James Brown created two subgenres (Soul and Funk). He has 17 #1 singles and has the record for most singles EVER on the Billboard Hot 100 to not make number 1 for ANY genre, not just R&B. He is one of the first artists inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Not only are his list of songs incredibly long, James Brown may also be the most sampled artist in the history of ANY genre. Some of them...
2 Live Crew: “Coolin’ “
Beastie Boys: “Shadrach”
Big Daddy Kane: “Mortal Combat”
De La Soul: “Oodles of O’s”
Depeche Mode: “My Joy”
Digable Planets: “Where I’m From”
DJ Jazzy Jeff & the Fresh Prince: “Pump Up the Bass”
Dr. Dre: “Let Me Ride”
Enigma: “Carly’s Song”
Eric B & Rakim: “Paid in Full”
Fine Young Cannibals: “I’m Not the Man I Used to Be”
GangStarr: “2 Deep”
George Michael: “Waiting for That Day”
Geto Boys: “Mind of a Lunatic”
Heavy D: “We Got Our Own Thang”
Ice Cube: “Endangered Species”
Ice T: “Original Gangster”
Kris Kross: “Jump”
Leaders of the New School: “Teachers, Don’t Teach Us Nonsense”
LL Cool J: “Mama Said Knock You Out”
Marky Mark: “Good Vibrations”
MC Lyte: “Brooklyn”
Milli Vanilli: “Girl You Know It’s True”
Mobb Deep: “Flavor for the Non-Believes”
Nas: “Get Down”
Naughty by Nature: “Ready for Dem”
New Order: “Ruined in a Day”
Nine Inch Nails: “Piggy (Nothing Can Stop Me Now)”
NWA: “F–k Tha Police”
Pete Rock & CL Smooth: “Go With the Flow”
Prince: “Gett Off”, “My Name Is Prince”
Public Enemy: “Bring the Noise”, “Fight the Power”
Redman: “Rated R”
Roxanne Shante: “Have a Nice Day”
Run-DMC: “Run’s House”
Salt-N-Pepa: “Let the Rhythm Run”
Scarface: “Born Killer”
Sinead O’Connor: “I Am Stretched on Your Grave”
Sir Mix-A-Lot: “No Holds Barred”
Slayer & Atari Teenage Riot: “No Remorse (I Wanna Die)”
Sublime: “Scarlet Begonias”
TLC: “Shock Dat Monkey”
Tupac ft Richie Rich: “Lie to Kick It”
Ultramagnetic MC: “Give the Drummer Some”
Vanilla Ice: “Stop That Train”
There are many more than this.
Marvin Gaye was an amazing artist. Marvin Gaye had a superior singing voice, but Marvin Gaye himself would laugh at this poll.