Eminem: Best Selling Artist Of The Decade

This can’t be right. Says here Eminem is the top-selling artist of the past 10 years. On Tuesday (Dec. 8), Nielsen SoundScan, which tabulates the Billboard charts, released their lists of the best-selling artists, albums and songs of the ’00s. And yep, Eminem is king of the sales mountain. The star of 8 Mile sold more than 32.2 million albums in the 2000s, eclipsing the Beatles to claim the number-one ranking.

Check below for a complete list of the top-selling albums and digital songs of the decade.

The Fab Four did wrap up the decade with the best-selling album; 11.5 million copies of 2000’s greatest-hits collection 1. Behind the Beatles sits artists like ‘NSYNC (No Strings Attached/11.1 million copies) and Norah Jones (Come Away With Me/10.5 million). Eminem actually ended the decade with two albums on the list; The Marshall Mathers LP and Eminem Show were #4 and 5, respectively.

The last ten years has produced a lot of great music, but that doesn’t always equal great sales. No big discovery there, but to view the top-selling albums and songs of the 2000s, is to only witness the safest nook in the music ‘biz, where mass consumerism and pop culture overload equals ka-ching! There is absolutely nothing wrong with any artist in the lofty ranks of these top-selling lists; plenty of good music on there. Number don’t lie (like Shakira’s hips), but the final tally for the top-selling albums of the decade is both boring as hell and a testament to the monumental popularity and sales power of the very artists it ranks in the top 10.

I felt that The Jayhawks’ Rainy Day Music and Neko Case’s Fox Confessor Brings the Flood were two of the best albums of the decade. But no way do their sales tallies compare anywhere near someone like Usher’s Confessions. The ‘comparing apples and oranges’ argument makes sense here as part of the reason why, but if anything the Nielsen rankings provide a terrific example of what we define as Pop Music. That is to say, Popular Music. Very popular music. And that’s where the big sales are.

So while I applaud Britney and Usher and the Creed guys, I also think there’s a lot of damn good music out there not getting the ‘push’ it deserves. Then again, maybe those artists flying under the mainstream radar prefer it that way.

The top-selling albums of the decade, according to Nielsen SoundScan:

• 1. The Beatles, 1,11,499,000 units sold
• 2. ‘NSYNC, No Strings Attached, 11,112,000 units sold
• 3. Norah Jones, Come Away With Me, 10, 546,000 units sold
• 4. Eminem, The Marshall Mathers LP, 10,204,000 units sold
• 5. Eminem, The Eminem Show, 9,799,000 units sold
• 6. Usher, Confessions, 9,712,000 units sold
• 7. Linkin Park, Hybrid Theory, 9,663,000 units sold
• 8. Creed, Human Clay, 9,491,000 units sold
• 9. Britney Spears, Oops! … I Did It Again, 9,185,000 units sold
• 10. Nelly, Country Grammar, 8,461,000 units sold

The top-selling digital songs of the decade, according to Nielsen SoundScan:

• 1. Flo Rida feat. T-Pain, “Low” 5,214,000 units sold
• 2. Lady Gaga feat. Colby O’Donis, “Just Dance,” 4,690,000 units sold
• 3. Jason Mraz, “I’m Yours,” 4,619,000 units sold
• 4. Timbaland feat. OneRepublic, “Apologize,” 4,439,000 units sold
• 5. The Black Eyed Peas, “Boom Boom Pow,” 4,349,000 units sold
• 6. Soulja Boy Tell’em, “Crank That,” 4,315,000 units sold
• 7. Lady Gaga, “Poker Face,” 4,200,000 units sold
• 8. Coldplay, “Viva la Vida,” 4,140,000 units sold
• 9. Taylor Swift, “Love Story,” 4,005,000 units sold
• 10. Katy Perry, “Hot N Cold,” 3,945,000 units sold

How many of the decade’s top-selling albums do you own?