Spotify Celebrates Hip Hop 50th with Global Campaign

Happy Birthday Hip Hop!!! In celebration, Spotify kicked off its support for the 50-Year Anniversary of Hip Hop earlier this summer, officially launching its campaign last week. Continuing the celebration, Spotify explores the globalization of Hip-Hop by revealing data & insights on how the genre has grown, highlighting global rap scenes and reflecting various eras and trends with 40 Global Hip Hop playlists in the Hip Hop Turns 50 Hub, and unveiling a series of original murals in iconic US regions.

Hip Hop’s growth and popularity on Spotify is indisputable. This year, Hip Hop music accounts for nearly a quarter of all global streams on Spotify, led by artists like Drake, Nicki Minaj, 21 Savage, Ice Spice, and Metro Boomin. But it goes further than that . . .

Hip Hop is one of the most-listened-to genres globally on Spotify, and more than 400 million users around the world have streamed Hip Hop music in 2023 so far
RapCaviar, Spotify’s flagship Hip-Hop playlist, ranks as the second most-followed playlist on Spotify.
Around the globe, there are over 53 million user-generated and Spotify-curated playlists on Spotify that mention Hip Hop or rap in the title of the playlist, and over 2 billion playlists that contain at least one Hip Hop song.
For the past three years, almost half of Spotify’s Top 50 most-streamed artists globally have been Hip Hop or rap artists.

Celebrating Hip Hop’s global reach as well as its regional US influences – Spotify collaborated with illustrator & image maker Raj Dhunna to design large-scale murals and OOH billboards in New York, Atlanta, Los Angeles, and Miami; each highlighting artists in their respective hometowns and depicting how rap scenes move regionally.

In New York, Spotify will unveil a mural acknowledging the creation of drill in Chicago with artists like Chief Keef, and its transformation in London and Brooklyn with artists like 808 Melo and Pop Smoke. Spotlighting women in Hip Hop, a secondary mural features Lil Kim and Cardi B– cementing their contributions to the genre.
In Atlanta, the mural will celebrate the evolution of trap music which was heralded by Atlanta’s own T.I., and grown by artists like Arcángel, transforming it into a global phenomenon.
Raj’s designs will also appear on Miami and Los Angeles billboards, with each city’s murals and graphics celebrating artists and DJs that call that city their home.
In Mexico, Spotify will showcase a mural with over 15 Hip-Hop Mexican artists such as Akwid, Cartel de Santa, Santa Fe Klan, Gera Mx and others, paying homage to current and foundational artists. This vibrant and immersive mural commemorates the genre’s remarkable 50-year journey in the country.

Stay tuned for updates via Spotify’s Hip-Hop Turns 50 Hub on For The Record as they roll out their month long campaign.

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Tags: Hip Hop, Spotify

About the Author

Dr. Jerry Doby Editor-in-Chief of The Hype Magazine, Media and SEO Consultant, Journalist, Ph.D. and retired combat vet. 2023 recipient of The President's Lifetime Achievement Award. Partner at THM Media Group. Member of the U.S. Department of Arts and Culture, the United States Press Agency and ForbesBLK.