USA: Top Selling Female Artists According To RIAA
Sun, Jul 1, 2012
According to The Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) Mariah Carey is the third best selling female artist in American history:
1. Barbra Streisand 71.5 x Platinum
2. Madonna 64 x Platinum
3. Mariah Carey 63.5 x Platinum
4. Whitney Houston 57 x Platinum
5. Celine Dion 50 x Platinum
6. Shania Twain 48 x Platinum
7. Reba McEntire 41 x Platinum
8. Britney Spears 34 x Platinum
9. Linda Ronstadt 30 x Platinum
10. Enya 26.5 x Platinum
Source: Mariah Connection | Thanks to Chart News via Twitter
June 30th, 2012 at 3:47 am
June 30th, 2012 at 4:42 am
Soon enough MC will go up to number 2 with the release of her new album. SO SURE!
June 30th, 2012 at 4:46 am
And if the upcoming album will be as sucessful as TEOM, she might even surpassed Barbra.
June 30th, 2012 at 7:43 am
Mariah is short of the No.2 by nothing more than bigger opening week. C’mon Lambs we need to send old nipple in history.
June 30th, 2012 at 8:25 am
Mariah is very nearly second! Pretty impressive to say Madonna started long before her.
June 30th, 2012 at 8:31 am
I can’t wait for that to happen!!!
June 30th, 2012 at 11:23 am
I don’t think it’ll take Mariah that long to pass both Madonna and Barbara. I wonder why people don’t call Mariah the queen of R&B seeing as she is the most successful R&B singer in history
June 30th, 2012 at 11:29 am
Darnell, I am thinking the same thing but maybe because Mariah started out in pop until Butterfly or at least until Daydream.
June 30th, 2012 at 11:37 am
If more people had supported Memoirs & MCIIYou, then Mariah would have surpassed Madonna in RIAA certs, so lambs are also partially to blame.
June 30th, 2012 at 11:41 am
The title is also a bit misleading: RIAA certifies shipments, not sales. Soundscan handles over the counter sales. It would be more accurate to say Top Certified Female Artists when referring to the RIAA.
June 30th, 2012 at 12:24 pm
Joe,,
Soundscan lists Mariah as the top selling FEMALE artist, 3rd overall.
June 30th, 2012 at 12:40 pm
Joe,
I think the Lambs have done a very good job in placing Mariah over there. To think that she is in competition with Barbra who started like 2 decades earlier. And her stat difference with Madonna is only .5 considering that Madonna started a decade ealier. So KUDOS to all the lambs in the land……. TOAST, BRAVO!
June 30th, 2012 at 12:40 pm
MNC-
Correct. You got my point. Since May 1991, which is the start of the Soundscan era, Mariah is the top SELLING female. But at the RIAA, MC is the 3rd most CERTIFIED female for shipments. These are 2 different things.
June 30th, 2012 at 12:43 pm
Rude Boy-
I wasn’t picking a fight. I was just clarifying the difference. Please don’t pick a fight. It is true that some lambs did not support Memoirs and MCIIYou. I’m not making this up. Had more lambs done so, then she’d have passed Madonna. This is fact. Please don’t try to pick a fight with me for sharing realities
June 30th, 2012 at 12:51 pm
Rudeboy is always trying to pick a fight with someone. then he likes to play all innocent and it’s always your fault.
Oh and RudeLITTLEBOY Babs Career started in the early 1960′s so it’s 3 DECADES DAHHHHHHHHHLING..
June 30th, 2012 at 12:58 pm
JOE–
Umm CORRECTION!! THE TRUE ”LAMBS” Are the reason
Memoirs Going Gold
MC2U–Going Gold.
the general public was checking for MC on any of those albums..
the general public jumped off the train back in 08 with E=MC2.
the Lambs can only do so much. I swear some of you always want Mariah to SELL,SELL,SELL you need to realize MC is 40+ she’ll be LUCKY if she even goes platnium in this new market and thats being REAL.
June 30th, 2012 at 1:03 pm
Giselle-
I do see your point. It is accurate to say the hardcore lambs ARE the reason Memoirs & MCIIY went Gold, so I stand corrected there.
However, it remains to be seen if being 42 will hamper her chances beyond Gold. I do agree A LOT of fans dropped MC after E=MC2
June 30th, 2012 at 2:49 pm
I see everyone’s point, but is it really that surprising that Memoirs sold as much as it did? It’s not exactly her best work. The Dream was more or less the only person she worked with on all the original songs. Truth be told, I actually found it to be her most boring album.
But that doesn’t really matter. Sales aren’t everything.
June 30th, 2012 at 3:00 pm
Bianca-
I agree. I think Mariah has learned a painful lesson from Memoirs. It wasn’t a Mariah album as much as it was The Dream’s album.
June 30th, 2012 at 8:46 pm
actually the lambs can’t be entirely blamed, the label did nothing much to promote Memoirs, they focused so much on the other, less talented if not untalented female “artists” than to focus on Memoir’s promo and single selection. Even her videos for that era were kinda slip shod.
Rude boy is right, Mariah is 2 decades behind Barbara, 1 decade behind Madonna, Whitney and Celine and her position on that list is IMPECCABLE imo. The new album will bring her higher than Madonna and if it is as successful as TEOM, w songs from Daydream, Butterfly, TEOM, E=MC2, I think she will move to #1 on that list.
P.S. Love that more lambs are using the comments section here. The interaction is A+mazing : )
June 30th, 2012 at 11:17 pm
It’s true that sales aren’t everything but to me it is very important. Most album and single buyers purchase CDs and/or songs because they’re popular. High sales also generate great publicity due to things like surpassing/setting chart records, extending chart records leads, comparison to great albums from the past, etc. Great sales will also further cement MC’s name as one of the top selling artists of our time, her “Legend” status, etc. Also, the things that I would love the most, high sales would shut up many haters, if they hate then they would hate out of jealousy, I so hate it when people call Mariah a “has been” or a “flop”, if MC’s new album becomes mega successful, it would be the best slap on the face to those who hate her. I’m not trying to be the wise gut here, apparently, these are just simple thoughts and all the lambs here surely knows this. Just an opinion Lambies.
July 1st, 2012 at 2:58 am
Bianca
I agree, Memoirs wasn’t her best album. Way to many slow jams. The Dream is a hit or miss producer whose own albums don’t sell much. I don’t know why MC did awhole album with him. He’s only really had that ‘magic” with Beyonce. “obsessed, Touch my body, Up out my face” I think are the exception I love these songs.
July 1st, 2012 at 4:23 am
Can people not count? Barbra started in the 60s, so she is 3 decades ahead of Mariah, not 2. Mariah, lambs and the label are ALL collectively responsible for the Memoirs flop.
July 1st, 2012 at 6:26 am
Joe, I was not trying to pick a fight. please be clear with that. I just negated your opinion by my own opinion coz I got mine too. I didn’t say you are wrong that’s why I started my comment with “I think”. Now if you want a real fight let’s do it.
July 1st, 2012 at 7:29 am
people can’t count.
even when i pointed out it’s 3 DECADES
A idiot/Lamb-wolf says he’s right with 2 decades lol.
Mariah–1990
Barbara–1960
THAT’S 3 DECADES Mariah didn’t come out in the 1980′s.
July 1st, 2012 at 7:32 am
The Top 5 is incredible.
Minus Celine(She didn’t chart in THE US Till 1990) and Mariah who came out in 1990.
the other 3 came out 3 and 1 decade before Mariah and Celine. Mariah and Celine should be proud.
July 1st, 2012 at 10:35 am
To be precise, Barbra started her career in 1963. So yeah it’s almost 3 decades ahead of Mariah but that’s not actually the argument here instead, it’s Mariah’s incredible feat competing with artists like Barbra who came long way before her. Ok it’s 3 decades, so wow that would make Mariah’s career even sweeter and more awesome. Isnt it lambs?