LONDON (CelebrityAccess) — The International Federation of the Phonographic Industry has announced that Canadian rapper Drake was the best-selling recording artist of 2016, based largely on the strength of his hit album Views.
Drake is the fourth recipient of the IFPI Global Recording Artist of the Year Award, which is based on performance of physical and digital formats, including downloads and streams.
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. The follow-up singles Pop Style, Controlla and Too Good also all found huge success across the globe.
The late rock legend David Bowie took second place on the IFPI chart. Bowie released his final album Blackstar two days before he died and it quickly shot up the charts, reaching number one in 24 countries.
Rounding out the top five are Coldplay (A head full of dreams), Adele (25) and Justin Bieber (Purpose).
Top 10 Global Recording Artists of 2016
1. Drake
2. David Bowie
3. Coldplay
4. Adele
5. Justin Bieber
6. Twenty One Pilots
7. Beyoncé
8. Rihanna
9. Prince
10. The Weeknd
