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Nonsense as in that we produce the highest-grossing films, have the most billionaires and are home to some of the most well known celebrities in the world?
What good is all this doing the majority of US residents? Why is the economy STILL in the toilet if the US is so popular and so great?
According wiki (I know, I know ) The top selling artists of 250 million records of all time are in order
The Beatles U.K.
Elvis Presley U.S.
Michael Jackson U.S.
Madonna U.S.
Led Zeplin U.K.
Elton John U.K.
Pink Floyd U.K.
Of course you have to take into consideration how long someone performed etc. The list goes on with others who sell less than 250 million, but I wonder how fair it is to compare performers who lived in a time when people actually bought records and didn't " steal " them on downloads?
One thing to consider is that numbers for artists in developing countries, especially for those of the past, didn't really have good mechanisms for keeping track of sales. There were international superstars from India and earlier films from Hong Kong and Taiwan that sold incredibly well in much of south asia, east asia, southeast asia and subsaharan africa that are or were well known but with fairly little exposure in developed countries whose sales numbers are hard to figure out.
One thing to consider is that numbers for artists in developing countries, especially for those of the past, didn't really have good mechanisms for keeping track of sales. There were international superstars from India and earlier films from Hong Kong and Taiwan that sold incredibly well in much of south asia, east asia, southeast asia and subsaharan africa that are or were well known but with fairly little exposure in developed countries whose sales numbers are hard to figure out.
I think the U.S economy is on the up and up though - and with the rather delicate nature of the global economy as a whole - I'm not sure why anyone would be wanting to throw stones in such glass houses.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Ruth4Truth
What good is all this doing the majority of US residents? Why is the economy STILL in the toilet if the US is so popular and so great?
According wiki (I know, I know ) The top selling artists of 250 million records of all time are in order
The Beatles U.K.
Elvis Presley U.S.
Michael Jackson U.S.
Madonna U.S.
Led Zeplin U.K.
Elton John U.K.
Pink Floyd U.K.
Of course you have to take into consideration how long someone performed etc. The list goes on with others who sell less than 250 million, but I wonder how fair it is to compare performers who lived in a time when people actually bought records and didn't " steal " them on downloads?
Last time I checked, Wiki had the sales of the Beatles and Elvis at around 1 billion and MJ at 750 million, which is of course WAY inflated for all three. The numbers they have now (claimed sales of 600 million, 500-600 million and 300-400 million respectively) are a bit more realistic. The certified sales are a lot lower. I do take these statistics with a grain of salt because back in the 1950s and 60s it was a lot harder to track sales and a lot of certifications need updating.
You need to take into consideration not only how long someone performed, but also how many albums they released and how many of these were double-discs (which count as two single units). The most-selling artist is not necessarily the best-selling artist.
For the person who claimed Elvis was a bigger global icon than MJ (lol), these stats might be interesting
Elvis
Total available certified units: 203.2 million
US: 188.1 million[6]
JPN: 200,000[Notes][30]
UK: 6 million[Notes][9]
GER: 1.2 million[Notes][10]
FRA: 2.4 million[Notes][11]
AUS: 1.1 million[Notes][14]
CAN: 2.9 million[Notes][15]
BRA: 125,000[Notes][16]
SWE 380,000[Notes][17]
SPA: 300,000[Notes][18][31][32]
SWI: 135,000[Notes][20]
AUT: 165,000[Notes][23]
FIN: 213,945[Notes][33]
Last time I checked, Wiki had the sales of the Beatles and Elvis at around 1 billion and MJ at 750 million, which is of course WAY inflated for all three. The numbers they have now (claimed sales of 600 million, 500-600 million and 300-400 million respectively) are a bit more realistic. The certified sales are a lot lower. I do take these statistics with a grain of salt because back in the 1950s and 60s it was a lot harder to track sales and a lot of certifications need updating.
You need to take into consideration not only how long someone performed, but also how many albums they released and how many of these were double-discs (which count as two single units). The most-selling artist is not necessarily the best-selling artist.
For the person who claimed Elvis was a bigger global icon than MJ (lol), these stats might be interesting
Elvis
Total available certified units: 203.2 million
US: 188.1 million[6]
JPN: 200,000[Notes][30]
UK: 6 million[Notes][9]
GER: 1.2 million[Notes][10]
FRA: 2.4 million[Notes][11]
AUS: 1.1 million[Notes][14]
CAN: 2.9 million[Notes][15]
BRA: 125,000[Notes][16]
SWE 380,000[Notes][17]
SPA: 300,000[Notes][18][31][32]
SWI: 135,000[Notes][20]
AUT: 165,000[Notes][23]
FIN: 213,945[Notes][33]
and in the end the argument over U.S. domination or U.K. domination etc is all really silly. Can't we all just enjoy these artists without it having to be a competition?
One thing to consider is that numbers for artists in developing countries, especially for those of the past, didn't really have good mechanisms for keeping track of sales. There were international superstars from India and earlier films from Hong Kong and Taiwan that sold incredibly well in much of south asia, east asia, southeast asia and subsaharan africa that are or were well known but with fairly little exposure in developed countries whose sales numbers are hard to figure out.
Yes, and illegal downloading is a big problem in a lot of countries as well, notably China. You can't rely just on record sales to measure the popularity of an artist in those countries.
and in the end the argument over U.S. domination or U.K. domination etc is all really silly. Can't we all just enjoy these artists without it having to be a competition?
I missed this post.
Yes, I totally agree with you. I think this competition between artists is so silly and childish. I appreciate MJ, Prince and Stevie Wonder all the same. They each have their own qualities. I don't feel the need to put one of them down to make the other seem better. I've never understood why fans should have an exclusive devotion to one artist. There is so much great music out there. I don't care about where an artist comes from, what they look like, how old their music is or what genre it is. Good music transcends all of that.
Also, record sales are not everything. It doesn't automatically make one artist 'better' than the other. I can think of quite a few female singers I prefer over Mariah, Whitney, Celine and Barbara Streisand, even though they didn't sell half as much.
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