The Defining Artists of the 2000s

The following artists released some of the best music of the 2000s. Hall of Famers are highlighted in orange.

Of the 134 artists listed above, 18% have been inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame.

The Defining Albums of the 2000s

Godspeed You! Black Emperor - Lift Your Skinny Fists Like Antennas to Heaven (2000)

At the Drive-In - Relationship of Command (2000)

Patsy Cline - The Ultimate Collection (2000)

The Avalanches - Since I Left You (2000)

NSYNC - No Strings Attached (2000)

Ryan Adams - Heartbreaker (2000)

Eminem - The Marshall Mathers LP (2000)

Queens of the Stone Age - Rated R (2000)

PJ Harvey - Stories From The City, Stories From The Sea (2000)

OutKast - Stankonia (2000)

The New Pornographers - Mass Romantic (2000)

Radiohead - Kid A (2000)

Modest Mouse - The Moon & Antarctica (2000)

U2 - All That You Can't Leave Behind (2000)

Common - Like Water For Chocolate (2000)

Yo La Tengo - And Then Nothing Turned Itself Inside-Out (2000)

Ghostface Killah - Supreme Clientele (2000)

D'Angelo - Voodoo (2000)

Madonna - Music (2000)

Deftones - White Pony (2000)

Erykah Badu - Mama's Gun (2000)

ABBA - The Definitive Collection (2001)

System of a Down - Toxicity (2001)

Pink - Missundaztood (2001)

Radiohead - Amnesiac (2001)

Alicia Keys - Songs in A Minor (2001)

The Shins - Oh, Inverted World (2001)

Bob Dylan - Love And Theft (2001)

Shakira - Laundry Service (2001)

Muddy Waters - The Anthology: 1947-1972 (2001)

Jimmy Eat World - Bleed American (2001)

Daft Punk - Discovery (2001)

Aaliyah - Aaliyah (2001)

Destiny's Child - Survivor (2001)

The Strokes - Is This It (2001)

Manu Chao - Próxima Estación: Esperanza (2001)

Drive-By Truckers - Southern Rock Opera (2001)

Wilco - Yankee Hotel Foxtrot (2001)

Björk - Vespertine (2001)

Gillian Welch - Time (The Revelator) (2001)

Basement Jaxx - Rooty (2001)

The White Stripes - White Blood Cells (2001)

Missy Elliott - Miss E... So Addictive (2001)

Jay-Z - The Blueprint (2001)

Neko Case - Blacklisted (2002)

Broken Social Scene - You Forgot It in People (2002)

Beck - Sea Change (2002)

The Libertines - Up The Bracket (2002)

Coldplay - A Rush Of Blood To The Head (2002)

Missy Elliott - Under Construction (2002)

The Flaming Lips - Yoshimi Battles The Pink Robots (2002)

Spoon - Kill the Moonlight (2002)

The Mountain Goats - Tallahassee (2002)

Interpol - Turn On The Bright Lights (2002)

Bruce Springsteen - The Rising (2002)

Avril Lavigne - Let Go (2002)

50 Cent - Get Rich Or Die Tryin' (2003)

OutKast - Speakerboxxx/The Love Below (2003)

The White Stripes - Elephant (2003)

Sam Cooke - Portrait of a Legend: 1951-1964 (2003)

Yeah Yeah Yeahs - Fever To Tell (2003)

The Postal Service - Give Up (2003)

Alicia Keys - The Diary Of Alicia Keys (2003)

Four Tet - Rounds (2003)

Jay-Z - The Black Album (2003)

Brian Wilson - SMiLE (2004)

Mastodon - Leviathan (2004)

My Chemical Romance - Three Cheers for Sweet Revenge (2004)

Usher - Confessions (2004)

Arcade Fire - Funeral (2004)

Daddy Yankee - Barrio fino (2004)

Franz Ferdinand - Franz Ferdinand (2004)

Green Day - American Idiot (2004)

Madvillain - Madvillainy (2004)

The Killers - Hot Fuss (2004)

Feist - Let It Die (2004)

Sonic Youth - Sonic Nurse (2004)

Kanye West - The College Dropout (2004)

The Hold Steady - Separation Sunday (2005)

Sufjan Stevens - Illinois (2005)

M.I.A. - Arular (2005)

Gorillaz - Demon Days (2005)

Kanye West - Late Registration (2005)

Fall Out Boy - From Under the Cork Tree (2005)

Lil Wayne - Tha Carter II (2005)

Mariah Carey - The Emancipation of Mimi (2005)

Sleater-Kinney - The Woods (2005)

Fiona Apple - Extraordinary Machine (2005)

My Morning Jacket - Z (2005)

Paul McCartney - Chaos and Creation in the Backyard (2005)

Ghostface Killah - Fishscale (2006)

Clipse - Hell Hath No Fury (2006)

Mastodon - Blood Mountain (2006)

Justin Timberlake - FutureSex/LoveSounds (2006)

Beyoncé - B'Day (2006)

John Mayer - Continuum (2006)

Joanna Newsom - Ys (2006)

My Chemical Romance - The Black Parade (2006)

TV on the Radio - Return to Cookie Mountain (2006)

Arctic Monkeys - Whatever People Say I Am, That's What I'm Not (2006)

J Dilla - Donuts (2006)

Bob Dylan - Modern Times (2006)

Red Hot Chili Peppers - Stadium Arcadium (2006)

Amy Winehouse - Back To Black (2006)

Miranda Lambert - Crazy Ex-Girlfriend (2007)

Against Me! - New Wave (2007)

LCD Soundsystem - Sound Of Silver (2007)

M.I.A. - Kala (2007)

MGMT - Oracular Spectacular (2007)

Radiohead - In Rainbows (2007)

Kanye West - Graduation (2007)

Paramore - Riot! (2007)

Britney Spears - Blackout (2007)

Lil Wayne - Da Drought 3 (2007)

Panda Bear - Person Pitch (2007)

Bon Iver - For Emma, Forever Ago (2007)

The National - Boxer (2007)

Burial - Untrue (2007)

TV on the Radio - Dear Science (2008)

The Roots - Rising Down (2008)

Drive-By Truckers - Brighter Than Creation's Dark (2008)

Lil Wayne - Tha Carter III (2008)

Vampire Weekend - Vampire Weekend (2008)

Kanye West - 808s & Heartbreak (2008)

Phoenix - Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix (2009)

The xx - xx (2009)

Animal Collective - Merriweather Post Pavilion (2009)

Lady Gaga - The Fame Monster (2009)

Kid Cudi - Man on the Moon: The End of Day (2009)

Grizzly Bear - Veckatimest (2009)

Maxwell - BLACKsummers'night (2009)

The Defining Songs of the 2000s

Missy Elliott - Work It (2000)

Coldplay - Yellow (2000)

Eminem - Stan (2000)

OutKast - Ms. Jackson (2000)

D'Angelo - Untitled (How Does it Feel) (2000)

Radiohead - Idioteque (2000)

The Strokes - Last Nite (2001)

Missy "Misdemeanor" Elliott - Get Ur Freak On (2001)

Wilco - Heavy Metal Drummer (2001)

50 Cent - In Da Club (2002)

Eminem - Lose Yourself (2002)

Jay-Z - 99 Problems (2003)

The Killers - Mr. Brightside (2003)

OutKast - Hey Ya! (2003)

The White Stripes - Seven Nation Army (2003)

Yeah Yeah Yeahs - Maps (2003)

Britney Spears - Toxic (2003)

Beyoncé - Crazy in Love (2003)

Kelly Clarkson - Since U Been Gone (2004)

Coldplay - Fix You (2005)

My Chemical Romance - Welcome to the Black Parade (2006)

Gnarls Barkley - Crazy (2006)

Amy Winehouse - Back To Black (2006)

M.I.A. - Paper Planes (2007)

LCD Soundsystem - All My Friends (2007)

The Veronicas - Untouched (2007)

Kanye West - Stronger (2007)

Rihanna - Umbrella (2007)

Lady Gaga - Bad Romance (2009)