Tones And I was recently honoured by Australian copyright collective APRA AMCOS for the record-breaking success of her viral hit, ‘Dance Monkey’.
The Aussie singer, born Toni Watson, was awarded a spot on APRA AMCOS’ prestigious The 1,000,000,000 List, an accolade given to songwriters in recognition of a song achieving one billion streams. ‘Dance Monkey’, which Watson herself composed, reached the milestone just six months after its release, making it the fastest Australian song to do so, as noted by the organisation.
Since May 2019, ‘Dance Monkey’ has garnered over a billion streams on Spotify alone, with a total of two billion across all major streaming platforms. The song joins the likes of Troye Sivan and Alex Hope’s ‘Youth’, Dean Lewis’ ‘Be Alright’ and Flume’s ‘Never Be Like You’ on the list.
“It was only when I wasn’t trying at all that it happened,” Tones And I said in a speech to APRA AMCOS. “I wrote this song in about half an hour.”
“The reason for this award is to signal the importance of the songwriter, who is sometimes behind-the-scenes,” said APRA AMCOS CEO Dean Ormston in a press statement. “Tones’ talent is incredible: she’s the artist and the person behind-the-scenes with a song she wrote one hundred percent herself. Her career is just beginning.”
‘Dance Monkey’ also broke the record for the longest run at number one on the ARIA Singles chart, beating Ed Sheeran’s ‘Shape Of You’ with a total of 24 non-consecutive weeks at the top spot. The song also spent 11 weeks at number one on the UK’s Official Singles Charts and peaked at number seven on Billboard’s Hot 100.
Tones And I is currently playing St. Jerome’s Laneway Festival, with performances scheduled for February 8 and 9 in Melbourne and Fremantle, respectively. The singer will then embark on a five-month-long world tour, which kicks off in Portland, Oregon on February 11.
The rising pop star also won Best New Australian Act at the NME Awards 2020, beating out Stella Donnelly, Mallrat, G Flip and Baker Boy.