Best Selling Artists Of All Time Worldwide

Eminem is the sole rapper ranked among the Top Selling Artists of All Time Worldwide. Born Marshall Mathers, he has seen a lot of commercial success.

Following the failure of his little-known 1996 debut Infinite, the Michigan-based rapper linked with famed producer and former NWA member Dr. Dre and released his 1999 opus, The Slim Shady LP.

Despite his previous album not even charting, his sophomore effort peaked at #2 on the Billboard 200 and has since sold over 5.4 million copies in the US alone. His next album The Marshall Mathers LP would peak at the charts and go on to sell 25 million copies worldwide.

Since then, Eminem has been on a near-undefeated streak, at least commercially. Every single album he has released since has peaked atop the Billboard 200, including his most recent album which came out 24 years after his debut.

Pink Floyd was a successful Progressive Rock band from London. They are one of the most successful bands in that subgenre.

Though they started releasing albums in 1967, they gained cultural, critical, and commercial ubiquity in 1972 when they released their 8th album Dark Side of the Moon. Not only did this record peak at #2 in the UK and #1 in the US charts, but it has sold over 45 million worldwide.

In fact, DSOD is the fourth-best-selling album in history and has been preserved by the US Library of Congress for its significance. Following this release, the band would release three more albums: Wish You Were Here, Animals, and The Wall, each of which would sell 10s of millions of records worldwide.

The Wall , in particular, has sold 30 million units globally and is considered by some as even better than TSOD. Curiously, this album peaked countless charts in numerous countries but only reached #3 in the UK.

Rihanna is one of Best Selling Female Artists of all time. This Pop Diva has been rocking the world of Mainstream Pop music since the mid-2000s.

Unlike the previous two entries on this list, Rihanna is known more for her singles than her albums, though the latter is pretty successful too. According to the Official Billboard website, she has charted 63 songs on the Hot 100.

32 among those 63 were among the Top 10, and out of those 32, a record 14 were number 1 Hits. The numbers are impressive, but her longevity speaks for itself too.

Her first single Pon de Replay came out in 2005 and peaked at #2, while her most recent single, Lift Me Up came out in 2022, 17 years later, and peaked at the same position. Not many singers, male, female, or otherwise can boast such consistency.

Led Zeppelin is undoubtedly ranked high among the best-selling music artists of all time. This British four-piece changed the face of Rock music.

Each one of their 8 studio albums achieved at least a platinum certification in the UK, with their most successful album, Led Zeppelin IV achieving 6x Platinum status and 2x Diamond status in the US.

Speaking of Diamond, an unprecedented four of their albums (Led Zeppelin II, Led Zeppelin IV, Houses of the Holy, and Physical Graffiti) have achieved Diamond status in the United States. From a purely commercial standpoint, The Zep is untouchable in the realm of Hard Rock with maybe only AC/DC coming close.

However, what makes their achievement so amazing is that, much like the Beatles, they did this all within a decade. Bands that have existed 5 times as long haven't achieved a fraction of Zeppelin's success.

Madonna ranks high on the list of Highest Selling Artists Of All Time. There is a reason why she is called the Queen of Pop.

Over the course of her career, she has released 14 studio albums, and ten of them have achieved at least platinum status in the US. One of them, 1984's Like a Virgin even achieved Diamond Status.

Alongside albums, Madonna has a lot of hit singles too. She has charted over 57 songs on the Hot 100, and 38 of them have been Top 10 hits.

Among those 38, 12 have been number 1 hits, with one of then, 1994's Take A Bow retaining that position for 7 weeks. Despite being in her mid-60s Madonna is still releasing music and charting, both albums and singles.

Queen is a British Rock band known for their anthemic singles from the 1970s and 80s. They saw their most successful years led by the late Freddie Mercury.

Of the 15 studio albums they have released so far, they saw their greatest success with 1980's The Game, which topped both the UK and US charts and is certified 4x Platinum in the latter. Speaking of Platinum, 5 of their albums have gone Platinum in the US while 7 have done the same in the UK.

Their greatest success, however, is their single Bohemian Rhapsody which came out in 1975. This epic Rock opera with multiple parts and even a choir changed the face of mainstream music by achieving diamond status in the US, peaking at the charts in the UK, and reaching #2 in the States.

Though Mercury passed away in 1991, the band has kept at it, with American Idol Runner Up Adam Lambert acting as a singer since 2011.

Elton John is a perennial member of any best-selling artists list. Over the course of his long career, he has released over 31 albums.

4 of his albums have peaked atop the UK album charts and 6 of them have done the same in the US too. Many of his albums have regularly sold over a million copies and have been certified Platinum the world over.

Throughout his longevity, the Piano Man has regularly released hit after hit. According to Billboard, he has charted 71 songs on the Hot 100, and 29 of them have been Top 10 hits.

9 of them have peaked on the charts, with his 1997 single Candle in the Wind spending over 14 weeks atop the Billboard Hot 100. His most recent hit, Cold Heart (PNAU Remix) broke into the Top 10 in 2021, over 52 years after he released his debut album.

Michael Jackson is called the King of Pop for selling a staggering amount of albums. From Disco to R&B, the singer revolutionized music.

The crown jewel of Jackson's discography is his 1982 classic Thriller which has sold over 70 million copies worldwide. That's more than most musical acts will sell throughout their career.

Thriller remains the best-selling album of all time. Even Jackson's other albums in his adult career pulled numbers that many might think unachievable.

The same can be said for the singer's singles. Per Billboard, he has had over 13 number 1 hits on the Hot 100.

Elvis Presley is called the King of Rock for many of the same reasons as Michael Jackson got his moniker. Elvis is one of the highest-selling musical acts ever.

The American singer was among the first musicians to achieve the sort of status we now regularly see musicians hold. He sold millions of albums achieved hit after hit, and changed the game.

His first album, released in 1956, charted atop the charts in both the UK and the US. Over the course of his career, he would release 23 studio records, many of whom would achieve Platinum status.

Elvis is tied with Michael for the most #1 songs by a male artist, with 13 to his name.

The Beatles are the artists with the most albums sold. With multiple Platinum albums to their name, they are icons in the music industry.

All but 1 of the 12 albums they released in their discography have charted atop the UK album charts. Four among them have also peaked at the Billboard 200, with a further 14 albums from the US-only releases doing the same.

They also hold the record for most #1 songs on the Hot 100 with 20 #1 hits. 34 of their songs have reached the Top 10, while 71 have charted the Hot 100 altogether.

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