The Weeknd has been named the ultimate artist for setting the mood, with new research finding he appears more often than anyone else on Spotify playlists made for sex and intimacy.
The Canadian superstar racked up 3,195 appearances across 20 different tracks in 12,356 public playlists analysed by AdultWork. That puts him well ahead of every other artist in the study — and proves that when it comes to after-dark listening, fans keep coming back to one voice.
‘Earned It’ is the nation’s go-to
The Weeknd’s Earned It was the most frequently selected song overall, appearing on 541 playlists. Released in 2014 for the Fifty Shades of Grey soundtrack, the sleek, dramatic slow jam has amassed more than 2.2 billion Spotify streams and reached number six on the UK singles chart.
But it is far from his only entry in the bedroom-music hall of fame. Often came in third with 481 appearances, while The Hills ranked seventh on 383. Call Out My Name followed closely in eighth, featuring on 379 playlists.
In other words: four of the UK’s 10 most-playlisted intimate tracks belong to The Weeknd.
The stars joining the playlist
Two Feet takes second place, collecting 1,174 appearances across six tracks. His smoky track Love Is A Bitch is the second most common song in the analysis, appearing on 488 playlists, while I Feel Like I’m Drowning also makes the top 10.
USHER lands third with 703 appearances across 13 songs, proving the appeal of an R&B classic never really disappears. Jeremih comes fourth with 688, while Chris Brown rounds out the top five with 685 appearances.
| Rank | Artist | Playlist appearances |
| 1 | The Weeknd | 3,195 |
| 2 | Two Feet | 1,174 |
| 3 | USHER | 703 |
| 4 | Jeremih | 688 |
| 5 | Chris Brown | 685 |
| 6 | Bryson Tiller | 670 |
| 7 | Rihanna | 660 |
| 8 | Chase Atlantic | 621 |
| 9 | Doja Cat | 608 |
| 10 | Ginuwine | 582 |
R&B is still the sound of seduction
The research also found that the 2010s produced the bulk of the most popular intimate-playlist tracks. Of the 200 songs that appeared most often, 105 came from the decade — 52.5% of the total.
R&B was the clear genre winner, accounting for 106 of the top 200 tracks. Pop followed with 49, while alternative music featured 31 times. It seems that breathy vocals, bass-heavy production and a little bit of drama remain the recipe for a playlist people return to.
AdultWork analysed public Spotify playlists returned through searches for terms such as “sex playlist”, “bedroom playlist”, “lovemaking” and “intimate playlist”. More than 2.8 million songs were included in the wider dataset, with each track counted once per playlist.
Whether it is a chilled R&B favourite, a throwback USHER hit or a moody Two Feet track, the findings make one thing clear: The Weeknd still has the soundtrack to everyone’s late-night plans.
