It’s the season to look back and review the year. Music services normally take a data-centric approach, listing off the top artists, bands, streams, customized stations, and playlists. Deezer too a road less traveled, commissioning comic illustrator Brian Williamson to memorialize 10 musical moments of the year. (Number 1 is Zayn quitting One Direction.) The “moments” were derived from lists compiled by Deezer’s 50 music curators.
Brian Williamson has worked with Marvel, DC Comics, Dreamworks, Nintendo, and other companies. “I’ve worked on some of the most iconic comic books and characters in the world,” he said, “but it’s clear that the music landscape provides just as much drama as some of the richest fictional worlds.”
Limited editions of the 10 pieces of art are available to buy, with the money going to international charity War Child. A special page has been set up to view the illustrations and bid on them.
Here are the 10 moments, as described by Deezer:
1. Zayn quits One Direction, breaking millions of girl’s hearts across the globe. His departure saw streaming data for One Direction fans increase by 55% globally.
2. Justin Bieber redeems himself with global smash hit What Do You Mean? In fact, every single song from his Purpose album charted in the UK Top 100 – beating the record set by The Beatles.
3. Madonna falls off stage during a live BRITS performance.
4. Dave Grohl breaks his leg mid-performance, but still finishes the show.
5. Nicky Minaj and Taylor Swift are embroiled in a Twitter tantrum over the MTV VMAs nominations.
6. Drake triggers a million memes with the release of Hotline Bling video. His global streams increased by 218% after the video dropped.
7. Rihanna causes controversy with her violent and graphic B**** better have my money!
8. The Weeknd prove that a numb face isn’t solely derived from a wild Saturday night after their hit becomes the global summer anthem. Their daily streaming ‘peak’ was reached on October 3rd, 2015.
9. Shirtless Shia LaBeouf shocks fans as he wrestles a tiny girl in Sia’s Elastic Heart video.
10. Kanye West experiences the bitter taste of Karma, after his headline Glastonbury slot is upstaged by prankster Lee Nelson. It didn’t affect his streaming success however, as his UK listening figures spiked 66%.