The last time I left you was with an overview of Spotify’s first year in the region with a look back at their 2019 journey.
As we’re almost ending Q1 of 2020, Spotify is showcasing the importance of women in the music industry with the launch of the new Women’s History Month hub on 8 March, the very same day the world celebrate’s International Women’s Day. This will span all female tracks, playlists and podcasts as well as playlist takeovers from some of the most dynamic women in audio.
Given that the UAE and Saudi Arabia have been the largest markets in the Middle East, below is the ranking of the Top 10 female artists. The data has been provided by Spotify, covering the time period January 1-March 1, 2020 (inclusive).
Top 10 most-streamed female artists in UAE
Top 10 most-streamed female artists in Saudi Arabia
- If it’s already evident, Billie Eilish takes the #1 spot in both countries – and not only just among female artists, but she’s also the top artist overall this year (from January 1 – March 1).
- Billie has more than 10.3 billion all-time streams, more than 60 million monthly listeners, her track “bad guy” has surpassed 1.2 billion streams and she recently released the new James Bond theme song “No Time To Die.” (don’t mind the news delaying the release of the movie).
- Both countries have shown a penchant for Western music artists as they make up the Top 10, but the UAE still shows some love for Bollywood given the large diaspora of Indians in the country.
Even if there’s a lack of data for the other countries in the region, it would likely be similar to this without too many differences. If you’re looking to hear the greatest female voices from the Middle East and North Africa region, you’ll need to check out the special SAWTIK playlist.
On an additional note, you can also see how the world has listened to female artists worldwide with this nifty infographic by Spotify.
Image credits: Billie Eilish’s photo (Darkroom/Interscope), Taylor Swift’s photo (TAS Rights Management LLC), and infographic (Spotify Newsroom)
