It is a proven fact that Eminem is one of the most popular artists in the world, and his fanbase is not limited to hip hop fans or fellow Americans. However, there is a place on earth where his popularity reaches unique heights – it is the United Kingdom.
We cover Marshall’s UK chart presence and YouTube numbers regularly. This time, the BBC decided to look into Spotify and YouTube streaming data to figure out how musical tastes differ, or overlap, across different UK cities.
All Over the Country
The analysis only proved what we already knew. No other artist is more popular among British people on YouTube than Eminem. Every single city the journalist checked for his article showed the same name at the top of the YouTube ranking. All, except two – Belfast and Nottingham. Over there, Slim Shady ranks No.3 in both cities. Every other city on the list, though – Birmingham, Bristol, Cardiff, Edinburgh, Glasgow, Leeds, Liverpool, London, Manchester, Newcastle, Sheffield, Southampton – shares the same reverence for Eminem, putting him atop the list.
Not Platforms Are Made Equal
However, there is an interesting discrepancy between the Spotify and YouTube data. While there is no competition for Marshall on YouTube, he rarely makes it to the local Spotify Top 10. While internationally Eminem remains firmly in the Top 10 most streamed artists, in the UK the picture is different. It is easy to notice in this particular breakdown, as only two UK cities placed him in the Spotify Top 10. Em ranks at No.10 in Manchester and No.9 in Cardiff. There is a clear correlation between the popularity level and the consumption channel.
Whether it is down to the difference in the audience or the specificity of the content, it is a topic for another analysis.
Current Top 5
It is worth noting that the lazy explanation that Em’s YouTube popularity stems from his funny and provocative videos does not hold water. His YouTube Top 5 videos in the UK last week are “Mockingbird”, “Lose Yourself”, “Love The Way You Lie”, “Without Me”, and “Not Afraid”. There is not too much to laugh about here, is it?
Meanwhile, one way or another, this is just another angle to look at music consumption for an outlet that usually does not pay much attention to this topic. And isn’t it striking that the American rapper who started his career in the 1990s is still the one capturing the imagination of millions of Brits?
