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The last 25 years have seen the destruction and reestablishment of the all-time sales record, while some new music artists who rose to stardom less than a decade ago have already reached historic heights, placing themselves in the upper echelons of the greats. of the music.
From new age trap to old school rap to pop and rock empire, new musical innovations have been recorded with old familiar sounds to give fans a wide range of musical emotions.
This article will reveal the most sought-after sounds of the last 25 years that, in turn, have turned their performers into the best-selling artists of the last two decades:
1: Duck
Since recording his first mixtape, 'Room For Improvement' in 2006, Drake has cemented his place as one of the distinguished names in hip-hop. The 37-year-old has topped the Billboard 200 13 times, making him the third-most behind The Beatles (19) and Jay Z (14).
Drake also holds the record for most hits, becoming the first artist to reach 300 total hits on the charts. The Canadian native has achieved nine number one debuts on the Billboard Hot 100.
He five-time Grammy Award winner It is reported to have sold certified units worth $528.4 million in 17 countries across different continents, including the United States, Brazil, New Zealand, United Kingdom, Poland, Mexico, etc. Drake has also racked up a whopping $170 million in claimed sales, placing him among the best sellers from 2009 until now.
2: Elton John
Elton John is one of the most successful artists in the music industry with a career spanning more than 20 years.
The 77-year-old has recorded more than 3,000 songs, while 130 of his songs have appeared in Top 40 hits in the UK and US.
With a career spanning more than 50 years, Elton John's popularity has allowed him to reach astronomical figures, including the record of $817.9 million for the highest-grossing music tour, which has since been surpassed by Taylor Swift.
Rock artists have amassed a total of $214.3 million in sales from total certified units and have amassed over 300 million in sales.
3: Adela
Adele is one of the most important artists in the world of the last two decades. Her album “25” was the fourth best-selling album of the century, while “21” rose to No. 1 on Billboard Top 200 Albums of all Time. She sold a whopping 692,000 copies in digital and physical metrics of her album “30.” The album outsold the top 50 best-selling albums on the Billboard chart to become the best-selling album of 2021.
The winner of 16 Grammy Awards has sold more than 140 million certified units of her songs, which have achieved record sales in different countries such as Japan, the United States, the Netherlands, Canada, Brazil, New Zealand, Portugal, etc. ella old ella has also racked up an astronomical $120 million in total reported sales.
4: michael jackson
Michael Jackson has an astonishing catalog of best-selling songs, from “Bad,” which sold 11 million units, to “Number Ones,” which sold 13 million units. Jackson recorded a significant milestone with “Thriller,” which racked up a milestone 34 million units in sales.
In 2011, the 13-time Grammy winner topped Forbes' annual list of “Highest Earning Dead Celebrities” twice in a row after his songs sold a record $170 million.
Fast forward to 2024, Jackson still has a strong foothold among the best-selling artists of the century, having grossed over $400 million from a total of 289.5 million certified unit sales.
5: Eminem
On a list dominated by pop, hip-hop and rock stars, Eminem is the only rapper in the top 40 best-selling artists of all time and sits firmly above 2Pac and Kanye West in grossing figures. More interestingly, the American rapper is among the top ten best-selling artists of all time, with over 336.45 million recorded of total certified units. Eminem also holds the record of six diamond certifications in hip-hop, the most for any artist.
6: Ed Sheeran
The West Yorkshire native has sold more than 26 million albums and 100 million singles worldwide, placing him among the biggest-selling artists since he rose to fame in 2011.
Ed Sheeran became the world's biggest-selling artist in 2017 after the release of “Shape of You,” which earned him the IFPI Global Recording Artist of the Year award. Since then, the “Perfect” singer has been certified multi-platinum in 36 different markets.
The 33-year-old has amassed more than 273 million total certified units and more than $150 million in claimed sales.
7: Rihanna
“Bad Girl Riri” has reigned supreme when it comes to sales dominance for the past two decades. From global hits like “Umbrella” to the acclaimed “Work,” where she collaborated with her complicated lover, Drake.
Rihanna has achieved 14 number one songs and 32 top ten songs on the Billboard Hot 100 chart, and the mother of two was recognized as the top-selling female digital singles artist by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA).
The 12-time Billboard Music Award winner has amassed $372 million in certified unit sales and grossed over $250 million in claimed sales.
8: bts
The seven-member musical group consisting of RM, Jin, J-Hope, V, Suga, Jimin, and Jungkook has lit up the world since their emergence less than a decade ago. They have grown to become one of the most influential artists in the world, with astronomical music sales.
They have recorded monumental success in recent years, including 40 million physical album sales. They also scored a whopping 820,000 sales and 102,000 copies in 2023 and 2024 respectively.
BTS ranks third behind Taylor Swift and Eminem among the global artists with the most albums sold in the last 30 years and the South Korean group has recorded more than 100 million albums sold.
9: Taylor Swift
Taylor Swift has cemented her place as the best-selling artist of the century with her recently released album, 'The Tortured Poets Department', breaking streaming records never seen before in history, becoming the most streamed album in one day with over 309 million views. daily on Spotify.
Swift is also known for her electrifying tour performances, with her “Reputation” tour setting the record for the highest-grossing tour in history in 2017 with $266.1 million from more than two million tickets sold.
Fast forward to 2024, it surpassed Elton John's $939 million “Farewell Yellow Brick Road Tour” to set the new record for highest grossing in history at over $1 billion, and industry analysts at Pollstar predict that She could become the first artist in history to reach $2. billion dollars, making her the most successful artist of this century and beyond.
10: Coldplay
Coldplay has become the benchmark for Rock in recent years. They have achieved great recognition worldwide by setting records in broadcasts and tours. Their highly anticipated “Music of the Spheres” tour saw them join the Rolling Stones in Billboard Boxscore history to become only the second artist to chart more than 500 million copies among the top 10 highest-grossing tours.
They have also recorded stellar achievements on previous tours, such as the “A Head Full of Dreams” tour held in 2016, which became the third highest-grossing world tour of all time after achieving a record ticket sale of 523,033,675. Dollars.
His current “Music of the Spheres” tour topped Pollstar's Worldwide Top 100 list in the first quarter of the year with Tickets for Coldplay accumulating $100.5 million in sales in thirteen concerts.
The tour that began in 2022 has seen Coldplay emerge as the highest-grossing music group in history and with a current record of over $810.9 million, the seven-time Grammy Award winners are on track to join Taylor Swift to reach the coveted billion-dollar mark. .
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