Roxette’s ‘It Must Have Been Love’ Hits 1 Billion YouTube Views: The 1987 Ballad That Refuses to Fade Away

Mumbai, 23^rd July 2026: Nearly four decades after its release, Roxette’s iconic power ballad “It Must Have Been Love” has crossed 1 billion views on YouTube, on its official music video, joining the platform’s prestigious Billion Views Club and proving that timeless music can still dominate the digital age. The Swedish duo’s emotional classic, immortalised by the 1990 blockbuster Pretty Woman, has become one of the most enduring love songs in pop history. The achievement places Roxette among a select group of legacy artists whose catalogues continue finding massive audiences through streaming, social media, and nostalgic rediscovery.

Originally released as a Christmas song in Sweden in 1987, “It Must Have Been Love” was later reworked for Pretty Woman and became a global phenomenon, reaching No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 in 1990. The song’s haunting melody, heartfelt lyrics, and Marie Fredriksson’s unforgettable vocals have allowed it to transcend generations. Today, the track thrives on YouTube, Spotify, Instagram Reels, and TikTok, where younger listeners are discovering it through emotional edits, romantic montages, and cinematic storytelling content. What began gaining wide-spread popularity as a film soundtrack, has evolved into a permanent fixture of the streaming era.

Watch the song here:

The billion-view milestone is especially significant because it highlights the growing power of catalogue music in the digital ecosystem. Unlike many contemporary viral hits, Roxette’s resurgence has been driven by long-term listener loyalty, algorithmic recommendations, playlist placements, and continued cultural relevance. Songs from the 1980s and 1990s are increasingly outperforming expectations on streaming platforms as Gen Z audiences embrace classic pop and rock alongside current chart music. Roxette’s achievement follows a broader trend of legacy artists experiencing extraordinary streaming revivals years, or even decades, after their commercial peak.

For music fans, the success of “It Must Have Been Love” is a reminder that truly great songs never belong to just one era. Per Gessle and the late Marie Fredriksson created a ballad whose emotional impact remains universal, whether heard on radio in 1990 or discovered on a smartphone in 2026. As Roxette enters YouTube’s Billion Views Club, the milestone feels less like a nostalgic victory and more like proof that timeless songwriting continues to resonate across generations, formats, and platforms.