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Social media platforms such as TikTok have greatly influenced the musical landscape of the 2020s. For Generation Z and Generation Alpha, TikTok served as a musical taste maker because of the app's utilization of music and short form video content. The platform's emphasis on user-generated content also fostered a participatory culture where listeners became active participants in shaping musical trends. From choreographed dance routines to comedic skits and lip-syncing challenges, TikTok encouraged users to engage with songs by producing video content, effectively turning music consumption into a form of entertainment in itself. This symbiotic relationship between music and user-generated content fueled a feedback loop of virality, perpetuating the cycle of discovery and amplification. Furthermore, TikTok served as a powerful marketing tool for established artists seeking to maintain relevance in an increasingly fragmented media landscape. In the case of the 2024 song "Looking for a Man in Finance", the creator Megan Boni created the video as a joke, and when it became viral, she launched her music career.[5] Major labels and artists quickly recognized the platform's potential to amplify their reach and connect with younger audiences.[citation needed]
Strategic collaborations with popular TikTok creators, sponsored hashtag challenges, and the use of licensed music in viral videos became integral components of contemporary musicmarketing strategies. The TikTok Billboard chart was created in September 2023 to meet the demand for viral audios from the platform.[6][7][8][9][10][11]
In 2020, LP records surpassed compact disc (CD) sales for the first time since 1986, LP records 28.7% ($619.6 million) with the rapid decline in CD sales by 23% ($483 million), with 62% ($1.1 billion) of revenue derived from physical music sales across the United States according to the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) 2020 Year-End Music Industry Revenue Report.[12][13][14][15][16]
The mid-2020s continued the musical trends of 2023, marked the cultural resurgence of country music. One of the key developments during this time was the dominance of country music on the Billboard Hot 100. Artists like Beyoncé and Post Malone experimented with country sounds, blending them with pop and hip hop influences, which helped elevate the genre's mainstream visibility. Country artists such as Morgan Wallen, Luke Combs, and Lainey Wilson consistently charted high, contributing to the genre’s ongoing prominence. Alternative country experienced success, with artists like Tyler Childers, Zach Bryan, Chris Stapleton, and Shaboozey injecting new energy into the genre.[26][27] Alongside country music, Regional Mexican music saw continued success on the Billboard Hot 100 around this time. Genres like Banda, Sierreno, and Corrido Tumbado gained increased popularity in the U.S. and internationally. Regional Mexican music, with its traditional roots and distinctive instrumentation, incorporated modern elements such as trap and reggaeton.[28][29][30]
Alongside country, Afrobeats, Afro house, and Amapiano gained significant traction worldwide, with Afrobeats continuing its rapid rise on platforms like Spotify. Artists from this genre saw increasing popularity, with their tracks often becoming viral hits.
Legacy Media in music
The drive for nostalgia and the desire to return to pre-pandemic life significantly influenced the shift toward older music, particularly in 2022. Data from 2021 and 2022 showed that 70% of music demand was for songs from the past, a trend that continued to grow each year.[31][32] The top 200 most popular songs accounted for only 5% of total streams, with that percentage halving over the previous three years. In 2022, older musicians like Bob Dylan, Stevie Nicks, and Bruce Springsteen sold their music rights for hundreds of millions of dollars, capitalizing on this nostalgia-driven demand.[33][34][35][36] While these iconic names had long enjoyed popularity, research indicated that the vast majority of new downloads in 2022 were songs at least two years old. Established artists from the previous decade, such as Taylor Swift, Ariana Grande, Harry Styles, and Justin Bieber, continued to dominate the charts, benefiting from their strong fanbases and major label support.[37][38][39][40] At the same time, Gen Z and Gen Alpha, known for their internet-savvy and diverse listening habits, gravitated toward self-published and obscure acts. Despite this, mainstream artists such as Billie Eilish, Ice Spice, Olivia Rodrigo, Doja Cat, and Lil Nas X remained popular within these demographics due to their major label backing. Notably, 2022 saw a rise in Gen Z's and Gen Alpha's fondness for shoegaze, a subgenre that peaked in the early 1990s, along with music from the 1970s and 1980s, reflecting a broader trend of embracing older music during the pandemic era.[31][32][41][42][43]
In the 2020s, Christmas music not only dominated the Billboard charts every December, but it also consistently took over the Top 10, year after year, thanks to streaming. These chart-topping hits were mostly "legacy songs"—timeless holiday classics that had been around for decades. A prime example is Mariah Carey’s "All I Want for Christmas Is You," which repeatedly reached No. 1 and remained in the Top 10 throughout the decade.[44][45][46] Streaming platforms like Spotify and Apple Music helped these songs surge in popularity every holiday season, with algorithms favoring nostalgic tracks. The rise of streaming changed how people consumed music, allowing Christmas classics like Carey’s hit, Bing Crosby’s "White Christmas," and Wham!'s "Last Christmas" to not only chart but dominate the Billboard Top 10 for several years in a row. This shift solidified the presence of Christmas music at the forefront of the holiday season in the 2020s.[47][48]
In 2023, the music industry recorded its highest revenue of all time, with over $8.4 billion in the first half of 2023. The RIAA reported that the number of people with streaming subscriptions had more than doubled since 2019.[49]The Eras Tour, Taylor Swift's sixth headlining concert tour, became a cultural and economic phenomenon as well.[50][51][52][53]
Around 2024, AI-generated music created with tools like Udio or Suno became sophisticated and popularized.[54][55][56][57]
Highlights (2020 to late 2022)
On July 5, 2022, American music magazine Billboard published an article listing "The 25 Musical Moments That Defined the First Quarter of the 2020s" in chronological order.[58] They are:
"Essence" (2020) by Nigerian singer Wizkid entering the top 10 region of the US Hot 100
Stampede at the opening night of Astroworld Festival, a concert by American rapper Travis Scott, killing 10 attendees and injuring hundreds—the deadliest concert tragedy in nearly two decades; it resulted in around 400 lawsuits.
Death of Taylor Hawkins, the drummer of Foo Fighters, in March 2022
Songs from Taylor Swift's Midnights monopolizing the top 10 of the Billboard Hot 100 on the week of 5 November 2022
North America
Pop
Taylor Swift, Justin Bieber, Sabrina Carpenter, Chappell Roan, Olivia Rodrigo, Harry Styles, Doja Cat, The Weekend, Billie Eilish, Dua Lipa, and Lil Nas X are some of the best-selling pop artists of the decade.[59][60][61] Several music executives and journalists projected Adele's 30 to sell over a million albums in its opening week in the US.[62] However, when the album fell short of the one-million mark, selling 692,000 albums, The New York Times asked "if Adele couldn't sell more than a million albums in a single week, could any artist?" In October 2022, Swift's Midnights (2022) opened with over 1.1 million pure albums, with Rolling Stone asserting that Swift "has once again moved the goalposts regarding what the music industry can see as possible from a major pop star".[63] Pop music continued to be successful in the 2020s, propelled by albums like Midnights, Sour, After Hours, Future Nostalgia, and Renaissance, the first of which found an exemplary, ubiquitous success across all formats of music consumption "unseen" since the 1990s.[64][65][66]
Breakthroughs in pop music
Olivia Rodrigo is widely considered the biggest breakthrough act of this decade.[67] She is regularly praised for her revival of pop-punk, along with her diaristic songwriting that is especially relatable to younger generations.[68] Released to instant critical and commercial acclaim, her debut album, Sour spent multiple weeks atop the Billboard 200 chart in 2021.[69] Rodrigo's singles "Drivers License" and "Good 4 U" became commercially successful, with both topping the Billboard Hot 100 in their debut weeks.[70] Rodrigo went on to win Best Pop Solo Performance for "Drivers License", and Best Pop Vocal Album for Sour at the 64th Annual Grammy Awards. The momentum she received the year prior also awarded her with Best New Artist at the ceremony.[71] Rodrigo released her sophomore studio album, Guts, to instant acclaim. The album debuted at number one on the Billboard 200, and the lead single to the album, "Vampire", spent multiple weeks atop the Hot 100 chart.[72][73] She ventured on the Sour Tour and the Guts World Tour, with the latter becoming one of the highest-grossing arena tours of 2024.[74]
Sabrina Carpenter had a massive breakthrough in pop music in 2024.[75] Following the success of her fifth studio album, Emails I Can't Send in 2022, Carpenter began to gain momentum with pop hits like "Nonsense" and "Feather".[76] After a few notorious performances at Coachella, SNL, and opening for Taylor Swift's Eras Tour, Carpenter began the rollout to her next album.[77][78] In 2024, Carpenter released her sixth studio album, Short n' Sweet to massive critical and commercial acclaim, with the album debuting at number one on the Billboard 200 chart.[79] The album contained hits like "Espresso", "Please Please Please", and "Taste", with all three songs peaking in the top three of the Billboard Hot 100 chart.[80] In this decade, Carpenter embarked on the Emails I Can't Send Tour, as well as the Short n' Sweet Tour, with the latter being her first arena tour.[81]
Tate McRae released her debut album I Used to Think I Could Fly in 2022 to acclaim.[87] In 2023, McRae released her single, "Greedy" to instant commercial success, with the song peaking at number three on the Billboard Hot 100.[88] Her second studio album, Think Later was released later that year to critical commercial acclaim.[89] McRae is praised for her choreography, and is often compared to Britney Spears when performing live.[90]
Miley Cyrus' seventh studio album, Plastic Hearts, was credited as a front-runner to the resurgence of pop-rock music, especially that of the 1970s-1980s.[92] Critics claimed her transition from pop music to rock brought forth a nostalgic feel, one that will seemingly become a trend this decade.[93] Her eighth studio album, Endless Summer Vacation, was preceded by the single, "Flowers", which was met with instant commercial success, becoming the fastest song to reach 100 million streams on Spotify—within a week.[94] At the 66th Annual Grammy Awards, Cyrus was awarded with Record of the Year and Best Pop Solo Performance for "Flowers", marking her first wins at the ceremony.[95]
Ariana Grande found continued success in the 2020s with her six and seventh studio albums, titled Positions and Eternal Sunshine, respectively. Both reached number one on the Billboard 200 chart for multiple weeks each.[100][101]Positions uses heavy 1990s R&B and pop elements, crediting samples from popular artists from that decade, such as Aaliyah.[102] This album spawned the hits "Positions" and "34+35", with the former topping the Hot 100 chart.[103]Eternal Sunshine gave Grande two more number one hits, with "Yes, And?", and the critically acclaimed "We Can't Be Friends (Wait for Your Love)"[104] In 2024, Grande also starred as Glinda in Wicked, her biggest role to date.[105]
The 2020s in music have been heavily influenced by a resurgence of musical elements brought to life in the 1970s, 1980s, 1990s, and 2000s.[119]
Motivated by early 1970s experimental and synth pop music, Taylor Swift's Midnights drew influences from this era. Her lead single "Anti-Hero" incorporated vintage synthesizers, and was met with critical acclaim and instant commercial success.[120] Swift became the first artist ever to occupy the Hot 100's entire top 10 simultaneously with "Anti-Hero" at number-one.[121]Midnights went on to win both Album of the Year and Best Pop Vocal Album at the 66th Annual Grammy Awards.[122] Swift's re-recording of her fifth studio album, 1989 (Taylor's Version), was released in October 2023. The original album was inspired heavily by 1980s synth pop, and the re-record scored the highest first-week sales of 2023.[123]
Influenced by the 1980s retro musical elements, Lizzo and The Weeknd incorporated heavy disco, funk, and synth-pop influences in their works such as Special and After Hours, respectively; all albums were met with commercial and critical acclaim.[124] Lizzo's single "About Damn Time", and the Weeknd's "Blinding Lights" and "Save Your Tears" were commercially successful.[125][126] "Blinding Lights" went on to become the biggest BillboardHot 100 song of all time, spending 90 weeks on the chart—the most for any song.[127] "About Damn Time" went on to win Record of the Year at the 65th Annual Grammy Awards.[128]
With its nostalgic presence for younger audiences, sounds from the early 2000s resurge into today's music with elements of indie rock, post-punk, and post-grunge.[135]
Olivia Rodrigo is considered the front-runner in re-introducing the pop-punk genre to younger generations.[147] Her inclusion of angsty pop hits, as well as acoustic power ballads has proven reminiscent of soft grunge albums found popular in the late 1990s and early 2000s.[148][149]Billie Eilish is also considered a front-runner in making alternative music more common in the pop music genre.[150]
Paramore released their first album in six years, This Is Why, to commercial acclaim, with the album debuting at number two on the Billboard 200 chart. The band is considered to have brought pop-punk back into the mainstream, a genre in which they were a major part of in the late 2000s.[151] The album went on to win Best Rock Album at the 66th Grammy Awards, with the song "This Is Why" winning Best Alternative Music Performance.[152]
In another crossover phenomenon of the early 2020s several established rap artists released pop punk material, including Machine Gun Kelly, The Kid Laroi, Blackbear and Mod Sun.[155]
The 2020s also marked the reunion of My Chemical Romance; in addition to their reunion tour, they released their new single The Foundations Of Decay.[156] The bands Panic! At The Disco and Fall Out Boy also made comebacks with the former's album Viva Las Vengeance[157] and the latter released their album So Much (For) Stardust after going on the Hella Mega Tour with Green Day and Weezer.[158] Veteran punk bands Blink-182 and Simple Plan have also released new music.[159][160]
Rap
Doja Cat had her breakthrough in 2020 and rose to prominence in the subsequent years, fueled by her music's rap, pop and R&B appeals.
Michigan rap, particularly from Detroit, had a significant influence on hip-hop in the 2020s. Detroit's style, which combined elements of trap and gangsta rap, played a role in shaping both underground and mainstream rap. Artists such as Tee Grizzley, Sada Baby, Babyface Ray, Veeze, Polo G, Icewear Vezzo, Babytron, and 42 Dugg blended street stories with trap-influenced beats, creating a unique sound that resonated across the U.S. Many of these artists appeared on the Billboard Hip-Hop charts, which helped establish Michigan’s presence in national hip-hop.
Rage rap, which emerged in the late 2010s and continued into the 2020s, represented a significant shift in the evolution of hip-hop, characterized by high-energy performances and intense, aggressive soundscapes. This subgenre relied on distorted beats, fast tempos, and emotionally charged lyrics to create an atmosphere of chaos and raw aggression. The genre’s intensity was reflected in both the production and vocal delivery, with artists pushing boundaries in rhythm, tone, and overall sound.[172][173]
The development of rage rap was influenced by a blend of underground hip-hop movements, including cloud rap, plugg music, experimental hip-hop, and southern hip-hop, all of which helped shape its unique sonic characteristics. Playboi Carti was a pivotal figure in the rise of rage rap. His 2020 album "Whole Lotta Red" encapsulated the genre’s essence with its high-energy beats and abrasive vocals. Carti’s influence extended beyond his music as he became a leader within the Opium label, which played a significant role in the genre's growth. By supporting artists like Destroy Lonely and Ken Carson, Carti helped maintain the genre’s momentum.[174] The Opium label itself became a key institution for rage rap, with its distinct “Opium look” reflecting the experimental nature of the music.
Other artists, such as Yeat, Summrs, SoFaygo, 2hollis, OsamaSon,Cochise, TyFontaine, Lancey Foux, and KanKan, also played important roles in defining and diversifying rage rap.[175][176] While these artists brought their own influences to the genre, they maintained its core principles of intensity, aggression, and chaotic energy, helping rage rap gain wider recognition, particularly in underground hip-hop circles.[177][178]
Doja Cat quickly became one of the best-selling artists of the decade, with her breakthrough in late 2019.[184] Her first number-one single, "Say So", aided this process, as it brought the public's attention to her work.[185] In early 2021, Doja released the lead single "Kiss Me More" to her third studio album, Planet Her. The song received instant acclaim, peaking at number three on the Billboard Hot 100.[186] After the release of Planet Her, Doja secured two more top-ten hits, with "Need To Know" and "Woman", peaking at number eight and seven, respectively.[187]Planet Her became one of the best-selling albums of the decade, spending 26 weeks in the top 10 of the Billboard 200 chart.[188] Her fourth studio album, Scarlet, debuted at number four on the Billboard 200 chart, and was preceded by the number-one single, "Paint the Town Red".[189]
The Drake vs. Kendrick Lamar fued emerged as a major mainstream hip hop event during the mid-2020s, influencing multiple facets of American hip hop culture throughout the rest of the decade. Kendrick's diss tracks, particularly "Not Like Us," released in 2024, directly challenged Drake’s position in the genre.[195][196] This came amid the resurfacing of allegations against Drake, including claims of grooming underage fans, which added complexity to the public narrative. "Not Like Us" amplified the scrutiny surrounding Drake, affecting his public image.[197] In 2024, the rivalry played a significant role in shaping the Billboard Hip Hop charts, with Kendrick dominating the top spots.[198][199] Drake’s Meet the Grahams, Like That and Kendrick’s Euphoria performed well commercially.[200][201] As the feud unfolded, the mainstreamhip hop community largely sided with Kendrick, viewing him as the more authentic and socially conscious artist. Many fans and industry figures rallied behind Kendrick’s stance, praising his lyricism and political awareness. In contrast, Drake faced growing disdain due to not only the resurfacing allegations but also the "culture vulture" accusations. Critics accused Drake of appropriating hip hop culture for commercial gain, borrowing from various styles and trends without fully contributing to the culture’s roots.[202] This perception, combined with the ongoing allegations, further soured his relationship with much of the American hip hop community. The media played a significant role in amplifying this division, often framing Kendrick as the voice of the culture and questioning Drake’s authenticity. As the feud between Drake and Kendrick Lamar grew, things became more heated when Drake filed a court petition against Kendrick's record label, Top Dawg Entertainment, in late 2024. Drake accused the label of artificially inflating Kendrick's streaming numbers on Spotify, claiming this made the charts unfair and hurt his position in the music industry.[203][204][205]
Drift phonk
In 2020, TikTok popularized the hip hop style drift phonk—a genre that was generally explored by music producers in Ukraine, Russia and Belarus.[206] In May 2021, following the rise in popularity of the genre Spotify released an official curated phonk playlist.[citation needed]
SZA released her second studio album, SOS, which became her first number one on the Billboard 200,[209] and spent ten weeks atop the chart—the most weeks of any female artist since 2016, with Adele's 25.[210] All of its 23 tracks charted on the Hot 100, becoming the second artist after Swift to chart 20 songs in a single week.[211] One of its singles, "Kill Bill",[212] was a major commercial success, peaking at number one on the Hot 100 chart, becoming her first song to do so.[213] Another single, "Snooze", reached a new peak of number two on the chart almost ten months after its release.[214] SZA was the recipient of three Grammy awards at the 66th Annual event, including Best Progressive R&B Album for SOS, Best Pop Duo/Group Performance for "Ghost in the Machine" with Phoebe Bridgers, and Best R&B Song for "Snooze".[215] SZA embarked on her first arena tour, the SOS Tour, in 2023.[216]
Influenced by the COVID-19 pandemic, many artists created unplugged, "stripped-down" music mainly driven by acoustic or classical music instruments and melancholic subject matter. Taylor Swift shifted from mainstream pop to adopt indie folk, alternative rock, and chamber pop styles. She released two of the best-selling albums of 2020, Folklore and Evermore.[235][236] Both debuted at number one on the Billboard 200 chart, with their respective lead singles, "Cardigan" and "Willow" doing the same on the Hot 100 chart.[237][238]Folklore spent a record eight weeks atop the Billboard 200,[239] and won the Album of the Year at the 63rd Annual Grammy Awards.[240] Journalists contextualized both the albums as timely "pandemic projects", exploring the period's struggles through introspective and escapist themes.[241][242]
Hozier released his third studio album, Unreal Unearth to instant acclaim. The album debuted at number three on the Billboard 200, and two of the singles preceding the album, "Eat Your Young" and "Francesca" reached the number one spot on Billboard's Adult Alternative chart.[253] In a reissue of the album, Hozier released the song "Too Sweet" to instant acclaim, with the song becoming his first number one on the Billboard Hot 100 chart.[254]
Glass Animals' breakout song "Heat Waves" stayed number one on the Billboard Alternative Charts for seven weeks in 2021, making it one of the most successful singles of the year.[259] English singer-songwriter PinkPantheress released her debut mixtapeTo Hell with It, which received widespread acclaim in reviews from music critics upon release. To Hell with It was named the third best album of 2021 by Time and the fifth best album of the year by The New York Times's Jon Caramanica and Gigwise.[260][261][262]Joji's "Glimpse of Us" peaked at number eight on the Billboard Hot 100 chart upon its release, marking the singer-first songwriter's visit to the region.[263] The song, which was released on June 10, 2022, received almost immediate acclaim, rocketing up the Official Singles Chart and also debuting straight inside the top ten of the US Billboard Hot 100.[264]
Dangerous: The Double Album by American country singer Morgan Wallen became the first country album to spend its first four weeks atop the Billboard 200 chart since Shania Twain's Up! did so in January 2003.[267] In 2023, Wallen's One Thing at a Time lead the Billboard 200 for nine consecutive weeks following its release.[268] Having finished third on American Idol, country artist Gabby Barrett released her debut single "I Hope" in 2019. It reached number one on the BillboardCountry Airplay chart dated April 25, 2020,[269] and eventually topped the Hot Country Songs chart dated July 25, 2020, making it the first debut single by a female artist to top the latter since 2006.[270]
Swift's re-recordings, Fearless (Taylor's Version) and Red (Taylor's Version), were the top two best-selling country albums of 2021.[271] Her decision to re-record her masters sparked worldwide interest, making Swift the first artist to have a re-recorded album reach number one on the Billboard 200, with Fearless (Taylor's Version).[272] Her second re-recorded album, Red (Taylor's Version) also debuted at number one.[273] The latter included "All Too Well (Taylor's Version)", a non-single at just over ten minutes, that became the longest song in history to chart at number one on the Billboard Hot 100.[274] Her third re-recording, Speak Now (Taylor's Version) was released in 2023 to instant critical and commercial acclaim, becoming the most streamed country album in a single day in Spotify history.[275]
Kacey Musgraves' fourth studio album Star-Crossed received attention for its inclusion of disco and dance-pop, but sparked a genre categorization controversy with the Grammy Awards. After her submission to the Recording Academy in the country categories, her album was seemingly left out from any nominations, despite its positive reviews in contrast to other country albums released during the eligibility period.[279] The academy stated that her record failed to include enough country material to be considered for country categories at the award ceremony. Musgraves questioned their judgment, after her previous album, Golden Hour included just as much influence from pop music, yet was nominated for, and won all awards that year, including Best Country Album, and Album of the Year.[280] Musgraves released her fifth studio album, Deeper Well, to acclaim, with the album marking her highest sales week to date.[281] The album was praised for its return to a more country sound.[282]
In 2023, country-folk singer-songwriter Oliver Anthony became the male solo act with the most entries in the history of the top 50 Digital Song Sales in a single week at once while still alive, charting 13 songs simultaneously—Prince and Michael Jackson had exceeded that count only following their deaths.[283]
Regional Mexican
Regional Mexican music began to receive significant mainstream attention in the early 2020s. While it had long been popular within Latino communities, it was around 2021 that regional Mexican artists began to crack the Billboard 200 charts. This marked a significant milestone for the genre, as it started to gain more visibility in the broader U.S. music scene, traditionally dominated by English-language music. Artists like Natanael Cano and Peso Pluma played key roles in this shift, incorporating modern sounds like trap and reggaeton into traditional regional Mexican styles.[284][285]
By 2023, regional Mexican music experienced an unprecedented surge in popularity, earning the title of "the year of regional Mexican music." The genre achieved remarkable success on the Billboard Hot 100 and other major charts. Key artists such as Peso Pluma, Junior H, Christian Nodal, Natanael Cano, Eslabon Armado, Fuerza Regida, and Grupo Frontera were at the forefront of this movement. These artists not only saw their music dominate streaming platforms, radio stations, and digital music charts but also developed massive fanbases across various regions, marking a significant milestone in the genre's rise to mainstream recognition.[286][287][288][289][290][291]
"The year of regional Mexican music" also saw the genre’s increasing presence at major music festivals, award shows, and in the media, solidifying its importance within the global music landscape. Collaborations between regional Mexican artists and musicians from other genres helped amplify the genre’s reach, bringing it to new audiences and reinforcing its growing influence worldwide.[292]
The genres hard rock and heavy metal had declined in mainstream popularity by the early 2020s. However, Italian hard rock band Måneskin rose to worldwide prominence following the band's win at the Eurovision Song Contest 2021 with their song "Zitti e buoni".[293]The Four Seasons' "Beggin'" covered by Måneskin reached the top ten on the Billboard Global Excl. U.S. and was ranked 66 in Billboard Year-End Hot 100 chart of 2021.[294] Several veteran acts have continued to maintain popularity worldwide, including AC/DC, whose 2020 album Power Up reached number one on the charts across the globe (including the United States, United Kingdom and their homeland Australia),[295] while Iron Maiden earned their first top-five album on the Billboard 200, Senjutsu, for the first time in its 41-year recording career.[296] Other veteran heavy metal acts, including Testament and Dream Theater, debuted on the inside of top 100 on the Billboard 200 with their respective albums Titans of Creation and A View from the Top of the World.[297][298]
Power Up by AC/DC (pictured left) and Senjutsu by Iron Maiden were among the successful hard rock and heavy metal albums of the 2020s.
In 2023, Paul McCartney announced plans to release "the final Beatles record" later in the year with the assistance of an AI de-mixing technology previously used for Beatles documentary Get Back to be used on a demo John Lennon recorded shortly before his death.[301] The track, "Now and Then", was released on November 2, 2023.[302] Also in 2023, The Rolling Stones made a comeback with Hackney Diamonds, a new original studio album that topped the charts in 20 countries.[303]
Hardcore punk scene blew up in the early 2020s with considerable commercial and critical success. Turnstile and Knocked Loose were the most popular acts of this wave. Turnstile are the first rock act to join Rolling Loud, and Knocked Loose was booked to play at Coachella.[307][308][309]
Shoegaze
After a period of relative obscurity in the 2000s and early 2010s, Shoegaze experienced a resurgence in the mid-2010s and early 2020s with the emergence of new bands like DIIV, Nothing, and Whirr, who drew inspiration from the classic Shoegaze sound while incorporating modern production techniques and songwriting sensibilities. In the 2020s, this revival continued to gain momentum, with a growing number of contemporary bands incorporating Shoegaze elements into their music. Additionally, social media platforms like TikTok have helped to raise the profile of Shoegaze among Zoomer audiences, introducing the genre to a new generation of listeners. Contemporary Artists such as Wisp, Julie,[310]Narrow Head, DIIV, Quannnic, FlyingFish, Jane Remover, Glare and Modern Color gained prominence in online music discussion circles.[311][312][313][314]
Charli XCX is considered the front-runner in bringing the hyperpop genre to mainstream listeners.[319] In 2020 and 2022 she released her albums How I'm Feeling Now and Crash, respectively. The former connected with listeners during the COVID-19 pandemic due to its themes of self-reflection and isolation.[320] In 2024, her sixth studio album Brat was released to critical and commercial acclaim, becoming a new peak for XCX in terms of album sales.[321] The album rollout sparked a major internet trend, known as "Brat Summer", which brought a newfound spotlight onto XCX and her past projects.[322] Many of the singles from this album went viral, namely tracks like "360", "Girl, So Confusing", "Guess", and "Apple", with the latter having a popular dance on TikTok attached to it.[323] XCX embarked on her first arena tour in 2024, Sweat, which was co-headlined with Troye Sivan.[324]
Jersey club is a fast, aggressive dance music style rooted in Baltimore's fusion of house and hip hop. It features harder kick sounds and chopped samples, with a distinctive "bounciness" due to its triplet percussive pattern. Common audio programs used in Jersey club's include Sony Acid Pro and FL Studio.[325] 2018-2020 saw the resurgence of Jersey club music as artists like Unicorn151, Chad B, DJ Jay Hood, Cookiee Kawaii, and Uniiqu3 created original rap songs using Jersey club beats. This format allowed radio stations like Hot 97, Z100, Power 105.1, and Sirius XM to play these records regularly, gaining a wider audience.[326][327][328][329][330] In 2022, Lil Uzi Vert released their song "Just Wanna Rock" which incorporates elements of Jersey Club and has since peaked at number 10 on the Billboard Hot 100.[331] In 2023, many commercially successful K-pop songs began using elements of the Jersey Club drum pattern such as "Ditto" and "Super Shy" by NewJeans, and "Eve, Psyche & The Bluebeard's wife" by Le Sserafim.[332][333]
Breakcore
In the 2020s, breakcore underwent a revival, bringing a different sound than the songs that were previously produced in the 1990s. It also added a new aesthetic focus on anime, 2010s nostalgia, video games and internet culture. Machine Girl and Goreshit were considered to be influential to the revival's new sound and aesthetic.[334]
Soundtrack
Movie soundtrack albums have been receiving newfound attention, recently coined "The Barbie Effect", due to the profound impact from movies like Barbie.[335] Multiple songs from the film went viral, and charted on the Billboard Hot 100. The album was preceded by hit singles like Eilish's "What Was I Made For?", as well as Charli XCX's "Speed Drive", both charting on the Hot 100. Songs that reached the top ten included Lipa's "Dance the Night", and Minaj and Ice Spice's "Barbie World", which featured the original singers of "Barbie Girl", Aqua. Barbie the Album debuted at number two on the Billboard 200, becoming the highest-charting soundtrack album of 2023.[336]
Asia
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K-pop
K-pop group BTS continued to be one of the most popular bands of the 2020s.Blackpink's Born Pink became the first album by a girl group in over 20 years to top both the US and UK album charts.NewJeans found widespread commercial success in both South Korea and internationally.[337]
The 2020s have featured some heavily successful group debuts. In November 2020, BTS became the first Korean pop artist to be recognized by the Recording Academy when "Dynamite" received a nomination for Best Pop Duo/Group Performance at the 63rd Annual Grammy Awards; they were again nominated the following year with "Butter".[338][339] On April 16, 2022, 2NE1 reunited after 6 years with a surprise performance on the main stage of Coachella,[340] with Aespa also performing on the same stage the following weekend.[341] During the same year, several top second generation artists made an official comeback after years of inactivity, including BigBang, Girls' Generation, and Kara.[342] Blackpink's 2022 album Born Pink became the first album by a female group to top the chart since Danity Kane's Welcome to the Dollhouse in 2008. In addition, it marked the first time a girl group simultaneously topped the album charts in the United States and United Kingdom in 21 years, since Destiny's Child's Survivor in 2001.[343]
The sales of K-pop albums continued to show strong performance in the American market in 2023, with 7 of the 10 best-selling CD albums in the US being K-pop albums.[344] Four K-pop groups were named amongst the top-ten best-selling artists worldwide in 2023 by the IFPI, including Seventeen, Stray Kids, TXT, and NewJeans.[345]
As of 2023, Japan still remains the 2nd largest music market by revenue.[348] Physical music still dominates the market holding a 65.5% market share by value as of 2023.[349] Japanese pop duo Yoasobi, formed in 2019, enjoyed further breakthrough success in the 2020s. Their song "Idol" became the first J-pop song to reach number 1 on Billboard Global Excl. U.S. Chart [350] and the highest ranked Billboard 200 Japanese song at number 7.[351] Domestically, Oricon and Billboard Japan placed it as the best-performing song of 2023.[352][353]
Mandopop
In the early 2020s, long-time artists such as Jay Chou and JJ Lin still dominate music being the most streamed mandopop artists of 2023 on Spotify.[354] Within Asia, they also remain hugely popular with their Carnival World Tour and JJ20 World Tour concert tours respectively.[355][356]
Europe
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in 2023, DJ Calvin Harris and electropop singer-songwriter Ellie Goulding released their third collaboration, "Miracle", a trance song inspired by Eurodance and techno, which received widespread critical acclaim,[357] as well as commercial success, topping the UK Singles Charts for eight non-consecutive weeks[358] and earning a Grammy Award nomination.
Latin pop and other Latin music genres such as reggaeton continue to be successful in the 2020s.[361]Anitta's "Envolver" song became the first song by a Latin female act to reach the number one on Spotify Global Daily chart,[362][363][364] reaching the number two on the Billboard Global 200 and the number one in Billboard Global Excl. U.S.[365][366][367]
Reggaeton
The late 2010s saw a major cultural resurgence in Latin dance music with hip hop influences which carried throughout the 2020s, especially throughout 2022 and 2023, when the interest in Spanish-language songs in North America grew rapidly. Initially, artists such as Bad Bunny, Chencho Corleone, Ozuna, Karol G and Rauw Alejandro saw crossover success in the United States while remaining popular internationally.[368][369][370][371] After the success of Bad Bunny's 2022 album Un Verano Sin Ti, which had already become the most streamed Spanish-language album on Spotify within the first few months of release,[372] Spanish-language songs started occupying at least 20-25% of the Billboard Hot 100 on an average week, compared to about 5-10% in 2020, with artists such as Bizarrap, Grupo Frontera, Peso Pluma, and Shakira being among the most popular during this new wave. Released in May 2022, Manuel Turizo's single "La Bachata" achieved commercial success, spending 26 weeks at number one on the Billboard Latin charts.[citation needed]
Oceania
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Africa
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Afrobeats
"Calm Down" (2022) by Nigerian rapper Rema, featuring Selena Gomez, found global success and became the best-selling Afrobeats song of all time.[373] "Water" (2023) by South African singer Tyla also found international success.[374] Burna Boy's album African Giant and Wizkid's album Made in Lagos received critical acclaim and achieved significant chart success on the Billboard World Albums chart. Songs like Burna Boy's "Ye," Wizkid's "Essence," and Davido's "Fall" have garnered millions of streams and downloads worldwide, contributing to the genre's growing presence on streaming platforms and the Billboard charts.[375][376][377][378]
^Hiatt, Brian (April 10, 2024). "AI-Music Arms Race: Meet Udio, the Other ChatGPT for Music". Rolling Stone. Retrieved November 17, 2024. Just last year, many experts believed an AI model capable of generating complete, high-fidelity songs from text prompts wouldn't arrive anytime soon, but now, an arms race is on between competing music-making models that do just that.
^Pareles, Jon; Caramanica, Jon; Zoladz, Lindsay (December 2, 2021). "Best Albums of 2021". The New York Times. ISSN0362-4331. Retrieved December 18, 2021.
^Billboard Hot 100, February 21, 1981. [1]. Parton was No. 1 on February 21, 1981, before Eddie Rabbitt was No. 1 on February 28 and March 7, 1981, with Parton at No. 2 both weeks.
^Lee, Jae-hoon (September 25, 2022). "블랙핑크, 곧 K팝 걸그룹의 역사…방탄소년단 명성 잇는다" [Blackpink, the history of K-pop girl groups ... BTS' fame continues]. Newsis (in Korean). Naver. Archived from the original on September 29, 2022. Retrieved September 25, 2022.
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