Can’t stand him myself but surely if we’re talking “recent times” then Kanye would be right up there?
Music Best Solo Artist in Pop Music History
- Thread starter amolbhatia50k
- Start date
Michael Jackson.
I haven't listened alot to MJ and I m not sure if he wrote the songs (or at least some of them) or just performed them.
If his songwriting was a bit limited, then I would argue that he cannot be the best artist imo. Similarly, even though Elvis was a cultural phenomenon and his impact was huge, I would never have him as the best artist.
Anyway, Billy Joel maybe? John Lennon and Paul Mccartney have sold millions of records as solo artists too. Bob Dylan another one that I would include. Joni Mitchell was great but not so "popular".
If his songwriting was a bit limited, then I would argue that he cannot be the best artist imo. Similarly, even though Elvis was a cultural phenomenon and his impact was huge, I would never have him as the best artist.
Anyway, Billy Joel maybe? John Lennon and Paul Mccartney have sold millions of records as solo artists too. Bob Dylan another one that I would include. Joni Mitchell was great but not so "popular".
Bruno Mars by a distance.
This is unrivalled. Everyone wanted to be Michael here.
Oh for feck's sake.
I knew she'd get a mentionThink Rhianna is the biggest seller of the modern gaggle of female solo artists.
Are the likes of Rihanna, Beyonce and Taylor Swift really bigger than Whitney Houston? Just asking, as I haven't seen her mentioned yet.
Tom Petty.
Are we talking entertainer along with songwriting & vocal skills or just performer? MJ is arguably the best performer and he wrote some of his songs but didn't play any instruments like Prince or Stevie Wonder. I do love him though. Bille Jean is one of my favorite songs and I think he wrote that.
Who is the next MJ ? Is there anyone who can come close with the exception of Bruno ?
Are we talking entertainer along with songwriting & vocal skills or just performer? MJ is arguably the best performer and he wrote some of his songs but didn't play any instruments like Prince or Stevie Wonder. I do love him though. Bille Jean is one of my favorite songs and I think he wrote that.
Who is the next MJ ? Is there anyone who can come close with the exception of Bruno ?
Whitney could actually sing. She was a brilliant singer.
Only because Beyonce hasn't updated her RIAA certification in over 10 years - for example Crazy in Love is only certified 'Gold' but sold 500k in 2019 alone.
When she does (if she does) her sales will be well above 400/500 million.
Had to google Bruno Mars to see why he keeps getting referenced. Four UK number one singles in total. All in the same six month period. None of them lasted more than a week at the top. Is his name being mentioned as a joke?
Whitney is in a whole other league. All these booty shaking divas can never touch her.
He's far better than the likes of Beyonce. I think he writes, plays instruments and seems to be able to move his body.
Don't think so
MJ
Is that right? Says 4x Platinum in the UK & US on wiki - 11 million worldwide
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dangerously_in_Love
Given best is subjective, I'd guess my favourites are:
James Brown (if he counts)
Prince
PJ Harvey
Leonard Cohen
Miles Davis
Joanna Newsom
Nick Cave (if he counts)
Kate Bush
Rosetta Tharpe
David Bowie
Lou Reed
Clearly none of these are even close to most successful or biggest selling (not Prince & Bowie) but they are the "best" to my mind, at least today.
James Brown (if he counts)
Prince
PJ Harvey
Leonard Cohen
Miles Davis
Joanna Newsom
Nick Cave (if he counts)
Kate Bush
Rosetta Tharpe
David Bowie
Lou Reed
Clearly none of these are even close to most successful or biggest selling (not Prince & Bowie) but they are the "best" to my mind, at least today.
That's subjective. She very much had the undulating note addition thing that became very prevalent in the US in the 80s. I'd say her aunt (Dionne Warwick), so called Aunt (Aretha Franklin) and God Mother (Darlene Love) were all considerably better singers. Whitney would, literally, have me turning the radio off.
Lots of great solo artists weren't really pop acts but had hits. Does that make them pop acts?
As talented as Prince was, I don't think he came close to matching someone like Sly Stone in terms of quality (and probably even influence). Then there's the other pop-adjacent geniuses like Bowie, Dylan, Joni Mitchell, Neil Young, Marvin Gaye, Stevie Wonder, Kate Bush. For me they're all better song writers than either Prince or Michael Jackson. If that even counts against units sold.
As talented as Prince was, I don't think he came close to matching someone like Sly Stone in terms of quality (and probably even influence). Then there's the other pop-adjacent geniuses like Bowie, Dylan, Joni Mitchell, Neil Young, Marvin Gaye, Stevie Wonder, Kate Bush. For me they're all better song writers than either Prince or Michael Jackson. If that even counts against units sold.
From what i read Michael Jackson came up with the tunes to most of his good songs. He would tell the engineers or musicians the kind of sound he wanted. I am unsure of the terminology, but he did not write the notes for his songs, but he had the way he wanted the song to sound in his head.
Yes, it's correct - she's been at 150-170m records sold since about 2009 because her record company can't afford to pay for all of her certifications and she doesn't care about it either. Wikipedia only shows certified sales.
Only person to match Michael Jackson in highest number of number one singles off of an album is Katy Perry - ‘Bad’ & ‘Teenage Dream’ both had five each.
Slight gulf in quality & overall impact between both.
Slight gulf in quality & overall impact between both.
I would also like to include Norah Jones in this discussion.
Aretha yes. Dionne was awful, though. Whitney on the other had great control of her voice...she was showing off in that Bodyguard song... she was technically great. And I'll get slated but it's not actually that subjective, some pop stars can't sing, now that doesnt mean they're voices can't be well liked - now that is subjective. Christ, listening to Elvis is bloody painful...
Now he was like silk.
Not all about chart positions in my opinion. Bruno is an all-round entertainer that can sing, write, produce, dance, play instruments. The whole package.
Not many out there in the mainstream world that can do that and do each one well!
Tay Swizzle
Is it actually documented anywhere as I can't find any information about it online beyond forum chats?
Elvis, 30 number 1 hits, a load of which people all over the world could sing and have in their own right become almost slang. How many times have you heard someone tell you not to step on their blue suede shoes?
Devil in disguise, hound dog, blue suede shoes, burning love, suspicious minds, can't help falling in love. Instantly recognisable too.
And a redcafe member...
Devil in disguise, hound dog, blue suede shoes, burning love, suspicious minds, can't help falling in love. Instantly recognisable too.
And a redcafe member...
He might not be number one, but Donovan deserves to be mentioned, too.
Not really sure what documentation you're looking for but It's a pretty well known fact in the music industry, it just doesn't get spoken about and she doesn't care about sales.
You can do the math yourself and see that it doesn't add up, for example - her self-titled album sold 1 million physical copies in the first 6 days worldwide, and has apparently only sold a further 4 million (in both streams & physical) in the 8 years since then. Likewise Lemonade has apparently sold 2.5 million worldwide, despite having songs on it which have gone 4x, 5x platinum by themselves.
The only way to keep track would be to find the periodical sales numbers that billboard (even then Billboard is only for the US, not worldwide) releases every now and then, and add it up methodically that way and you'll see that she's long since broken the 170m barrier. She's not the only one, Janet hasn't been re-certified in a number of years too and typically when artists pass away they don't get re-certified that often either.
Do you remember where you read this?
EDIT: Because it's the complete opposite. If you said that to someone inclined to be rude to you, they'd insult/laugh at you.
https://www.nme.com/blogs/nme-blogs/the-incredible-way-michael-jackson-wrote-music-16799
Quickest one I could find. On youtube there are videos of legendary session musicians talking about this. How he would sing them their entire part for a particular song, then move onto the next instrument and so on.
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He didn't write any of those songs though, a lot of his hits are covers.
Prince, by some distance. Genius songwriter and one of the best guitar players of all time.
Mike Oldfield is a genius. Greatest solo artist for me. His opus gives me immense pleasure. Variety of genres though, not just pop.
Pitbull
Terrible songs though.