Even though albums aren't performing as well as they once did and digital downloads seem to be decreasing in popularity, Taylor Swift still managed to absolutely dominate the music world over the past decade and sold significantly more singles than any other U.S. artist.
According to Forbes, Taylor sold over 75 million individual tracks from 2010 to 2020, a sum that no other artist comes close to matching. Her success just helped her win 'Best Solo Act In The World' at the 2020 NME Awards, and she celebrated the honor with a rare display of affection for her boyfriend Joe Alwyn.
Taylor Sold Way More Singles Than Any Other U.S. Artist Over The Past Decade
Nielsen's list of the musicians who sold the most songs over the past ten years shows that the 2010's were Taylor Swift's decade. Between her country and pop hits, the star sold 75,893,000 individual tracks in ten years, and Forbes notes that this total is far above the totals reached by her U.S. competition.
The artist who was closest to Taylor's sales total is Eminem, who managed to sell 63,501,000 singles throughout the decade, over 12 million sales behind Swift.
She Won 'Best Solo Act In The World' At The 2020 NME Awards
Taylor's first "appearance" at the NME Awards occurred in 2016, when she sent in a pre-recorded message to the show after winning 'Best International Solo Artist.' At this year's ceremony, she actually showed up in person at the O2 Academy Brixton in London, England, because she was up for the prestigious honor of 'Best Solo Act in the World.'
Taylor won the award, and in her acceptance speech, poked fun of her middle finger-shaped trophy and the unconventionally "crazy" ceremony.
“It’s amazing to have a matching set. I’m honored,” she joked. “This is my first time at the NME Awards, and like, I just feel like everyone here is so shy, so reserved. Are you guys having any fun tonight? Are you going to come out of your shells at all? Oh, wait no. This is like the craziest award show I’ve ever been to.”
Taylor Celebrated With Some Surprise PDA With Boyfriend Joe Alwyn
Taylor kept her relationship with boyfriend Joe Alwyn under wraps for years, and while the couple is now public, they still haven't posed on the red carpet together and rarely show any affection towards each other when cameras are around.
Taylor put her reservations aside when she won 'Best Solo Act in the World,' though, and embraced and kissed Alwyn before going on stage to accept the award.