Many of us spent Easter weekend crying in the mirror to The Weeknd
‘s My Dear Melancholy, many times over. According to data from the record’s issue date however, a staggering 88% of U.S. listeners did so on Apple Music, despite Spotify’s considerable promotional advantages leading up to the release. In the first 24 hours, Apple Music listeners absolutely devoured The Weeknd’s latest, racking up 26 million streams, 6 million of which came by way of the Nicolas Jaar-assisted “Call Out My Name.” Comparatively, Spotify listeners added another 3.5 million streams to The Weeknd’s addictingly morose, brooding R&B/pop concept, but with nearly 120 million more subscribers paying for Spotify than Apple Music, the stats point to what could be a considerable shift in the digital streaming platform landscape, specifically in the U.S. market.Not only does Spotify have strength in subscriber numbers, but the Swedish streaming titan also had two exclusive music videos from the EP, and it’s also where The Weeknd directed followers to stream the project upon release. Despite the tilt towards Spotify, Apple Music dominated the initial Melancholy traffic, and it isn’t the first time this has happened. Post Malone‘s inescapable “Rockstar” fared better on Apple Music in it terms of first week streams, along with last year’s More Life from Drake — by a whopping 33 million streams more than Spotify produced.
As of 2018, hip-hop has become the most widely-consumed genre in America, and with Apple Music having seemingly figured out the formula to fan engagement in the hip-hop arena, their campaign to outpace Spotify’s U.S. subscriber count this year could materialize as a direct result.
H/T: The Verge