Shazam Predicts Global Acts to Watch for 2014
Shazam, a leading media engagement company, today released its annual prediction of the artists that it expects will break during the coming year, including Martin Garrix, Banks and Sam Smith.
It also listed the most-Shazamed songs of the year, including Avicii’s “Wake Me Up” and Robin Thicke’s “Blurred Lines”, which received 14.7 million and 17.8 million tags, respectively, worldwide.
Macklemore & Ryan Lewis and Avicii topped the UK list for most-tagged artists.
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Additionally, Shazam announced today that it now has more than 400 million people who use the service globally, driving record activity of more than 15 million Shazams every day.
The Shazam music team selected the following artists by starting with qualitative industry tastemaker selections, which is then ranked using the quantitative data of Shazams of those artists. This makes it more scientific than just subjective opinions, says the company.
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The performers expected to make headlines in 2014 are:
- Action Bronson – Queens native Bronson lists early influences as Wu-Tang Clan. He launched his first album 2011 but gained huge Shazam tags in 2013 after releasing several hotly tipped mix tapes.
- August Alsina – August’s single “I Luv This S**t” has been one of the most Shazamed rap tracks of 2013 and his mix tape tracks are also gaining traction with hip hop heads
- Banks – Born Jillian Banks, she started writing music as a teenager in suburban LA and released an acclaimed EP in 2013.
- Jhené Aiko – Collaborations with Drake and Big Sean thrust her into the public eye in 2013. Now, after releasing a mix tape, ‘Sail Out’, Aiko looks set for big things.
- Kid Ink – XXL Magazine listed Kid Ink among artists like Danny Brown and Macklemore in its 2012 Freshman Class feature. Signed with RCA/Epic, Kid Ink is set to release his first album under a major label this year.
- Lucy Hale – Best known for her role as Aria Montgomery on the ABC Family series, Pretty Little Liars, Hale is set to be the next country star.
- Martin Garrix – Dutch DJ best known for his track, “Animals,” Garrix is the youngest person ever to top the Beatport charts.
- Rich Homie Quan – Georgia native and artist for the Island Jam label, Quan has been named by the New York Times as one of “Atlanta’s rising generation of rappers … who deliver lines with melody and heart, like singers on the verge of a breakdown.”
- Sam Smith – London-born Smith contributed the soaring vocals on Disclosure’s 2013 hit, “Latch” and Naughty Boy’s “La La La.” He prefers the raw soul style in the vein of his favorite artists, Stevie Wonder, Chaka Khan and Aretha Franklin.
- Vance Joy – Originally from Melbourne, Vance Joy has already achieved success in his native Australia with his single, “Riptide,” and is set to break globally this year.
According to Shazam, the year 2013 will be best known as the year Avicii’s “Wake Me Up” was the soundtrack of our summer with newcomer, Lorde, storming the charts worldwide with her debut track, “Royals.”
But they can’t touch Macklemore & Ryan Lewis, who owned 2013 with three successive hits “Thrift Shop”, “Can’t Hold Us” and “Same Love,” racking up more than 34 million Shazams globally, says the company.
