Wired
Back in 2018, Apple completed the Shazam acquisition for $400 million. Shazam Music God Search celebrated its 20th birthday, and its song recognition count officially exceeded 70 billion this week. Apple says the platform is now an important part of pop culture, changing the way people interact with music by making it easy and convenient for everyone to identify songs. For more than 225 million monthly active users worldwide, “Shazam” means new discovery.
To commemorate this milestone, Apple Shazam has created a special playlist featuring Shazam’s most-recognized songs in each of the past 20 years, inviting fans on a journey of memories. From Train’s “Hey, Soul Sister” to Sia’s “Cheap Thrills,” this playlist is a true reflection of the musical choices that music fans around the world have been actively seeking over the past 20 years.
Over the years, Shazam’s global charts have played a major role in helping fans discover new stars. Take Masked Wolf, for example, who was named to Shazam’s “5 Artists to Watch in 2021.” His “Astronaut In The Ocean” also became the most Shazam-recognized song worldwide that year.
Below is a look back at key moments and milestones in Shazam’s 20-year history.
important dates
August 2002: Shazam is launched in the UK as a text messaging service. At the time, the user needed to dial “2580” on the phone and then point the handset at the source of the sound. Soon after, they will receive a text message with the song title and artist name.
July 2008: Shazam App launched on the new App Store. In October 2008, Shazam released the Android version.
April 2015: Shazam App launched on first-generation Apple Watch.
September 2018: Shazam joins the Apple family.
June 2021: Shazam surpasses 1 billion monthly recognitions for the first time.
May 2022: Shazam App surpasses 2 billion total installs.
August 2022: Shazam celebrates 20 years of music discovery and surpasses 70 billion song recognitions.
important first time
First Song Shazam Recognized: “Jeepster” by T. Rex (April 19, 2002)
First Song Recognized by the Shazam App for iOS: “How Am I Different” by Aimee Mann (July 10, 2008)
First song to be recognized 1,000 times: “Cleanin’ Out My Closet” by Eminem (September 2002)
First song to be recognized 1 million times: “TiK ToK” by Ke$ha (February 2010)
First song to reach 10 million recognitions: Gotye & Kimbra’s “Somebody That I Used to Know” (December 2012)
First song to be recognized 20 million times: “Prayer In C (Robin Schulz Radio Edit)” by Lilly Wood, The Prick and Robin Schulz (October 2015)
First artist to be recognized 1 million times: Lil Wayne (February 2009)
First artist to be recognized 10 million times: Lil Wayne (June 2011)
First artist to be recognized 100 million times: David Guetta (May 2015)
Fastest Rising Songs for Shazam Recognition
Fastest song to reach a million views: BTS’ “Butter” (9 days)
Fastest song to reach 10 million views: Ed Sheeran’s “Shape of You” (87 days)
Fastest song to reach 20 million views: “Dance Monkey” by Tones And I (219 days)
Shazam’s Most Recognized Artists and Songs of All Time
Drake is Shazam’s most-recognized artist in history, with more than 350 million cumulative recognitions for songs featuring the artist as lead vocals or as a guest. “One Dance” is Drake’s biggest hit, with more than 17 million recognitions.
Tones And I’s “Dance Monkey” is the most Shazam-recognized song of all time, with over 41 million plays.
“Crazy” by Gnarls Barkley is Shazam’s most recognized song through the “2580” SMS service.
The most Shazam-recognized songs in each genre
Hip-Hop/Rap: “Can’t Hold Us” with Macklemore, Ryan Lewis & Ray Dalton
Dance: “Prayer In C (Robin Schulz Radio Edit)” by Lilly Wood, The Prick and Robin Schulz
R&B/Soul: “All of Me” by John Legend
Latin Music: “Mi Gente” by J Balvin and Willy William
Pop: Passenger’s “Let Her Go”
Alternative Music: “Dance Monkey” by Tones And I
Singer-songwriter: “Take Me to Church” by Hozier
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