2015 was a breakout year for EDM (Electronic Dance Music), as big pop stars like Justin Bieber and Ariana Grande tried their hand at the format, while top producers in the genre such as Skrillex, Diplo, Zedd and Kygo crossed into mainstream consciousness. Billboard has just released its list of the top 25 streamed EDM songs of 2015, and here are the highlights.
The top spot comes courtesy of superproducer Diplo with his side project Major Lazer's "Lean On" hitting No. 1 in total streams this year. This comes as little surprise to those of you who read our earlier report that "Lean On" was the most streamed song of all time, worldwide, on Spotify.
Diplo also collaborated on the No. 2 track, courtesy of his other side project, the "Jack U" moniker that covers his partnership with equally prolific EDM producer Skrillex. Together, they took the pre-recorded vocals of an unreleased Justin Bieber song and remixed them into a masterpiece of modern electronic music that resulted in the singing star's first top 10 pop hit in years, "Where Are U Now," and paving the way for the runaway success of Bieber's "Purpose" album, which Skrillex largely produced.
Another superstar DJ and huge pop star combo took the No. 3 spot, in the form of David Guetta's "Hey Mama" collaboration with rapper Nicki Minaj. At No. 4 on the chart, the partnership trend continued with DJ Snake and Lil Jon's party anthem "Turn Down For What" giving streamers around the United States a reason to "turn up" in 2015.
Clean Bandit featuring Jess Glynne's buoyant house music anthem "Rather Be" rounded out 2015's top 5, despite being released in the U.S. in March 2014, and demonstrating the staying power of some popular EDM tracks. As a matter of fact, in the UK, from which the song originates, "Rather Be" held at No. 1 on the pop charts for an entire month and proceeded to break the record for the longest run ever in pop's top 75, where it remained for an unprecedented 73 weeks.
The longevity of some EDM dance anthems is further illustrated in the lower depths of the 2015 top EDM streaming chart, where the Cedric Gervais remix of Lana Del Rey's "Summertime Sadness" came in at No. 12 despite first being released in 2012. Skrillex's "Bangarang," at No. 13, was actually released in 2011, when it won the Grammy for Best Dance Recording.
Other highlights include multiple placings for DJ Zedd, including his collaborations with young pop songstresses Selena Gomez and Ariana Grande; breakout Norwegian producer Kygo, who reps the budding tropical house genre by showing up twice; and Calvin Harris – now otherwise known as Taylor Swift's boyfriend who placed no less than four tracks in the top 25 most streamed EDM songs of the year.
