iTunes Rewind 2010: Eminem Dominates, Plus A Lot Of You Bought That Train Song

Becky Bain | December 9, 2010 12:17 pm

Eminem’s big year just keeps getting bigger. The reformed rapper scored the best-selling album on iTunes in 2010 with his intense, Grammy-nominated LP, Recovery, while Train’s ubiquitous hit “Hey, Soul Sister” triumphed as the best-selling single on the digital downloading site. Still, Em’s powerful presence is all over the place — his tracks, “Love The Way You Lie” with Rihanna and “Not Afraid” were also two of the ten best-selling singles of the year, and iTunes’ editors named him Artist Of The Year.

What else was everybody downloading in 2010? Jump below to find out, as well as the remainder of iTunes’ editors personal picks. (No Justin Bieber in sight, so either virtually pat iTunes on the back or start drafting your complaint letters to Steve Jobs.)

Best-Selling iTunes Singles of 2010: 1. Train, “Hey, Soul Sister” 2. Katy Perry, “California Gurls” (feat. Snoop Dogg) 3. Eminem, “Love the Way You Lie” (feat. Rihanna) 4. B.o.B, “Airplanes” (feat. Hayley Williams of Paramore) 5. Taio Cruz, “Dynamite” 6. Usher, “OMG” (feat. will.i.am) 7. Taio Cruz, “Break Your Heart” (feat. Ludacris) 8. Ke$ha, “TiK ToK” 9. Lady Antebellum, “Need You Now” 10. Eminem, “Not Afraid”

Best-Selling iTunes Albums of 2010: 1. Eminem, Recovery 2. Ke$ha, Animal 3. Lady Gaga, The Fame 4. Lady Antebellum, Need You Now 5. Taylor Swift, Speak Now 6. Drake, Thank Me Later 7. Mumford & Sons, Sigh No More 8. The Black Eyed Peas, The E.N.D. 9. Jack Johnson, To the Sea 10. Sade, Soldier of Love

Interestingly, Lady Gaga’s The Fame (which was originally released back in August 2008) was the #3 best-selling album in 2009 as well. (Her more recent album, The Fame Monster, came in at #28.) Plus, The Black Eyed Peas’ The E.N.D. sold even more units this year than last, moving from #10 to #8. They’re going to have to work pretty hard to get their low performing new disc The Beginning to repeat the success of its predecessor in 2011.

EDITOR’S PICKS:

ARTIST OF THE YEAR: Eminem

ALBUM OF THE YEAR: The Black Keys, Brothers

BEST NEW ARTIST: B.o.B

BEST ROCK ALBUM: Deftones, Diamond Eyes

BEST HIP-HOP ALBUM: Drake, Thank Me Later

BEST ELECTRONIC ALBUM: LCD Soundsystem, This Is Happening

BEST ALTERNATIVE ALBUM: Beach House, Teen Dream

BEST POP ALBUM: Ke$ha, Animal

BEST COUNTRY ALBUM: Lady Antebellum, Need You Now

BEST R&B/SOUL ALBUM: Trey Songz, Passion, Pain & Pleasure

BEST SINGER/SONGWRITER ALBUM: Laura Marling, I Speak Because I Can

[EW Music Mix]