Not since the heights reached by Missy Elliott and Lauryn Hill has a female Rapper enjoy sales that see her go to to toe-and at times outsell- her Pop star contemporaries.
This time around, that female Rapper is none other than ‘Envy’ maestra Nicki Minaj whose debut album ‘Pink Friday‘ continues to solidify her time atop her field even three years after release.
For, with 3.8 million units worldwide, the album is now officially one of the highest selling albums of the decade- celebrated in a tally which showcases US sales moved since 2010.
Of course, while this decade has seven years to go before it ends, the list below tells many an interesting tale and – in Nicki‘s case- explain why the likes of Pepsi, MAC and Fox have all been so eager to nab a piece of her commercial pie.
Check it out below…
1. Adele – 21 – 10,689,000
2. Eminem – Recovery – 4,460,000
3. Taylor Swift – Speak Now – 4,353,000
4. Lady Antebellum – Need You Now – 4,010,000
5. Taylor Swift – Red – 3,750,000
6. Justin Bieber – My World 2.0 – 3,290,000
7. Michael Buble – Christmas – 3,078,000
8. Mumford & Sons – Sigh No More – 2,958,000
9. Jason Aldean – My Kinda Party – 2,955,000
10. Katy Perry – Teenage Dream – 2,736,000
11. Mumford & Sons – Babel – 2,375,000
12. Lil Wayne – Tha Carta IV – 2,296,000
13. Lady Gaga – Born this Way – 2,293,000
14. Susan Boyle – The Gift – 2,148,000
15. Lady Gaga – The Fame – 2,133,000
16. Justin Timberlake – The 20/20 Experience – 2,099,000
17. Luke Bryan – Tailgates & Tanlines – 2,065,000
18. Drake – Take Care – 2,042,000
19. Bruno Mars – Doo-Wops Hooligans – 2,031,000
20. Nicki Minaj – Pink Friday – 1,895,000
21. Lady Antebellum – Own the Night – 1,845,000
22. One Direction – Up All Night – 1,808,000
23. Adele – 19 – 1,760,000
24. Rihanna – Loud – 1,746,000
25. Zac Brown Band – You Get What You Give – 1,735,000
26. Zac Brown Band – The Foundation – 1,726,000
27. One Direction – Take Me Home – 1,720,000
28. Drake – Thank Me Later – 1,681,000
29. Pink – The Truth About Love – 1,657,000
30. Eric Church – Chief – 1,599,000
31. Jay-Z & Kanye West – Watch the Throne – 1,573,000
32. Coldplay – Mylo Xyloto – 1,559,000
33. Bruno Mars – Unorthodox Jukebox – 1,528,000
34. Band Perry – The Band Perry – 1,523,000
35. Justin Bieber – Believe – 1,520,000
36. Carrie Underwood – Blown Away – 1,495,000
37. Black Eyed Peas – The E.N.D. – 1,455,000
38. fun. – Some Nights – 1,430,000
39. Taylor Swift – Fearless – 1,425,000
40. Ke$ha – Animal – 1,423,000
41. Justin Bieber – Under the Mistletoe – 1,421,000
42. Maroon 5 – Overexposed – 1,414,000
43. Sade – Soldier of Love – 1,384,000
44. Lumineers – The Lumineers – 1,369,000
45. Beyonce – 4 – 1,354,000
46. Kanye West – My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy – 1,351,000
47. Jason Aldean – Night Train – 1,350,000
48. Justin Bieber – My World (EP) – 1,329,000
49. Maroon 5 – Hands All Over – 1,328,000
50. Black Keys – El Camino – 1,325,000
Kudos to Justin Timberlake’s ‘The 20/20 Experience’ who made it #16 less than a year after its release.
Of course, the biggest congratulations goes to Adele’s ‘21′ and its continued winning streak, and here’s to the coming years seeing this decade spawn more albums akin to it on all fronts.
With the above in mind, we know we’re not the only ones hoping Beyonce has serious plans in place to dominate this tally in the years to come with what many hope will be her strongest era to date, following the 2 million units worldwide she now enjoys with ‘4’.
Side note: Who else was mind blown to learn how many units GaGa’s ‘The Fame’ had sold in the last two years…five years removed from its debut?