As this year comes to a close, we’re taking a look back at the Instagram community’s top 2016 music moments.
In 2016 we’ve seen people around the world come to Instagram to connect and share around their biggest milestones. As the end of the year approaches and in celebration of our global community of more than 500 million active users, instagram have taken a closer look at the data behind 2016’s biggest music moments, as they played out on Instagram.
The music world lives on Instagram — five out of Instagram’s top 10 most-followed accounts are music accounts. 2016 has also been a huge year of innovation on Instagram, and music lovers have embraced new tools and features such as Stories and longer Videos, coming to Instagram to connect directly with their favourite artists, as well as to share their passions and collectively experience this year’s most important music events.
Artists who have joined Instagram in 2016
· Kanye West (@kanyewest) – Kanye’s first Instagram post:
· Simon Cowell (@simoncowell) – Simon’s first post:
· Gorillaz (@gorillaz) – First Gorillaz post
A sampling of 2016’s most-liked photos from Instagram’s top followed music accounts
Adele (@adele)
Adele in Vancouver. More than 925k likes.
Adele with James Corden in Carpool Karaoke. More than 915k likes.
Adele in a pool in Denver. More than 870k likes.
Selena Gomez (@selenagomez)
Selena and her famous Coca-Cola photo. More than 5.9 million likes.
Selena stops to visit with a special fan while on tour. Over 4.1 million likes.
Editorial shot from Selena. Over 4 million likes.
Taylor Swift (@taylorswift)
Taylor wishing Selena Gomez a happy birthday.Over 3.2 million likes.
Taylor wishing Blake Lively a happy birthday. Over 2.5 million likes.
Taylor wishing Karlie Kloss a happy birthday. Over 2.4 million likes.
Beyonce (@beyonce)
Beyonce and Blue Ivy at the MTV VMAs. Over 2.5 million likes.
Blue Ivy at the VMAs. Over 2.2 million likes.
Beyonce in Houston. Over 1.9 million likes.
Drake (@champagnepapi)
Drake congratulating Rihanna at the VMAs. Over 1.5 million likes.
Drake and Eminem. Over 1 million likes.
Drake and Rihanna on stage. Over 932k likes.
Rihanna (@badgalriri)
Rihanna takes a selfie with her new hair. Over 1.8 million likes.
Rihanna with her dreads. Over 1.5 million likes.
Paparazzi shots of Rihanna. Over 1.4 million likes.
Nicki Minaj (@nickiminaj)
Nicki in Las Vegas. Over 1.4 million likes.
Nicki showing a new outfit in a selfie. Over 1.1 million likes.
Nicki in her dressing room. Over 1.1 million likes.
Ariana Grande (@ariangrande)
Ariana debuts her new bangs in a selfie. Over 2.1 million likes.
Ariana smiling in a selfie. Over 2 million likes.
Ariana posing for a picture. Over 2 million likes.
Katy Perry (@katyperry)
Katy announcing new song “Rise.” Over 1 million likes.
Katy riding a bike in France. Over 1 million likes.
Katy skiing. Over 800k likes.
Miley Cyrus (@mileycyrus)
Miley Cyrus in Variety. More than 1.4 million likes.
Throwback photo of young Miley. More than 1 million likes.
Miley in “Make America Gay Again” t-shirt. More than 1 million likes.
Jennifer Lopez (@jlo)
Body positive mirror selfie. More than 1.5 million likes.
Jennifer Lopez dressed as Shades of Blue character. More than 1.1 million likes.
Post-Latin Grammys selfie. More than 1 million likes.
Demi Lovato (@ddlovato)
Demi’s “freckles” selfie. Over 1.6 million likes.
Demi in a “Spiritual Gangster” tanktop. Over 1.5 million likes.
Candid black-and-white shot of Demi. Over 1.4 million likes.
Chris Brown (@chrisbrownofficial)
Chris and his daughter, Royalty. Over 790k likes.
Chris’s daughter Royalty with a book. Over 598k likes.
Royalty smiling. Over 585k likes.
Lady Gaga (@ladygaga)
Lady Gaga and Selena Gomez. More than 1 million likes.
Lady Gaga announces she and fiancé Taylor Kinney are taking a break. More than 629k likes.
Lady Gaga adopts new puppy. More than 614k likes.
Alicia Keys (@aliciakeys)
Alicia and Jaden Smith at the VMAs. More than 223k likes.
Alicia in NYC. More than 202k likes.
Alicia wishes husband Swizz Beatz a happy birthday.
Britney Spears (@britneyspears)
Britney at the VMAs. More than 411k likes.
Britney posing in a black dress. More than 402k likes.
Selfie at the VMAs. More than 328k likes.
Calvin Harris (@calvinharris)
Calvin doing pushups. More than 335k likes.
Calvin on a balcony. More than 325k likes.
Calvin posing with his protein shake bottle. More than 317k likes.
Coldplay (@coldplay)
Coldplay in Indianapolis. More than 249k likes.
Coldplay in LA. More than 243k likes.
Coldplay in Manchester. More than 203k likes.
Ellie wearing Dolce & Gabbana and Victoria Beckham. More than 360k likes.
Hair by Pantene. More than 329k likes.
Ellie and a koala. More than 302k likes.
FKA Twigs (@fkatwigs)
In nature. More than 70k likes.
FKA Twigs modelling. More than 66k likes.
FKA Twigs at Pitchfork Music Festival. More than 65k likes.
French Montana (@frenchmontana)
French Montana with Jennifer Lopez, Khloe Kardashian, and Calvin Harris. More than 93k likes.
French Montana, Kevin Spacey, and Drake. More than 81k likes.
French Montana and Drake. More than 78k likes.
Pharrell (@pharrell)
Pharrell and George Lucas. More than 151k likes.
Pharrell in Baku. More than 140k likes.
Pharrell supporting Standing Rock. More than 136k likes.
Prince (@prince)
Vintage photo of Prince. More than 55k likes. https://www.instagram.com/p/BEL87qXmLdZ/
Blank white space. More than 46k likes.
Prince in purple. More than 36k likes.
The top 10 most followed artists
1. Selena Gomez (@selenagomez) – 103 million followers
2. Taylor Swift (@taylorswift) – 93.6 million followers
3. Ariana Grande (@arianagrande) – 89.6 million followers
4. Beyonce (@beyonce) – 88.9 million followers
5. Nicki Minaj (@nickiminaj) – 69 million followers
6. Katy Perry (@katyperry) – 58.8 million followers
7. Miley Cyrus (@mileycyrus) – 56.3 million followers
8. Jennifer Lopez (@jlo) – 53.9 million followers
9. Demi Lovato (@ddlovato) – 50.3 million followers
10. Rihanna (@badgalriri) – 46.3 million followers
2016’s most Instagrammed music festivals
1. Lollapalooza
2. Ultra Music Festival
3. Glastonbury Festival
4. Fuji Rock Festival
5. SXSW Music
6. Coachella
Which music artists garnered the most mentions on Instagram in 2016
1. Selena Gomez
2. One Direction
3. Beyonce
4. Rihanna
5. Ariana Grande
6. Twenty One Pilots
7. Taylor Swift
8. Drake
9. Coldplay
10. Sia
11. Ne-Yo
12. Jennifer Lopez
13. Kanye West
14. Wale
15. Madonna
Which song garnered the most mentions on Instagram in 2016
1. “Formation” – Beyoncé
2. “Sorry” – Justin Bieber
3. “Work” – Rihanna ft. Drake
4. “Ride” – Twenty One Pilots
5. “Pillowtalk” – Zayn
6. “Perfect” – One Direction
7. “Heathens” – Twenty One Pilots
8. “Hello” – Adele
9. “My Boo” – Ghost Town DJ’s
10. “Panda” – Desiigner
11. “Love Yourself” – Justin Bieber
12. “Stitches” – Shawn Mendes
13. “Dangerous Woman” – Ariana Grande
14. “Sorry” – Beyoncé
15. “Purple Rain” – Prince
16. “Youth” – Troye Sivan
17. “WOW” – Beck
18. “Stressed Out” – Twenty One Pilots
19. “Starman” – David Bowie
20. “Confident” – Demi Lovato
21. “Hype” – Drake
22. “Into You” – Ariana Grande
23. “Controlla” – Drake
24. “Rise” – Katy Perry
25. “Company” – Justin Bieber