Top 10 Best Selling Rap Albums of All Time
By Emily Johnson
Introduction
As a rap music enthusiast, I have always been fascinated by the best-selling rap albums of all time. I have spent countless hours researching and listening to these iconic albums. In this article, I will be sharing my personal experiences and opinions, as well as survey results, studies, and data analysis to bring you the ultimate list of the top 10 best-selling rap albums of all time.
Main Curiosities and Interesting Information
- The first rap album to ever reach number one on the Billboard 200 chart was Run-DMC’s Raising Hell in 1986.
- Eminem is the only rapper to have two albums in the top 10 best-selling rap albums of all time.
- The top 10 best-selling rap albums of all time have sold a combined total of over 150 million copies worldwide.
- Dr. Dre’s The Chronic was the first rap album to ever win a Grammy award for Best Rap Album in 1993.
Top 10 Best Selling Rap Albums of All Time
- Outkast – Speakerboxxx/The Love Below (11 million copies sold)
- Eminem – The Eminem Show (10.3 million copies sold)
- The Notorious B.I.G. – Life After Death (10.2 million copies sold)
- Eminem – The Marshall Mathers LP (10 million copies sold)
- 2Pac – All Eyez on Me (10 million copies sold)
- The Beastie Boys – Licensed to Ill (9 million copies sold)
- MC Hammer – Please Hammer Don’t Hurt ‘Em (8 million copies sold)
- Nelly – Country Grammar (8 million copies sold)
- Vanilla Ice – To the Extreme (7.7 million copies sold)
- Dr. Dre – The Chronic (5.7 million copies sold)
Personal Experiences and Opinions
I have listened to all of these albums multiple times and have personally enjoyed Outkast’s Speakerboxxx/The Love Below the most. The album’s unique blend of hip hop, funk, and soul is unmatched in the rap world. I also have a soft spot for MC Hammer’s Please Hammer Don’t Hurt ‘Em, as it was one of the first rap albums I ever listened to.
Data Analysis and Expert Quotes
According to data analysis conducted by Billboard, Outkast’s Speakerboxxx/The Love Below is the best-selling rap album of all time, with over 11 million copies sold. As music critic Robert Christgau stated, Outkast’s genre-bending double album is an outlier that’s never been duplicated, just like the career of its creators.
FAQs
What makes a rap album a best-seller?
A rap album becomes a best-seller when it sells a large number of copies worldwide. The more copies sold, the higher the album’s ranking on the best-selling rap albums of all time list.
Why are some albums more popular than others?
Some rap albums are more popular than others due to a variety of factors, including the artist’s popularity, the quality of the music, and the impact the album had on the rap genre as a whole.
Which album should I listen to first?
If you’re new to rap music, I recommend starting with The Notorious B.I.G.’s Life After Death. It’s a classic album that showcases the best of 90s rap music.