Spotify reveals its most-played artists of 2017

Ed Sheeran dominated the streaming service, but there was also a big increase in demand for grime, urban and Latin American music

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Spotify has announced the biggest artists of 2017, with the most-streamed singer revealed as - unsurprisingly - Ed Sheeran.

His third album ÷ (Divide) was the most streamed album in the UK and globally, while his monster single "Shape of You" was the most listened-to song, with an eye-watering 1.4bn streams.

Overall Sheeran was the most-streamed artist on Spotify, with 47m monthly listeners.

Dua Lipa was named as the most streamed Female Artist in the UK, followed by Rihanna and Ariana Grande.

Stefan Blom, Spotify's chief content officer, said: ​“Ed Sheeran absolutely dominated this year with the release of his record-breaking album, Divide.

"There is no doubt that 2017 was The Year of Ed Sheeran, and we are thrilled that so many millions of music fans have discovered, listened to, and shared his music on Spotify. Congratulations to Ed on an amazing achievement.”

Meanwhile there was an obvious increase in popularity of grime and urban music on the streaming service - Stormzy's acclaimed debut album Gang Signs & Prayer was the fourth most-listened to album in the country, with 123m streams, just behind Divide by Ed Sheeran, More Life by Drake, and Starboy by The Weeknd.

Latin tracks hit #1 on Spotify for the first time - "Despacito" and "Mi Gente" - and streams for the genre grew by 110 per cent.

Check out The Independent's albums of 2017 here