'Arcade': the story of its continued success

Arcade has always been a fan favourite, riding high in the betting odds long before the Contest in Tel Aviv, but the story of its popularity outside of the Eurovision community is just as remarkable.

Watch: Duncan Laurence - Arcade (Official Music Video)

In the aftermath of Duncan’s 2019 victory, the ballad hit the charts of most European countries, peaking at #2 in Billboard’s Euro Digital Song Sales Chart, as well as enjoying success in Belgium, Greece, Estonia, Sweden, Iceland and, obviously, the Netherlands, where it won the Edison Award for Best Pop Song of the Year.

Duncan unveiled his second single, Love Don’t Hate It, in October 2019, before starting work on his debut album.

After much introspection and with the help of his boyfriend, Jordan Garfield, Duncan released the Small Town Boy LP in the summer of 2020, spawning three more hit singles Someone Else, Last Night and Feel Something - a collaboration with world-renowned Dutch DJ Armin van Buuren.

With the new album came renewed interest in Duncan’s Eurovision winner, Arcade; its popularity again began steadily building throughout the year until it unexpectedly exploded in 2021, thanks to TikTok.

Once the track caught fire on the social media platform, Arcade was propelled to over 200 million streams on Spotify, pushing the track to a peak position of number 29 in the Official UK Charts, and launching it into the US Billboard Hot 100. It’s the first time a Eurovision track has graced the Billboard chart since Gina G's Ooh Ahh... Just a Little Bit back in 1997, and the first winner since Brotherhood of Man's Save Your Kisses For Me hit number 27 back in 1976.

Watch: Duncan Laurence - Arcade (Grand Final, Eurovision Song Contest 2019)

Capitalising on the love for Duncan’s winner, a revamped version was recorded with American artist Fletcher and performed on The Ellen Show in April 2021. Duncan's conquest of the US continued with appearances on The Today Show and various radio stations across the states.

Eventually, Arcade inched its way to becoming Spotify’s most streamed Eurovision song of all time.

Now, two years later, we’re back where it all began, and Duncan is very excited to return to the Eurovision Song Contest, where he will perform both Arcade and a brand new song: ‘the Eurovision Song Contest is back and we are going to celebrate it!’