7% 1.8% 1.9% 1.6%
World Music 1.5% 2.3% 1.7% 1.5% 1.6% 1.3% 2.3%
Holiday/Seasonal 1.4% 3.3% 1.8% 1.0% 1.0% 1.1% 0.8%
Children 1.2% 2.1% 1.9% 0.9% 1.1% 1.0% 1.3%
Jazz 1.1% 2.7% 2.0% 0.9% 0.7% 0.9% 0.3%
Classical 1.0% 2.0% 2.5% 0.7% 0.7% 0.9% 0.5%
Read as: 27.2 of Total Album Sales come from R&B/Hip-Hop genre *Total Volume = Albums + TEA + On-Demand Audio/Video SEA

SHARE OF TOTAL ALBUM EQUIVALENT CONSUMPTION BY FORMAT
Physical Albums Digital Albums Digital Track Sales (TEA) On-Demand Audio Streams (SEA) On-Demand Video Streams (SEA)
6% 8% 4% 6%
7% 10%
16% 14%
14% 16%
15% 21%
37%
60% 59%
61%
61% 69% 57%
59%
68% 67%
76% 55%
74% 3%
6% 3% 3%
4%
3% 9%
6% 58% 7% 12%
7%
8% 4% 8%
4%
6%
5% 6%
5%
3% 4% 4% 22% 24%
20% 18%
3% 20% 13% 16%
9% 2% 3% 14%
7% 1%
4% 2% 3%
Industry Total
R&B/Hip-Hop
Rock
Pop
Country
Latin
Dance/Electronic
Christian/Gospel
World Music
Holiday/Seasonal
Children
Jazz
Classical

2019 DECADE CHARTS
POWERED BY NIELSEN MUSIC/MRC DATA
TOP 10 ARTISTS - ALBUM SALES
Rank Artist Album Sales
1 Adele 23,924,000
2 Taylor Swift 22,972,000
3 Eminem 13,862,000
4 Justin Bieber 12,098,000
5 Drake 10,526,000
6 Beatles 10,309,000
7 Luke Bryan 9,572,000
8 Lady Antebellum 9,452,000
9 Michael Buble 9,444,000
10 Elvis Presley 9,278,000
TOP 10 ARTISTS - SONG SALES

Rank Artist Song Sales
2 Eminem 63,501,000
3 Rihanna 62,022,000
4 Katy Perry 61,532,000
5 Drake 59,674,000
6 Maroon 5 50,535,000
7 Bruno Mars 49,722,000
8 Glee Cast 43,827,000
9 Justin Bieber 42,188,000
10 Adele 41,813,000

TOP 10 ARTISTS - ON-DEMAND STREAMS
(AUDIO + VIDEO)
Rank
Rank Artist Streaming On-Demand
1 Drake 36,335,298,000
2 Post Malone 18,933,472,000
3 Eminem 17,811,631,000
4 Ariana Grande 13,903,444,000
5 Future 13,894,227,000
6 The Weeknd 13,571,641,000
7 Taylor Swift 13,302,199,000
8 XXXTentacion 13,074,155,000
9 Ed Sheeran 12,876,563,000
10 Rihanna 12,826,340,000
TOP 10 ARTISTS - AIRPLAY SPINS

Rank Artist Airplay Spins
1 Kenny Chesney 15,752,000
2 Tim McGraw 15,740,000
3 Maroon 5 15,581,000
5 George Strait 13,304,000
6 Rihanna 13,002,000
7 P!nk 11,891,000
8 Toby Keith 11,838,000
9 Alan Jackson 11,740,000
10 Keith Urban 11,593,000

TOP 10 ARTISTS - AIRPLAY AUDIENCE
Rank
Rank Artist Airplay Audience
1 Tim McGraw 104,230,100,000
2 George Strait 102,530,834,000
3 Kenny Chesney 95,240,851,000
4 Alan Jackson 91,377,806,000
5 Maroon 5 85,280,711,000
6 Garth Brooks 83,987,606,000
7 Toby Keith 83,057,360,000
8 Rihanna 79,545,135,000
9 Mariah Carey 77,015,819,000
10 Usher 76,655,411,000
TOP 10 SONGS - SONG SALES

Rank Artist Song Audience
1 Mark Ronson Feat. Bruno Mars Uptown Funk! 8,126,000
2 Pharrell Williams Happy 7,688,000
3 John Legend All Of Me 5,993,000
4 Ed Sheeran Thinking Out Loud 5,959,000
5 Meghan Trainor All About That Bass 5,752,000
6 Taylor Swift Shake It Off 5,428,000
7 Katy Perry Dark Horse 5,088,000
8 Adele Hello 5,037,000
9 Hozier Take Me to Church 4,757,000
10 Sam Smith Stay with Me 4,632,000

TOP 10 SONGS - ON-DEMAND STREAMS
(AUDIO + VIDEO)
Rank Artist Song On-Demand Streams
2 Luis Fonsi & Daddy Yankee Feat. Justin Bieber Despacito 2,438,876,000
3 Post Malone Feat. 21 Savage Rockstar 2,089,916,000
4 Drake God's Plan 2,008,085,000
5 Mark Ronson Feat. Bruno Mars Uptown Funk! 1,850,033,000
6 Juice WRLD Lucid Dreams (Forget Me) 1,823,514,000
7 Post Malone Congratulations 1,784,724,000
8 Ed Sheeran Shape Of You 1,765,833,000
9 Post Malone & Swae Lee Sunflower 1,733,157,000
10 Imagine Dragons Believer 1,719,218,000
TOP 10 SONGS - AIRPLAY SPINS

Rank Artist Song Airplay Spins
1 Ed Sheeran Shape Of You 1,689,000
2 Mark Ronson Feat. Bruno Mars Uptown Funk! 1,582,000
3 Carrie Underwood Before He Cheats 1,516,000
4 Green Day Good Riddance (Time Of Your Life) 1,473,000
5 Lady Antebellum Need You Now 1,464,000
6 Walk The Moon Shut Up and Dance 1,460,000
7 Bruno Mars Just The Way You Are 1,444,000
8 Kid Rock All Summer Long 1,405,000
9 Red Hot Chili Peppers Under The Bridge 1,400,000
10 Goo Goo Dolls Iris 1,399,000

TOP 10 SONGS - AIRPLAY AUDIENCE
Artist Song Airplay Audience
1 Police Every Breath You Take 11,545,047,000
2 Santana Feat. Rob Thomas Smooth 11,145,352,000
3 Goo Goo Dolls Iris 10,926,634,000
4 Faith Hill Breathe 9,753,529,000
5 Natalie Imbruglia Torn 9,744,210,000
6 Green Day Good Riddance (Time Of Your Life) 9,540,862,000
7 Carrie Underwood Before He Cheats 9,520,306,000
8 No Doubt Don't Speak 9,488,999,000
9 Usher Yeah! 9,436,653,000
10 Journey Don't Stop Believin' 9,435,064,000
TOP 10 ALBUMS - ALBUM SALES

Artist Album Album Sales
1 Adele 21 12,009,000
2 Adele 25 9,517,000
3 Taylor Swift 1989 6,215,000
4 Eminem Recovery 4,867,000
5 Taylor Swift Speak Now 4,694,000
6 Taylor Swift Red 4,465,000
7 Michael Buble Christmas 4,379,000
8 Frozen Frozen 4,314,000
9 Lady Antebellum Need You Now 4,221,000
10 Justin Timberlake 20/20 Experience 3,743,000

TOP 10 LP VINYL - SALES
Rank
Rank Artist Album Sales
2 Pink Floyd Dark Side Of The Moon 376,000
3 Soundtrack-Guardians Of The Ga Guardians Of The Galaxy: Aweso 367,000
4 Bob Marley & The Wailers Legend 364,000
5 Amy Winehouse Back To Black 351,000
6 Michael Jackson Thriller 334,000
7 Beatles Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Cl 313,000
8 Fleetwood Mac Rumours 304,000
9 Davis, Miles Kind Of Blue 286,000
10 Lana Del Rey Born To Die 283,000
TOP 10 TOP 40 RADIO SONGS - SPINS

Rank
1 Ed Sheeran Shape Of You 640,000
2 Dua Lipa New Rules 614,000
3 Chainsmokers Feat. Halsey Closer 581,000
4 Pitbull Feat. Ne-Yo, Afrojack & Nayer Give Me Everything 574,000
5 Bruno Mars That's What I Like 544,000
6 benny blanco, Halsey & Khalid Eastside 525,000
7 Khalid & Normani Love Lies 525,000
8 Mark Ronson Feat. Bruno Mars Uptown Funk! 525,000
10 Charlie Puth Attention 522,000
* January 1, 2010 - December 5, 2019

TOP 10 RHYTHMIC RADIO SONGS - SPINS
1 Jeremih Feat. YG Don't Tell 'Em 169,000
2 Jay Z & Kanye West Ni**as in Paris 166,000
3 French Montana Feat. Swae Lee Unforgettable 160,000
4 J. Cole Work Out 159,000
5 Travis Scott Sicko Mode 158,000
6 Jeremih Feat. 50 Cent Down On Me 153,000
7 Drake Feat. Majid Jordan Hold On, We're Going Home 151,000
8 Kendrick Lamar HUMBLE. 144,000
9 Drake Feat. WizKid & Kyla One Dance 142,000
10 Fetty Wap Feat. Remy Boyz 679 140,000
TOP 10 LATIN RADIO SONGS - SPINS

1 Marc Anthony Vivir Mi Vida 158,000
2 Banda Los Recoditos Ando Bien Pedo 158,000
3 Fidel Rueda Me Encantaria 152,000
4 Don Omar & Lucenzo Danza Kuduro 151,000
5 Banda Los Recoditos Mi Ultimo Deseo 150,000
6 Voz De Mando Y Ahora Resulta 146,000
Enrique Iglesias Feat. Descemer Bueno, Sean

7 Bailando 145,000
Paul & Gente De Zona
8 Banda El Recodo Dime Que Me Quieres 145,000
9 Banda Sinaloense MS De Sergio Lizarraga Hermosa Experiencia 140,000
10 La Original Banda El Limon Al Menos 137,000

TOP 10 MAINSTREAM R&B/HIP HOP RADIO SONGS- SPINS
1 Miguel Adorn 214,000
2 Bryson Tiller Don't 174,000
Waka Flocka Flame Feat. Roscoe Dash &

3 No Hands 172,000
Wale
4 GoldLink Feat. Brent Faiyaz & Shy Glizzy Crew 169,000
5 Rihanna Pour It Up 165,000
6 Jay Z & Kanye West Ni**as in Paris 164,000
Chris Brown Feat. Lil Wayne & French

7 Loyal 164,000
Montana OR Too $hort
8 J. Cole Feat. Miguel Power Trip 162,000
9 Rihanna Needed Me 161,000
10 Kelly Rowland Feat. Lil Wayne Motivation 160,000
TOP 10 COUNTRY RADIO SONGS - SPINS

1 Jake Owen Barefoot Blue Jean Night 442,000
2 Sam Hunt Body Like A Back Road 440,000
3 Blake Shelton Honey Bee 431,000
4 Thompson Square Are You Gonna Kiss Me Or Not 402,000
5 Florida Georgia Line Cruise 401,000
6 Eric Church Springsteen 389,000
7 Darius Rucker Wagon Wheel 389,000
8 Eric Church Drink In My Hand 384,000
9 Dustin Lynch Small Town Boy 376,000
10 Zac Brown Band Feat. Jimmy Buffett Knee Deep 373,000

TOP 10 ADULT CONTEMPORARY RADIO SONGS - SPINS
1 Bruno Mars Just The Way You Are 308,000
2 Train Hey, Soul Sister 300,000
3 Lady Antebellum Need You Now 290,000
4 Adele Rolling In The Deep 251,000
5 Kelly Clarkson Stronger (What Doesn't Kill You) 247,000
6 Jason Mraz I'm Yours 242,000
7 Lumineers Ho Hey 240,000
8 Katy Perry Firework 237,000
9 Gotye Feat. Kimbra Somebody That I Used To Know 233,000
10 Justin Timberlake Can't Stop The Feeling! 230,000
TOP 10 ADULT TOP 40 RADIO SONGS - SPINS

1 Walk The Moon Shut Up And Dance 353,000
2 Ed Sheeran Shape Of You 343,000
3 Justin Timberlake Can't Stop The Feeling! 335,000
5 OneRepublic Counting Stars 321,000
6 Mark Ronson Feat. Bruno Mars Uptown Funk! 320,000
8 Train Hey, Soul Sister 298,000
9 Ed Sheeran Perfect 297,000

TOP 10 MAINSTREAM ROCK RADIO SONGS - SPINS
1 Nirvana Smells Like Teen Spirit! 145,000
2 Alice In Chains Man In The Box 142,000
3 Nirvana Come As You Are 134,000
4 Stone Temple Pilots Plush 133,000
5 Pearl Jam Even Flow 132,000
6 Offspring Self Esteem 131,000
7 Nirvana In Bloom 131,000
8 Metallica Enter Sandman 126,000
9 Soundgarden Black Hole Sun 125,000
10 Nirvana Lithium 123,000
TOP 10 ALTERNATIVE ROCK RADIO SONGS - SPINS

1 Cold War Kids First 214,000
2 AWOLNATION Sail 207,000
3 Arctic Monkeys Do I Wanna Know? 204,000
4 Portugal. The Man Feel It Still 195,000
5 Milky Chance Stolen Dance 184,000
6 Vance Joy Riptide 181,000
7 Imagine Dragons Radioactive 177,000
8 Neighbourhood Sweater Weather 171,000
9 Muse Madness 169,000
10 Bastille Pompeii 168,000

TOP 10 TRIPLE A ROCK RADIO SONGS - SPINS
2 Of Monsters And Men Little Talks 40,000
4 Revivalists Wish I Knew You 39,000
5 Portugal. The Man Feel It Still 39,000
6 Lumineers Ophelia 39,000
7 Mumford & Sons I Will Wait 38,000
8 Vance Joy Riptide 38,000
9 Florence + The Machine Dog Days Are Over 38,000


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NIELSEN MUSIC

1 Copyright © 2020 The Nielsen Company

2 Copyright © 2020 The Nielsen Company

2019 YEAR-END MOMENTS 6

HITS OF THE DECADE 18

2019 YEAR-END GLOBAL INSIGHTS 20

2019 YEAR-END CHARTS 23

THE DECADE IN REVIEW 37

Copyright © 2020 The Nielsen Company 3

Copyright © 2017 The Nielsen Company

2019 2018 % CHG.

TOTAL ALBUM SALES + TEA

678.0M 608.5M +11.4%

711.5.M 596.1M +19.4%

1.15T 887.4B +29.3%

%% CHG. 112.7M 138.8M -18.7%

745.7B 602.3B +23.8%

*Track Equivalent Albums (TEA) ratio of 10 tracks to 1 album

2019 2018 % CHG.

39.3M 52.3M -23.5%

PHYSICAL ALBUM SALES

73.5M 86.4M -15.0%

2019 2018 % CHG.

18.8M 16.5M +14.5%

2019 2018 % CHG.

301.1M 401.4M -25.0%

*Track Equivalent Albums (TEA) ratio of 10 tracks to 1 album

Copyright © 2017 The Nielsen Company

ARTISTS WHO BROKE THROUGH

These were the three biggest hits from the album,

Eilish, who turned 18 on December 18, became the youngest-ever artist

Lizzo is the 2020 Grammys’ most nominated

Copyright © 2020 The Nielsen Company 7

Copyright © 2017 The Nielsen Company

WHO IS THE U.S. K-POP FAN?

K-Pop fans are almost twice as likely to be

K-Pop fans skew MALE and are more likely to be

BIG SPENDERS: THE U.S. K-POP FAN

K-Pop fans are OUTSPENDING the general population on

BUNDLED DEALS on albums with concert tickets

K-Pop fans spend MORE HOURS per week listening to

Source: 2019 Nielsen Music/MRC Data U.S. Music 360

8 Copyright © 2020 The Nielsen Company

LIL NAS X’S “OLD TOWN ROAD”*

ARIZONA ZERVAS’ “ROXANNE”

SAWEETIE’S “MY TYPE”**

Copyright © 2020 The Nielsen Company 9

Copyright © 2017 The Nielsen Company

MUSIC 360 HIGHLIGHTS

U.S. 2019 MUSIC LANDSCAPE

Streaming accounts for 53% of their weekly share

31% of all Teens turn to social media for music

TikTok usage (past 12 months) is highest among

MUSIC PODCASTING CARVING OUT ITS OWN NICHE

Interest is even higher among those ages 35-44 (60%)

Music is the most listened to podcast genre among those interested

Source: 2019 Nielsen Music/MRC Data U.S. Music 360

10 Copyright © 2020 The Nielsen Company

2.2 BILLION 765 MILLION 3.1 BILLION

*Track Equivalent Albums (TEA) ratio of 10 tracks to 1 album

*Track Equivalent Albums (TEA) ratio of 10 tracks to 1 album