Music. It is a powerful thing that brings people together, creates memories, and evokes emotions. It is the universal language that speaks to the soul. It forms the soundtrack of our lives.
It has now been five years since we last counted down the Top 200 artists in my iTunes library, featuring the songs I have listened to the most since 2007. It is time to do so again, seeing which performers still resonate and if any newer ones have joined the fray. So, without further ado, here are my most listened to artists, based on number of plays as of January 1, 2026.
We continue today with our next batch of ten artists, covering the genres of pop, alternative rock, and rap, plus some Saturday morning cartoon symmetry to round things out.
#159: B.J. Thomas
iTunes stats: 71 plays
Previous ranking: #154
A 16-play increase for the Oklahoma-born pop singer, who passed away in 2021.
#159: Poe
iTunes stats: 71 plays
Previous ranking: #152
The trippy singer, who became a UNICEF Goodwill Ambassador in 2014, scores with four different songs to add fifteen listens over these past five years.
#157: KC & The Sunshine Band
iTunes stats: 72 plays
Previous ranking: #171
The disco stalwarts, founded in 1973 in Florida, added 21 new plays to the four songs they have in my collection.
#157: 2Pac
iTunes stats: 72 plays
Previous ranking: #140
The slain rapper, whose murder remains unsolved nearly 30 years later, picked up twelve new listens while dropping 17 spots in the rankings.
#154: Lita Ford
iTunes stats: 73 plays
Previous ranking: #176
The former Runaways guitarist moves up the list with thirteen new plays, driven mostly by her 1989 duet with Ozzy Osbourne, who passed last year.
#154: Lily Allen
iTunes stats: 73 plays
Previous ranking: #137
The English chartreuse, who played a funny part in my road trip to Disney World back in 2016, falls 17 spots despite twelve new plays spread across four of the 27 songs in my collection.
#154: The Doors
iTunes stats: 73 plays
Previous ranking: #148
A 28% increase for the three tracks in my collection from the seminal LA rock group fronted by Jim Morrison.
#152: Violent Femmes
iTunes stats: 74 plays
Previous ranking: #133
The debut album from the Milwaukee, Wisconsin band contributes the four songs in my collection which added twelve new plays to their total.
#152: Hoyt Curtain
iTunes stats: 74 plays
Previous ranking: #131
The former primary musical director for Hanna-Barbera added eleven new listens to the totals from the four cartoon theme songs that make up his total.
#150: Schoolhouse Rock
iTunes stats: 75 plays
Previous ranking: #169
The staple of ABC Saturday mornings in the 70s and 80s, the musical educational programming series boosted its play total by 23 over these past five years.