Steve Jobs’ iTunes is undoubtedly the world’s largest online music retail store and as physical records have long ago been outsourced, in terms of sales, by downloads we can safely say that the iTunes charts are a measure to test a band’s mainstream popularity. Let’s take in example the latest end of the year charts from Apple, that have surfaced recently; namely the “best selling albums of the year” and the “best selling singles.”Apparently [tag]Maroon 5[/tag] has been the most successful band this year, landing atop of the 10 entries, [tag]Amy Winehouse[/tag] comes a close second, probably fueled by this year’s outrageous publicity she’s been getting due to her abuses (poor thing – sarcastic), while [tag]Kanye West[/tag] with this year’s best rap album of the year, in the form of Graduation, takes down number three, guess this helped too.
The best-selling albums of the year, according to Apple:
1. Maroon 5 – It Won’t Be Soon Before Long
2. Amy Winehouse – Back to Black
3. Kanye West – Graduation
4. Daughtry – Daughtry
5. Colbie Caillat – Coco
6. Linkin Park – Minutes to Midnight
7. Various artists – “High School Musical 2” soundtrack
8. Timbaland – Timbaland Presents: Shock Value
9. John Mayer – Continuum
10. Various artists – “Hairspray” soundtrack
The best-selling songs of the year, according to Apple:
1. Fergie – “Big Girls Don’t Cry (Personal)”
2. Gwen Stefani – “The Sweet Escape”
3. Plain White T’s – “Hey There Delilah”
4. Avril Lavigne – “Girlfriend”
5. Fergie – “Glamorous”
6. Kanye West – “Stronger”
7. Maroon 5 – “Makes Me Wonder”
8. Akon – “Don’t Matter”
9. Timbaland (featuring Keri Hilson & D.O.E.) – “The Way I Are”
10. Shop Boyz – “Party Like a Rock Star”