We are now 10 years on from the iconic eras of PRISM and ARTPOP. What stunned me when looking back on the eras was the streaming figures for Unconditionally and Applause.

 

It is no secret to anybody that Unconditionally was a massive flop by Katy's standards. The video clearly had a massive budget and they threw the kitchen sink at the song trying to get it to resonate with the GP. However, despite their best efforts it only managed to peak at #14 and it was ultimately eaten alive by the superior "Dark Horse". This led to it being relegated to "buzz single" status amongst her stans; with some to this day denying it was ever actually the true second single.

 

Applause was also somewhat of an underperformance for Gaga's standards. It was her first lead single to not seriously threaten for the top spot of the Hot 100 and it only peaked at #4. However in the decade since I have seen it referenced frequently in pop music circles and it seems to get more recurrent airplay on radio (compared to Unconditionally) so I was quite stunned to see where their Spotify streaming numbers were sitting 10 years on:

 

Unconditionally 487,486,567 (+342,716)

Applause 417,443,779 (+322,174)

 

So Unconditionally has a 70M stream lead over Applause and is widening that lead each day by over 20,000 streams.

 

Are you as shocked by this news as I was? In 2023, why is Katy's "buzz single" from PRISM outstreaming Gaga's lead single from ARTPOP? Did the GP finally open up their hearts and just let it begin?

 

Discuss.

 

 

 

Edited April 27, 20233 yr by Wonderland

talent lost

 

I….actually am quite shocked by this  Applause was Gaga’s lead single.

Applause was doing 180k a couple of months ago, so this is good

Talent won. 

 

Love both songs though. 

6 minutes ago, Heartbreak Prince said:

I….actually am quite shocked by this  Applause was Gaga’s lead single.

 

A lot of Gaga's pop catalogue outside of TFM seem to 'age' well to GP (Not quality wise applause is fresh) It feels like a lot of Gaga's hits are people buying into her as an artist as much as listening to the osng, katy's hits are way more pop payola ready and thus fit seamlessly into streaming.

 

Also... Ballads always win 

Edited April 27, 20233 yr by Mr. Stratus

Applause is unlistenable there’s a reason why it lost to Roar which is also an abysmal song

the difference is small enough that i’d credit it to people playing Prism

 

there must be a huge gap between Prism and Artpop streams overall 

Messy, but Unconditionally is one of the best Katy's songs so deserved 

Katy music aged much better than Gaga so I'm not surprised even if Applause was bigger at the time.

Artpop recurrent streams are very low which reflects the poor reception of the album by the GP.

Unconditionally is a great song I don't get the hate and the video is gorgeous and looks expensive 

5 minutes ago, Mr. Stratus said:

 

A lot of Gaga's pop catalogue outside of TFM seem to 'age' well to GP (Not quality wise applause is fresh) It feels like a lot of Gaga's hits are people buying into her as an artist as much as listening to the osng, katy's hits are way more pop payola ready and thus fit seamlessly into streaming.

You're telling me Katy is cashing cheques for Unconditionally payola 10 years on?

 

Edited April 27, 20233 yr by Wonderland

3 minutes ago, Saint James said:

the difference is small enough that i’d credit it to people playing Prism

 

there must be a huge gap between Prism and Artpop streams overall 

Prism outstreams 4x or 5x but it's all Uncle, Roar and DH streams

Edited April 27, 20233 yr by KillingYourCareer

Gaga fans STILL defend this song as a lead single choice.

Just now, KillingYourCareer said:

Streams outstreams 4x or 5x but it's all Uncle, Roar and DH streams

I'm kind of shook that Birthday only has 188M when it peaked around the same place as Uncle. I blame that dreadful video  

applause was the end for gaga.

I love applause  

 

The song it's actually quite edgy, euphoric for Gaga's standards. 

 

The eclectic production doesn't fit with the rest of ARTPOP's maximalism. 

 

I also like Unconditionally but it's quite forgettable imo.

 

10 minutes ago, Saint James said:

the difference is small enough that i’d credit it to people playing Prism

 

there must be a huge gap between Prism and Artpop streams overall 

I don’t know exact numbers but PRISM is over 3 billion streams and ARTPOP is just north of 1 billion streams the last I saw.

Gaga's discography aged like milk.

2 minutes ago, Wonderland said:

You're telling me Katy is cashing cheques for Unconditionally payola 10 years on?

 

No - but  katy's brand of pop is more faceless and people consume it more based on the actual music, she didn't really tackle EDM  genre and she didnt shift albums. she was the ultimate singles artist.

 

Therefore the same qualities in her music 10 years ago that made it so radio candy, is the same as what makes it click now on tiktok and in playlists, Gaga is the more am overall aritst package and created a fnabase within the GP. Her streams are more sensitive to when she is active, but then fall harsher then katy and rihanna when she is not.

 

7 minutes ago, GraceRandolph said:

Gaga fans STILL defend this song as a lead single choice.

have you seen the rest of ARTPOP's streams? what would've been better
like the above katy has more consistency in her catalogue and on tiktok, Gaga is centred around TFM/ASIB

Prism is pop excellence. 

8 minutes ago, Wonderland said:

I'm kind of shook that Birthday only has 188M when it peaked around the same place as Uncle. I blame that dreadful video  

Have you heard the song? Don't try to blame it on the music video

2 minutes ago, Mr. Stratus said:

No - but  katy's brand of pop is more faceless and people consume it more based on the actual music, she didn't really tackle EDM  genre and she didnt shift albums. she was the ultimate singles artist.

 

Therefore the same qualities in her music 10 years ago that made it so radio candy, is the same as what makes it click now on tiktok and in playlists, Gaga is the more am overall aritst package and created a fnabase within the GP. Her streams are more sensitive to when she is active, but then fall harsher then katy and rihanna when she is not.

 

have you seen the rest of ARTPOP's streams? what would've been better
like the above katy has more consistency in her catalogue and on tiktok, Gaga is centred around TFM/ASIB

Sexxx Dreams or Aura would’ve made a stronger statement. I just don’t go back to Applause even as a diehard.

3 minutes ago, VeniceBeach said:

Have you heard the song? Don't try to blame it on the music video

Sugar was a smash hit and they sound the same.