Releasing a song can be a lot like playing slots at a casino. After all that time and effort, scoring a number one hit can still take a lot of luck. To increase their chances, artists often collaborate with other musicians and songwriters to help them succeed.
But who are the biggest secret hitmakers? We’ve dived into the data, looking at the most successful songs written by one artist and sung by another. We’ve also looked at the most successful writer-performer pairings to find out which is the biggest star and the most sought-after songwriters.
The Biggest Hits Written By Secret Hitmakers
1. We Found Love
Song Score: 9.17/10
The lead single from Rihanna’s sixth studio album is the most popular song penned by a secret hitmaker. Written and produced by Scottish DJ Calvin Harris, the song scores relatively highly across the board, ranking fifth for its RIAA-certified sales at 11 million and sixth for its award wins, with four.
2. Senorita
Song Score: 9.15/10
Senorita, penned initially by Charli XCX, takes second place. Released in 2019 by Shawn Mendes and Camila Cabello, the song has been streamed over 3 billion times on Spotify. This takes it to second place for the factor. It also takes second place for its accolades, winning 10 awards.
3. Umbrella
Song Score: 9.04/10
Rounding out the top three is another Rihanna song, Umbrella, scoring 9.04 out of 10. Written by Jay-Z and The-Dream, Umbrella is the opening track from Rihanna’s third studio album, Good Girl Gone Bad. The song placed high for its awards, winning eight and taking it to third place for the factor. It also sold over 10 million copies, ranking in the top 10.
The Hits With The Most…
Spotify streams - Stay (3.5 billion)
Written by Charlie Puth, Justin Bieber, and The Kid Laroi’s Stay takes the top spot for Spotify streams, clocking in at over 3.5 billion. Topping the charts in 21 countries, the single was the Kid Laroi’s first number one, and Bieber’s eighth.
YouTube views - Sorry (3.6 billion)
Justin Bieber’s Sorry is the most viewed song on the list. Written by singer-songwriter Julia Michaels and produced by Skrillex and Bloodpop, it has over 3.9 billion views on the platform.
Awards - Single Ladies (Put a Ring on It) - (15)
Beyoncé’s Single Ladies (Put a Ring on It), written by The Dream, has the most awards of all the songs on the list, with 15. These include three Grammys, a MOBO, and an MTV Video Music Award.
RIAA certified sales - Party in the USA - (14 million)
Initially written by Jessie J for her debut album, Miley Cyrus’s Party in the USA is the best-selling song written by another artist on the list. Receiving widespread acclaim from critics, the song earned 14 million sales, equivalent to 14x Platinum certification.
The Most Popular Genres For Secret Hitmakers
1. Dance
Average Genre Score: 10/10
Dance music has the highest average score, 10 out of 10. Its strong repetitive structure and emphasis on rhythm characterize the genre, which helped Calvin Harris and Rihanna top the charts with their track We Found Love. The genre tops the list across all four factors, including an average of over one billion Spotify streams.
2. Pop
Average Genre Score: 8.33/10
Next is Pop. One of the broader genres on the list, pop is known for its catchy melodies and danceable rhythms, making it accessible to a broad audience. This accessibility makes songs like Camila Cabello and Shawn Mendes’s Senorita, written by Charli XCX, chart highly. The genre takes second place for all four factors, scoring 8.33 out of 10.
3. R&B
Average Genre Score: 4.59/10
R&B, or rhythm and blues, is a genre rooted in jazz and blues. It often features soulful vocals and a strong backbeat, like Beyoncé’s Love on Top. The genre ranks in the top five for YouTube views, averaging 175 million and shares second place for its average number of awards, with one.
The Most Popular Singers Compared To Songwriters
1. Umbrella
Singer Songwriter Score Difference: 6.74
Umbrella, written by The-Dream and performed by Rihanna, has the most significant difference between writer and performer scores, 6.74. Overall, Rihanna is the biggest star of the pair, with more than 318 times the number of Instagram followers (31670%).
2. Baby
Singer Songwriter Score Difference: 6.56
The writer and performer of Baby, The-Dream and Justin Bieber,are next on the list with a difference of 6.56. Regarding Spotify listens, Justin Bieber leads the pair with 30 times more (2916%) per month. Justin Bieber also has a Billboard Music Award score of 102, compared to The-Dream’s two.
3. Sorry
Singer Songwriter Score Difference: 6.30
In third place are Justin Bieber and Julia Michaels, the writer and performer of Sorry. Justin Bieber is the bigger star of the two. He has a higher MTV Music Video Award score of 41 than Julia Michaels’s, and a higher Grammy award score of 25, 19 points higher than Julia Michaels’ 6.
The Most Popular Songwriters Compared To Singers
1. Please Me
Singer Songwriter Score Difference: -1.61
Originally penned by Bruno Mars, Please Me, performed by Cardi B, is one of two songs on the list with the writer more popular than the performer. Cardi B has three-quarters (78%) less monthly Spotify listens than Bruno Mars, 27.7 million compared to 127.2 million. Bruno Mars is also more popular on X, with 41.9 million followers, compared to Cardi B’s 36.9 million, a difference of one in eight (12%).
2. Don’t Cha
Singer Songwriter Score Difference: -1.39
Don’t Cha is the second song on the list, written by Cee-Lo Green and performed by The Pussycat Dolls. The Pussycat Dolls have less than half (56%) the Instagram following of Cee-Lo Green, 315,000 compared to 717,000. He also scores 23 points for his Grammy wins and nominations, compared to The Pussycat Dolls’ 0.
The Most Successful Secret Hitmakers
1. Bruno Mars
Writer Score: 9.70/10
Bruno Mars is the most successful secret hitmaker. The Please Me writer ranks first for four of the seven factors we examined, scoring highly for his X following (41.9 million) and monthly Spotify listens (17.2 million).
2. Ed Sheeran
Writer Score: 9.17/10
Singer-songwriter Ed Sheeran takes second place with a writer score of 9.17 out of 10. As well as a chart-topping career in his own right, the musician also penned Justin Bieber’s smash hit Love Yourself. He has the Instagram followers on the list (48.7 million) and the second-highest TikTok followers (17.4 million).
3. Calvin Harris
Writer Score: 7.14/10
DJ and producer Calvin Harris is next, scoring 7.14 out of 10. The We Found Love producer ranks in the top five for both X followers (11.2 million) and monthly Spotify listens (69.4 million). He also takes third place for his Billboard Music Award Score of 15.
Methodology
Beginning with a list of hit songs written by one artist and sung by another, taken from sources including Cosmopolitan, we analyzed each one on the following factors. We then gave each song a normalized score out of 10 for each factor before taking an average across each score to reach our final overall score out of 10.
Spotify streams
The total number of streams each song has on Spotify.
YouTube views
The total number of YouTube views for each song, taken from the singer’s official YouTube channel.
Number of awards
The total number of awards each song has won, according to Wikipedia.
RIAA certified sales
The total number of RIAA-certified sales, according to Wikipedia.
We then took the top 20 highest-scoring songs and analyzed the singers and songwriters of these songs based on the following factors. We then averaged each of these scores to reach an overall score out of 10 for each singer and songwriter. We then compared these scores to find the difference in popularity.
X Followers
The total followers on each singer and songwriter’s official X accounts.
Instagram Followers
The total followers on each singer and songwriter’s official Instagram accounts.
TikTok Followers
The total followers on each singer and songwriter’s official TikTok accounts.
Monthly Spotify Listens
The total number of monthly Spotify listens for each artist and songwriter, taken from Spotify.
Billboard Music Award Score
The total number of Billboard Music Award wins and nominations for each artist and songwriter, according to Wikipedia. Each artist and songwriter was given one point for a nomination and two points for a win.
MTV Video Music Award Score
The total number of MTV Video Music Award wins and nominations for each artist and songwriter, according to Wikipedia. Each artist and songwriter was given one point for a nomination and two points for a win.
Grammy Award Score
The total number of Grammy Award wins and nominations for each artist and songwriter, according to Wikipedia. Each artist and songwriter was given one point for a nomination and two points for a win.
