Macklemore and Ryan Lewis were right when they said “the ceiling can’t hold us.”
The artists couldn’t be stopped on Spotify: they were the most streamed performers in the world on the popular music streaming service this year, according to Spotify’s Year in Review. To make the win even sweeter, their debut album The Heist was the most streamed album in the world; their single “Can’t Hold Us” was the most streamed song of 2013; and their breakout hit “Thrift Shop” was the most streamed song of the past five years.
Listeners in the U.S., however, weren’t as faithful to the fur-coat-wearing duo. Imagine Dragons’ single “Radioactive” and album Night Visions topped the song and album categories in the country. And Drake was the most-streamed artist in America.
In the women’s competition, Rihanna was crowned the most-streamed female artist in the world for the second year in a row, and 16-year-old Lorde captured the title of most viral new artist of 2013.
Spotify’s 24 million global users streamed 4.5 billion hours of music this year.