Updated Numbers Show Eminem Remains Highest Selling Rapper Of All Time

Way ahead of any possible competition you can imagine, Eminem holds the title of the best selling rapper in the world.

Recently, Forbes updated its infamous list of the Top 50 best rappers. They placed Jay-Z at No.1 and Eminem at No.10, starting the entry about Marshall with “It’s hard to talk about the rap game today without mention of Eminem”. They did try hard, though, and managed to put him at the bottom of the Top 10 ranked by “critical acclaim, cultural influence, album sales, innovation in the genre and more”.

Meanwhile, at the end of the article was tucked the list of rappers ranked by their selling figures. And there, Eminem came first, with a gap between him and the second best, as big as the lifetime sales of some artists on the list.

1. Eminem: 61.5 million albums sold
2. Tupac: 36.5 million
3. Jay-Z: 33.5 million
4. Drake: 33.5 million
5. Kanye West: 27.5 million
6. Lil Wayne: 25 million
7. Beastie Boys: 23 million
8. Outkast: 23 million

Mind you, these figures were sourced from the Recording Industry Association of America. This means they were updated for other artists, not for Eminem, whose most recent mass update occurred in March 2022. Em’s sales have risen since then, two years down the line. Yet, his unassailable dominance remains.

“The Eminem Show” Certified 18x Platinum in Australia, One of Many New Certifications

The Australian Recording Industry Association (ARIA) just dropped their latest certifications lists, and Eminem is sitting pretty at the top.

The crown jewel of this achievement is “The Eminem Show”. This iconic album has not only achieved 18x platinum certification but has also become the highest-selling album of this century in Australia, moving over 1.26 million units. Just a reminder: platinum in Australia means 70,000 units sold – so do the math, that’s a massive achievement.

When it comes to singles, Eminem goes even harder on accreditations, as they called it down under. Tracks like “Lose Yourself” (20x platinum), “Love The Way You Lie” (18x platinum), and “Without Me” (17x platinum) have achieved (and surpassed) diamond-level success in Australia.

Here is the complete list of Eminem’s new accreditations in Australia:

Albums

The Eminem Show — 18x platinum
Encore — 8x platinum
Slim Shady LP — 8x platinum
Marshall Mathers LP — 7x platinum
Recovery — 5x platinum
The Marshall Mathers LP2 — 3x platinum

 

Eminem Presents: The Re-Up — platinumSingles

Lose Yourself — 20x platinum
Love The Way You Lie — 18x platinum
Without Me — 17x platinum
Not Afraid — 11x platinum
The Monster — 11x platinum
The Real Slim Shady — 11x platinum
Mockingbird — 9x platinum
Stan — 9x platinum
‘Till I Collapse — 9x platinum

These certifications are a clear indicator of Eminem’s undeniable influence in Australia. From classic albums like “The Eminem Show” to smash hits like “Lose Yourself”, his music continues to be important for the fans on both sides of the globe.

Eminem — “Houdini” Sold More in One Week Than Any Other 2024 Rap Song

2024 was not the best year for hip hop so far, so Eminem is back to show how it’s done.

Overall, only six songs sold over 500 units in one week this year. We are talking across all genres, not just hip hop. These genres are, more specifically, girl pop, country, hip hop, and a genre-bending TikTok sensation, for lack of a better word.

“Houdini”, with 534,000 units sold in its first week, is the third song on this ranking, right behind two Post Malone collaborations (with Taylor Swift and with Morgan Wallen). It is rated above “Million Dollar Baby” and “Please Please Please”. Kendrick Lamar’s “Not Like Us” closes the list with 510,000 units moved in one week. That’s it. No other songs managed to sell over half a million units in a week since the beginning of 2024.

1. Taylor Swift — “Fortnight” (feat. Post Malone) 755 thousand
2. Post Malone & Morgan Wallen — “I Had Some Help” 633 thousand
3. Eminem — “Houdini” 534 thousand
4. Tommy Richman — “Million Dollar Baby” 534 thousand
5. Sabrina Carpenter — “Please Please Please” 520 thousand
6. Kendrick Lamar — “Not Like Us” 510 thousand