THEN AND NOW: The biggest R&B and rap stars of the 2000s
Barnaby Lane
- The 2000s were a huge decade for R&B and rap music, with both genres at the forefront of popular music.
- Nelly, 50 Cent, and Ashanti were among the most popular artists at the time.
Nelly burst onto the scene aged 25 in 2000 with his debut album "Country Grammar."
To date, the album has sold over 10 million copies, making it among the highest-selling rap albums of all time.
Nelly's 2002 follow-up album, "Nellyville," enjoyed similar success, topping the charts all over the world and selling 7 million copies.
Now 48, he's still making music.
Nelly released his eighth studio album, "Heartland," in 2021.
50 Cent had two chart-topping albums in the '00s.
50's debut album "Get Rich or Die Tryin'" and his sophomore album "The Massacre" both topped the Billboard 200 albums chart in 2003 and 2005 respectively.
Together, the projects spawned three No. 1 hits on the Billboard Hot 100 for the rapper, "In Da Club," "21 Questions," and "Candy Shop."
These days he's taken a step back from making music but still performs all over the world.
50 recently announced a global tour called "The Final Lap" to celebrate the 20th anniversary of his debut album.
"It's gonna be a whole new show," he said of the tour, which is set to feature Busta Rhymes and Jeremih as supporting acts.
Outside of music, 50 is a successful actor, television producer, and businessman.
Beyoncé was a huge star in the '00s.
According to the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA), Beyoncé was the top certified artist of the decade.
Between 2000 and 2010, she released three studio albums, scored five No. 1 singles, and won 13 Grammy Awards.
Her career has only gone from strength to strength since.
Since the end of the '00s, Queen Bey has released a further four studio albums, scored three more No. 1 hits, and won 16 more Grammys.
She's currently on her Renaissance World Tour, which has been described as "a monster blockbuster concert experience on a different plane."
Ja Rule was rap music's kingpin at the start of the '00s.
The rapper had two No. 1 albums and three No. 1 singles between 2000 and 2003.
Now, he's working mostly on his business ventures.
In 2021, the "Always on Time" rapper partnered with a team of software engineers to launch Flipkick, a platform that sells physical works of art as non-fungible tokens (NFTs).
The following year, he announced the launch of his VIBES Concert Series – which sees iconic artists perform their classic albums with a live band while telling the stories behind the music. So far, Big Daddy Kane, Ghostface Killah, and Rule himself are among those to feature in the series.
Eminem was the highest-selling artist of the '00s.
According to Rolling Stone, Eminem sold 32.2 million albums during the decade, outselling The Beatles by 2.2 million.
His biggest-selling album was his 2002 fourth studio album, "The Eminem Show," which to date has shipped over 40 million copies worldwide.
He doesn't sell quite as many records now, but he's still topping the charts.
Eminem's released his most recent studio album, "Music to Be Murdered By," in 2020. It sold nearly 2 million copies worldwide and debuted at No. 1 in both the United States and the United Kingdom.
Ne-Yo's 2006 debut album "In My Own Words" was a smash in the US.
The album sold 1.4 million copies in the States alone and earned a Ne-Yo a Grammy nomination in the best contemporary R&B album category.
His 2007 sophomore album "Because of You" also went platinum.
Now, he's still releasing music, as well as working as a producer.
Ne-Yo released his ninth studio album "Self-Explanatory" in the summer of 2022.
He's also produced a number of records in recent years, including En Vogue's "Rocket," and a number of tracks on the soundtrack to the second season of "Empire," in which he starred in one episode as himself.
Ashanti gave us some classic tracks in '00s.
Ashanti's debut single "Foolish" from her eponymous debut album spent ten weeks at No. 1 in 2002, but it's her collaborations with Ja Rule that she's perhaps best remembered for.
Together the pair scored four massive hits with "Always on Time," "What's Luv?," "Mesmerize," and "Wonderful."
She's now a successful actress.
In recent years Ashanti has starred in a number of movies, including "Mothers and Daughters" with Susan Sarandon and 2021's "Honey Girls."
She still makes music, too. Last year, the 42-year-old released the song "Baby" with British rapper Aitch, which peaked at No. 2 in the UK.
Usher was a huge star in both the '90s and '00s.
Usher's 2004 album "Confessions" is widely regarded as one of the best R&B albums of the 21st Century.
The singles "Yeah!," "Burn," "Confessions Part II," and "My Boo," from the album all reached No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100.
He's still a huge star today.
Usher hasn't released a studio album since 2018's "A" with Zaytoven, but the singer dropped his latest single "Glu" in March of this year.
These days he's also a businessman, political activist, and actor.
Chris Brown released his eponymous debut album in 2005.
Featuring the hit songs "Yo (Excuse Me Miss)" and "Run It!," the album sold over 2 million copies in the US and announced the baby-faced Brown as one of R&B's biggest stars.
Before the end of the decade, he released two more studio albums and scored countless chart hits, including a No. 1 with "Kiss Kiss" in 2007.
He's no longer baby-faced, but he's still enjoying just as much success.
All but the latest of Brown's seven studio albums released since 2010 have been certified platinum in the US.
He's also still a regular feature on the Billboard Hot 100 thanks to collaborations with the likes of Tyga, Lil Baby, and Metro Boomin'.
Jennifer Lopez is often overlooked when it comes to her musical achievements.
During the '00s, Lopez released five studio albums which collectively sold over 18 million copies worldwide.
The most successful of her projects was her sophomore album "J.Lo," which shipped 8 million copies and earned her a second career No. 1 with "I'm Real."
She's still releasing music now but is also a hugely successful actress.
"Shotgun Wedding," "Hustlers," and "The Mothers," are just a few of the films in which Lopez has starred in recent years.
The 53-year-old star is also releasing her ninth studio album "This Is Me... Now" in 2023.
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