Top 10 Music Artists Most Likely to Be Added Rolling Stone 100 Greatest Music Artists of All Time List

Rolling Stone has updated their lists of the greatest songs and greatest albums relatively recently, so it is not unlikely that they will update their list of the greatest music artists.

Here is a list of music artists who have a good chance of being added to the list if it is updated. These are not necessarily the artists we most want them to include, and, of course, I could be wrong about some of these, but I thought I would take a guess at it.

Feel free to add artists I might have missed, but try to consider who has the best chance based on their critical reception or influence. Do not just add artists that you love, and do not add artists who were already on the list.

Source: Rolling Stone's 100 Greatest Artists

The Top Ten

  1. Kanye West

    Ye (born Kanye Omari West. June 8, 1977) is an American rapper, songwriter, record producer, and fashion designer. He is regarded as one of the most influential and controversial artists of the 21st century.

    Born in Atlanta and raised in Chicago, West initially gained fame as a producer for Roc-A-Fella... read more

    I don't really intend this list to be in any particular order except that Kanye West is easily the artist I most expect to make the list. I would imagine him being pretty high on the list. Honestly, the fact that he wasn't already on the list in 2010 is a little surprising.

    Despite his personality and controversial takes, he is definitely a talented artist and one of the best rappers of the 2010s.

    Despite who he is in real life, he revolutionized hip-hop, and we have future legends thanks to him.

  2. Kendrick Lamar

    Kendrick Lamar Duckworth (born June 17, 1987) is an American rapper and songwriter from Compton, California. He began his career under the stage name K.Dot, releasing mixtapes that gained local recognition and led to his signing with Top Dawg Entertainment. Lamar has become one of the most critically... read more

    I mean, he just defeated one of the most influential rappers of the 2010s, so yeah.

    Meanwhile, an artist on no one's mind in 2010 is the most critically acclaimed music act of the 2010s in any genre. I think it's a fairly safe bet Kendrick Lamar will be on the list and probably fairly high.

  3. D'Angelo

    I don't think many people on TheTopTens know this guy, and to be fair, I don't know his music well either besides him being a neo-soul singer. But all three of his albums made their greatest albums of all-time list, so I would say he has a reasonable shot.

  4. OutKast

    Outkast is an American hip hop duo formed in 1991 in East Point, Atlanta, Georgia. It consists of rappers André "André 3000" Benjamin and Antwan "Big Boi" Patton. The group gained widespread critical and commercial success in the 1990s and early 2000s.... read more

    OutKast haven't actually made any new music since the previous list in 2010. But with their representation on the lists of greatest songs and albums having improved notably, I think there is a very good chance of them being there this time.

  5. Fiona Apple

    Fiona Apple McAfee-Maggart is an American singer-songwriter, pianist, and record producer. She gained widespread acclaim with her debut album Tidal in 1996, which included the hit single Criminal. Apple has won several Grammy Awards and is known for her introspective lyrics and distinctive musical style... read more

    Hey, it's not just R&B and hip-hop. Fiona Apple was already a consistently highly praised singer-songwriter in 2010, but the album with the ridiculously long title along with last year's Fetch The Bolt Cutters will have improved her case considerably.

  6. The Notorious B.I.G

    Christopher George Latore Wallace, born May 21, 1972, better known by his stage name The Notorious B.I.G. (sometimes Biggie Smalls or simply Biggie), was an American rapper from Brooklyn, New York. On March 9, 1997, he was murdered in a drive-by shooting in Los Angeles, California, at the age of only... read more

    Given that Tupac was already on the list and Biggie has gone up a fair way on their greatest album and song lists, I can easily imagine him being on the list this time.

    I can see this happening as well.

  7. Daddy Yankee

    Ramón Luis Ayala Rodríguez, known professionally as Daddy Yankee, is a Puerto Rican singer, songwriter, actor, and record producer. He is widely regarded as one of the pioneers of reggaeton music. His international hit Gasolina helped bring reggaeton to a global audience.

    Rolling Stone is a very English-centric magazine. But recently, they have shown their diversity by including more new songs and rap songs. They also included his songs in the top 50. So, I'm not surprised if he's included because he is very influential in reggaeton music.

  8. Beyoncé

    Beyoncé Giselle Knowles-Carter is an American singer, songwriter, and actress who began her career as the lead singer of Destiny's Child. The group scored multiple Billboard Hot 100 No. 1 hits, including "Say My Name," "Bills, Bills, Bills," "Independent Women Part I," and "Bootylicious." After the group... read more

    This might be a contentious pick for some people given that her early albums are probably regarded as good more often than great. On the other hand, she is in the top 100 of both the greatest songs and artists lists multiple times, so I doubt they would leave her off after that.

  9. Pavement

    Pavement is an American indie rock band that formed in Stockton, California, in 1989. For most of its career, the group consisted of Stephen Malkmus, Scott Kannberg, Mark Ibold, Steve West, and Bob Nastanovich. The band released five studio albums before disbanding in 1999, and it reunited for tours... read more

    This might be a kind of left-field guess considering they are easily the least widely known artist on the list, and Rolling Stone is typically one of the more mainstream critical sources. However, they were on the greatest albums of all-time list three times, so clearly, they have some chance.

  10. Frank Ocean

    Christopher Edwin Breaux, known professionally as Frank Ocean, is an American singer, songwriter, rapper, record producer, and photographer. He is acclaimed for his distinctive musical style and emotionally nuanced lyrics. Ocean's albums Channel Orange and Blonde received widespread critical acclaim... read more

    The most recent artist on this list with just two studio albums. As maybe the second most critically acclaimed new artist of the 2010s behind Kendrick Lamar, I think he has a solid chance despite limited releases.

    11. The Newcomers
  11. ?

    Iron Maiden

    Iron Maiden are an English heavy metal band formed in Leyton, East London, in 1975 by bassist and primary songwriter Steve Harris. Their most critically acclaimed period is widely considered to be from 1983 to 1989, during which they released landmark albums such as Piece of Mind, Powerslave, Somewhere... read more

  12. ?

    Rush

    Rush is a Canadian progressive rock band that was formed in 1968. The band's most iconic lineup consisted of guitarist Alex Lifeson, bassist and vocalist Geddy Lee, and drummer Neil Peart, who joined in 1974. Following Peart's death from brain cancer on January 7, 2020, Lee and Lifeson announced in October... read more

    13. The Contenders

  13. Taylor Swift

    Taylor Alison Swift is an American singer-songwriter born on December 13, 1989, in Reading, Pennsylvania. She developed a strong interest in country music around the age of nine after watching a documentary about Faith Hill. Swift moved to Nashville as a teenager, signed a development deal with RCA Records... read more

    I can already see eyes rolling here, but she's on both the greatest songs and albums lists multiple times and pretty high at that. Her last two albums only improve her case, so I wouldn't be surprised at all if she made it. Also, yes, I couldn't be happier with that, actually.

  14. Avril Lavigne

    Avril Ramona Lavigne (born September 27, 1984) is a Canadian singer-songwriter and actress. At age 14, she won a radio contest singing with Shania Twain, performing before a large arena crowd. By age 16, she had signed a two-album recording contract with Arista Records, reportedly worth over $2 million.... read more

  15. Lauren Christy

    Lauren Christy is an English singer, songwriter, and record producer. She gained recognition as a solo artist before co-founding the successful songwriting and production trio The Matrix. The Matrix worked on numerous hit songs for artists such as Avril Lavigne and Hilary Duff.

  16. Shania Twain

    Shania Twain (born Eilleen Regina Edwards on August 28, 1965) is a Canadian singer and songwriter. With over 100 million records sold worldwide, she is the best-selling female artist in country music history and one of the best-selling music artists of all time. Her 1997 album Come On Over remains the... read more

  17. Billie Eilish

    Billie Eilish Pirate Baird O'Connell, professionally known as Billie Eilish, was born on December 18, 2001. She is an American singer and songwriter widely recognized for her unique style and musical innovation. Her most well-known songs include "Bad Guy," "When the Party's Over," "Bury a Friend," "Everything... read more

  18. Bruno Mars

    Peter Gene Hernandez, professionally known as Bruno Mars, is an American singer, songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, record producer, and choreographer.

    Mars rose to fame in 2010 through his collaborations on the hits "Nothin' on You" by B.o.B and "Billionaire" by Travie McCoy, both of which featured... read more

  19. Evan Taubenfeld

    Evan David Taubenfeld is an American singer, songwriter, and musician. He is best known for being Avril Lavigne's lead guitarist, music director, and frequent collaborator. Taubenfeld was also the lead singer of the band the Black List Club.

  20. Bad Bunny

    Benito Antonio Martínez Ocasio, known professionally as Bad Bunny, is a Puerto Rican rapper and singer. He gained worldwide recognition with his feature on Cardi B's I Like It in 2018. He gained further fame in the 2020s with his massively successful albums Un Verano Sin Ti (2022) and Debí Tirar Más... read more

  21. BC Jean

  22. Linda Perry

  23. Michelle Branch

    Michelle Jacquet DeSevren Branch is an American singer, songwriter, and guitarist. During the early 2000s, she released two bestselling albums, The Spirit Room and Hotel Paper. She also collaborated with Santana on the Grammy Award-winning single The Game of Love.

  24. Alanis Morissette

    Alanis Nadine Morissette is a Canadian-American alternative rock singer-songwriter, guitarist, record producer, and actress. She gained international fame with her 1995 album Jagged Little Pill, which included hit singles such as You Oughta Know and Ironic. The album won five Grammy Awards and was later... read more

  25. Vanessa Carlton

    Vanessa Lee Carlton is an American singer-songwriter and pianist. She rose to fame with her 2002 hit single A Thousand Miles. Since then, she has released several albums and continued to tour and perform around the world.

  26. Fefe Dobson

    Felicia Lily Dobson (born February 28, 1985) is a Canadian singer and songwriter. Born in Toronto, Ontario, she began performing as a teenager. During this time, she received and declined a recording contract offer from Jive Records.... read more

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