Spotify unveils South Africa’s listening stats in 2022

Wrapped 2022 provides a snapshot of the most listened to artists and songs, with the statistics showing local music consumption in South Africa has grown exponentially, increasing by 85% between 2021 and 2022.

The most consumed music genre in 2022 is amapiano, with Kabza De Small appearing in five out of seven top music streaming lists in South Africa.

De Small is also one of only two South African artists to feature in the top 10 most streamed artists overall in South Africa, ranking second to Drake, and ahead of The Weeknd, who claims the number three spot.

KOA II Part 1 by Kabza De Small tops the charts for the most streamed South African album in South Africa in 2022.

De Small is also the top most streamed South African artist at home followed by DJ Maphorisa, his main collaborator. The two are known for their Scorpion Kings projects.

Amapiano Grooves, a playlist comprising some of the country’s hottest amapiano tracks, is the most streamed playlist in South Africa in 2022.

K.O’s genre-bending single ‘Sete’, released in August, claims the title of the most streamed song in Mzansi, while ‘Paris’ by Q-Mark takes the second spot. They are followed by Glass Animals’ ‘Heat Waves’, Wanitwa Mos’ ‘Dali Nguwe’ and Lost Frequencies’ ‘Where Are You Now’.

‘Dali Nguwe’ by Wanitwa Mos is the number one South African song streamed globally, followed by uMlando by 9umba.

The “most streamed South African artist globally” list is dominated by amapiano acts led by De Small followed by DJ Maphorisa, Young Stunna, Mellow & Sleazy, Blxckie, Nasty C, Makhadzi and Ami Faku, with Joyous Celebration rounding up the list.

‘Sete’, is the most repeated song in South Africa, while ‘Paris’ is streamed every day, with users streaming the most music on Fridays from 5pm.

This year’s edition features sections such as Audio Day, which shows how Spotify users’ musical choices evolve throughout the day, while the new Your Listening Personality feature tells users about the music they listen to and what that says about their music tastes.

One of 16 different Spotify-created listening personality types is assigned to each user based on their 2022 trends.

“South Africans can be proud of what their creatives in music are achieving; they are making noise in the right places, and at the right time,” Spotify’s artist and label partnerships manager in South Africa Warren Bokwe said.’

Wrapped 2022 also includes messages from artists to their listeners. Users will be able to share their Wrapped cards via WhatsApp, Instagram, Facebook as well as Twitter and can access personalised Snapchat lens that reflects their listening personality.