In the battle for 20th-century streaming glory, Queen reigns supreme.
Boosted by the popularity of the current movie of the same name, the British rock band’s iconic single “Bohemian Rhapsody” has become the most-streamed song from the 20th century, according to Universal Music Group, which represents Queen.
Boosted by the popularity of the current movie of the same name, the British rock band’s iconic single “Bohemian Rhapsody” has become the most-streamed song from the 20th century, according to Universal Music Group, which represents Queen.
Credit: Courtesy of Universal Music Group
The 1975 song bested such other classics as Nirvana’s “Smells Like Teen Spirit” and Guns N’ Roses’ “Sweet Child O’ Mine.”
The label says the song and official video for “Bohemian Rhapsody” have garnered more than 1.6 billion streams globally across all major streaming services.
“So the River of Rock Music has metamorphosed into streams! Very happy that our music is still flowing to the max!” Queen’s guitarist and founding member Brian May said in a statement.
The six-minute song likely received a bump thanks to the recent release of “Bohemian Rhapsody,” the Queen biopic that stars Rami Malek as singer Freddie Mercury. The movie has grossed almost $600 million worldwide and is nominated for two Golden Globes.
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The singular song, which combines elements of balladry, opera and hard rock, returned to the Billboard Hot 100 last month.
In a statement, chairman and CEO of Universal Music Group Sir Lucian Grainge called “Bohemian Rhapsody” “one the greatest songs by one of the greatest bands in history.”
“We are so proud to represent Queen and are thrilled to see the song still inspiring new fans around the world more than four decades after its release,” he said.
“Bohemian Rhapsody,” from Queen’s album “A Night At The Opera,” was Queen’s first Top 10 hit in the United States and topped the charts in the UK for nine consecutive weeks, a record at the time.
The song got renewed life in 1992 when it was featured in the movie “Wayne’s World.” It was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame in 2004.
