‘Serial Experiments Lain’ Anime Opening Surpasses Record 1.1 Billion Streams on Spotify

The song Duvet by British band bôa, featured in the opening theme of the anime series “Serial Experiments Lain,” has surpassed 1.1 billion streams on Spotify. The track has become the most-streamed anime opening in the history of the streaming service.
The song reached its first billion streams in late March 2026, gaining another 100 million plays in under four months.
Comparison with Major Industry Hits
According to music chart Anison100, which tracks Japanese animation music popularity, bôa’s track firmly holds top spot with 1.103 billion plays.
For comparison, stream numbers for other popular anime openings on Spotify rank as follows:
- “Idol” (YOASOBI, “Oshi no Ko”): about 580 million streams;
- “Kick Back” (Kenshi Yonezu, “Chainsaw Man”): 577 million;
- “Silhouette” (KANA-BOON, “Naruto: Shippuden”): 439 million.
According to data from analytics platform Kworb, the song’s daily stream growth remains among the highest for late 1990s alternative rock.
Viral TikTok Success and bôa’s Reunion
What makes the record notable is the origin of the song: Duvet was released in 1998 on the band’s debut album Twilight and was not originally written for an animation studio—the producers of “Serial Experiments Lain” simply chose the existing track by the British group for the intro.
More than twenty years later, the track went viral on TikTok and short videos, triggering a new wave of interest in ’90s cyberpunk aesthetics. The unexpected global success prompted bôa to officially reunite after a long hiatus, return to touring, and release new studio material.
'Serial Experiments Lain' Anime Opening Theme Song 'Duvet' by BOA surpasses 1.114 Billion Streams on Spotify.
— Anime Tokki (@AnimeTokki) August 19, 2026
The Most streamed Opening Theme song in history. pic.twitter.com/EK098Q77Xi