Blinding Lights becomes first song to hit 5 billion streams on Spotify

The Weeknd has broken another record in global music history. His smash hit Blinding Lights has officially become the first song to surpass five billion streams on Spotify, cementing its place as the platform’s most streamed track of all time.

Spotify confirmed the milestone on Sunday, August 31, while the Canadian superstar, born Abel Tesfaye, shared the news with his 78 million Instagram followers.

The achievement adds to an already glittering list of accolades for the track. Released in November 2019 as part of his After Hours era, Blinding Lights topped the Billboard Hot 100 for four weeks and set a remarkable record by staying in the chart’s top 10 for an entire year. In 2021, Billboard crowned it the “Greatest Hot 100 Song of All Time.”

Just last week, the song was also ranked No. 1 on Billboard’s Top Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs of the 21st Century list, covering tracks released between 2000 and 2024.

When the single crossed four billion streams in early 2024, The Weeknd reflected on its impact: “I’ll never stop being humbled by anything I create, making its way to millions of people, let alone billions. I’m so thankful this song makes people feel something that keeps them coming back.”

Blinding Lights is now one of 28 tracks by The Weeknd in Spotify’s exclusive “Billions Club,” the highest number for any artist to date — further sealing his legacy as one of the most-streamed artists of the decade.