X factor behind pop princesses' reign

From Charli XCX and Sabrina Carpenter to Chappell Roan and Billie Eilish, women ruled the airwaves in 2024.

- Yamini Chinnuswamy

It began in spring, when no less than Ariana Grande, Beyonce and Taylor Swift – all three American pop queens – released new albums in quick succession, starting with Grande's Eternal Sunshine and Beyonce's Cowboy Carter in March, and Swift's The Tortured Poets Department in April.

Each of the three albums broke the record for most-streamed album in a single day on the Spotify streaming service.

American singer Eilish and British-Albanian singer Dua Lipa followed in May with their third studio albums, Hit Me Hard And Soft and Radical Optimism respectively, which were hotly anticipated in mainstream circles.