Eminem is having a good year. The response to his latest album, The death of Slim Shadywas strong. The rapper’s entertaining promo tour appealed to fans who had long given up on his non-Slim redesign, and both helped him reach a major streaming milestone. The blog HipHopAllDay announced that Em has surpassed 50 billion streams on Spotify, making Eminem the sixth most streamed rapper on the platform and the second most streamed rapper.
Eminem is in good company when it comes to crossover success. The four non-hip-hop artists ahead of him are Justin Bieber, Taylor Swift, Ed Sheeran, Bad Bunny and The Weeknd. However, the Detroit rapper is closing in on Bieber and Sheeran, who both have 54 billion streams. If Eminem keeps up the momentum, he could well surpass The Weeknd’s 67 billion streams. Ironically, the only other rapper on the list is the artist topping the list: Drake. The Toronto superstar has an incredible 101 billion streams, making him the only artist in history to surpass the 100 billion mark.
Eminem is still the highest-selling rapper of all time
Eminem may be Team Kendrick Lamar at the end of the day, but he has complimented Drake in the past. In a 2019 interview with Sway, he said he will always respect the rapper. “Drake will always be in my good graces,” he noted. “Because he did something for one of my daughters that I’ll never forget.” Eminem also predicted that the public would turn against Drake in the 2020 song “Zeus.” He was a few years early, but not wrong. “Drake, they’re gonna turn on you (you) one day (too),” Eminem raps. “And the more you win, the sooner (sooner) they do/They’re gonna call you a trash can.”
Drake may be winning the streaming business, but Eminem has beaten him in album sales. The Detroit rapper remains the highest-selling artist in the history of the genre. Since his debut in 1996, he has sold over 220 million records, putting him in the company of artists like Whitney Houston and the Rolling Stones. He was the highest-selling artist of the 2000s and the third-best-selling artist of the 2010s. For comparison, Drake has sold 170 million records since 2009. He still has time to catch up, but the longevity and success Eminem has maintained speaks for itself. It will be hard to topple him.
About the author
Elias is a music writer at HotNewHipHop. He joined the site in 2024 and covers a wide range of topics including pop culture, film, sports, and of course hip hop. He posts work for HNHH Monday through Friday, especially when it comes to covering new albums and singles. His favorite artists are Andre 3000, MF Doom, Kanye West pre-808, and Tyler, The Creator. He loves LA hip hop, but not LA sports teams. The first album he ever bought was Big Willie Style by Will Smith, which he says is still a pretty good listen.
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