Tag: The Weeknd

Elevate Your GIF Game With GIPHY and Spotify’s New Music Feature

July 22, 2021

After searching GIPHY, an online database that contains billions of GIFs, stickers, and more, you’ve found it. You’ve spotted the perfect GIF. Now, it’s time to share it in your group chat so your friends can get a feel for your reaction—no words necessary.  

No matter how you pronounce it, GIFs are the ultimate visual metaphor. And now, thanks to a partnership with Spotify and GIPHY, music can be part of the equation. We’re teaming up with GIPHY to enable new Spotify-linked artist GIFs. When users click the GIF on the verified GIPHY artists’ pages, they’ll be taken directly to the featured artist’s Spotify page for a listening session. 

Artists Doja Cat, The Weeknd, Post Malone, Nicki Minaj, The Kid LAROI, and Conan Gray have already kicked off the integration, with more to come.

Users around the globe can find the feature on verified GIPHY artist pages and they can be experienced through both GIPHY’s web and mobile platform. Here’s how it works:

  1. Search for artists’ GIFs on their official GIPHY channel via GIPHY.com or GIPHY’s mobile apps
  2. Once on the artist’s official GIPHY channel, click on the GIF you’d like to use
  3. Tap the “Listen on Spotify” button on any participating GIF
  4. Users will be taken directly to the artist’s Spotify page, where they can listen and discover even more music from artists they love

Ready to give it a try? Check out Doja Cat’s, The Weeknd’s, Post Malone’s, Nicki Minaj’s, The Kid LAROI’s, and Conan Gray’s verified GIPHY pages to see the integration in action.

Today’s Top Hits Is the World’s Destination for the Very Best in Music

June 24, 2021

Ed Sheeran. Ariana Grande. Kali Uchis. There’s one place fans go to find a mix of music from their favorite groundbreaking artists—and that’s Today’s Top Hits.

Spotify’s Today’s Top Hits (TTH) is the world’s biggest playlist. With over 28 million followers, it’s also the top destination for emerging and established artists across all genres to reach millions of fans and provide them with chart-topping, show-stopping songs each day. And TTH influences more than culture—it has helped kickstart the careers of many emerging artists—like The Kid Laroi, Tate McRae, and Conan Gray—and supported music favorites like Billie Eilish, SZA, and Juice WRLD. 

Today’s Top Hits is the leading global destination for popular music, supporting artists across all genres and bringing their music to a wider, global audience. As Spotify’s largest, most international playlist, we identified the opportunity to position Today’s Top Hits as our global music brand, complete with a distinct visual aesthetic and voice. The visual rebrand consists of a fresh, bold, colorful design, including a unique lockup with the TTH acronym, as well as a new brand tagline, “Hits Made Here.” The campaign, which centers around a 60-second video, “The Hit Station,” celebrates the breadth of artists and tracks that are defining culture today, including hitmakers like Billie Eilish, Travis Scott, Dua Lipa, Bad Bunny, and BLACKPINK.

“Today’s Top Hits is a true reflection of music culture today, as defined by the fans,” said Ned Monahan, Spotify’s Head of Global Hits. “So many factors go into the process of making a song a hit, and TTH has become a key catalyst and proving ground for a song reaching its full hit potential. Whether you’re emerging or established, no matter the genre—TTH gives artists the opportunity to connect with millions of fans across the globe, and fans a destination to support their favorite artist.”

Check out some notable TTH moments in this new style:

Today’s Top Hits has become so influential due to its diverse curation process, which supports various genres and artists beyond the traditional confines of how popular music has been defined in the past. It showcases the latest top hits driven by fans, combined with specially curated picks from editors who analyze music culture, data, and trends. Artists, industry professionals, and fans alike look to Today’s Top Hits as representative of what today’s music is—and what fans are listening to. 

Get to know the world’s top tracks. Stream Today’s Top Hits for the very best in music today.

The Most-Streamed Songs and Podcasts of Summer 2020

August 25, 2020

The summer of 2020 was unique from the start, with celebrations like Pride and music festivals like Notting Hill Carnival taking place virtually for the first time. But as always, people turned to music and podcasts as lively, consistent sources for comfort and entertainment, both in person and apart. And most notably, they turned to “ROCKSTAR” by DaBaby featuring Roddy Ricch, which soared to its spot as the most-streamed song of summer 2020.

With more than 380 million streams between June 1 and August 15, the track has been a mainstay on our global chart and is one of the year’s most-played songs on our flagship RapCaviar playlist. The track’s success is certainly not lost on DaBaby himself.

“I knew ROCKSTAR was going to be a hit while I was creating the record,” the rapper told Spotify. “But to watch the world make it into a global hit is an amazing feeling. God is great!”

Read on for more about the songs that dominated summer, plus, for the first time, the top podcasts. Finally, check out our new digital experience to help you feel some of the summer vibes you may have missed.

Sing along to the top songs of summer

Following DaBaby’s “Rockstar” is The Weeknd’s “Blinding Lights,” which takes the slot for the second-most-streamed song this summer. It racked up just under 340 million streams between June 1 and August 15, and although it was released last November, it speaks to cities being “cold and empty.” In third place is SAINt JHN’s upbeat jam “Roses – Imanbek Remix,” which collected over 280 million streams and was added to many workout playlists.

Harry Styles infused plenty of flavor with “Watermelon Sugar,” which also landed in the top 5. Dua Lipa features twice in the top 20 with “Don’t Start Now” and “Break My Heart,” two tracks featured on the singer-songwriter’s album Future Nostalgia, which she released during quarantine. Ariana Grande also brought double trouble—in the best way possible—with her hit collaborations “Rain On Me” with Lady Gaga and “Stuck with U” with Justin Bieber. Scroll to see the full song list below. 

Get hooked on the top podcasts of summer 

It may have only launched three weeks ago, but that didn’t stop The Michelle Obama Podcast from becoming the top podcast of the summer with millions of listeners. The former first lady took to the mic to speak to listeners on topical themes such as identity, self-care, and family.  

Speaking of topical, listeners were clearly in the mood for plenty of news: NPR News Now and The Daily were the second- and third-most-popular podcasts based on number of listeners between June 1 and August 15. Other top shows include Call Her Daddy, TED Talks Daily, and Harry Potter At Home: Readings, as read by familiar voices like Daniel Radcliffe and Helena Bonham Carter. The mystery obsessed sunk their teeth into Crime Junkie, Last Podcast on the Left, and My Favorite Murder.

Dive into our new digital experience

Didn’t get to take the summer vacation of your dreams this year? Get transported—digitally—to somewhere summery with our new immersive experience, Wish You Were Here. You’ll be able to enjoy some of the season’s biggest hits overlaid with those summer sounds you may have missed: think crashing waves, a sizzling barbeque, or a crackling campfire.

Spotify Refreshes Popular Playlist New Music Friday with Global Rebrand

February 21, 2020

Whether you’re a music fan or an artist, Fridays are about to get even better. Today, Spotify’s highly influential New Music Friday playlist—a curated selection of the most anticipated new tracks of the week—is debuting a global rebrand.

The revamped playlist, which has 43 versions worldwide, will continue to serve as the leading destination for listeners who want to discover new music from both established and emerging talent. With over 3.5 million followers in the U.S. and 8 million globally, it’s an achievement and milestone for artists to have their new tracks included on the list.

With today’s visual relaunch, Spotify is continuing to support its ongoing investment in the must-hear playlist brand, with a major social campaign, New York and Los Angeles billboards, and new cover art. Inspired by a trend of artists making their own celebratory New Music Friday social media assets, Spotify For Artists will now test a new feature where all artists added to the U.S. version—to start—of New Music Friday will be able to grab and share a branded and personalized social asset a la Wrapped.