The American music industry is one of the largest and most influential commercial enterprises in the world. From its past history till the present, the industry has seen the rise of talented artists and has continued to produce top hip music artists in the globe. Chris Brown and Drake are two of the best R&B and rap artists that America has and have great years of success in their music careers.
Both artists are undoubtedly talented and have proven their artistry time and again through the regular flow of great music that they produce. Given their years of experience in the industry, It is clear that both have built a base of loyal followers. Also, they have gained popularity, even beyond their individual fan base across the world. However, we are here with a debate for you – who is more popular, Chris Brown or Drake? Between both artists, you might have your favorite, whom you believe is more between the two, either Drake or Chris Brown.
Now, as we attempt to get the right answer to this interesting debate, we shall give you quick glances at their backgrounds. Afterward, we shall put both artists together head to head and try to decide which is most popular, according to existing metrics.
Born on May 5, 1989, in Tappahannock, Virginia, Christopher Brown’s interest in music stemmed from childhood when he would listen to his parent’s music collection and also sang in his church choir. Then, as he grew, he became more inclined towards hip-hop music. He particularly regarded artists like Michael Jackson and Usher as one of those who inspired him while he was still back at home. Years later in 2005, he announced his arrival on the music scene with his debut single, “Run It”. Since then, Chris Brown had gained recognition as an upcoming R&B star in the music industry.
View this post on Instagram
Earlier in 2001, Drake Graham had started his journey into entertainment when he was when he got a role in Degrassi, which was a Canadian drama series. Drake was born on October 24, 1986, to Dennis and Sandi Graham in Toronto, Canada. Drake had always been a music person from childhood, with his father being a drummer for Jerry Lee Lewis. He played ‘Jimmy Brooks’ in Degrassi and acted in over 100 episodes before he decided to pursue a career in music and released his first mixtape in 2006.
Record Sales
In June 2005, Chris Brown released his debut single ‘Run It!’ and by November 2005, he released his first album, self-titled Chris Brown. Despite being his debut album, Chris Brown was a huge commercial success, as it sold 154,000 in its first week alone! With his debut single “Run It”, Chris hit the top of the Billboard Hot 100 chart and with this, it became the first male debut single to rank at the top since 1995. In addition to his early commercial success, Chris has sold over 100 million albums and 140 million records on a global scale.
For Drake, the number of records sold worldwide is higher, as he has 30 million records more than Chris Brown. Also, he has sold over 100 million albums and has been named by the RIAA in the US as the highest certified digital singles artist. The four-time Grammy Awards-winning artist dropped his debut album as an R&B, hip hop artist also beats Chris Brown on the sale of their debut albums as Thank Me Later sold 447,000 copies worldwide in its first week alone! Even more, the album made number one on the Billboard 200 charts in the US.
Social Media Popularity
On Instagram, Chris Brown leads Drake in social media popularity with about 700 thousand followers. However, on YouTube, Drake has ranks 28th on the list of top 30 most subscribed YouTube artists with about 3 million subscribers more than Chris Brown who does not make the list. However, his over 20 million subscribers do show that Chris Brown definitely knows his onions and isn’t losing out on a great fan base either.
Accolades
In his award record, Chris Brown has a total of 123 wins in 393 nominations, among which are one Grammy Award, 4 American Music Awards, and 4 Billboard Music Awards. However, Drake ranks higher on this too, as he has had 291 wins in 679 nominations since his career began. He has won the Billboard Music Award 27 times, the Grammy Awards four times. Likewise, he is a 5-time winner of the American Music Awards.
However, Drake is often seen as more popular among both artists and this is supported by his rankings in the list such as Wikipedia’s bestselling artist list with records between 120 million to 130 million. Likewise, other exclusive listings are where Drake ranks eight on Forbes list of the world’s top-earning musicians in 2019. The richest rappers in the world 2024, where Drake ranks No. 5 with 230 million dollars. These prices and support a fact that cannot be denied, Drake is one of the most popular artists in the world with astounding fame.
View this post on Instagram
Regardless, both artists have impressive career success and are both leading R&B and hip hop artists on the global music scene.