The Top Music Artists Of The 90s

Madonna #3 Pop Artist of the 90's
Madonna #3 Pop Artist of the 90’s

Do you know how your favorite artists from 1990-1999 fared on the music charts? Do you know which song holds the longevity title? The decade of the nineties closed out the century with a bang just be fore we moved into a new century with lots of new faces coming on the musical scene like Shania Twain, Timbaland, Pearl Jam, Britney Spears, Jennifer Lopez, TLC, Brian McKnight, Enrique Iglesias, Tony Braxton and Faith Hill just to name a few. Each of these artists charted hits in this decade. This is where the top 50 artists 1990-1999 can help you to know which of these artists were the most popular.

There were over 600 artists that released a single on the Hot 100 charts in this era. The entire decade produced 145 #1 songs. The year of 1991 had the most #1 hits with 27. The year 1997, had the most charted singles with 432. There were a total of 3,865 songs that made the charts from 1990-1999. Check out the top 100 songs of the 90’s to see how your favorite song did.

The song “How Do I Live” recorded by LeAnn Rimes and released in 1997, was on the charts for 69 weeks and holds the longevity title for this decade. The song of the decade was “One Sweet Day” by Mariah Carey & Boyz II Men staying on the top of the charts for 16 weeks, a record.

Ranking System For Top 50 Artists

Mariah Carey #1 Pop Artist of the 90's
Mariah Carey #1 Pop Artist of the 90’s

To determine the top 50 artists, a point system was used that would be fair to all artists that charted singles from 1990-1999. The point system used is as follows:

  1. The highest chart position reached on the Hot 100, Hot 100 Airplay or Bubbling Under charts.
  2. Point breakdown as follows:
  • #1 = 100 points for its first week at #1, plus 10 points for each additional week.
  • #2 =   90 points for its first week at #2, plus 5 points for each additional week.
  • #3 =   80 points for its first week at #3, plus 3 points for each additional week.
  • #4-5 = 70 points
  • #6-10 = 60 points
  • #11-15 = 50 points
  • #16-20 = 45 points
  • #21-30 = 40 points
  • #31-40 = 35 points
  • #41-50 = 30 points
  • #51-60 = 25 points
  • #61-70 = 20 points
  • #71-90 = 15 points
  • #91-100 = 10 points
  • #101-110 = 5 points
  • #111-120 = 4 points
  • #121-135 = 3 points
  1. Total weeks charted are added in.
  2. In case of a tie, the artist listed first is determined by the following tie-breaker rules:

1)      Most charted singles
2)      Most Top 40 singles
3)      Most Top 10 singles

Janet Jackson The #2 Pop Artist of the 90's
Janet Jackson The #2 Pop Artist of the 90’s

When two artists combine for a hit single, such as Kenny Rogers and Dolly Parton, the full point total is given to both artists. Duos like Simon & Garfunkel and Hall & Oates are considered recording teams and their points are not shared.

Adjustment made for featured and lead artists. A featured artist on a single will receive 20% of the point total and the lead artist receives 100% of the point total.

Source: The “Top Pop Singles 1955-2010” Thirteenth Edition by Joel Whitburn.

The Top 50 Artists 1990-1999

Rank / Artist Points
1.     Mariah Carey 3,179
2.     Janet Jackson 2,307
3.     Madonna 2,045
4.     Boyz II Men 1,971
5.     Whitney Houston 1,774
6.     Celine Dion 1,551
7.     R. Kelly 1,462
8.     TLC 1,376
9.     Elton John 1,295
10.   Michael Bolton 1,211
11.   Bryan Adams 1,149
12.   Prince 1,126
13.   Toni Braxton 1,067
14.   En Vogue 1,060
15.   Brandy 1,041
16.   Rod Stewart 1,034
17.   Monica 1,023
18.   Mary J. Blige 984
19.   Puff Daddy 981
20.   Michael Jackson 961
21.   Gloria Estefan 960
22.   Pearl Jam 920
23.   SWV 854
24.   The Notorious B.I.G. 832
25.   Aerosmith 823
26.   Color Me Badd 816
27.   Keith Sweat 813
28.   LL Cool J 792
29.   Alanis Morissette 788
30.   2Pac 782
31.   Shania Twain 780
32.   Babyface 764
33.   Georgia Michael 746
34.   Ace Of Base 732
35.   Backstreet Boys 729
36.   Paula Abdul 709
37.   Brian McKnight 702
38.   U2 692
39.   Faith Evans 687
40.   Vanessa Williams 685
41.   Amy Grant 685
42.   MC Hammer 684
43.   Sheryl Crow 680
44.   Phil Collins 679
45.   Bone Thnugs-N-Harmony 666
46.   Bon Jovi 665
47.   Jodeci 663
48.   Roxette 662
49.   Hootie & The Blowfish 656
50.  Wilson Phillips 656

Go back to the top 100 songs home page.

Back to Top