Last updated: 2 days ago

Tracy Chapman’s life has been an extraordinary odyssey, one that took her from busking on the streets of Boston to headlining stages worldwide. Her music intertwines accounts of characters battling the odds to escape troubled circumstances with more intimate tales of romance longed for and sometimes found, along with forthright calls for social justice and equality. Chapman is both an evocative composer and a storyteller of exceptional insight and candor. And though she released her first album over 30 years ago, her songs continue to feel timely, honest, real – often as painfully to-the-point as today’s headlines.

Chapman’s eponymous debut album was released in April 1988 and went on to sell more than 20 million copies worldwide and garner her three Grammy Awards. A mere two months after the album’s release, Chapman found herself in front of an audience of 72,000 people at London’s Wembley Stadium, singing at a historic anti-apartheid event marking the 70th birthday of Nelson Mandela, then still incarcerated. Alone on stage with her guitar, she was enthusiastically received by the live audience and by millions of television viewers around the globe.

Monthly Listeners

15.6 million

Followers

2.3 million

Total Streams

117.8 million

Top Cities

283,736 listeners
275,427 listeners
239,318 listeners
230,624 listeners
217,570 listeners

Popular Tracks

118 tracks
1
Fast Car

Fast Car

Apr 5, 1988

1.3 billion

streams

2
Baby Can I Hold You

Baby Can I Hold You

Apr 5, 1988

584.9 million

streams

3
Give Me One Reason

Give Me One Reason

Oct 31, 1995

416.1 million

streams

4
Talkin' Bout a Revolution

Talkin' Bout a Revolution

Apr 5, 1988

309.2 million

streams

5
The Thrill Is Gone

The Thrill Is Gone

Nov 4, 1997

121.6 million

streams

6
Stand by Me - Live at the Late Show with David Letterman

Stand by Me - Live at the Late Show with David Letterman

Nov 20, 2015

114.0 million

streams

7
The Promise

The Promise

Oct 31, 1995

85.6 million

streams

8
Crossroads

Crossroads

Jan 1, 1989

59.9 million

streams

9
Across the Lines

Across the Lines

Apr 5, 1988

51.0 million

streams

10
For My Lover

For My Lover

Apr 5, 1988

42.4 million

streams