What makes a rock star? Selling out stadiums and destroying hotel rooms in a drug-fueled craze? Shredding guitar solos and a strong disdain for authority? Many of the bands here fit the archetype, but the genre has also branched out in a million different directions.
To determine the 50 most popular rock performers of all time, 24/7 Tempo reviewed the top 10,000 most popular artists on the music analytics site Chartmetric. The site ranks them according to cross platform performance score (CPP), a measure based on views, subscribers, fans, streams, and other metrics on multiple social media and streaming platforms. Drawing on Chartmetric data, 24/7 Tempo created an index using Spotify followers, YouTube channel views, lifetime Pandora streams, and Wikipedia views from late May through late June 2021. All data was weighted equally.
The variety of artists who made the top 50 demonstrates that fans these days enjoy all kinds of rock. The list includes solo artists and groups ranging from Jimi Hendrix to Neil Young, Metallica to Radiohead. Rock royalty like Elvis and The Beatles are here, as are such newer alternative bands as Gorillaz and The Killers. Pop and rap/hip-hop artists are not included. (Here are the most famous rock bands formed every year since 1960.)
Click here to see the 50 most popular rock stars of all time
This ranking should be useful for anyone looking for some music recommendations, or who wants to see how their favorites from the past stack up in the modern world of streaming. Many bands come and go. Some are superstars in their time but don’t trickle down to future generations. Others have made timeless music that is still on repeat decades later. Many of the older rock icons here continue to create music. Here are 35 rock stars now 75 or older.
50. Neil Young
> Lifetime YouTube channel views: 260,953,416
> Spotify followers: 2,215,229
> Lifetime Pandora streams: 1,154,753,217
> Wikipedia page views (May 26 – June 26, 2021): 7,883
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49. Joe Walsh
> Lifetime YouTube channel views: 6,852,140
> Spotify followers: 814,834
> Lifetime Pandora streams: 143,712,105
> Wikipedia page views (May 26 – June 26, 2021): 11,832
48. Ricky Nelson
> Lifetime YouTube channel views: No data available
> Spotify followers: 297,086
> Lifetime Pandora streams: 183,123,386
> Wikipedia page views (May 26 – June 26, 2021): 9,013
47. Bruce Springsteen
> Lifetime YouTube channel views: 1,364,481,640
> Spotify followers: 4,049,371
> Lifetime Pandora streams: 687,385,743
> Wikipedia page views (May 26 – June 26, 2021): 5,885
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46. Ozzy Osbourne
> Lifetime YouTube channel views: 739,844,837
> Spotify followers: 3,587,635
> Lifetime Pandora streams: 1,134,070,373
> Wikipedia page views (May 26 – June 26, 2021): 6,792
45. Chris Cornell
> Lifetime YouTube channel views: 100,038,048
> Spotify followers: 1,552,303
> Lifetime Pandora streams: 119,607,311
> Wikipedia page views (May 26 – June 26, 2021): 11,787
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44. Korn
> Lifetime YouTube channel views: 1,640,975,518
> Spotify followers: 4,624,790
> Lifetime Pandora streams: 2,066,422,825
> Wikipedia page views (May 26 – June 26, 2021): 2,681
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43. The Killers
> Lifetime YouTube channel views: 1,846,736,967
> Spotify followers: 6,004,402
> Lifetime Pandora streams: 2,652,937,457
> Wikipedia page views (May 26 – June 26, 2021): 37
42. Muse
> Lifetime YouTube channel views: 2,202,706,870
> Spotify followers: 6,443,785
> Lifetime Pandora streams: 1,085,672,153
> Wikipedia page views (May 26 – June 26, 2021): 2,416
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41. Counting Crows
> Lifetime YouTube channel views: No data available
> Spotify followers: 1,301,082
> Lifetime Pandora streams: 1,474,125,772
> Wikipedia page views (May 26 – June 26, 2021): 7,006
40. George Harrison
> Lifetime YouTube channel views: 241,132,667
> Spotify followers: 1,845,595
> Lifetime Pandora streams: 1,243,038,143
> Wikipedia page views (May 26 – June 26, 2021): 10,504
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39. The Beach Boys
> Lifetime YouTube channel views: 136,338,138
> Spotify followers: 3,141,892
> Lifetime Pandora streams: 2,984,281,042
> Wikipedia page views (May 26 – June 26, 2021): 6,184
38. The Black Keys
> Lifetime YouTube channel views: 630,758,962
> Spotify followers: 3,486,076
> Lifetime Pandora streams: 3,749,255,295
> Wikipedia page views (May 26 – June 26, 2021): 3,592
37. Radiohead
> Lifetime YouTube channel views: 1,536,717,538
> Spotify followers: 6,154,164
> Lifetime Pandora streams: 1,658,507,127
> Wikipedia page views (May 26 – June 26, 2021): 4,306
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36. Paul McCartney
> Lifetime YouTube channel views: 233,808,014
> Spotify followers: 3,519,430
> Lifetime Pandora streams: 913,754,858
> Wikipedia page views (May 26 – June 26, 2021): 10,756
35. Tom Petty
> Lifetime YouTube channel views: 560,289,770
> Spotify followers: 1,631,539
> Lifetime Pandora streams: 3,367,532,914
> Wikipedia page views (May 26 – June 26, 2021): 7,074
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34. Jimi Hendrix
> Lifetime YouTube channel views: 434,946,723
> Spotify followers: 4,954,131
> Lifetime Pandora streams: 1,312,676,422
> Wikipedia page views (May 26 – June 26, 2021): 8,898
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33. Eric Clapton
> Lifetime YouTube channel views: 287,509,044
> Spotify followers: 4,247,455
> Lifetime Pandora streams: 1,754,335,856
> Wikipedia page views (May 26 – June 26, 2021): 9,355
32. Pearl Jam
> Lifetime YouTube channel views: 986,744,296
> Spotify followers: 6,706,042
> Lifetime Pandora streams: 2,525,941,865
> Wikipedia page views (May 26 – June 26, 2021): 4,749
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31. Oasis
> Lifetime YouTube channel views: 2,234,559,855
> Spotify followers: 6,266,520
> Lifetime Pandora streams: 1,385,341,795
> Wikipedia page views (May 26 – June 26, 2021): 5,782
30. Lynyrd Skynyrd
> Lifetime YouTube channel views: 534,538,277
> Spotify followers: 3,405,231
> Lifetime Pandora streams: 3,814,774,111
> Wikipedia page views (May 26 – June 26, 2021): 6,124
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29. System Of A Down
> Lifetime YouTube channel views: 3,525,179,638
> Spotify followers: 7,231,337
> Lifetime Pandora streams: 1,565,873,591
> Wikipedia page views (May 26 – June 26, 2021): 3,360
28. Foo Fighters
> Lifetime YouTube channel views: 2,223,864,010
> Spotify followers: 8,773,421
> Lifetime Pandora streams: 1,836,064,682
> Wikipedia page views (May 26 – June 26, 2021): 5,427
27. Gorillaz
> Lifetime YouTube channel views: 3,499,185,046
> Spotify followers: 6,998,898
> Lifetime Pandora streams: 1,185,699,116
> Wikipedia page views (May 26 – June 26, 2021): 6,569
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26. Arctic Monkeys
> Lifetime YouTube channel views: 2,812,192,299
> Spotify followers: 11,812,909
> Lifetime Pandora streams: 1,379,146,620
> Wikipedia page views (May 26 – June 26, 2021): 3,271
25. John Lennon
> Lifetime YouTube channel views: 813,595,844
> Spotify followers: 4,169,472
> Lifetime Pandora streams: 1,642,219,896
> Wikipedia page views (May 26 – June 26, 2021): 12,861
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24. U2
> Lifetime YouTube channel views: 1,584,409,092
> Spotify followers: 8,309,376
> Lifetime Pandora streams: 2,798,341,479
> Wikipedia page views (May 26 – June 26, 2021): 6,155
23. Glenn Frey
> Lifetime YouTube channel views: 10,999,298
> Spotify followers: 384,212
> Lifetime Pandora streams: 33,957,483
> Wikipedia page views (May 26 – June 26, 2021): 21,738
22. Fleetwood Mac
> Lifetime YouTube channel views: 789,490,530
> Spotify followers: 6,556,767
> Lifetime Pandora streams: 2,976,469,117
> Wikipedia page views (May 26 – June 26, 2021): 9,458
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21. David Bowie
> Lifetime YouTube channel views: 612,889,186
> Spotify followers: 6,894,044
> Lifetime Pandora streams: 543,862,289
> Wikipedia page views (May 26 – June 26, 2021): 15,149
20. Aerosmith
> Lifetime YouTube channel views: 2,476,853,952
> Spotify followers: 10,292,467
> Lifetime Pandora streams: 3,497,473,384
> Wikipedia page views (May 26 – June 26, 2021): 3,511
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19. Journey
> Lifetime YouTube channel views: 1,175,551,318
> Spotify followers: 3,576,795
> Lifetime Pandora streams: 7,369,795,608
> Wikipedia page views (May 26 – June 26, 2021): 3,647
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18. Creedence Clearwater Revival
> Lifetime YouTube channel views: 894,185,941
> Spotify followers: 4,286,592
> Lifetime Pandora streams: 6,715,767,187
> Wikipedia page views (May 26 – June 26, 2021): 4,877
17. Bon Jovi
> Lifetime YouTube channel views: 5,043,357,567
> Spotify followers: 9,328,992
> Lifetime Pandora streams: 2,748,734,720
> Wikipedia page views (May 26 – June 26, 2021): 3,859
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16. Green Day
> Lifetime YouTube channel views: 3,085,222,440
> Spotify followers: 12,138,801
> Lifetime Pandora streams: 3,322,973,829
> Wikipedia page views (May 26 – June 26, 2021): 5,371
15. Nirvana
> Lifetime YouTube channel views: 3,831,878,559
> Spotify followers: 12,774,030
> Lifetime Pandora streams: 3,147,875,898
> Wikipedia page views (May 26 – June 26, 2021): 6,194
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14. Pink Floyd
> Lifetime YouTube channel views: 994,861,467
> Spotify followers: 14,622,465
> Lifetime Pandora streams: 2,715,579,735
> Wikipedia page views (May 26 – June 26, 2021): 10,242
13. Elvis Presley
> Lifetime YouTube channel views: 1,250,293,027
> Spotify followers: 5,461,163
> Lifetime Pandora streams: 2,903,232,668
> Wikipedia page views (May 26 – June 26, 2021): 17,748
12. Led Zeppelin
> Lifetime YouTube channel views: 1,424,124,649
> Spotify followers: 10,714,229
> Lifetime Pandora streams: 4,669,437,004
> Wikipedia page views (May 26 – June 26, 2021): 10,949
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11. Twenty One Pilots
> Lifetime YouTube channel views: 3,695,493,886
> Spotify followers: 20,395,574
> Lifetime Pandora streams: 2,400,751,816
> Wikipedia page views (May 26 – June 26, 2021): 5,297
10. The Rolling Stones
> Lifetime YouTube channel views: 1,190,102,967
> Spotify followers: 10,239,327
> Lifetime Pandora streams: 6,751,479,998
> Wikipedia page views (May 26 – June 26, 2021): 10,033
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9. AC/DC
> Lifetime YouTube channel views: 5,946,630,585
> Spotify followers: 19,184,928
> Lifetime Pandora streams: 4,870,519,218
> Wikipedia page views (May 26 – June 26, 2021): 187
8. Metallica
> Lifetime YouTube channel views: 4,476,385,041
> Spotify followers: 17,822,487
> Lifetime Pandora streams: 3,608,842,982
> Wikipedia page views (May 26 – June 26, 2021): 7,490
7. Elton John
> Lifetime YouTube channel views: 1,630,092,137
> Spotify followers: 7,129,353
> Lifetime Pandora streams: 5,621,539,673
> Wikipedia page views (May 26 – June 26, 2021): 16,945
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6. Guns N’ Roses
> Lifetime YouTube channel views: 6,606,098,434
> Spotify followers: 20,632,747
> Lifetime Pandora streams: 2,905,268,951
> Wikipedia page views (May 26 – June 26, 2021): 5,172
5. Eagles
> Lifetime YouTube channel views: 395,252,617
> Spotify followers: 6,547,642
> Lifetime Pandora streams: 6,077,192,109
> Wikipedia page views (May 26 – June 26, 2021): 20,786
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4. Red Hot Chili Peppers
> Lifetime YouTube channel views: 5,083,377,617
> Spotify followers: 16,033,120
> Lifetime Pandora streams: 6,889,305,567
> Wikipedia page views (May 26 – June 26, 2021): 6,804
3. Imagine Dragons
> Lifetime YouTube channel views: 11,426,066,911
> Spotify followers: 34,219,881
> Lifetime Pandora streams: 6,524,640,673
> Wikipedia page views (May 26 – June 26, 2021): 3,233
2. The Beatles
> Lifetime YouTube channel views: 3,834,795,845
> Spotify followers: 19,556,309
> Lifetime Pandora streams: 13,798,999,620
> Wikipedia page views (May 26 – June 26, 2021): 15,336
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1. Queen
> Lifetime YouTube channel views: 8,260,605,188
> Spotify followers: 34,371,171
> Lifetime Pandora streams: 7,445,079,346
> Wikipedia page views (May 26 – June 26, 2021): 9,891
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