Billboard's Greatest Pop Stars

The Greatest Pop Stars is an annual list ranking the most important and impactful music artists in the United States, selected by a panel of editors of Billboard magazine.

The list was first published in 2019, with retrospective annual rankings back to 1981, the year MTV premiered, which Billboard noted as the start of "modern pop stardom".

[1] In 2024, to mark the end of the first quarter of the 21st century, Billboard decided to make a list of the artists who have defined popular culture, music and stardom, and been the "most important and most impactful" over the period of 2000 to 2024.

It also uses factors such as acclaimed works, music videos, live performances, social media presence, cultural importance, industry influence and overall omnipresence.

[2]Female musicians dominated Billboard's Greatest Pop Star lists, showing the omnipresence of women within popular music in post-Madonna era.

Blondie was named the first Greatest Pop Star (1981).
Madonna was the first artist to repeat as a year's Greatest Pop Star: 1985 and 1989. [ 4 ]
Taylor Swift was named the Greatest Pop Star three times (2015, 2021, and 2023).
Beyoncé was named the Greatest Pop Star of the 21st Century.