Travis Scott, an American rapper, singer, songwriter, and record producer has broken a Spotify record previously held by Drake, securing the highest number of monthly listeners for a rapper on the streaming platform.
On August 17, it was revealed by Chart Data that Travis Scott, also known as La Flame, took the top spot with an impressive 74.945 million monthly listeners. This extraordinary feat establishes a new all-time record for the most monthly listeners in Spotify’s history.
This milestone places Travis Scott in the company of other notable rappers who have experienced peak popularity on the platform, including Eminem, Nicki Minaj, and Kanye West.
Travis Scott’s achievement follows the release of his highly-anticipated fourth album, titled “UTOPIA,” as reported by hiphopdx.
Notably, Travis Scott is no stranger to making history. In 2022, he seized the record for the highest merchandise sales during his performances in the United Kingdom, outshining the previous record held by K-Pop sensation BTS.
TMZ reported that Travis Scott generated over $1 million in merchandise sales during his sold-out concerts at London’s O2 Arena. This impressive figure surpasses BTS’s previous record of just under $1 million in merchandise sales during their Love Yourself World Tour stops in London in 2018.
Travis Scott’s merchandise collection was specifically designed for his August 2022 shows at the O2 Arena, marking his return to the spotlight since the tragic Astroworld Festival in Houston in 2021, where 10 individuals lost their lives. The collection featured a range of items, including hoodies priced between £100 ($122) and £125 ($153), T-shirts ranging from £45 ($55) to £75 ($92), and hats sold for £45 ($55) each. Fans eagerly queued for hours before the concert to secure these exclusive items.
Turning the spotlight back to “UTOPIA,” the highly-anticipated album debuted at the pinnacle of the Billboard 200 chart, driven by remarkable first-week sales.
Billboard reported that the album achieved a remarkable 496,000 album-equivalent units in its opening week. This comprised 243,000 SEA units (equivalent to 330.68 million on-demand streams), an impressive 252,000 pure album sales, and 1,000 TEA units.
This achievement earned “UTOPIA” the distinction of securing the third-largest week for any album in 2023 and the largest for any Hip Hop release. Notably, the vinyl sales of 55,000 units mark a record for a rap album since sales tracking began in 1991.
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Released on July 28 after years of anticipation, “UTOPIA” boasts an impressive lineup of collaborations with fellow chart-topping artists, including Drake, Future, Beyoncé, The Weeknd, 21 Savage, Lil Uzi Vert, Playboi Carti, SZA, Young Thug, and Bad Bunny.
All 19 tracks from the album made their debut on the Hot 100 chart, with the highest-charting song being “Meltdown,” featuring Drake, at No. 3. Another standout, “FE!N,” secured the No. 5 spot and became Playboi Carti’s highest-charting song. Furthermore, “Parasail” at No. 53 marked Dave Chappelle’s first entry on the Hot 100 chart.
“UTOPIA” marks Travis Scott’s third solo album to debut at No. 1 in his career, with his previous No. 1 albums being “Astroworld” in 2018 and the “JackBoys” compilation album in 2019.
