While the ‘70s were all about disco music and the ‘90s were all about ballads, the 2000s were all about R&B, hip-hop, and dance music. Pop tunes thrived during this era, despite looming threats to the industry like the rise of online file sharing and music streaming.
Hip-hop acts like The Black Eyed Peas and Nelly dominated the charts, while pop acts like Katy Perry, Rihanna, and Shakira took the industry by storm. It was truly an unforgettable period in the music industry.
Take a trip down memory lane with this list of the biggest hits from the 2000s. That one song you played over and over on your iPod could be waiting to be reintroduced to you!
NSYNC was part of the massively popular boy band trend that was emblematic of late ‘90s culture. This craze stayed strong in the early 2000s before giving way to the inevitability of musical evolution. Despite NSYNC’s popularity, “It’s Gonna Be Me” was their only song to top the Billboard Hot 100. Their other hit, “Bye Bye Bye,” peaked at number four. Nevertheless, the group managed to set a record in 2000 for the most copies sold of a single album, when they sold nine million copies of “No Strings Attached.”
Without a doubt, The Black Eyed Peas was one of the biggest musical acts of the 2000s. “Boom Boom Pow,” the first single from their fifth studio album, The E.N.D., was a complete success. It spent 12 weeks on the Billboard Hot 100 chart and had over four million downloads in the US alone.
Gwen Stefani wrote “Hollaback Girl” in response to a derogatory remark made by Courtney Love where she referred to Gwen as a “cheerleader.” Gwen proved her critics wrong when the song quickly reached the top spot on the Billboard Hot 100 upon its release. It also became the first song to sell one million copies as a digital single.
Avril Lavigne was only 17 years old when her debut single “Complicated” was released. The song became an instant hit worldwide, propelling this young lady to stardom. “Complicated” hit number one in Canada and peaked at number two in the US. It stayed in the Billboard Hot 100 chart for a total of 11 weeks.
Although it was the 2006 single “Pon De Replay” that launched Rihanna’s music career, it was her 2007 hit “Umbrella” that pretty much defined her career. Rihanna had the whole world singing along to the song’s signature refrain, “Ella Ella eh eh eh.” Her catchy riff on the song’s title just made it even more memorable.
Katy Perry rose to fame in 2008 with her single “I Kissed a Girl.” Her breakthrough hit – produced by Dr. Luke – sparked controversy over its subject matter. Still, the song managed to top the US Billboard Hot 100 for seven consecutive weeks and sold over 4.7 million digital copies in the US alone. Following the song’s success, Katy Perry collaborated again with Dr. Luke for other chart-topping hits like “California Gurls” and “Last Friday Nite (T.G.I.F.).”
When Shakira released her first English language album Oral Fixation, Vol. 2 in 2005, it only achieved moderate success. In an effort to revive sales, the album was reissued to include a couple of new songs such as “Hips Don’t Lie.” This song turned out to be a huge success and saved the album in the process. It received an MTV Video Music Award and a People’s Choice Award.
“Hot in Herre” by St. Louis-based rapper Nelly was released in 2002 and became one of the decade’s most popular party hits. The song, which was produced by the American production duo The Neptunes, became Nelly’s first number one pop hit.
“Crazy in Love” was the hit that proved Queen Bey had what it takes to succeed outside of Destiny’s Child. Her collaboration with then-boyfriend Jay-Z received six Grammy nominations and numerous awards like Best R&B Song and Best Rap/Sung Collaboration. Since the song was released, it has become a staple in Beyonce’s live performances and concerts.
“I Gotta Feeling,” the second single from The Black Eyed Peas’ 2009 album The E.N.D., proved to be just as successful as the first single “Boom Boom Pow.” Over eight million copies were sold and the song spent 14 weeks on the Billboard Hot 100, helping The Back Eyed Peas stay on top of the charts for a combined 26 consecutive weeks. This collaboration with French DJ David Guetta paved the way for other pop acts to collaborate with DJs like Calvin Harris and Afrojack throughout the 2010s.