Rock Artists Who Spent the Most Time at No. 1 on Billboard 200

Billboard just published a list of which artists have spent the most time at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 chart, and quite a few big rock artists made the cut.

The list features artists from all different musical backgrounds, including rap and hip-hop, pop and country, in addition to rock. Michael Jackson, Garth Brooks and Taylor Swift are some of the heavy-hitters from other genres that have all spent over 50 weeks at No. 1 on the chart.

In a world where rock ‘n’ roll usually doesn’t come out on top anymore, it’s nice to see that the artist who’s spent the most time at the top of the chart was actually from the rock world — The Beatles. They may not have been hard rock, but if it weren’t for their legacy, some of the hardest rock bands we have today may never have existed.

As noted by Billboard, The Beatles spent a total of 132 weeks at No. 1, with the first time being the week of Feb. 15, 1964. The album that spent the longest on the chart consecutively was Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band for 15 weeks in 1967.

Elvis Presley was the next artist who spent the longest on the Billboard 200 with a rock background. The King of Rock ‘n’ Roll spent 67 weeks atop the chart, and the soundtrack he did for the 1961 film Blue Hawaii was his longest-running effort.

READ MORE: Billboard Names Biggest Rock Band of the 21st Century

Elton John was next in line, having spent 39 weeks at No. 1. The Rolling Stones came after, with a total of 38 weeks at the top. Their 1981 album Tattoo You, which features the hit “Start Me Up,” was their longest-running chart topper. Fleetwood Mac actually tied the Stones at 38 weeks, The Monkees totaled 37 weeks, Prince totaled 35 weeks and The Eagles 30 weeks.

There are a lot of other rock and metal bands who’ve spent a long time on the Billboard 200, including Metallica, Queen, Pink Floyd and Guns N’ Roses. But spending over 30 weeks at No. 1 is a very unique feat, and we’re damn proud of the rock representation this time around.