And while it wasn’t just Apple aligning itself closely with top talent this year — Tidal, the smaller music service owned in part by Jay Z, raised its profile with exclusives from Beyoncé, Kanye West and Rihanna — it was relentless in pursuit of such collaborations, even with more obscure artists, such as Jamie xx and Lil Yachty, that nonetheless added to its creative credibility.

This strategy was not driven so much by Silicon Valley thinkers as record label veterans — namely the Apple Music executives Jimmy Iovine, a former producer who was a founder of Interscope and Beats by Dr. Dre, and Larry Jackson, a onetime A&R man who signed acts like Chief Keef and Lana Del Rey.

“We have real understanding of what these artists are trying to accomplish both aesthetically and commercially,” Mr. Iovine said. At Apple, “We’re really getting there in merging these cultures — tech and the arts,” he added. “And we’re trying to prove that we are the best place for an artist to fulfill their vision.”

In interviews this month, Mr. Iovine and Mr. Jackson, the quietly influential pair behind the delivery of some of pop music’s most notable 2016 moments, discussed Apple’s place in the music ecosystem and what the future of streaming may hold. These are edited excerpts from those conversations.

What did you learn in 2016 that you didn’t realize at the beginning of the year?

LARRY JACKSON On an overall philosophical level, it was about finding our footing with regards to how you can deconstruct genre classifications, making these certain odd juxtapositions work that shouldn’t. A year ago, I don’t think anybody would have expected Taylor Swift and Drake to work with each other. What we’re trying to do is create a clubhouse where these artists can come and play together in the same sandbox and take advantage of each other in a mutually beneficial way. It’s been tough to do that at certain other places.

Image Frank Ocean, whose “Blonde” debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard chart as an Apple Music exclusive, ditched his label to work directly with the streaming service.

Why have we seen such a huge surge in streaming for hip-hop and R&B artists, and how does that affect who Apple Music chooses to work with?