Spotify Wrapped in Scandinavia: The songs, singers and speakers that defined 2024

It’s the time of year audiophiles worldwide long for: the release of Spotify Wrapped. We delight in the discovery of what our most played song was, which artist we followed (perhaps a little too closely) and which podcasts tickled our fancy – with many stats shared as bragging rights of good taste on social media.

While we have access to the outcomes individually shared by peers, the data also uncovers clear geographical tastes and trends for us to delve through. Does Denmark tune into its local musicians? How many of us are actually listening to podcasts, and what does Scandinavia really think of Taylor Swift? All our burning questions are now answered as the audio truths emerge in annual stats newly released by Spotify.

Here, we unpack eight tuneful takeaways from Scandinavia's Spotify Wrapped of 2024.

Throughout the year, the popularity of country music has been steadily on the rise in the Nordics, and this is certainly the case in Sweden. The country’s listening to country music has increased by 60 per cent compared to 2023, as the genre hits mainstream status. More than ever, Sweden led the way globally with one song in particular: “A Bar Song (Tipsy)” by Shaboozey. While this song has had immense popularity globally, it was in Sweden where the song first climbed to the top of the local Top 50 list.

In 2024, Denmark saw a 12 per cent increase in the streaming of its local music. Out of the top 10 most streamed artists, eight of them were Danish (up from seven in 2023). This same pattern was reflected in the list of the most streamed songs, of which either out of 10 were from Danish artists. In a moment of real home pride, Danish rapper Gilli was the most streamed artist for the sixth year running. “It’s great to see the Danes continue to have an appetite for local music,” says Nønne Sif Hoffmeyer, music editor at Spotify Denmark. “It is a fact that rap is the new pop, measured by popularity.”

For the second year running, Norway showed that it is a nation of Taylor Swift fans. Swift was the most streamed artist of the year not only in Norway but globally. Swift was followed closely by familiar names such as Billie Eilish, The Weeknd and Eminem in the Norwegian charts.

When it comes to home pride, the Finn’s love of their local music is unique on a global scale. For the top artists, Finns represented 9 of the 10 on the list, and 10 out of 10 for the nation’s top songs. Finland also saw the consumption of local music increase by 13 per cent compared to 2023, the biggest year-on-year increase in local music listening on Spotify in the Nordic countries this year. “We can say that Finnish music is very much alive, and the listening of the local Finnish music has increased year after year,” says Samuli Väänänen, music editor at Spotify Finland. “We Finns are, even on a global scale, really unique considering how much we love our local music. This points out how important our own music culture is to us. It’s also especially great to see fresh talents on the lists.”

Related: From Tromsø to TikTok: How the queen of Afro-Scandi pop keeps her roots – and braids – alive

Keeping things on the same track as 2023, Finland’s favoured musical genre was, once again, rap. Specifically, Finnish rap. The nation’s number one streamed artist, Turists, made the list with their new album Roadman which saw multiple songs on the top 10 hit list. KUUMAA was another Finnish rapper to garner a place on the top artists list, as they took the number two spot with their newest album Pisara meressä (which also happened to be the most streamed album in Finland for the year).

Year after year, podcast listening in Sweden is on the rise. Compared to 2023, Swedes listened to 10 per cent more podcasts, and today, the Swedish market ranks at the top in terms of listening hours per user on Spotify. The same can be said for video podcasts. In 2020, the platform launched video podcasts, and Sweden is now one of the top five markets in Europe. In 2024, the number of Swedish users engaging with these podcasts increased by 25 per cent, and the proportion of Swedish creators publishing video podcasts rose by 50 per cent.

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Danish-Kurdish pop sensation Tobias Rahim, formerly featured in Vogue Scandinavia, solidified his position in music history by winning the number one spot for Denmark’s most streamed songs. He secured the spot with his song ‘Bellevue (feat. D1MA)’. This was not the only time Rahim’s name appeared on the list as he also came in sixth for the most streamed songs with ‘Dark Room (feat. ICEKIID)’. This won him the position of the ninth most-streamed artist in the nation.

When it came down to genre, Norway got the memo that country was king. With the influence of artists such as Beyoncé, Shaboozey, Lana Del Rey, and Post Malone, country music saw an increase in popularity by 40 per cent in Norway. In particular, Norwegians enjoyed tunes like Austen and A Bar Song (Tipsy). Local artists such as´Rotlaushave also helped bring the genre closer to home for Norwegian listeners. “Norway has once again shown how they stay ahead of the curve when it comes to discovering and embracing new musical trends,” says Jenny Thyrhaug, music editor at Spotify Norway. “It’s inspiring to see how Norwegian listeners quickly pick up on global influences and allow themselves to be inspired.”