It's hard to believe that these albums are 10 years old. But more importantly, it's crazy how many these albums sold. This was the beginning of the end for albums consistently selling like crazy because Napster was looming and completely changed the music game.
To me, the biggest surprise of the 2000's was when Usher, Outkast and Norah Jones sold over 10 million copies of their albums. All it did was remind me of how our favorite (and not so favorite) artists used to do it in 1999-2000. You could pretty much go platinum easily if you had a monster hit like "Mambo No. 5."
To me, the biggest surprise of the 2000's was when Usher, Outkast and Norah Jones sold over 10 million copies of their albums. All it did was remind me of how our favorite (and not so favorite) artists used to do it in 1999-2000. You could pretty much go platinum easily if you had a monster hit like "Mambo No. 5."
It was the year of pop success that wouldn’t stop til 2001. Shania Twain, Backstreet Boys, Britney Spears, Limp Bizkit and Kid Rock were the faces of music. Again it boggles my mind that this year was 10 years ago. A lifetime ago when the record industry was in the middle of making its last stand and pop stars were seemingly made overnight.
It was the perfect storm of MTV’s “Total Request Live” blowing up and a year where people wanted to party. It was like everybody wanted to end the 20th century on top and pretty much, nearly everybody did.
Favorite 5 Albums of 1999
1. red hot chili peppers – californication
2. rage against the machine - battle of los angeles
3. mos def – black on both sides (Black Dante's Illmatic)
4. moby – play (changed the game with marketing despite no hit single until summer 2001)
5. the roots – things fall apart
* right at No. 6 - Dr. Dre 2001
Top Comebacks
1. Santana
2. TLC/RHCP
3. Dr. Dre
4. Slick Rick (Street Talkin was the joint)
5. Jordan Knight/Joey McIntyre (tie - all the New Kids fans came out the wood work for these two. Top 10 hits for both)
6. Stone Temple Pilots (“Sour Girl” is still one of my Top 5 STP joints)
Top debuts (besides the Mighty Mos Def)
1. Ja Rule (hip hop’s next big superstar)/Britney Spears (Queen of Pop til 2004)
2. Christina Aguilera (pop’s greatest voice since then)
3. Eminem
4. Dixie Chicks (country wouldn’t be the same)
5. Slipknot (brought some much needed edge to rock)
6. Ricky Martin (everyone was “Livin La Vida Loca” that summer)
*other notable debuts – Pharoahe Monch, Staind, Lil’ Wayne, Jessica Simpson, Q-Tip
Career-making Albums
1. Creed – Human Clay (hailed as the kings of rock before the backlash started)
2. DMX – And Then There Was X (the last No. 1 album of the century and believe it or not, the 2nd biggest 1st-week sales of the year behind the Backstreet Boys...just a reminder how HUGE this guy was and how far he's fallen.)
3. Limp Bizkit - Significant Other
4. Backstreet Boys – Millenium (hate to put a pop joint on here, but it signified the rise of pop taking over the radio and the biggest artists selling a million in their 1st week - everyone who sold a mil)
5. Blink 182 – Enema of the State (hello Travis Barker, hello pop charts, hello plenty of imitators)
6. Hot Boys – Guerrila Warfare (another key cog in Cash Money’s takeover)
7. Incubus – Make Yourself (possibly their best album and just like Moby, another 2-year build to greatness)
Great Albums that came through
Method Man & Redman “Blackout” (“Da RockWilder” is one of the best beats of the last 10 years)
Kurupt – Streetz is a Mutha (West Coast Classic)
Jimmy Eat World – Clarity
Jennifer Lopez – On the 6 (more on this in Flashback on Latin Pop)
Eve – Ruff Ryders 1st Lady (the last female rapper to debut with an impactful career – sorry Remy Ma, Scenario 2000 smashes most posse cuts since then)
ODB – N***a Please
Nine Inch Nails – The Fragile
311 – Soundsystem
Foo Fighters - There is Nothing Left to Lose
Metallica – S&M
Biggest American Flop: Robbie Williams. The biggest pop star in England tried to make a splash over here and after being signed to Capitol Records, he only went gold. Consider him the music version of soccer, everyone else loves him, we don’t (“Millenium” is a great pop song though)
* Of course that doesn’t includes Memphis Bleek, whose debut flopped in 1999 and he’d keep trying to make hits to no avail. If you couldn't sell during THIS time, is it any surprise he didn't sell this decade?
That's Flashback Friday, hope y'all enjoyed it!
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