## Shazam: A Century of Song Recognition
Apple recently celebrated a monumental milestone: its music identification app, Shazam, has surpassed 100 billion song recognitions. This achievement underscores Shazam’s evolution from its humble beginnings as a UK text message service in 2002 to its current status as a ubiquitous music discovery tool, deeply embedded within the Apple ecosystem. The app’s journey, marked by its early adoption as an App Store launch title in 2008, highlights its enduring relevance in the digital music landscape.
### A Symphony of Statistics
The sheer magnitude of 100 billion song IDs is staggering. To put this into perspective, imagine every single person on Earth tagging approximately 12 songs. Alternatively, consider dedicating every second of your life for over three millennia to identifying music – you’d still fall short of this colossal figure.
Even compared to its own internal benchmarks, Shazam’s achievement is remarkable. “Dance Monkey,” the most Shazamed song of all time, boasts over 45 million tags. The 100 billion figure represents over 2,200 times this impressive number. Even the rapid ascent of Benson Boone’s “Beautiful Things,” a Shazam Predictions 2023 alum, which reached 10 million recognitions in a record 178 days, pales in comparison. At that pace, it would take over 4,800 years to reach the 100 billion mark.
### Shazam’s Integration into the Apple Ecosystem
Following its acquisition by Apple in 2018, Shazam has become seamlessly integrated into the company’s software ecosystem. It now powers the native Music Recognition feature across iOS, iPadOS, and macOS. Its presence is pervasive, accessible through Control Center, Siri voice commands, the Action button on iPhone 15 Pro and all iPhone 16 models, and even as a Smart Stack widget on the Apple Watch. This deep integration solidifies Shazam’s position as a core component of the Apple user experience.
### Relive the Hits: Shazam’s Top 100
Explore the sonic tapestry of Shazam’s history with a curated playlist featuring the 100 most identified songs of all time.
