This year I listened to 57,251 minutes of music, accounting for 8,315 songs and 3,629 artists. So more songs and more artists than last year, but less total time.
Here’s 2021, 2022, and 2023 data to compare.
My Top 5 Songs of 2024
More girl-powered punk/pop vibe in my top songs (just like last year):
- “And They Were Roommates” by Over Anna (97 times, among top .005% of fans)
- “Tiltawhirl” by Boys Go to Jupiter
- “Your Story” by Millie Manders and the Shutup
- “Love is Embarrassing” by Olivia Rodrigo
- “Don’t!” by L0L0
See my top 100 songs of 2024 playlist. With the exception of “Sweet Sensation” by Luna Aura at #82, none of my 2023 top five songs made the list. Aside from U2, none of my 2023 top artists made the list. That means lots of musical turnover and finding new things, even though my list is still majority girl-powered punk/pop and almost 90% female-fronted.
My Top 5 Artists of 2024
Huge turnover in my top artists, with U2 the only one retaining a spot from previous years. And the total minutes played for the top artist is way down. The last few years it’s been in the 2,300-2,800 range. My top five artists account for only 11 songs out of my top 100.
- L0L0 – I played 916 minutes of L0L0, which is the top .5%.
- Millie Manders and the Shutup
- U2
- Olivia Rodrigo
- Charlotte Sands
Thoughts
I think the Spotify Wrapped phenomenon is fascinating. AP News ran two stories about Wrapped when it released. It goes viral every year. Which is super weird when you think about it.
Spotify doesn’t give users access to data about their own listening habits. There’s no simple way to track your top artists, top songs, minutes played, etc., throughout the year. So Spotify hordes that data, and then releases it once a year in a very limited (what’s my #6 artist? No idea) and proprietary format (only in the app, in a weird video slide format).
They hide your data, rob you of a feature, then deliver a highly packaged and minimal version of it—and we treat it like a gift and it goes viral. (And here I am blogging about it for the fourth year in a row, so I’m falling for it too).
I’d love to know what goes into creating Spotify Wrapped. Why do they make these decisions? How do they make them? Why do they release it in early December, so your “top artists of 2024” only account for 11 months? Wouldn’t it be perfect content for the week of New Year’s?
I’d also love to know what artists make of it. Does Over Anna know I’m in their .005% of listeners? They’re a tiny pop punk band out of Atlanta that’s released all of seven songs. I think I found them on TikTok last winter when I was trying to find new music (I’m not normally on TikTok). Spotify does release some Wrapped info to artists, but they also drop the ball.