Top Songs of the 2000s (By Sales and Awards)

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The 45th GRAMMY Awards - MusiCares 2003 Person of the Year - Bono - Show / L. Cohen/GettyImages

Grammy Awards

There are four main awards at the Grammy's which are worth discussing here. First, the Album of the Year recognizes a full album that is noteworthy for its popularity and artistic merit. The Record of the Year and Song of the Year categories focus on one song, with the "Record" award going to the performer(s) and the "Song" award going to the writer(s). Finally, Best New Artist helps to understand which performers broke into the industry that year, many of whom went on to win major awards in later years.

Year	Album of the Year	Record of the Year	Song of the Year	Best New Artist
2000	"Supernatural," Santana	"Smooth," Santana featuring Rob Thomas	"Smooth," Itaal Shur & Rob Thomas	Christina Aguilera
2001	"Two Against Nature," Steely Dan	"Beautiful Day," U2	"Beautiful Day," U2	Shelby Lynne
2002	"O Brother, Where Art Though?" (soundtrack)	"Walk On," U2	"Fallin'," Alicia Keys	Alicia Keys
2003	"Come Away With Me," Norah Jones	"Don't Know Why," Norah Jones	"Don't Know Why," Jesse Harris	Norah Jones
2004	"Speakerboxxx/The Love Below," OutKast	"Clocks," Coldplay	"Dance With My Father," Richard Marx & Luther Vandross	Evanescence
2005	"Genius Loves Company," Ray Charles	"Here We Go Again," Ray Charles & Norah Jones	"Daughters," John Mayer	Maroon 5
2006	"How to Dismantle an Atomic Bomb," U2	"Boulevard of Broken Dreams," Green Day	"Sometimes You Can't Make It on Your Own," U2	John Legend
2007	"Taking The Long Way," Dixie Chicks	"Not Ready to Make Nice," Dixie Chicks	"Not Ready to Make Nice," Martie Maguire, Natalie Maines, Emily Robison & Dan Wilson	Carrie Underwood
2008	"River: The Joni Letters," Herbie Hancock	"Rehab," Amy Winehouse	"Rehab," Amy Winehouse	Amy Winehouse
2009	"Raising Sand," Robert Plant & Alison Krauss	"Please Read the Letter," Robert Plant & Alison Krauss	"Viva la Vida," Guy Berryman, Jonny Buckland, Will Champion & Chris Martin	Adele
2010	"Fearless," Taylor Swift	"Use Somebody," Kings of Leon	"Single Ladies (Put a Ring on It)," Thaddis Harrell, Beyoncé Knowles, Terius Nash & Christopher Stewart	Zac Brown Band

Note: 2010 is included to recognize the music released in 2009.

Ludacris And 50 Cent Headline Official Billboard Music Awards After Party At Drai's Nightclub At The / Bryan Steffy/BBMA2016/GettyImages

Billboard Music Awards

The three awards depicted here include the Artist of the Year, Album of the Year, and Single of the Year. The Billboard Music Awards include top awards for most major music genres, but these three are some of the only awards that pit artists from different genres against each other. Frequently, hip hop and rap won out for Artist and Album of the Year, while pop and country won Single of the Year.

Year	Artist of the Year	Album of the Year	Single of the Year
2000	Destiny’s Child	"No Strings Attached," NSYNC	"Breathe," Faith Hill
2001	Destiny's Child	"1," The Beatles	"Hanging by a Moment," Lifehouse
2002	Nelly	"The Eminem Show," Eminem	"How You Remind Me," Nickelback
2003	50 Cent		“This Is the Night”/”Bridge Over Troubled Water,” Clay Aiken
2004	Usher	"Confessions," Usher	"Yeah!" Usher featuring Lil Jon and Ludacris; "I Believe," Fantasia
2005	50 Cent	The Massacre," 50 Cent	"We Belong Together," Mariah Carey; "Inside Your Heaven / Independence Day," Carrie Underwood
2006	Chris Brown	"Some Hearts," Carrie Underwood	"Bad Day," Daniel Powter

Note: The Billboard Music Awards did not take place from 2007 to 2010.

2009 MTV Video Music Awards - Show / Kevin Mazur/GettyImages

MTV Video Music Awards

While the music industry was incredibly diverse in the 2000s, another major factor was which music videos drew the most attention. Of course, this wasn't a completely new phenomenon, as MTV had been showing videos since 1981. However, YouTube brought more focus to the visual media, as they were suddenly available to more people, with more freedom, than ever before.

Year	Video of the Year	Viewer's Choice
2000	"The Real Slim Shady," Eminem	"Bye Bye Bye," NSYNC
2001	"Lady Marmalade," Christina Aguilera, Lil' Kim, Mýa and P!nk (featuring Missy Elliott)	"Pop," NSYNC
2002	"Without Me," Eminem	"Everywhere," Michelle Branch
2003	"Work It," Missy Elliott	"Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous," Good Charlotte
2004	"Hey Ya!" Outkast	"Breaking the Habit," Linkin Park
2005	"Boulevard of Broken Dreams," Green Day	"American Idiot," Green Day
2006	"I Write Sins Not Tragedies," Panic! at the Disco	"Dance, Dance," Fall Out Boy
2007	"Umbrella," Rihanna (featuring Jay-Z)
2008	"Piece of Me," Britney Spears
2009	"Single Ladies (Put a Ring on It)," Beyoncé
2010	"Bad Romance," Lady Gaga

Note: The Viewer's Choice Award category was eliminated after 2006, when all awards were based on audience votes.

2006 Annual American Music Awards - Show / Michael Caulfield Archive/GettyImages

American Music Awards

The American Music Awards experienced a major transition in 2006, when fans and audiences gained the ability to control who won, rather than it being decided purely by industry-based judges. This change can be seen in the preference of teen stars and singing competition winners in the latter years of the decade.

Year	Artist of the Year	New Artist of the Year
2001	NSYNC
2002	U2
2003	Madonna
2004	Kenny Chesney	Gretchen Wilson
2005	Kelly Clarkson	Sugarland
2006	Rascal Flatts	Carrie Underwood
2007	Carrie Underwood	Daughtry
2008	Chris Brown	Jonas Brothers
2009	Taylor Swift	Gloriana
2010	Justin Bieber	Justin Bieber

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Top artists and songs of the 2000s (By sales and awards)

By Meagan Bojarski | Dec 1, 2023

Award-Winning Music

Grammy Awards

Billboard Music Awards

MTV Video Music Awards

American Music Awards