First, 2021 was a hectic year but brought amazing music from different artists.  

According to Spotify, one of the biggest music streaming platforms, 2021 was an “upside down” year, where things were not normal, but music was always there to make company during these times. To start, 2021 was a year of embracing and learning from distinct cultures through various genres of music like Latin, American, Korean music showing their love for music, and describing their path to the top 

Artists like Bad Bunny, Drake, BTS, Taylor Swift, Olivia Rodrigo, Justin Bieber, and many others were top in the streaming platform with millions of listeners every month.   

In a random survey of 50 Morton East students, 50% of the students voted on Bad Bunny as the best artists, Taylor Swift and BTS tied at the results, meaning that 35% of the students choose them as the best artists of the year.   

Distinct music genres were heavy in the year with Dance/Electric, Pop, Reggae, Hip-Hop/Rap, Country, and a mix of many more were big competition between each other, and these top 3 artists were the winners for the year.   

Bad Bunny for the second year in a row has been #1 as the most streamed artists in the world. The Puerto Rican has millions of fans around the world and this past year with 9.1 billion streams. Although 2021 was a calmer year for Bad Bunny with no new album release, his music from past years keeps their place in the charts. His music, his urban style has had an enormous impact around the world and has inspired the entire world with his lyricism and shown that nothing is impossible.   

Taylor Swift was right behind Bad Bunny; she placed #2 in the charts with 47 million monthly listeners. For the American artist, 2021 was a special year since she released re-recorded albums (“Red” and “Fearless”) of her past albums but her own version, now that she is the owner of her own songs; she wanted to show her fans the importance of these songs/albums that are to her. Her fans were excited for these releases and once they were out of, they were topping the charts once again.   

BTS had a big year, showing that their hard work paid off. BTS placed #3 place with 8.6 billion streams in 2021 alone. The South Korean Boy Band released two hit songs in 2021 after the release of “Dynamite” in 2020. “Butter” and “Permission to Dance” have a special place in the heart of ARMY’s (their fan base). “Butter” became number one in all the music platforms after hours of their release, and in YouTube became #1 as the most streamed song in 24 hours. Until today, they hold the record. “Permission to Dance” is such a meaning full that signifies the end of something so bad (like Covid-19) and start of a better beginning.  

Music has been the salvation for many in these tough times, like the pandemic, and has not let audience down.