While it is of little surprise that Ed Sheeran takes the crown, the most streamed female artist in the UK might surprise you.

(EDITORIAL USE ONLY. NO COMMERCIAL USE)  performs onstage during 102.7 KIIS FM's Jingle Ball 2017 presented by Capital One at The Forum on December 1, 2017 in Inglewood, California.
Image: The Shape Of You singer is the top artist overall with 6.3 billion global streams

Spotify has released its most streamed list of 2017 - the year when streaming officially became the biggest indicator of success.

While it's no surprise that Ed Sheeran has topped the list with an impressive 6.3 billion streams worldwide, the female artist most listened to by UK users defies expectations.

Forget Taylor Swift, Ariana Grande or Beyonce - say hello to Dua Lipa, she is "hotter than hell".

attends the BBC Radio 1 Teen Awards 2017 at Wembley Arena on October 22, 2017 in London, England.
Image: Have you met Dua? The Albanian-born star is a UK favourite

Surpassing her more famous peers, the Albanian-born star's new album New Rules has been streamed 464 million times worldwide.

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She is followed closely by Rihanna, Grande, Swift and Beyonce in the UK, but none of the women feature in either the top five artist in the UK or worldwide.

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Both Sheeran and Drake occupy the first two spots in both lists, with their album's Divide and More Life respectively.

"Ed Sheeran absolutely dominated this year with the release of his record-breaking album, Divide," said Spotify's CEO Stefan Blom.

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Despacito
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"There is no doubt that 2017 was The Year of Ed Sheeran, and we are thrilled that so many millions of music fans have discovered, listened to, and shared his music on Spotify. Congratulations to Ed on an amazing achievement."

As for individual songs, Luis Fonsi's summer hit Despacito occupies not one but two spots on the same list - in its original form and a remix featuring Justin Bieber.

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Sheeran received two Grammy nominations last week, but was shut out of the major categories, including album, song and record of the year.

Spotify is the world's biggest streaming platform, with more than 60 million paid subscribers.

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