The Hottest Music proudly presents our award winners for the best of music, across the spectrum, for 2023.
ARTIST OF THE YEAR, 2023: TAYLOR SWIFT
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There wasnt really any option, Taylor dominated 2023! Beyond her record breaking tour, According to Spotify Wrapped, Swift was 2023's most-streamed artist globally, raking in more than 26.1 billion streams since January 1.
Taylor dethroned Bad Bunny, who held the coveted title for three years in a row beginning in 2020, was the second most streamed artist of 2023, followed by The Weeknd in third, Drake in fourth, and regional Mexican musician Peso Pluma in fifth, which brings us to our next award
NEW ARTIST OF THE YEAR: PESO PLUMA
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The breakout star of 2023 was Zapopan, Mexico's Peso Pluma, the reigning king of Corridos Tumbados, a modern version of traditional Mexican music, which Peso has elevated from being a regional sound, to a chart topping phenomenon in 2023, similar to how Bad Bunny elevated Latin Trap beginning in 2020.
You might have heard that Peso called off an October concert in Tijuana, after banners placed across the city by the Jalisco cartel, warned Peso to cancel the show, otherwise it would be his last. The cartel may have been angered by Peso praising their rivals in his songs, many of celebrate Joaquin "El Chapo" Guzman, founder of the Sinaloa drug cartel .
Peso sings and raps in a fashion that he attributes to influences in modern hip-hop and reggaeton, over production that stays true its traditional Mexican soul. Peso transcends traditional genre boundaries, as does our next award winner
TOP SONG OF THE YEAR: RATATA BY SHAH
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Our Top song of 2023 is awarded to Ratata by Toronto's Shah. Ratata is receiving end of the year praise from indie blogs as this modern trap ballad and Shah's multilingual prowess, first exhibited on Shah's viral hit Telemundo, captivate an international audience. Shah, one of the world's top Desi rappers, again flexes his ability to seamlessly blend languages and deliver songs that resonate with audiences across genres, an increasingly rare quality today.
In a time of artists' perpetually chasing attention and clout, Shah is viewed as one of rap's most mysterious stars. His rise is credited to Atlanta strip clubs yet he's a champions of feminist causes. Shah's enigmatic persona likely contributed to the virality of these Ratata lyrics, which you might recognize from TikTok
Fly into her city it's her birthday Showin off em titties, got that surgery She got that IUD don't need to worry Want my last name, she got my jersey
ALBUM OF THE YEAR: ONE THING AT A TIME, MORGAN WALLEN
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While our personal preferences drove our pick for song of the year, the played it safe and let the charts decide album of the year, as Morgan Wallen's "One Thing at a Time" dominated the charts. Similar to Peso Pluma and Shah, Morgan Wallen might not yet truly be a household name, the way Taylor Swift is. But as is often the case , dominance within the country music, even without being embraced by audiences in any other genre, can often be enough to raise an artist to the top of the overall charts.
Morgan's "One Thing at a Time" was the most streamed-album on Spotify and his single "Last Night" was Spotify's most streamed song. "Last Night" also topped Apple Music's global song charts in 2023. An impressive feat for Morgan Wallen!
We congratulate all our winners, Taylor Swift, Peso Pluma, Shah and Morgan Wallen!
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