The International Federation Of The Phonographic Industry this week published its annual list of the biggest selling global recording artists of the last year. And you’ll never guess who topped it. Oh, right, you did. Beginner’s luck, I guess. Who knew Taylor Swift was so successful?
Actually, there have only been two years since the IFPI began publishing this list in 2014 when she hasn’t appeared in the top ten, and in all but those two years she has been in the top three. This is her fourth time at number one, so her success should be no real surprise to anyone. It was nice of her to give other artists a chance to get in the top ten in 2016 and 2018 though. Especially as topping the list gets you an official IFPI award.
“We are immensely proud to award the IFPI Global Recording Artist of the Year Award to Taylor Swift for the fourth time, as she continues to redefine the limits of global success”, says Lewis Morrison, Director Of Charts And Certifications at IFPI. “Taylor is a singular talent and her commitment to her craft and her fans is truly phenomenal”.
This year it’s Ed Sheeran’s turn to take a break from being in the top ten - his third time failing to make the cut. Previously he’s dropped out while taking a career break between albums, but in 2023 he put out two LPs, ‘-’ and ‘Autumn Variations’, both of which were produced by The National’s Aaron Dessner.
Sheeran’s good mate Taylor Swift also previously put out a duo of albums with Dessner, although hers were far more successful. So maybe there’s a lesson to be learned there. Get your own ideas, Ed.
I am being a little unfair. Sheeran hasn’t suffered quite as big a failure as I’ve maybe led you to believe. He isn’t in the IFPI’s big top ten this year, but he did come in at number eleven, so still had a pretty good 2023. Just not the sort of year we’ve come to expect from him. Although I think he would tell you that he was trying to do something a bit different creatively and it’s not all about the numbers.
Still, ignoring that and making it all about the numbers, his lack of effort means that there are no British artists in the top ten at all this year. And when we’re constantly told that our music industry is incredibly successful worldwide and something to be proud of, this really doesn’t help that argument. Apparently no one likes British music at all. Not even British people.
I’ll tell you what everyone does like though - K-pop. And I’m not talking about BTS - whose big project right now is being in the South Korean army and not making any music at all.
They have been in the top ten in all but one year since 2018, and topped it two years in a row in 2021 and 2022, but this year do not feature, even in the top 20. What their absence does do though is make way for a whole lot more K-pop.
While K-pop has increasingly featured on the list in recent years, this year there are four acts in the top ten and six in the top 20. That’s up from three last year, one of whom was BTS. But this year, after Taylor Swift, in the second and third position are Seventeen and Stray Kids, with TOMORROW X TOGETHER and NewJeans occupying seventh and eighth place.
This is perhaps a global version of what is often seen in South Korea when boyband members are forced to take time off for their mandatory military service - that being that other acts quickly move up to take their place. The question then is, will there still be room for the older act to fill when they make their return? We’ll have to wait until next year to find out if BTS can pull it off.
Other artists on this year’s list include Drake at number four (he has only not made the top ten once - the first one in 2014), The Weeknd making his fifth appearance at five, country singer-songwriter and former contestant on ‘The Voice’ Morgan Wallen debuting at six, Bad Bunny at nine (down from four last year), and finally Lana Del Rey at ten, also making her first ever appearance.
For those of you who prefer to see your lists in list form, here is the IFPI’s Global Artist Chart for this year as you want it…
- Taylor Swift
- Seventeen
- Stray Kids
- Drake
- The Weeknd
- Morgan Wallen
- TOMORROW X TOGETHER
- NewJeans
- Bad Bunny
- Lana Del Rey
Wow, that was actually really nice. Lists are cool. Shall we have another? Because I’ve made one and it’s just going to go to waste otherwise. While checking back through all the past lists, I began to wonder who the most successful artists of the last eleven years were. Yes, you’re right, it would have made more sense to wonder about that for the tenth edition of the list last year. I didn’t. But neither did you, so shut up.
I gave each artist from each top ten a score based on their position each year, and then tallied up the points. As you’d expect, Taylor Swift was the overall winner, with Drake coming in close behind, and Ed Sheeran sauntering up like he wasn’t sure he was even supposed to be there to take third place. BTS and Seventeen represent K-pop at four and nine respectively, while Justin Beiber, Eminem and Billie Eilish are joint eighth.
The big surprise was the tenth place artist, One Direction. They only appeared in the top ten twice, right back at the start. They didn’t make the top of the list on either occasion, coming second in 2014 and fifth in 2015. Yet somehow, in 2024, they show up as the tenth most successful act in the history of this list. They’re not even joint with someone else - they have a fairly decent lead on the eleventh place act, Stray Kids.
What does this tell us? I don’t really know. That it's time for a One Direction reunion? Only one member of the group has made it onto the list as a solo artist - Harry Styles at number eight last year - so I think it’s fair to say that it’s just not working out for any of them. Time to cash in, boys. And best to do it before BTS come back.
Anyway, I promised you a list, and here is that list. Here are the most successful global recording artists of the last eleven years…
- Taylor Swift
- Drake
- Ed Sheeran
- BTS
- The Weeknd
- Coldplay
- Post Malone
- Justin Bieber
- Eminem
- Billie Eilish
- Seventeen
- One Direction
Now, can you handle another list? Because - as well as pondering IFPI stats this week - we’ve also been checking out some of the funniest, silliest and most perplexing music news stories. And we’ve collected those for you here…
James Rettig
Philip Trapp
Keith Caulfield
Asawin Suebsaeng
Daniel Bird
Max Pilley
Yasmin RufoBBC News