Not Like Us is Lamar’s first song to reach number one on the World Year-End Songs Chart.
He is followed by Beautiful Things by Benson Boone, who is in second place. Espresso by Sabrina Carpenter follows in third position, A Bar Song (Tipsy) of Shaboozey in fourth and Cruel Summer by Taylor Swift in fifth position.
Cruel Summer is a sample from Swift’s seventh studio album, Loverreleased in 2019. It saw a resurgence in the summer of 2023.
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Of the 100 songs on the list, 39 are from female-identifying artists, a first in the world chart’s seven-year history.
And this one may surprise: the song Bling-Bang-Bang-Born by Japanese hip-hop group Creepy Nuts topped Apple’s most read lyrics in 2024. Creepy Nuts is followed by Not Like Us, Espresso et Birds of a Feather de Billie Eilish.
Bling-Bang-Band-Born also topped Apple Music’s Sing chart, which allows users to see which songs fans have sung the most. It is clear that Japanese music is gaining popularity internationally: In 2023, another Japanese group, YOASOBI, topped the Sing chart in its inaugural year, with Idol. This year, Idol continues to dominate, reaching second place.
New to the 2024 end-of-year leaderboard series is the inclusion of a Shazam Global Radio Spins leaderboard, which uses Shazam to discover songs that are being played on radio stations around the world. The song Houdini by Dua Lipa comes first, followed by Lose Control of Teddy Swims and Greedy by Tate McRae.
Also available Tuesday, Replay — Apple’s alternative to Spotify’s Wrapped playlist — lets Apple Music subscribers discover the music that’s been most popular on the streaming service this year. Artists can now share their year-end data with Apple Music for Artists.
In November, Apple Music named Eilish artist of the year, following the remarkable success of her album 2024. This year, Eilish became the youngest person to win two Academy Awards and released her third album Hit Me Hard and Soft critically acclaimed and who earned seven nominations at the 2025 Grammy Awards. At this year’s awards ceremony, she took home two new gramophone-shaped trophies – although she didn’t release a new one album – for the song What Was I Made Fortaken from the hit film Barbie.
“It’s always special when a young artist manages to reach so many people so quickly,” Rachel Newman, Apple Music’s senior director of content and editorial, said in a statement. “But what’s truly remarkable about watching her evolve over the past year is not just that her voice and artistry have continued to resonate so widely. It’s that she blossomed with as much courage and honesty as she did – on her own terms, in her own way.”
