Spotify is celebrating its 20th anniversary by releasing a data-driven collection of its top 20 most-streamed artists, albums, songs, podcasts and audiobooks of all time. The anniversary also lines up with the average age of the USC undergraduate student body, according to the school’s 2025 Common Data Set. Annenberg Media spoke with Trojans to learn their thoughts on the music app’s findings.
Taylor Swift took the top spot for most-streamed Spotify artist of all time.
“I just think, objectively, she’s had a lot more influence than many of the other artists on this list,” Nayonika Arora, a sophomore math and economics major said. “I feel like her music is so neutral that it appeals to a way larger audience.”
This win was but another title to add to Swift’s collection. The singer won a 32 awards in 2026 alone, including seven trophies at the iHeartRadio Music Awards in late March.
However, not everyone was as pleased about the top 20 list.
“How is [Swift] number one at the top of all these lists?” said sophomore biochemistry major, Adison Gurley. “She’s beating out a lot of other artists that people like more now. I think it’s a bit overdone and definitely overhyped.”
Another artist who grabbed students’ attention was runner-up Bad Bunny. After starring in the most-watched Super Bowl halftime show of all time , the Puerto Rican artist’s Spotify streams shot up 470 percent,positioning him above high-profile names like Drake, The Weeknd, and Ariana Grande.
“I love Bad Bunny. And I like the people that like him. He has a good fanbase,” Wynne Adamson, a sophomore biology student said.
Gurley seemed to echoed this sentiment.
“Bad Bunny being second, honestly, that brings me joy. I’m glad that there’s finally statistical evidence that he’s so famous. He’s ‘goated.’”
According to the Spotify data, Bad Bunny also leads inthe album top 20 list. His 2022 summer classic, “Un Verano Sin Ti,” is the most-streamed album ever with over 22 billion listens.
Other top rankings included The Weeknd’s diamond-certified single, “Blinding Lights,” which topped the list of most-streamed song over the last 20 years. The podcast and audiobook rankings are topped by “The Joe Rogan Experience,” and Sarah J. Maas’ “A Court of Thorns and Roses,” respectively.
The full rankings are available on the Spotify Newsroom website.