2015 in pop music

Music fans in Cesena wanted to see US rockers Foo Fighters appear in their small Italian city. So they took action: In July, 1,000 musicians came together for a massive performance of the Foo Fighters' song "Learn to Fly," filmed it and sent the video to the band with the message "Please come to Cesena!" Duly moved, the Foo Fighters made the trip and played an open-air concert to a sold-out crowd.

German music producer Felix Jaehn, 21 and with a knack for remixes, joined up with Jamaican singer Omi to create THE summer hit of 2015. "Cheerleader" is actually a reggae piece from 2012, but in Jaehn's mix, the song hit the number one spot worldwide. Before then, the top position in the US had only been reached by few German musicians: Bert Kaempfert, Milli Vanilli and Silver Convention.

Oh, Coldplay! For 15 years, they've delivered no. 1 albums and gladdened the hearts of melodic alternative rock friends. But the new album "A Head Full Of Dreams" irritated more than a few: a bit too bombastic and over-colorful, a tad too gentle, yet slightly on the loud side. Frontman Chris Martin has apparently gotten over his romantic crisis - but there are more subtle ways to do that.

The cult US music festival made its European debut in Germany with two days of punk, avant-garde, rock and electro acts in September. Added to that: art, a freak show, comedy and fashion - the festival of many genres offered a bit of everything (performing above: Seeed). Berliners and visitors from all across Europe flocked to the festival, 45,000 in total.

Forget Spotify, now it's Apple's turn. At least, that was the thinking when the company launched its streaming service in November. But despite iTunes users numbering in the millions, Apple Music hasn't turned out to be a smash success. Spotify users hung on to their subscriptions - and compared to it and other streaming services like Rdio or Deezer, Apple Music can't match up.

This year there was no avoiding two bands from Austria: Wanda and Bilderbuch. Wanda (pictured): earthy, gruff and with a mega-catchy tune: "Bologna." The requisite punk is generated by plenty of cigarettes and alcohol. Bilderbuch: delicate, electronic, with just a touch of Viennese sarcasm. Both bands' albums were in Germany's top 20 in 2015.

The era of Madonna Louise Ciccone appears to be over. In her more than 30-year career, she's reinvented herself a number of times, earning her credentials as Queen of Pop. But now it's time for the 57-year-old to step down. There hasn't been much interest in her new album "Rebel Heart," released in March, and the tour hasn't sold out. It seems almost unfair, because her show is still spectacular.

Her 2013 album "Farbenspiel" ("Play of Colors") has sold over 3.5 million copies, and her hit "Atemlos durch die Nacht" ("Breathless Through the Night") plays at every party. The singer is a TV fixture, and at the end of the year, Fischer released new material: a Christmas album on which she warbles old favorites, which even managed to nudge the great Adele from the top of the German charts.

Comedian and TV host Jan Böhmermann added a healthy dose of bitter satire to German television in 2015. Böhmermann's gangsta rap parody "Ich hab Polizei" ("I Have Police") was, with 8.5 million views, a YouTube hit. In response, rapper Haftbefehl came up with "CopKKKilla" and YouTuber Marti Fischer released: "Du hast ZDF - Wir ha'm Internet" ("You have ZDF, we have the Internet").

Celebrated for dance hits in the 2000s, pop singer Sarah Connor went on a long hiatus and re-emerged in 2015 - this time, with songs in German. Her album "Muttersprache" ("Native Language") is chock-full of ballads and soul-searching about an ex-boyfriend, the joy of motherhood and current events. Echoing her music, she also took a refugee family into her home.