Michael Jackson is the world's top streaming artist for May 2026, according to data analytics firm Kworb, which compiles the monthly Global Digital Artist Ranking based on cumulative streams across Spotify, Apple Music, YouTube, iTunes, Shazam, and Deezer. Jackson topped the ranking with 11,157 points, leading Justin Bieber by nearly 5,000. BTS sits at third, Bad Bunny at fourth, and Taylor Swift at fifth.
The surge is largely tied to the release of Michael, the biopic directed by Antoine Fuqua and starring Jaafar Jackson, which opened April 24 and has grossed over $423 million worldwide. Streaming spikes around biographical films are common but rarely sustain. What makes this one notable is its breadth. Jackson leads on every major platform except Spotify, where he narrowly trails Bieber.
Catalog music holds at the top of the chart only when newer listeners fold the songs into their own rotations rather than legacy fans replaying them.
Sources: Kworb, Spotify, Box Office Mojo.
Michael Jackson is the world's top streaming artist for May 2026, according to data analytics firm Kworb, which compiles the monthly Global Digital Artist Ranking based on cumulative streams across Spotify, Apple Music, YouTube, iTunes, Shazam, and Deezer. Jackson topped the ranking with 11,157 points, leading Justin Bieber by nearly 5,000. BTS sits at third, Bad Bunny at fourth, and Taylor Swift at fifth.
The surge is largely tied to the release of Michael, the biopic directed by Antoine Fuqua and starring Jaafar Jackson, which opened April 24 and has grossed over $423 million worldwide. Streaming spikes around biographical films are common but rarely sustain. What makes this one notable is its breadth. Jackson leads on every major platform except Spotify, where he narrowly trails Bieber.
Catalog music holds at the top of the chart only when newer listeners fold the songs into their own rotations rather than legacy fans replaying them.
Sources: Kworb, Spotify, Box Office Mojo.
