a-ha’s 1985 synth-pop anthem «Take On Me» has surpassed three billion streams on Spotify, the first time a Norwegian artist or song has reached this milestone, according to data from Spotify and Kworb reported by vg.no.
The 42-year-old track sits as the 86th song globally to cross the three-billion threshold on the platform. It currently pulls in roughly 1.4 million daily streams worldwide, vg.no reported.
Only five tracks older than the Norwegian smash have reached this milestone, all originating from British or American artists. Guns N’ Roses’ 1987 hit «Sweet Child O’ Mine» is slated to join them shortly.
«The most impressive thing about ‘Take On Me’ is not first place in the US – or the roughly 30 other first places it had around the world,» manager Harald Wiik told vg.no.
The song accumulates billions of streams worldwide
The song maintains a massive footprint outside Norway, with the United States, Brazil, and Mexico forming its three biggest markets. Wiik told vg.no that the track has accumulated around seven billion streams across all digital platforms.
YouTube accounts for 2.5 billion of those total plays. On TikTok estimates the track draws 25 million weekly views alongside 25,000 new user videos created each week.
The track recently crossed 11 million plays on American radio, translating to roughly 735 daily spins since its release, vg.no reported.
Sync deals in film and television
Wiik estimates the song lands in 30 to 50 international film and television productions every year, vg.no reported.
«‘Take On Me’ is the song a teenager sings in a post-apocalyptic world, like in ‘The Last Of Us’, and it is soundtrack to stories about everything from Fyodor Dostojevskij to Karl Lagerfeld,» Wiik told vg.no.
The track entered Spotify’s global Top 200 list for the first time on August 18, 2018, at position 192, as sync usage accelerated. It has spent a cumulative 799 days on that chart.
Streaming milestones for Norwegian artists
Several other Norwegian acts hold high stream counts on Spotify, though none match a-ha’s latest marker. SEEB and Mike Posner’s «I Took a Pill in Ibiza» stands at 2.6 billion streams, while Alan Walker’s «Faded» sits at 2.5 billion, according to vg.no.
Kygo leads Norwegian artists with four tracks exceeding one billion streams, including «It Ain’t Me» with Selena Gomez at 1.8 billion and «Firestone» at 1.4 billion. girl in red’s «we fell in love in october» has reached 1.8 billion streams, vg.no reported.
Domestically, «Take On Me» took longer to capture local streaming charts, only appearing on Norway’s Top 200 list on June 18, 2022. It currently logs about 10,000 daily streams inside Norway, vg.no reported.
When was Take on Me released?
When was Take on Me released?
The original version of «Take On Me» came out in 1985 as part of a-ha’s debut album «Hunting High And Low».
How many total streams does Take on Me have across platforms?
Manager Harald Wiik told vg.no that the song has gathered roughly seven billion total streams, which includes 2.5 billion plays originating on YouTube.
Why did the song experience a surge in streaming numbers?
Management points to increased placement in film and television soundtracks, such as the series «The Last Of Us», alongside consistent viral traction on platforms like TikTok, vg.no reported.
What other Norwegian tracks have passed one billion streams?
Artists including Kygo, Alan Walker, SEEB, girl in red, Ina Wroldsen, Aurora, and Nico & Vinz have all cleared the one-billion mark on Spotify, according to data published by vg.no.
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