Katy Perry's 2011 Hit Tops TikTok Charts
Katy Perry's 15-year-old song 'The One That Got Away' is TikTok's Global and US Song of the Summer for 2026, highlighting the dominance of catalog music on the platform.
Katy Perry's 2011 single 'The One That Got Away' has been named TikTok's Global Song of the Summer for 2026. The 15-year-old track also leads the platform's US summer list, published on Tuesday, September 1.
"It's surreal to see The One That Got Away having this moment, all these years later," said Katy Perry. She noted the song's journey from her Lifetimes Tour concert film to TikTok, where users have made it part of their own stories.
According to TikTok, the song soundtracked over 42 million videos this summer, generating more than 55 billion views. The company reports it spent 21 weeks on the Billboard Global 200 and has surpassed 1.8 billion streams on Spotify.
Catalog Music Dominates US List
The entire top four of TikTok's US Songs of the Summer list consists of catalog tracks, defined by Luminate as any song older than 18 months at the time of streaming. In July 2025, MBW calculated using Luminate figures that catalog accounted for 75.8% of total US audio streams in the first half of that year.
The US summer chart rankings are as follows:
| Position | Artist | Song | Original Release Year |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Katy Perry | The One That Got Away | 2011 |
| 2 | Mac Miller (feat. Ty Dolla $ign) | Cinderella | 2016 |
| 3 | Lenny Kravitz | It Ain't Over 'Til It's Over | 1991 |
| 4 | Malcolm Todd | Earrings | 2024 |
UK Chart Features Multiple Legacy Hits
TikTok's UK Song of the Summer for 2026 is 'Do You Mind' by Kyla and DJ Paleface, a track from 2008 later sampled on Drake's 'One Dance'. TikTok says the song generated over 543 million video views from 644,000 creations in the UK over the summer.
"'Do You Mind' has been the gift that keeps on giving, so seeing a whole new generation connect with it has been incredible," said Kyla. She credited TikTok for opening up UK garage and funky house to new audiences.
Five of the ten tracks on the UK list were first released before 2010. Oasis claims two slots with 1995's 'Wonderwall' at No.2 and 'Champagne Supernova' at No.6. TikTok reported a 6,800% rise in searches for 'Wonderwall' during England's World Cup run, driven by crowd singalongs.
A Pattern of Catalog Success
TikTok's Global Song of the Year for 2025 was Connie Francis's 'Pretty Little Baby', first released in 1962. Tracy Gardner, Global Head of Music Business Development at TikTok, stated the lists show how the community embraces music in all its forms, from emerging artists to catalog tracks discovered by new generations.
The trend extends to ownership. In September 2023, Carlyle-backed Litmus Music acquired Katy Perry's stake in the master royalty income and her publishing rights across five albums, including 'Teenage Dream'. Industry sources suggested at the time the deal was worth around $225 million. Universal Music Group continues to own and/or control the master rights to the Capitol Records albums.
The UK list also included Chris Rainbow's 'Be Like a Woman' (1979) at No.5 and Bonnie Tyler's 'Total Eclipse of the Heart' (1983) at No.8. Bonnie Tyler died on July 8, 2026, aged 75.
