Canadian rapper Drake has become the best-selling recording artist of 2016, beating the late rock icon David Bowie all the way up to the top spot, said the International Federation of the Phonographic Industry (IFPI) on Wednesday.
The ranking by the global industry body showed Drake scored worldwide success with his fourth album Views, which is an ode to his native city of Toronto. The bestseller for the year 2015 was British singer Adele.
Views became the first album to reach one billion streams on Apple Music, while One Dance – the album’s second single – was the first song to be played one billion times on Spotify, IFPI said in a statement. IFPI Chief Executive Frances Moore stated, “Drake’s phenomenal success reflects how deeply his unique sound appeals to the enormous global audience.”
Bowie – who released his final album Blackstar just two days before he died in January last year – came second. His album topped the charts in 24 countries, IFPI reported.
British rockers Coldplay came third, followed by Adele, Justin Bieber, Twenty One Pilots, Beyoncé, Rihanna, Prince and The Weeknd.
