Every December, Spotify comes out with the “Top Artists” list that ranks the most listened to artists of the year. This year, some controversial, expected, and maybe even unknown artists have topped the charts. Here is the ranking the top five artists and their albums; see if you think they really deserve their place on this chart.
- Bad Bunny
Bad Bunny 100% deserves his number one title on the Spotify Top Artist chart. Coming from Puerto Rico deeply influenced by Latin trap, he has become one of the most influential artists in the world through his dance-like rap music in Spanish. His 2025 hits like “Debí Tirar Más Fotos” and “DtMF” blend traditional Hispanic culture with addicting pop tunes that appeal to fans around the world. Despite his music being only in Spanish, he managed to work his way up to work with other rap artists like Travis Scott and Drake that pushed him to become #1.
- Taylor Swift
Taylor Swift has always been controversial in the music industry. She has crazy supporters known as “Swifities” who seemingly will do anything for her and there are hateful fans who criticize her for being overrated. Towards the beginning of her career, Taylor absolutely deserved the fame she has now. Her iconic T-Drop paired up with her story-telling lyrics and tunes were addicting to fans across different genres of music. However, I disagree that she should be ranked #2 on the Spotify Top Artist chart this year due to her disappointing album “The Fate of Ophelia”. Besides the song “The Fate of Ophelia”, I felt the rest of the album sounded too monotonous.
- The Weeknd
The Weeknd has always been a fan favorite ever since his hits such as “Save Your Tears” and “Blinding Lights”. Similar to the previous artists above, his tunes are extremely addicting and his voice is very soothing despite the heavy autotune he uses. The only doubt I have about him is his choice in music videos and performances. Especially after his concert during the Super Bowl LV halftime show, many fans have been criticizing it for being “too out of the ordinary” and even “boring”. Still, Weeknd’s new album “Hurry Up Tomorrow” was a smash hit; I really enjoyed it.
- Drake
Personally, I have never listened to Drake’s music besides his most popular hits such as “Nice for What” and “Hold On, We are Going Home”. However, Drake is a trending artists especially amongst teenage boys today, making him reliable as the #4 ranked artists on the Spotify Top Artist List.
- Billie Eilish
Billie Eilish has made some good and bad songs over the years of her career. However, in general, her music is perceived as “too bland”. Many of her songs, especially in “Birds of a Feather” sounded too similar to one another and Billie’s voice does not include much dynamics and variations. However, Billie Eilish is very creative in the beats and background instruments she incorporates into her music. For example, in “Bad Guy” she recorded a pedestrian crossing sound (doop doop) in Sydney, Australia as one of the background beats. Even though I do not agree with her being ranked #5 on the list, her creativity and passion for innovative music is clearly demonstrated in her songs.
