Taylor Swift didn’t make the top 10 list. Well, she didn’t make mine. This is according to my listening habits on Apple Music.

In 2024 I listened to Swift (based on number of minutes) more than any other artist.

Ellie James came in No. 1 this year with 234 minutes. She is a North Bay singer-songwriter who I saw live in Santa Rosa this summer. One reason she got so much play time is I was listening to her on my way back to Chico. She is good and worth looking up.

It’s not often I listen to consecutive songs from one artist anymore because I have play lists (mine or ones Apple creates for me) on shuffle.

For me, at least, gone are the days of playing an album over and over again. No more resetting the needle. I haven’t had a turntable in eons. Of course I can still listen to a full album, but there was something about LPs.

But I digress.

So, rounding out my top 10 based on minutes listened were: Miley Cyrus (110 minutes), Journey (98), Keith Urban (84), Pink (73), James Taylor (72), R.E.M. (72), Tim McGraw (59), John Denver (59), and Anna Nalick (58 minutes).

The individual songs that got the most plays were Don’t Stop Believin’ by Journey, Breathe by Nalick, Thousand Miles by Cyrus, Strawberry Fields by La Santa Cecilia, and You’ve Got a Friend by James Taylor.

If you haven’t heard La Santa Cecilia’s version of Strawberry Fields, find it. It’s outstanding. I saw her live in Todo Santos several years ago.

Top genres I listened to: pop, pop rock, rock, adult contemporary, and contemporary country.

If SiriusXM provided this same kind of data that Apple does, it would be interesting to compare my listening habits.