With December just around the corner, the year is almost through -- which means it's time for everyone with a Spotify account to psychoanalyze themselves based on their 2023 music taste.
Every year, music-streaming giant Spotify releases a personalized analysis of user listening data to each of their users as part of their Wrapped publicity campaign. If you have and actively use an account, you've likely seen the list of your five most-listened-to songs and artists over the course of a year.
You may also have seen the annual influx of memes on social media, as people joke about what their favorite artists and songs say about them.
Another feature of this year's Wrapped campaign is Wrapped Mapped, which tells users what city had many other fans of their top artists.
Inexplicably, a huge contingent of people were told that their "sound town" was either Burlington, Vermont; Berkeley, California; or Cambridge, Massachusetts. Even Spotify weighed in on those jokes, tagging each city's account on X (formerly known as Twitter) to say "hey besties."
No matter your "sound town," if you actually physically live in Washington, D.C. and want to know what your neighbors listened to most often, check out Spotify's data below:
DC's top genres on Spotify for 2023:
- Rap
- Pop
- Hip Hop
- Rock
- Trap
These genres give an interesting peek at the listening trends in the District. For example, despite its proximity to Virginia, country didn't make its way into D.C.'s favorite sounds this year.
On the other hand, D.C. does have a long history with hip-hop, so hip-hop and rap making it into the top three genres makes sense.
DC's top artists on Spotify for 2023:
- Taylor Swift
- Drake
- Bad Bunny
- Morgan Wallen
- SZA
Taylor Swift was Spotify's worldwide most-listened to artist of the year for 2023. She finally dethroned Bad Bunny, who earned the title for the previous three years in a row -- making it no wonder that both artists were also popular in the capitol city of the U.S.
No word yet on whether the District's dedication to Taylor Swift will influence her to make a stop in D.C. on her next stadium tour.
DC's top songs on Spotify for 2023:
- "Kill Bill" by SZA
- "Last Night" by Morgan Wallen
- "Flowers" by Miley Cyrus
- "Cruel Summer" by Taylor Swift
- "Boy's a liar Pt. 2" by Ice Spice and PinkPantheress
If "Kill Bill" doesn't ring a bell by title alone, the song went viral on TikTok earlier this year. You may have heard the earworm clip of the following lyrics:
"I might kill my ex / Not the best idea / His new girlfriend's next / How'd I get here?"
All five of D.C.'s top songs are breakup anthems, ranging from melancholy denial in the case of "Last Night" (with the main refrain "No way was it our last night") to victorious independence in the case of "Flowers" (you CAN buy yourself flowers!).
We may be in the middle of cuffing season, but based on the top song choices, it appears that the lead up in 2023 wasn't any easier than D.C. singles have come to expect.
(Have heart, D.C. singles -- it's not just you. According to Spotify's global trend analysis, listeners created more than 200,000 breakup playlists this year, peaking around Valentine's Day.)
