1998. The year that Pop Hop and Bubblegum Pop dominated the charts. Alternative became truly the alternative again. Hip Hop split into two camps: the mainstream and the underground. And the huge debuts stars of the mid-90's, Alanis Morissette and Hootie and the Blowfish, barely registered outside of their core audiences.
"Titanic" sold so many records, I thought I was gonna have to break every copy in existence, just to erase the presence of it. And that Celine Dion song was played over and over and over and over again on the radio. Too many damn times. Garth Brooks sold more than 1,000,000 copies during his first week of release, twice this year, I think. What is going on in people's minds. Anything with creativity and heart sold comparatively little; for example, Hole. And most of the uninspired crap sold like gangbusters.

In keeping with the spirit of crass capitalism, Seagram's announced in December it would be buying Polygram Records and merging it with Universal Records. This would create the largest record company in the U.S. and gobble up 25% of the market. Of course, with mergers come layoffs. I suspect that come the new year we'll being hearing about a lot musicians who've lost their recording contracts

This could also have a profound effect on Hip Hop. Def Jam and Interscope are under this umbrella. If it becomes difficult for rappers to sign those multimillion dollar deals, maybe heads will go back to the days when they pressed their own records. This may turn out to be a good thing.
All was not lost in the 9-8. There were a few highlights. Lauryn Hill sold over 420,000 of her solo debut during its first week of release. That was the most first week sales for any female artist. Jewel outpaced Mariah Carey's collection of #1 hits on Super Tuesday. Hallelujah! I'm getting tired of seeing M.C. naked on TV. Method Man came in second that day.
I have compiled my very own lists of 1998's top singles and full length CDs. Why should you care? I don't know. I'm just sharing my opinion. Whether you agree or disagree is entirely a matter of taste. I welcome any feedback. Keep it civil. No personal attacks or name calling, please. I really don't want to have to come looking for anybody.