#7 Spotify wrapped and the year 2023 in music (Skye’s Version) | Off the record

21/12/23

Welcome to another off the record blog post. I’m super excited for this one 🙂

You know what I just realized today? 2019 was five years ago. FIVE YEARS. What. Anyway, this is probably the second to last blog post this year 🙂 Today we are talking about two of my favorite subjects: music and Taylor Swift.

If you are not familiar with the reference in today’s title… respectfully, do you live under a rock? It’s an ad lip from her song ’22’ that came out in 2012, that you simply must know. Right? There is no way around that song. Unless you are like two years old. In which case you could not read this, so. No excuses.

So, Spotify Wrapped came out a few days ago. And if you either use Spotify or are on social media, you know that lol. I have started listening to music on Spotify about two years ago (thanks mom, thanks dad for paying for family premium, love you hehe) and therefore, I got my 2023 stats! Exciting!

I actually use this app that is called last.fm and hence have access to my music listening stats all throughout the year. Would recommend if you also find that interesting. It’s free and this isn’t sponsored lol. I wish it was haha. But yeah, I love to have a look at what I’ve been listening to from time to time, it’s just so fascinating 🙂

So, let’s dive into my 2023 stats. I’m gonna love this post so much and no one else is gonna be interested in this AHAHHAHAH but anyway, here we go! Hope you enjoy.

The stats are a mix of last.fm and Spotify, you’ll see. And I’m also comparing to last year 🙂

Top artists

1. Taylor Swift, 2002 scrobbles, top 1% fan
2. 5 Seconds of Summer, 1774 scrobbles
3. Maisie Peters, 588 scrobbles
4. Gracie Abrams, 385 scrobbles
5. Lizzy McAlpine, 360 scrobbles
6. Conan Grey, 255 scrobbles
7. Olivia Rodrigo, 234 scrobles
8. Sabrina Carpenter, 168 scrobbles
9. Luke Hemmings, 152 scrobbles
10. FINNEAS, 138 scrobbles
11. Honorable Mentions: Harry Styles, Billie Eilish, Ashe, Voila!, Noah Kahan, Hozier, Lewis Capaldi, We Three, Ben Barnes, Billy Joel, Miley Cyrus, All Time Low, Dove Cameron, MUNA, boygenius, HAIM, Louis Tomlinson, Lana Del Rey, Neon Trees, and of course Johann Sebastian Bach, Claude Debussy and Frederic Chopin, how could I forget lol. Quite the mixture, this list. This is basically my top32 now. Lol. Oversharing much.

Alright. No one is surprised. Obviously Taylor and 5SOS are top of my list. They always are. This blog is still very young and I can assure you that if you have read the handful of posts that already exist, you could have predicted them to be my top two. Because I cannot seem to do anything without mentioning them, much less write a blog dedicated to my interests without talking about them. What can I say, they impact my life in a very real, tangible way. Their music has been the continuous soundtrack to YEARS of my life. They are a gift that keeps on giving. And they’ve got such extensive discographies as well, and I love ALL their albums. I can’t seem to go a day without thinking about Taylor Swift at least once. She is my roman empire, actually. And I went to the 5SOS show this fall!! Still can’t believe that was a real experience. They are amazing. And so funny and chill. Also, THEY ARE RELEASING THE LIVE SHOW in like not even two hours. Can’t wait to relive it, even if I went to Paris and not Amsterdam lol. I lowkey thought it’d be a documentary or a live album and therefore I AM SO HAPPY that we are getting a show documentary?? Ah. I love 5SOS.

Last.fm and Spotify have the same lists of my top artists btw but last.fm is a bit more extensive. That’s why I put some honorable mentions in here haha.

One scrobble equals listening to more than two thirds of a song by the way. That’s how last.fm counts. So basically, one scrobble equals to one song listened through. And can I just say that it’s actually a bit crazy that I listen to Taylor and 5SOS more than double the amount of any other artist. At least triple the amount actually. Ha, I really was not kidding when I said ✨favorite artists✨.

Last year, in 2022, they were the other way around. And this year they switched around multiple types too. I was in the top 0.05% of 5SOS listeners last year and because they were not my number one this year I can’t say for sure but I’m guessing I was at least top 1-5% this year as well.

Like I said, Taylor was second last year. Luke Hemmings was in third, then Maisie and then Sabrina. I love ‘when facing the things we turn away from’ and ’emails I can’t send’. Two top tier albums right there. Discovered both last year, and listened to nothing else for months. Still listen to both of those all the time. And I have loved Maisie’s music for quite some time but ‘The Good Witch’ that came out this year is beyond amazing. She blew it out of the park with that one. I ADORE that album. The song writing on it is actually insane. Love her so much. Oh, I actually analyzed ‘Wendy’ from that album, go check it out:

So yeah, those three albums are all time favorites for sure.

Gracie and Lizzy I only discovered this year. At the beginning of the year I listened through their whole discographies, and had albums on repeat, so it definitely makes sense that they are very high up on my list. Love you, girls.

I was a bit surprised Conan is this high. Not because I don’t listen to him or don’t like his music all that much, obviously I DO. He for sure had a place on my list but if I’d have guessed he would’ve been below Olivia and Sabrina. Especially because GUTS only came out this year and I listened to that quite a bit. But he is probably THIS high because I listened to ‘Comfort Crowd’ ON REPEAT for AGES. We’ll get to that though 😉 Also, Conan’s little spotify listening message, he’s so funny haha. And it’s true, a lot of his music is sad as fuck lol.

Oh, and I’m so glad FINNEAS is on there 🙂 He was higher last year but I love pretty much anything he works on. Billie’s music of course, but I also loved the collab with Lizzy, that’s how I got into her music btw. And in case you didn’t know, Finneas did production on Selena Gomez’s ‘Lose You To Love Me’, Halsey’s ‘I Hate Everybody’, a few Tove Lo songs, Justin Bieber’ ‘Lonely’, Camila Cabello’ ‘Used to This’, Julia Micheal and JP Saxe’s ‘If The World Was Ending, Ashe’s ‘Moral of the Story’, and I could go on. This could so easily turn into a FINNEAS fan post lol. He is so talented it is actually crazy. This man. Love his album and his EP too obviously, and I’m so excited because in his spotify video message he said that more stuff was coming in 2024, which I am SO looking forward to. If you have never seen any videos where Finneas explains how the production of a song has come together, you have been missing out, my friend. Actually, there is an episode on the podcast ‘song explorer’ that talks about ‘everything i wanted’. Would very much so recommend listening to that. I could listen to this man talk about music for ages, it’s fascinating. And I love the way him and Billie work together.

Anyway, moving on. Some comments on my honorable mentions:

• Shoutout to my best friend for the ‘Voila!’ recs. I’ve been wanting to check out some more of their stuff for ages. I only really know ‘Figure You Out’, ‘Drop Dead Gorgeous’ and ‘Chanel No.5’ and I am absolutely obsessed with all three of them, perfectly up my alley. Actually, I am SO obsessed with them that it’s almost criminal that I have never listened to the rest of their discography. Need to check them out properly asap.
• I was gonna go to a Lewis Capaldi Concert, was really looking forward to it. It would have been my first concert and I would’ve gone with my sister, but he was sick and it got postponed and then it got cancelled. Really hope he has been doing better lately. What a voice he has. I also watched his documentary, he’s so personable, and so refreshingly honest and direct.
• I did go to a Louis Tomlinson concert just recently, was very last minute. My sister’s friend’s friend was sick and they called me two hours before the concert started to ask if I wanted to go. Decided to get over myself and be spontaneous, have some fun. Hadn’t listened to his music much before that, except ‘Miss You’, ‘Back to You’ and ‘Two of Us’. Oh, and ‘Dont’ Let It Break Your heart’. So basically, I’d just never really listened to his new album haha. I crammed it on the way to the concert, and ‘Silver Tongues’ is my favorite, especially after I was at the show. Had a good time. I love his accent so much.
• Noah Kahan. My man. I knew like two songs off of older albums, and then one and a half weeks ago I came upon ‘Stick Season’ and I just gotta say, I am in love. Masterpiece of an album. Really depressing, so so sad, but damn, I was blown away. I saw the Hozier feature on ‘Northern Attitude’ online which I LOVE SO MUCH and then I saw the Gracie feature on ‘All My Love’ and the Lizzy feature on ‘Everything, Everywhere’, so to say I was intrigued is an understatement. But I actually haven’t listened to the features that much, I have been SO obsessed with the original album. It shows, he climbed the list of my top artists so fast, he almost made it into the top ten of the YEAR in just about one week. It’s all I’ve really been listening to since. Will be listening to this one a lot in 2024 too, for sure. The guitars, the folk, HIS VOCALS. And don’t get me started on the lyrics. This man might be one of the best song writers EVER. I actually cannot comprehend, I cannot process. Read somewhere that he is a mixture of Bon Iver and Taylor Swift, which is the highest of compliments, and I might agree. Also, the production is so good, if I’m not sad and I can still listen to it and just not pay attention to the lyrics. Simply vibe. Which is what I am doing right now as I am writing this actually haha. Fun fact that no one asked for.
• Also, Bach, Debussy and Chopin, that’s what I study to. Lol. Not them specifically, I study to classical or instrumental music, but you can’t really get around those three when listening to classical, can you.
• Love Billie, love Dove, love MUNA, love boygenius. The bi is showing, isn’t it.
• Also, general shoutout to all my honorable mentions that I haven’t written a paragraph about now, still love them, alright?? Don’t come at me. Actually, I’m pretty convinced that no one has read this far anyway lol, so it doesn’t really matter anyway hahahhaah. I’m having a lot of fun tho. Music is amazing.

Top Albums

1. The Good Witch by Maisie Peters, 425
2. 5SOS5 by 5 Seconds of Summer, 422
3. 1989 TV by Taylor Swift, 380
4. Good Riddance by Gracie Abrams, 328
5. five seconds flat by Lizzy McAlpine, 301
6. Youngblood Deluxe by 5 Seconds of Summer, 275
7. Speak Now TV by Taylor Swift, 203
8. GUTS by Olivia Rodrigo, 188
9. Red TV by Taylor Swift, 183
10. CALM by 5 Seconds of Summer, 172

All my other top albums afterwards are 5SOS and Taylor. Again, who is surprised. The first one after my top ten that is not one of the two is coming in hot in place 31 with OPTIMIST by FINNEAS. Oh, and emails i cant send by Sabrina Carpenter snuck in there in place 18, woops, overlooked that. Oh, actually, I’m apparently blind. Maybe I need to check if I need a new correction on my glasses. Didn’t see ‘When Facing the Things We Turn Away From’ by Luke Hemmings (goddamn, I love that title but it’s too long to write so many times) and ‘Give Me A Minute’ by Lizzy at thirteen and fifteen. Oh, and Harry’s House in place 32 and Rae by Ashe in P33. And Stick Season by Noah Kahan made its way up to P34 already. Anyway. All the other places in my top 35 are 5SOS and Taylor Swift. So. Phaha, sorry bout that, that was unnecessarily extensive. Not actually all that sorry though.

Also, very slay of Taylor to make it into top three with a rerecorded album. I mean, I listen to all her music all the time even without the rerecordings. I’m a major swiftie, in case you haven’t noticed. But her discography is so huge that, for one song to make it into the most listened, it actually has to be specifically that song that you listen to on a loop.

Does this list need further commenting? I think I’ve said most of it above already. I mean, I have written PARAGRAPHS actually, lol.

I like to listen to albums through, from beginning to end, by the way. Especially if the albums are as exquisite as all of the above. Some of them I put on rotation but only once I know them well. And I put songs in playlists that are organized according to mood and sound. Might seem like a bit much, but I’m quite particular and a bit nerdy about my music, alright? Okay, maybe a bit more than a bit nerdy. Leave me be.

Top Tracks

1. This Is the Life by Amy Macdonald, 166
2. Comfort Crowd by Conan Grey, 123
3. Is It Over Now? by Taylor Swift, 65
4. I Ain’t Worried by OneRepublic, 53
5. all my ghosts by Lizzy McAlpine, 51
6. Me Myself and I by 5 Seconds of Summer, 45
7. Wendy by Maisie Peters, 42
8. BLENDER by 5SOS, 39
9. Let’s Fall in Love for the Night by FINNEAS, 38
10. Body Better = Lost the Breakup by Maisie Peters, 37
    • = Maroon = Slut! = Say Don’t Go by Taylor Swift
    • = Difficult by Gracie Abrams
    • = Easy for You to Say = Best Friends by 5 Seconds of Summer

This Is the Life and I Ain’t Worried are the songs that I wrote all my reports to this year. And I had to write many reports for university, I can tell you that. I just put either of them on repeat for the however many hours it took me to finish it. Great motivation, they make me type faster somehow. Keep my mood more steady too haha.

Also, 1989 TV came out at the end of October. Yet, three songs made into my top ten. Or top 17. Whatever. Still, says a lot, doesn’t it haha.

In 2022, my top song was Smokin’ and Cryin’ by Alex Roe, which is from the soundtrack of ‘Forever My Girl, I believe. A movie that I have not seen lol. A friend sent it to me. He thought I’d like it and boy, I did. I think he sent it to me in September or October too, and I listened to it so much in those two months that it made it to the top of my Spotify Wrapped. Lol. Anyway, second was Me myself and I, which has made it into my top ten again this year. What a song. Don’t know what they put in that, but let me just say that it has got the sauce FOR SURE. Third was Tornado Warnings by Sabrina. Ugh, I love that song. It just flows SO WELL. Forth place was COMPLETE MESS and fifth Babylon. 5SOS really dominated 2022 for me. As they did this year. As they most probably will the next. Also, I simply need to add, I fucking love Babylon. That song has The Sauce™ as well. All their songs do, but that one- Oof. Chef’s kiss. And it’s a deluxe track, like, are you kidding?

Monthly Top Tracks:

• Jan: Comfort Crowd, I Wish You Would, cowboy like me, Glitch, omw by Ashe
• Feb: Maroon, Full Maschine by Gracie, Forget Me by Lewis Capaldi, Easy for You to Say, Around My Neck by Finneas
• March: Smokin’ and Cryin’ by Alex Roe, Hadal Ahbek by Issam Alnajjar, Silk Chiffon by MUNA, Mum by Luke Hemmings, Naked by James Arthur
• Mai: I Ain’t Worried, Halley’s Comet by Billie, Greek God by Conan, Orange Show Speedway, Drive by Ashton Irwin
• June: Castle on the Hill by Ed Sheeran, Cherry Wine by Hozier, PMA by All Time Low, 11:11 by Ben Barnes, Vienna by Billy Joel
• Kinda forgot I was doing this midway through the year, so I’m missing the top tracks of some months lol.
• September: get him back!, all american bitch and making the bed by Olivia Rodrigo, You, Love by Lizzy, Mona Lisa, Mona Lisa by Finneas
• Nov: I Want To Be With You by Chloe Moriondo, True Blue by boygenius, Room Service by Holly Humberstone, Footloose by Blake Shelton, Holy Revival by Maisie Peters
• Dec so far: All My Love, Stick Season, Fragile Things by Dove Cameron, as long as you care by Ruel, greedy by Tate

It’s so interesting to me, this. Because it seems so random but I obviously remember all my phases and how and what I was doing throughout this year. And it’s also very interesting, because the top5 songs don’t say as much about where I was at mentally as I thought they would. If you look at the trends of top30-ish songs each month, then it shows lol. Anyway.

Top Podcasts

1. Goes Without Saying, top 3% listener
2. Diary Discoveries
3. Growing With The Flow
4. F1R THE GIRLS: A Formula 1 Podcast

I listened to more than 4200 minutes of podcasts this year. Which is quite a lot considering I only started listening to Podcasts in summer. Which is when I discovered that I love ‘Goes Without Saying’. Shoutout to Sephy and Wing, you’re amazing, girlies. Love you so so much. Been listening to Podmas every day on my walk, which really helped build the habit of a daily walk btw. But I just love listening to them generally, they are so funny and sweet and insightful. Before I discovered them, I only ever listened to ‘Diary Discoveries’ by Sally and Jeff, which is such a cool podcast, the effort they put in is crazy. Highly recommend both of those. Very different vibes haha. Also, fyi, F1R I only discovered three weeks ago. Really enjoyed it so far. Been missing the race weekends haha.

General Listening

2023: Spotify says that I am a vampire. “When it comes to your listening, you like to embrace a little… darkness. You listen to emotional, atmospheric music more than most.” That tracks, I guess.

2022: It said I was an enthusiast: “You’re a superfan. When you’re favorite artist releases new music, you’re among the first to know, going above and beyond to show your support.” Which also tracks.

I spent about 33’000 minutes on Spotify this year. Which is pretty average? Maybe? I’m not sure but most of my friends are in that range. And by most of my friends I mean my sister.

Overall, I listened to over 2200 songs, 1000 artists, and more than 40 genres in 2023. Apparently.

Top Genres

According to Spotify:

1. Pop
2. Alt Z
3. Neo-Classical
4. pov: indie
5. Classical

Alright, listen. It’s like I said. Classical is what I study to when I’m not studying alone. I put it on to cut me off from the outside world. Really helps me focus and ignore distractions. And for more than half of this year all I did was study. All day every day. Constantly. That’s why it’s in my top genres. All the other music is escapism during breaks hahahah. I’m not much of a classical music listener otherwise. Which is not to say that that is a bad thing. Classical music can go so hard. Just not my personal go-to in my free time.

Alt Z I have never heard of before. Apparently it is underground music??

Alt Z is music that’s kind of pop, kind of not, kind of sad, kind of upbeat, and combines elements of alternative rock, indie rock, and punk rock. It often features catchy hooks, introspective lyrics, and a unique sound that sets it apart from mainstream pop. The artists in this genre are known for their distinctive voices and experimental production styles, which incorporate elements of trap, R&B, and indie rock. The music is often characterized by its emotional depth and willingness to explore complex themes, such as mental health, relationships, and identity.

Well. That makes sense but I have also never really heard of that before. And Wikipedia says Alt Z is alternative hip hop??

And pov: indie confuses me a bit as well. This is what I found online: independent, DIY approach to production and promotion, lo-fi sound, experimental instrumentation, focus on personal experiences and emotions, introspective lyrics. But… isn’t that just indie though?

Top Genres according to Last.fm (I excluded my studying music):

1. singer songwriter
2. indie
3. pop folk
4. pop rock
5. synthpop / dream pop

Honestly, that’s a much more comprehensible list. And it makes so much sense to me too, like, that is effectively what I listen to.

In 2022, my top 5 was pop, modern rock, alt z, indie pop, and contemporary country. According to Spotify. Actually, I’m a lil surprised there is no country representation at all in my 2023 top genres. Just a little though. It’s only top five after all.

Aaaaand that is a wrap. Pun intended. Those are my stats of 2023.

If you have indeed read this far, hope you enjoyed that. I sure did 😉

I would be honored if you let me know your wrapped 🙂 Please share in the comments!

Lotsa love, Sk