L.A. Times Releases Decade’s Ultimate Top 10 Recording Artists
Monday, February 22nd, 2010The L.A. Times released the top artists of 2000-2009. The numbers were calculated based on album sales and concert tickets. Celine Dion’s stint in Las Vegas was huge for her ticket sales and propelled her to the top of the list. If that trend holds, look for Garth Brooks to top this list in 2020.
The Ultimate Top 10 of the Decade:
1. Celine Dion (tickets), $747.9 million. Dion pulled in $522.2 million in concert-ticket sales for the decade. Adding $225.7 million worth of album sales during those same 10 years.
2. Kenny Chesney (tickets), $742 million. His total includes $455.6 million in concert ticket sales and $286.4 million in album revenue.
3. Dave Matthews Band (tickets), $737.4 million. Matthews’ decade concert total of $529.1 million put him first on the list of top North American live music attractions of the decade, as calculated by the concert-tracking publication Pollstar. The band posted $208.3 million in album sales.
4. The Beatles, $627.3 million. Although the quartet disbanded 30 years before the decade began, the Beatles still managed to generate $392.3 million from sales of 30.2 million albums (using an average of $13 per album). The $627.3 million includes ex-Beatle Paul McCartney ($221.4 million) and Ringo Starr ($13.6 million), given that their concert audiences consist in large part of Beatles fans. The Fab Four also logged the single bestselling album of the decade, the “1″ hits collection, with 11.5 million copies.
5. U2 (tickets), $609.7 million. The Irish rock quartet brought in $391 million at the box office and $218.7 million in album sales.
6. Toby Keith (tickets), $591.9 million. The second of three country acts in the Top 10, the Oklahoma singer and songwriter logged $273.8 million on the concert trail, $318.1 million from album sales.
7. Bruce Springsteen, $588.3 million. On the road, both with the E Street Band and his various non-E Street tours, the Boss brought in $444.3 million. His album take: $144 million.
8. The Rolling Stones, $569.6 million. The Stones also benefited heavily from touring, earning $426.9 million at the box office in addition to $142.7 million in album sales. Rolling Stones tickets
9. Tim McGraw (tickets), $550.7 million. Strictly as a solo act, the country singer-songwriter ranks No. 14 on the list. But he toured several times with his wife, Faith Hill, during the decade. California being a community property state, we are awarding him half the revenue those outings generated. So his total includes $322 million in album sales, $133.7 million from his own tours and $95 million for his half of the McGraw-Hill shows.
10. Britney Spears, $494.3 million. Despite a rocky decade personally and professionally, Spears pulled in $195.7 million at the box office and sold $298.6 million worth of albums for the 10-year period.
The L.A. Times created the same list for artists in 2009. Here is the list. Check the L.A. Times for the details.
- U2 — $137.3 million ($123 million box office, $14.3 million albums). U2 tickets
- Springsteen — $102 million ($94.5 million box office, $7.5 million in albums)
- Michael Jackson — $100 million in album revenue
- Brittney Spears — $89.5 million ($82.5 million in concert ticket sales and $7 million in album revenue)
- Elton John/Billy Joel — $88 million at the box office Elton John/Billy Joel tickets
- AC/DC — $83.8 million ($77.9 million in concert tickets, $5.9 million in album sales). AC/DC tickets
- Taylor Swift — $83.2 million ($25.5 million at the box office, $57.7 million in album sales). Taylor Swift tickets
- Kenny Chesney — $81 million ($71.1 million in concert, $9.9 million in album sales). Kenny Chesney tickets
- Jonas Brothers — $77.9 million ($69.8 million in concert revenue, $8.1 million in album sales) Jonas Brothers tickets
- Dave Matthews Band — $69.8 million ($56.9 million in concert tickets, $12.9 million in album sales). Dave Matthews Band tickets
Christian
