The monthly listeners metric on Spotify fluctuates from month to month — I know that seems like a very obvious statement, but I have to spell it out nonetheless. At any one time, one artist might be the most streamed in the world, and then the next it’s another. Currently, the most streamed artist is a “21 year old black boy,” as Kehlani so enthusiastically proclaimed.
A 21 YEAR OLD BLACK BOY IS THE NUMBER ONE MOST LISTENED TO ARTIST IN THE WORLD ✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨ EXCELLENCE https://t.co/Nq62FLZQ3r
— Kehlani (@Kehlani) April 28, 2019
Khalid is now the most streamed artist in the world with 50.196 million monthly listeners.
“Spotify ficially had 207 million active users worldwide at the close last year. Today’s news, therefore, suggests that somewhere close to a quarter Spotify’s total global audience has listened to Khalid at some point in the past month,” writes to Music Business Worldwide.
The timing this news makes a lot sense. Khalid released his second studio album on April 5, and then played Coachella the following two weekends. It’s also common for artists to experience streaming boosts following the festival.
For comparison, Coachella headliner Ariana Grande has 49,755,188 monthly listeners at the time writing.
Photo courtesy Coachella