Sixteen years after it first made you feel vaguely emotional for reasons you still can’t explain, Owl City’s “Fireflies” has officially crossed one billion streams on Spotify. Yes, the synthy, sleep-deprived anthem of your Christian Tumblr youth is now a certified streaming giant—right alongside Nirvana’s “Smells Like Teen Spirit,” Gorillaz’s “Feel Good Inc.” and even Justin Bieber’s “Baby.”
Released in 2009 by Adam Young, “Fireflies” was an anomaly. It was dreamy, awkward and built entirely in his parents’ Minnesota basement—a one-man synth-pop project that somehow took over the world. The track hit No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 and ushered in a new wave of DIY artists, effectively laying the groundwork for today’s bedroom pop scene. Before TikTok musicians were going viral from their laptops, Adam Young was quietly turning late-night overthinking into chart-topping magic.
Young, who has been open about his Christian faith throughout his career, never branded Owl City as a “Christian act.” But his music has always carried a gentle sincerity that set it apart—earnest, wide-eyed and deeply uncool in a way that made it oddly timeless.
So, the song we all loved in high school now sits in Spotify’s Billion Club—especially unique because Spotify didn’t even launch in the US until 2011, two years after the song’s heyday. But maybe it makes sense. In a world that’s gotten louder, messier and way too self-aware, there’s something refreshing about going back to a track that never tried to be anything but what it was—authentic, soft and just a little strange.
Turns out, sincerity ages pretty well.
