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Taylor Swift did not receive first place on Billboard 's Greatest Pop Stars of the 21st Century list — and Swifties are upset.
On Tuesday, November 26, the outlet revealed the 34-year-old singer-songwriter ranked in second place. The number one spot has yet to be revealed, but fans speculate it will go to Beyoncé. Rounding out the top 10 is Rhianna in third, Drake in fourth, Lady Gaga in fifth, Britney Spears in sixth, Kanye West in seventh, Justin Bieber in eighth, Ariana Grande in ninth, and Adele in 10th place.
While ranking second is undoubtedly an impressive honor, many Swifites believe the 14-time Grammy winner's impact on the music industry should have clinched her the top spot. As fans argued, Swift is the only singer to win Album of the Year at the Grammys four times, the Eras Tour is the highest-grossing tour in history, and she was the most-streamed artist on Spotify last year.
Fans took to X (formerly known as Twitter) to voice their unhappiness about the ranking.
One fan commented, "no that's insane, there's only one popstar who's achieved Michael Jackson levels of fame and popularity this century and that's taylor swift!"
"i never get this defensive but omg they pissed me off so bad today... she occupied THE TOP 14 OF BILLBOARD like that enough is smth others can only dream about achieving... not even dream tbh."
"TAYLOR SWIFT YOU ARE MY GREATEST POPSTAR!!!!" another individual penned.
Someone else wrote, "I don't even like Taylor Swift or her music that much but no one can deny that she's the most influential popstar of our time."
"I love Beyoncé SO MUCH... like actually. But I don't think we have seen a popstar with this much impact in SO LONG until Taylor Swift.. like be for real right now," another fan wrote on the platform.
Billboard expected to receive some backlash for their decision, writing in their ranking for Swift, "The fact that controversy will likely tear through the internet over her being just one small space below No. 1 is just another testament to her power, but regardless, her placement shouldn't leave Swifties upset for too long — especially considering how much later in the millennium she got her start, both in the genre and music in general."
English (US) ·