Spotify Japan Reveals Top Songs and Artists for First Half of 2026

Spotify Japan has released its mid-year rankings for the most-streamed music in the country from January to June 2026. Kenshi Yonezu's "IRIS OUT" was the most-played song domestically, while Mrs. GREEN APPLE was again the top domestic artist.

Yonezu's track, the theme song for the film "Chainsaw Man: Reze Arc," set a record with over 596,000 streams on its release day last September. It later became the first song on Spotify Japan to surpass one million daily streams. The song has accumulated over 274 million global streams.

Mrs. GREEN APPLE's "lulu." ranked second. The band has held the top spot for most-streamed domestic artist since 2023. The group's 2025 hit "Lilac" also placed seventh.

Dance and vocal groups claimed five of the top ten domestic song slots. M!LK debuted at fourth place with "Sukisugite Metsu!", while HANA entered the chart with two songs, "Blue Jeans" (5th) and "ROSE" (10th). Number_i's "3XL" took third, and BE:FIRST's "Muchuu" placed eighth.

In the artist ranking, Mrs. GREEN APPLE was followed by back number and Kenshi Yonezu. Chanmina and HANA made their first appearances on the list. BTS and Arashi, both of whom resumed activities, ranked fourth and fifth respectively.

Global Streaming Trends

King Gnu's "AIZO," the opening theme for the anime "Jujutsu Kaisen" Season 3, was the most-streamed Japanese song overseas. It has over 124 million global streams. Yonezu's "IRIS OUT" ranked second internationally.

Ado was the most-streamed Japanese artist overseas for the second consecutive year. This follows a 2025 world tour and a headline performance at the Zipangu 2026 festival in Los Angeles. King Gnu entered the overseas artist chart at sixth place, while Yorushika made its debut at tenth.

Fujii Kaze's "Shinunoga E-Wa," with over 823 million streams, led the overseas song list. It was followed by Teriyaki Boyz's "Tokyo Drift," Creepy Nuts's "Bling-Bang-Bang-Born," and imase's "NIGHT DANCER." XG's "HYPNOTIZE" placed fourth, and AiNA THE END's "Kakumei Douchuu - On The Way" also charted.

Most Discovered Artists

M!LK was the most discovered artist in Japan, displacing last year's leader HANA. The group's song "Sukisugite Metsu!" also ranked fourth overall.

Arashi, which concluded its 26-year group activities with a dome tour this year, ranked third. King & Prince and Snow Man entered the chart after making their full catalogs available for streaming in May and June. Sakanaction placed sixth following a viral resurgence of its 2012 track "Yoru no Odoriko."

Source: PR Times via スポティファイジャパン株式会社