It might seem a little early to call (with 75 years still to go) but you can’t blame Billboard for stirring up a little mischief. And even retitled as ‘the greatest pop star of the last 25 years’, there’s still plenty of controversy to wring out of their call.
The accolade has been earned, “based on her full 25 years of influence, impact, evolution,” by Beyonce, and as far as facts and stats go she is indeed a force to be reckoned with.
We’re talking about 12 Billboard Hot 100 number ones and 10 Billboard album number ones (including two albums with Destiny’s Child). Her 2008 hit Single Ladies (Put A Ring On It), meanwhile, recently slid past that one billion views milestone on YouTube.
And do remember that that’s her second YouTube billion, after Halo hit the same impossible high in 2021.
Beyoncé holds the greatest amount of Grammy nominations and wins in the awards’ history and following her surprise switch in styles for 2024’s country vibed Cowboy Carter album she remains as valid as ever. Its lead off single, Texas Hold ‘Em, became her 12th US Billboard number one in March of 2024 - precisely (an incredible) 25 years since she did the same thing as part of Destiny’s Child with Say My Name.
“There aren’t a lot of obvious threads tying together Say My Name and Texas Hold ‘Em,” says Billboard. “They’re from different genres and different generations (obviously), with virtually no overlapping collaborators, themes or even promotional techniques. The only thing they have in common - besides, of course, their fantastic commercial success and top-level artistry – is the singer behind them, a performer and creator whose commitment to innovation, evolution and all-around excellence has made her the bar against which all other pop stars this century have long been measured.”
It’s testament to her continued reinvention and success that - here in 2024 - Beyoncé is the designated spectacle at the upcoming NFL Christmas day Halftime show (coming to a Netflix livestream near you).
Swift justice
However, there’s an Eras-powered elephant in this room and Billboard spends much of its article explaining why Taylor Swift - an artist with even more impressive numbers - didn’t get the top spot.
“Taylor has reached the level of pop star greatness – with the industry-shaking impact of her Taylor’s Version re-recordings and her Eras Tour, with the tremendous commercial achievements of Midnights and The Tortured Poets Department, with her unprecedented overall cultural ubiquity – that previously, only Beyoncé could really lay claim to over the past 25 years,” it admits.
And there’s more: “If you go by the sheer numbers, Taylor would easily top this list. Even with her late start, she has more number one albums and as many number one singles this century as Beyoncé. More pressingly, the statistical heights she’s reached are ones neither Bey nor any other artist this century can equal. She has seven million-selling first weeks, including for both 1989 and 1989 (Taylor’s Version), as well as an unthinkable 2.61 million for this year’s Poets; Bey has never moved a million units in a week."
Hmm…
“Poets and Cowboy Carter are both up for album of the year at the 2025 Grammys, but despite Beyoncé now being the most awarded artist in the show’s history, Taylor is going for her record-extending fifth [album of the year] win and Bey still her first. The Eras Tour numbers have not yet been officially reported to Billboard Boxscore, but the final grosses are expected to dwarf not only the Renaissance World Tour, but every other tour in music history.”
Ouch.
And needless to say Swifties have rounded on an article that kind of reads like it's saying: “Yeah, I know I’m wrong, but hear me out”.
“This is pathetic and should ACTUALLY be corrected. Who approved this list? First of all, yalls bs lists are always unbelievably inaccurate.” wrote one fan.
“She deserved #1 don’t even lie she is the biggest artist of all time not just of the century.” wrote another.
"Who has 4 AOTYs? Who broke all records? Who has the highest grossing tour of all time??? TAYLOR IS THE [NO. 1]” Try arguing with that…
But perhaps this post best sums up the fan’s ire and surprise.
A competition between Billboard’s top 3 “greatest pop stars” beyonce, taylor swift and rihanna: pic.twitter.com/neZtTGwTtsNovember 28, 2024
And, adding insult to injury, when revealing its results, Billboard’s video for Swift (who came in second on the list) included footage of a naked wax figure of the star, not from any of her own releases… But from her arch nemesis Kanye West's diss track, Famous.
“We are deeply sorry to Taylor Swift and all of our readers and viewers that in a video celebrating Swift’s achievements, we included a clip that falsely depicted her," Billboard apologised on X. “We have removed the clip from our video and sincerely regret the harm we caused with this error.”
But, despite the kerfuffle it looks like Billboard is likely to be sticking with its choice. And is probably enjoying the ruffled feathers.
“When you’re talking about greatness, and when you’re talking about greatness for the 21st century specifically, no one has a longer or fuller track record than Beyoncé,” it rounds out. “It is insanely impressive that Taylor has even made it a discussion after missing the whole first quarter of the period, but only Beyoncé has spent the entirety of the last 25 years exemplifying greatness in every form imaginable.
“She’s been Beyoncé for 25 years now, and as she continues to challenge herself (and by extension, the rest of the pop world) to find new and different ways to be [sic] define greatness, it doesn’t seem like she’s going to stop being Beyoncé anytime soon,” it says. “Better say her name."
