The 2010s was the decade streaming won. Spotify, Apple Music, YouTube. Music became a utility, not a purchase. The album — declared dead so many times — fought back. Adele proved it could still shift 30 million copies. Streaming also gave grime its proper moment, and British music became more diverse — racially, regionally, sonically — than ever before.
2010-11: Adele's World
24 January 2011. 'Someone Like You' on the Brits. Adele's voice, a piano, and a standing ovation from people who'd never heard anything like it. Her album '21' — named for her age when writing it — spent 23 weeks at number one in the UK. 11 weeks at number one in America. 30 million copies sold worldwide. In an era of downloads and streaming, she proved physical albums still mattered.
2010 had also given us some other things: Plan B's 'She Said' from the film 'Ill Manors'. Laura Marling's 'I Speak Because I Can'. The xx's debut 'xx' won the Mercury in 2010. The decade began quietly, but the foundation was being laid.
2012-2013: The London Olympics and the Music Renaissance
The London 2012 Olympics opening ceremony, directed by Danny Boyle, was a love letter to British music. From the Beatles to the Stones to Dizzee Rascal to Emeli Sandé. 'Abide With Me' from Emeli. 'And I Will Kiss' from Underworld. Danny Boyle showed the world what British music had given the planet.
2012 also gave us 'Get Lucky' — but that's Daft Punk. British highlights: Adele's 'Skyfall' theme winning an Oscar. Alt-J's 'An Awesome Wave' winning the Mercury. Mumford & Sons and the folk revival. Jake Bugg's debut, a teenager from Nottingham channeling Bob Dylan.
By 2013, streaming was changing everything. Spotify launched in the UK in 2009. By 2013, it was the dominant way people consumed music. The charts started to reflect this — songs staying for months instead of weeks. Avicii's 'Wake Me Up' spent 11 weeks at number one in 2013.
2014-2016: Grime's Second Wave
Grime had been declared dead so many times. But a new generation was coming. Skepta's 'That's Not Me' (2014) was the shot. Wiley's 'Can't Go Wrong'. Stormzy's 'Shut Up' — a freestyle that became an anthem. The grime revival wasn't just a music scene — it was a cultural movement. Black British identity. Fast MCs. Sparse production. DIY release strategies.
Skepta's 'Konnichiwa' won the Mercury Prize in 2016. Stormzy's 'Gang Signs & Prayer' (2017) became the first grime album to reach number one. Kano, JME, Little Simz, Dave — a golden generation of British rap was emerging.
'Grime was the most exciting thing to happen to British music in years. It wasn't American rap. It wasn't pop. It was London kids making something entirely their own. The energy, the rawness, the DIY approach — it echoed punk in the 70s. A new generation demanding to be heard.'
— Robbie Williams
2016-2019: The Streaming Era Matures
By the mid-2010s, streaming was normal. Ed Sheeran became the defining artist of the era — 'Shape of You' (2017) spent 14 weeks at number one in the UK. He sold out stadiums worldwide. He was unfashionable but undeniable.
Stormzy's headline set at Glastonbury 2019 was a landmark moment. A black British grime artist on the Pyramid Stage. He wore a Banksy-designed Union Jack stab vest. He brought out Dave, Fredo, and Slowthai. He asked the crowd to bow their heads for Grenfell. It was the performance of the festival, and the performance of the decade for British music.
The late 2010s saw British pop diversifying: Little Mix continued their unbroken run of hits. Dua Lipa became a global star. RAYE broke free from her label and released independently. Sam Fender sang about working-class Britain with Geordie grit. The 1975 became the biggest British band of the decade through sheer ambition and stylistic shape-shifting.
The Songs That Defined the 2010s
Adele — 'Someone Like You' (2011)
The moment that defined the decade. A piano, a voice, a broken heart. 30 million album sales started here.
Skepta — 'That's Not Me' (2014)
The grime revival's calling card. Skepta and JME stripping it back. 'Man don't care about what man wear, he cares about what man's sayin'.'
Stormzy — 'Shut Up' (2015)
A freestyle that became a movement. No record label. No radio play. 100 million streams.
Dua Lipa — 'New Rules' (2017)
British pop for the streaming age. A song about female friendship and moving on. The video was a phenomenon.
Sam Fender — 'Hypersonic Missiles' (2019)
Geordie rock with a social conscience. A debut single about the threat of nuclear war. Something important was stirring.
Why the 2010s Matter
The 2010s proved British music could survive — and thrive — in the streaming era. The album didn't die. Live music didn't die. Instead, new voices emerged. Grime became the sound of British youth. Adele proved emotional ballads still shifted stadiums. And the independent spirit — from Skepta's self-released singles to Sam Fender's northern grit — kept British music rooted, diverse, and surprising.