Tag: summer

Brazilian Hitmakers Play With Genre for Latin America’s First Spotify Singles Series

February 3, 2022

Summer is in full swing in Brazil, and now, so is Latin America’s first-ever Spotify Singles series. As Brazilians soak up the sun, buzzy artists Os Barões Da Pisadinha, LUDMILLA, Matheus & Kauan, and more are inviting listeners to stream seven new Spotify Singles songs exclusively on Spotify. From January 26 to February 16, fans will see new tracks debut on Spotify Brazil’s official summer playlist Vem, Verão!

The Spotify Singles program launched in 2016 as a creative outlet for artists as they revisit their songs, engage their fans, and connect with new listeners. More than 5 billion streams later, Spotify Singles continues to surprise audiences around the world. This special summer release is no different. It marks an innovative moment in the program as Spotify challenged Brazil’s artists to explore rhythms and genres outside their usual sound.

“This Singles series was created as a place to highlight and celebrate the summer through Carnival, all while catering to genre listening trends we have been identifying in the market. We brought the idea to our partners and found artists who were eager to be a part of it. The artists then took the idea into their own hands and created all these amazing representations of the rich culture Brazil has to offer,” said Carolina Alzuguir, Artists and Label Partnerships Lead for Spotify in Brazil.

The singles take inspiration from the most-listened-to genres in Brazil during the summer, including pisadinha, Brazilian funk (also referred to as funk carioca), and brega funk. Pisadinha is an offshoot of the popular Brazilian genre forró, a rhythmic music style that features the accordion and triangle. Inspired by Miami’s flourishing hip-hop scene, Rio de Janeiro’s Brazilian funk music pulls from a number of different genres to create a uniquely local sound made for dancing. And brega funk, which originated in Northern Brazil, is a branch of Brazilian funk known for its heavy bass and offbeat rhythms.

Follow along as beloved Brazilian artists embrace genre fluidity and try their hands at a fresh sound. Here are the songs making every day feel like a summer celebration, no matter where you listen:

Released in January

Releasing in February

  • Next, on February 7, Brazilian funk and pop queen LUDMILLA promises a surprise with her trap version of “Fora de Si.”
  • MC Hariel, who is known for his impact on the São Paulo funk scene, will push the boundaries this summer with a reggaeton version of “Pirâmide Social” on February 9.
  • PEDRO SAMPAIO has a sweet surprise in store for February 14. He teamed up with Anitta once again to reenvision the catchy hit “NO CHÃO NOVINHA” as a techno brega bop.
  • And Rebecca will close the summer Spotify Singles series by introducing a new brega funk version of the techno pop hit “Barbie” with the help of Mexican singer Dulce María, the Colombian rapper Farina, and Mc Danny on February 16.

Want more? Keep up with the latest releases and the soundtrack of the season on Vem, Verão!

Spotify’s 2021 Summer Song Predictions Are Here

June 29, 2021

We’ve been counting the days, and summer has finally arrived in the Northern Hemisphere. As parts of the world begin opening up for outdoor concerts and backyard barbecues, this is sure to be a season dominated by feel-good jams and odes to a fresh start. 

Spotify’s global curation team has been hard at work reviewing streaming numbers, analyzing current track trajectory, and peering into crystal balls—all in service of forecasting what songs may feature heavily on your playlists this summer.

Grab your sunscreen and headphones. Here, in no particular order, are Spotify’s official Songs of Summer predictions:

Ready to bask in the sunshine to a new soundtrack? Stream Spotify’s Songs of Summer playlist.

The New Summer Breakouts Playlist Is Your Soundtrack for the Season

June 28, 2021

What’s the soundtrack to your summer? At Spotify, we’re taking bets on which breakout artists and songs will be racking up streams and sharing these songs in our new Summer Breakouts playlist, available to users across the U.S. and Canada.

Curated by Spotify’s editorial experts with tracks they predict will pop off this summer, the playlist also ranks the order in which they appear to fit each user’s taste based on the music they love.

 

From artists like BIA and Tai Verdes to Dayglow and Audrey Nuna, the playlist provides a range of new music to explore. Each week, the songs on the playlist will refresh, giving you more artists and tracks to discover and share. No matter your plans, you’ll have the perfect summer playlist for any moment. 

Ready to discover the artists and songs that we think will hit it big this season? Check out the Summer Breakouts playlist.

https://open.spotify.com/playlist/37i9dQZF1DXbAmP7AvWeiR

Catching Up with Bazzi after Spotify’s Songs of Summer Soiree

July 1, 2019

R&B/pop artist Bazzi started making waves in the music world with the 2018 release of his breakout album, Cosmic. But there’s no telling what the stars have in store for the 21-year-old singer, rapper, and producer—and with the start of summer in the U.S., he’s plenty busy.  

Bazzi opened the month of June with his release of “Focus (featuring 21 Savage).” The collaboration revealed the young performer’s genre-blending range and dynamic musical ability. Then, Tuesday night, June 25, Bazzi took to the stage at Spotify’s Songs of Summer Soiree in New York City to celebrate the start of the summer season and Spotify’s Summer Rewind playlist with music and nostalgic trivia of songs from summers past. DJ Steph Cakes played the tables as the sun set over NYC, and then Bazzi took the floor.

How Well Do You Know the Spotify Songs of Summer? Take Our Nostalgia Quiz

June 25, 2019

It’s (finally) getting hot in the northern hemisphere, which means it’s time to start searching for the perfect summer song. Each year, we release our own predictions on which tracks will be the hottest songs of the season. Now we’re also taking a look back at the tracks that ruled summers past. Take our quiz below to find out if you remember all the artists that soundtracked your summertime.

It's getting hot in here.
So take our summer music quiz.

Start

The year was 1995 and crop tops were everywhere. Which track was not a top summer jam that year?

"Macarena (Bayside Boys Mix)" - Los Del Rio

The “Macarena” was a massive global hit in 1996, not 1995. Today on Spotify, the track averages 30K streams per day and is especially popular in Mexico and Germany.

Which artist has claimed two Spotify songs of the summer in the past 5 years?

Drake

Drake's “One Dance” was the most-streamed song in 2016 and “In My Feelings” was the top summer song in 2018. Kiki, do you still love me?

Which popular summer song from the aughts was parodied by “Weird Al” Yankovic as “Trash Day?”

“Hot in Herre” - Nelly

Nelly's "Hot in Herre," which ruled charts in the summer of 2002, appears in nearly 8 million playlists on Spotify. 

In 2012, we were all obsessively tending to our terrariums, sharing corgi memes, and listening to one summer bop nonstop. What was that song?

“Call Me Maybe” - Carly Rae Jepsen

Curiously, this peppy track sees a significant spike in streams whenever the month of May rolls around. 

Which summer hit tested Justin Bieber’s Spanish-speaking abilities?

“Despacito (Remix)”

“Despacito (Remix)” by Luis Fonsi, Daddy Yankee & Bieber streamed 780M+ times in the summer of 2017.

Survivors’s “Eye of the Tiger” is widely considered to be 1982’s song of the summer. Today, in which Spotify playlist does it stream the most?

All Out 80s

But there’s no denying that when played at the right volume, "Eye of the Tiger" can bring out anyone’s swagger.

Not every summer song is a carefree, feel-good jam. Which song stalked the charts to become
the song of the summer in 1983?

“Every Breath You Take” - The Police

Understood to be about stalking a former lover, “Every Breath You Take” is always popular with Spotify listeners, who have streamed it 85M+ times so far in 2019 alone.

There are 135K+ songs with the word “summer” in the title on Spotify. Which one is the most streamed?

“Summer” - Calvin Harris

“Summer” was also Spotify’s most-streamed song in summer 2014.

Which musician told the world they were suffering from “summertime sadness”?

Lana Del Rey

Lana Del Ray released the song “Summertime Sadness” in June 2012. While it’s not especially upbeat, the track is still a popular pick for listeners’ summer-themed playlists on Spotify.

Complete this lyric from the Grease classic “Summer Nights.” We went strolling, drank _____.

Lemonade

Lemonade. That sounds pretty refreshing, doesn't it? Bottoms up - you made it to the end of the quiz.
Let's see how you did...

You scored out of !

Beat the heat with more cool summer jams.

 

Just in time for those beach or poolside days, we’re also renewing Your Summer Rewind. The personalized playlist is filled with songs you listened to heavily on Spotify during your past steamy, streaming summers. Users in some regions that celebrate summer starting in June* can find their playlist on the Summer Hub and at spotify.com/rewind.  

*Including United States, Great Britain, Mexico, Germany, Spain, Canada, France, Italy, Sweden, Netherlands, Norway, Turkey, Denmark, Finland, Poland, Belgium, Ireland, Czech Republic, Portugal, Austria, Japan, and for the very first time Romania and Israel.

 

Midsummer Means Classic Swedish Music and Lots of Tomas Ledin

June 21, 2019

For those who don’t call Sweden home, the country likely makes you think of Spotify, as well as IKEA, meatballs, and fika. But Sweden is also well known for the famous Midsummer celebration, which marks the start of the summer holidays. During Midsummer, people head to the country to dance, eat traditional Scandinavian food, and sing classic Swedish summer songs. And with almost 200,000 Midsummer-themed playlists on Spotify, it’s clear that revelers are enjoying the holiday by jamming out to their favorite folksy hits.

Despite Swedes being known for producing great pop music, listeners are looking for the classics during the holiday. Case in point? The top 10 most popular songs streamed globally on Spotify during Midsummer have stayed the same over the last few years. In 2018, the most commonly played songs on the global scene were classics like “Sol, vind och vatten,” released in 1972, and “Sommaren är kort,” from 1982.

Top 10 most played songs during Midsummer (global)

  1. “Sol, vind och vatten” — Ted Gärdestad
  2. “Sommartider” — Gyllene Tider
  3. “Sommaren är kort” — Tomas Ledin
  4. “Vågorna” — Uno Svenningsson
  5. “Sommarnatt” — Snowstorm
  6. “När vi gräver guld i USA” — Glenmark Eriksson Strömstedt
  7. “Ta mig till havet” — Peter Lundblad
  8. “Oh boy” — Peps Persson
  9. “Oh, vilken härlig da‘” — Ted Gärdestad
  10. “Magaluf” — Orup

One artist in particular personifies the sounds of Midsummer for global listeners. Tomas Ledin spikes each year on the holiday, with streams increasing by 600%.

“Hopefully people listen [to my music] during Midsummer because of my songs and my artistry,” Ledin says. “Possibly because I’ve done different summer tours over the years. I imagine that songs like ‘Sommaren är kort,’ ‘Här under sommarhimlen,’ and ‘Blå blå känslor’ meant a lot.”

As for what Ledin will be listening to this summer, he says it depends on the situation and the mood: “Right now, I often return to a Spotify playlist that’s very mixed, genre-wise. It includes everything from country giant Chris Stapleton, some of the Eagles’ classic ‘70s and ‘80s songs, and John Mayer’s latest singles, to old favorites like Karla Bonoff and wonderful Sade. Also on my playlist are Miles Davis from the ‘King of cool’ period, jazz guitarist Pat Metheny, the classic cellist and Polar Music Prize winner Yo-Yo Ma, and ambient guru Nils Frahm’s meditative music.”

While Midsummer playlists are mostly created by listeners in Sweden and other Nordic countries, they’re popular among listeners in the U.S and Germany—both of which also have a high number of Midsummer-themed playlists. For Swedes living abroad and celebrating in the U.S., the willingness to keep up Midsummer traditions (flower crowns, anyone?) and sing along to classic Swedish hits shows that you can take a Swede from Sweden, but you can’t take the Sweden out of a Swede.

Top 5 countries with number of playlists with the Midsummer theme

  1. Sweden
  2. Norway
  3. Finland
  4. United States
  5. Germany

Get ready for Midsummer wherever you are by listening to our Swedish Summer Hits playlist.

Spotify’s 2019 Summer Song Predictions

June 12, 2019

Summer is right around the corner, and once again we’re predicting which songs will dominate speakers and headphones while the Northern Hemisphere sizzles.

From Lizzo’s “Truth Hurts” and Billie Eilish’s “bad guy” to Tyler, the Creator’s “EARFQUAKE” and Daddy Yankee and Snow’s “Con Calma,” many of these “song of the summer” contenders are already seeing strong engagement in Spotify’s key playlists, like Today’s Top Hits, RapCaviar, and ¡Viva Latino!.

Then there are the tracks with massive potential. Take, for example, “I Think I’m OKAY,” the newly released collaboration between Machine Gun Kelly, YUNGBLUD, and Travis Barker. We’re also seeing interest in Yonaka’s song “Rockstar,” and Clairo’s new track “Bags” is resonating with our 18-24-year old listeners in particular.