Dr Adrian York, Senior Lecturer in Commercial Music Performance, has written an article for The Conversation about how Beyoncé’s success as an artist can be understood.
In the article, Dr York notes that following the 2023 Grammy awards ceremony, Beyoncé is now the Grammys’ most-awarded artist. However, he argues that although she has received vast critical acclaim for her recent albums, other artists are more successful than her in commercial terms.
He said: “In 2022, Beyoncé’s Renaissance didn’t break the top ten albums in terms of units sold. That list was topped by the Puerto Rican artist Bad Bunny.
“Her streaming figures are also not as impressive as you might think. She doesn’t break into the top ten list of all-time streamed artists or even figure in the top 30 of monthly listeners on Spotify. The Canadian rapper Drake topped the list in 2022, followed by Bad Bunny.”
Speaking about how her success can be measured in terms of her cultural impact instead, Dr York commented: “Her last three albums have touched on issues from racism and blackness to sexism and religion. These albums have cemented her cultural importance and developed her status as idol.”
Read the full article on The Conversation’s website.
