The streaming platform Spotify reveals the names of the most listened to French-speaking artists between August 2023 and July 2024. At the top of the ranking is a Canadian singer and his melancholy ballad in the language of Molière.
The ceremonies for the Paris 2024 Olympic and Paralympic Games confirmed the predominant place of French music on the international scene, with a blatant increase in listening to artists like Yseult, Phoenix, Gojira, Jean-Michel Jarre and Kavinsky. Between August 2023 and July 2024, more than 100 million users listened to French-speaking music on Spotify, which represents a jump of 94% in five years, the streaming platform announced, dont Purecharts takes over. The ranking of the most popular French-speaking songs on the Swedish service reveals some surprises, notably with the presence of Patrick Watson in first position thanks to his gentle piano piece I will leave you wordslistened to more than 937 million times. A success largely attributed to the virality of the title on TikTok, propelled by a video from Justin Bieber.
Indila comes in second position with Last dancewhile Stromae ranks third with his hit So we dance. The top 5 is completed by rap artists, Soolking and Gazo, with Casanovaand Yamê, who climbed to fifth place thanks to Bikecrowned title at the Victoires de la Musique.
The Videoclub duo is shaking up Latin America
Bruno Crolot, director of international music at Spotify, emphasizes that the popularity of French-speaking artists is no longer based on understanding the lyrics: “It’s much less significant than in the past“. For his part, Antoine Monin, general manager of Spotify for Western Europe, insists on the contribution of Quebec, Belgian and Algerian artists to this global dynamic. The two men also note that French-speaking podcasts are experiencing a strong audience increase (+2,687%), led by Legend by Guillaume Pley, followed by Criminal Chronicles.
In detail, in North America, Les Cowboys Fringants, Patrick Watson, Stromae and Indila are in the lead, while Jul, Ninho, Werenoi, PLK and Gazo reign in Europe. Asia favors artists like Aya Nakamura, Patrick Watson (again), Indila and Gims, while Latin America has a real penchant for Stromae, the electro-pop duo Videoclub or even the singer of the latter who slender solo, Adèle Castillon.
