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This list includes music artists with at least five million record sales in Germany, based on certifications by the BVMI (Bundesverband Musikindustrie). [1] Artists are ranked in descending order.
Awards are only presented if and when a record company applies for certification, it is not done automatically. Only records that were declared to and registered by the BVMI receive awards. The BVMI began its certifications in 1975, therefore popular artists from earlier eras are generally not represented on this list. This excludes artists such as Heintje Simons, Peter Alexander, Freddy Quinn, Caterina Valente, or the Rolling Stones, and may explain the lower-than-expected sales figures for pre-1975 artists like The Beatles. Certifications are based on a record's release date. [2]
Video albums have been included since 1991 and streaming since 2016. [3] Until 5 April 2018, a unit was equal to 1000 streams for albums and 100 streams for singles. Those numbers were raised to 2000 streams for albums and 200 streams for singles on 6 April of that year. [4]
Name | Nationality | Certification period | Certified units |
---|---|---|---|
Herbert Grönemeyer | German | 1984–2018 | 18,075,000 |
Peter Maffay | German | 1979–2018 | 14,350,000 |
Phil Collins | British | 1981–2011 | 14,300,000 |
Michael Jackson | American | 1983–2023 | 14,125,000 |
Rolf Zuckowski | German | 1989–2012 | 13,975,000 |
Die Toten Hosen | German | 1989–2018 | 13,650,000 |
Ed Sheeran | British | 2012–2022 | 13,350,000 |
Name | Nationality | Certification period | Certified units |
---|---|---|---|
Queen | British | 1978–2018 | 12,625,000 |
Madonna | American | 1985–2012 | 12,550,000 |
Rihanna | Barbadian | 2007–2023 | 12,275,000 |
Marius Müller-Westernhagen | German | 1981–2017 | 12,075,000 |
Helene Fischer | German | 2007–2018 | 11,150,000 |
Name | Nationality | Certification period | Certified units |
---|---|---|---|
AC/DC | Australian | 1980–2016 | 10,600,000 |
Robbie Williams | British | 2000–2018 | |
ABBA | Swedish | 1976–2008 | 10,550,000 |
Andrea Berg | German | 2002–2017 | 9,600,000 |
Elton John | British | 1982–2004 | 9,550,000 |
Pur | German | 1993–2017 | 9,525,000 |
Name | Nationality | Certification period | Certified units |
---|---|---|---|
Die Flippers | German | 1987–2012 | 8,650,000 |
Céline Dion | Canada | 1996–2003 | 8,000,000 |
Die Ärzte | German | 1988–2012 | 7,850,000 |
Wolfgang Petry | German | 1983–2014 | 7,825,000 |
David Guetta | French | 2010–2018 | 7,800,000 |
Britney Spears | American | 1999–2023 | 7,700,000 |
The Beatles | British | 1993–2007 | 7,600,000 |
Pink Floyd | British | 1977–2015 | 7,500,000 |
Name | Nationality | Certification period | Certified units |
---|---|---|---|
Bee Gees | British Australian | 1978–2005 | 6,675,000 |
Coldplay | British | 2000–2024 | 6,650,000 [5] |
Eminem | American | 2000–2018 | 6,625,000 |
Backstreet Boys | American | 1996–2003 | 6,500,000 |
Shakira | Colombian | 2002–2023 | 6,425,000 |
Dieter Bohlen | German | 1985–2017 | 6,400,000 |
Tina Turner | American Swiss | 1985–2009 | 6,300,000 |
Lady Gaga | American | 1986-2023 | 6,200,000 |
Roger Whittaker | British | 1977–2011 | 6,100,000 |
The Kelly Family | Irish American | 1994–2017 | 6,075,000 |
Joe Cocker | British | 1986–2014 | 6,050,000 |
Depeche Mode | British | 1985–2017 | |
Andrea Bocelli | Italian | 1996–1999 | 6,000,000 |
Name | Nationality | Certification period | Certified units |
---|---|---|---|
Eros Ramazzotti | Italian | 1988–2013 | 5,950,000 |
BAP | German | 1982–2013 | 5,900,000 |
Genesis | British | 1978–2008 | 5,875,000 |
P!nk | American | 2002–2017 | |
Linkin Park | American | 2001–2017 | 5,850,000 |
U2 | Irish | 1986–2018 | |
Modern Talking | German | 1985–2003 | 5,700,000 |
Xavier Naidoo | German | 1998–2016 | 5,625,000 |
Roxette | Swedish | 1990–2012 | |
Sting | British | 1986–2012 | 5,600,000 |
Whitney Houston | American | 1986–2009 | 5,400,000 |
Simply Red | British | 1986–2013 | 5,350,000 |
James Last | German | 1976–1999 | 5,250,000 |
Avicii | Swedish | 2012–2018 | 5,200,000 |
Timbaland | American | 2000–2018 | |
Unheilig | German | 2010–2017 | |
Bon Jovi | American | 1987–2013 | 5,150,000 |
Music recording certification is a system of certifying that a music recording has shipped, sold, or streamed a certain number of units. The threshold quantity varies by type and by nation or territory.
The discography of British musician Paul McCartney consists of 26 studio albums, four compilation albums, nine live albums, 37 video albums, two extended plays, 111 singles, seven classical albums, five electronica albums, 17 box sets, and 79 music videos. Before his career as a solo artist, McCartney enjoyed success as a member of the rock band the Beatles.
The discography of Swedish pop music group ABBA consists of nine studio albums, two live albums, seven compilation albums, four box sets, five video albums, 50 singles, and 43 music videos. To date, ABBA have sold 150 million records worldwide becoming one of the best-selling music artists in history. They have scored 9 No. 1 singles and 10 No. 1 albums in the UK, becoming the most successful Swedish act of all time on the Official Charts.
A remix album is an album consisting of remixes or rerecorded versions of an artist's earlier released material. The first act who employed the format was American singer-songwriter Harry Nilsson. As of 2007, the best-selling remix album of all time is Michael Jackson's Blood on the Dance Floor: HIStory in the Mix (1997).
Rise is the third studio album by English singer and songwriter Gabrielle. It was released by Go! Beat Records on 18 October 1999 in the United Kingdom. A major commercial success, the album spent three weeks at number one on the UK Albums Chart, achieving 4× Platinum status. The title track also went to number one on the UK Singles Chart.
Naughty but Nice is the fourth studio album by German singer Sarah Connor. It was released by X-Cell and Epic Records on 21 March 2005 in German-speaking Europe. As with her previous projects, Connor consulted production and songwriting duo Rob Tyger and Kay Denar to work with her on the album, with frequent collaborator Bülent Aris also returning following his absence on Key to My Soul (2003). In addition, Johnny Douglas, Terri Bjerre, Emily Friendship, and Ivo Moring scored songwriting credits.
German rock band Die Ärzte have released 14 studio albums, eight extended plays, seven compilation albums, six live albums, 11 video albums and 50 singles. The band—consisting of members Farin Urlaub, Bela B and Rodrigo González—is one of the best-selling German groups with 7.8 million records sold in Germany.
Julio Iglesias is one of the best-selling artists worldwide, with 100 million records sold. He has recorded in 14 languages and released 80 albums, and has more than 2,600 gold and platinum records certified. He holds the Guinness World Records for the Best-selling Male Latin Artist and is recognized as the best selling international artist in Brazil with over 15 million records sold.
The Bundesverband Musikindustrie, or simply BVMI, represents the music industry in Germany. The association represents the interests of nearly 280 labels and music industry related enterprises, which comprise 90% of the music industry. It is a member of the London-based International Federation of the Phonographic Industry (IFPI), consisting of music associations of 70 countries.
Lindsey Stirling is the debut studio album by violinist and artist Lindsey Stirling, whose popularity grew from her appearance on America's Got Talent and a large following on YouTube. Her first album of original compositions, it topped the category of Classical Albums and Dance/Electronic Albums in Billboard and reached number 23 on the Billboard 200. It also was a success in Europe, earning gold certifications in Poland and Switzerland and platinum certifications in Austria and Germany.
Muttersprache is the ninth studio album by German recording artist Sarah Connor, released by Polydor Records on May 22, 2015. It is her first album to be primarily recorded in German. After her participation in the reality television series Sing meinen Song - Das Tauschkonzert in 2014, the German version of the series The Best Singers, Connor was encouraged to record songs in German. Muttersprache debuted on top of on the German Albums Chart, marking her second number-one album following 2005's Naughty but Nice. Muttersprache is primarily a pop and R&B album.
German singer Yvonne Catterfeld has released eight studio albums, two compilation albums, two video albums and seventeen singles. After finishing second in the inaugural season of the television competition Stimme 2000, she was signed to a recording deal with Hansa Records. In 2001, she released her first single, "Bum", under her stage name Catterfeld; the song failed to chart in any music market. Her first album, Meine Welt (2003), was preceded by four further singles, including "Niemand sonst" and "Gefühle", both of which reached the top forty of the German Albums Chart, and "Für dich" which reached number one in Austria, Germany and Switzerland and marked her commercial breakthrough. Meine Welt went Platinum in Germany and earned a Gold certification in Austria and Switzerland.
"Wie schön du bist" is a song by German recording artist Sarah Connor. It was written and produced by Connor along with Peter Plate, Ulf Leo Sommer, and Daniel Faust for her ninth studio album Muttersprache (2015). An ode to her son Tyler, the uplifting pop ballad was conceived after a dispute with him. Her first single in German, the song was released as the album's lead single on 1 May 2015 in German-speaking Europe; it has since reached number two on the German Singles Chart.
King is the fourth studio album by German rapper Kollegah, released on 9 May 2014 through Selfmade Records.
"I Still Burn" is a song by German recording artist Tobias Regner, the winner of the third season of the reality television talent show Deutschland sucht den Superstar, broadcast in 2006. It was written by Jess Cates and Peter Wright and produced by Brix Ingo Politz, and Bernd Wendlandt, marking the first time, a DSDS coronation song was not produced by judge Dieter Bohlen. Released as Regner's debut single on March 24, 2006 in German-speaking Europe, it became the biggest-selling single in two years to debut at the charts, where it reached number one in Austria, Germany, and Switzerland, making him the first DSDS winner to top the charts in all three regions. "I Still Burn" was eventually certified gold by the Bundesverband Musikindustrie (BVMI) and became Germany's 13th best-selling single of 2006. It was later included on Regner's debut album Straight (2006).