If you take a look at the most popular artists from last year and compare them to this year's list so far, you'll notice a lot of differences. Last year at this time, people like XXXTentacion and Tekashi 6ix9ine were pulling millions of views on a daily basis. They still are today but we all know what happened to both rappers. XXXTentacion was tragically gunned down in Florida in June 2018 and 6ix9ine is currently facing a life sentence in connection to a racketeering case. They were two of the most impactful artists and songwriters of the last twelve months and it isn't a surprise to see them on Billboard's official account of the hottest songwriters of the year.
At the top of the list is Ed Sheeran, which comes as somewhat of a surprise since it was a quiet year for him. Following closely are Drake (duh) and Louis Bell, who has written significant smash hits for Post Malone. Posty himself ends up in the fourth spot while XXXTentacion grabs No. 5 and Frank Dukes, who wrote for Travis Scott, Cardi B and Post Malone, ends up at 6. Finally, Cardi B and Offset enjoy back-to-back spots before John Cunningham, XXXTentacion's producer, appears at No. 9. The final placement in the top ten belongs to none other than Tekashi 6ix9ine.
In terms of the top producers of the year, Frank Dukes and Louis Bell reached the top of that list with Murda Beatz, John Cunningham, Tay Keith, Nick Mira and others all cracking the top ten. How do you see things changing next year?