10. Justin Bieber This year, the teen pop superstar upped the ante: He toppled the box office with his 3-D concert flick, "Never Say Never," and released a slew of new music, including his chart-topping holiday album, Under the Mistletoe. And when he wasn't busy recording, shooting videos, rapping, shufflin', touring and tweeting, he romanced Selena Gomez. Not even tabloid headlines could rain on his parade. In fact, Bieber proved that if he wants to try something in his career, he won't just try— he'll probably succeed. — Jocelyn Vena

9. Drake Drizzy claimed that all he cared about was money and the city that he's from, but you've got to figure that making hits was pretty high on the Toronto MC's list in 2011. Granted, his second solo album, Take Care, came out in November, but the singing rapper (or the rapping singer) still made his presence felt throughout the year. Duets with Rihanna ("What's My Name"), posse cuts with Lil Wayne and Rick Ross (DJ Khaled's "I'm On One") and his own Internet leaks ("Marvins Room" and "Dreams Money Can Buy") served as ample appetizers before Drake served his main course. When he did unveil his emotionally driven main course, 750,000 hungry fans came to the table and purchased it in the first week of release. So much for a sophomore jinx. — Rob

8. Lil Wayne Rap star or rock star? Or maybe he's a pop star? In '11, Lil Wayne proved he's all of the above. With "6 Foot 7 Foot," the thumping "John" and his free Sorry 4 the Wait mixtape, Weezy left no doubt that he's still a premier MC. But over the acoustic guitar plucks of "How to Love," Wayne once again penetrated the pop world. If covers by Justin Bieber and Demi Lovato weren't enough, then consider Wayne's appearances on J.Lo's "I'm Into You" or Joe Jonas' "Just in Love." Tunechi also took his guitar on the road with his I Am Still Music Tour, rocked an MTV "Unplugged" special and closed out this year's Video Music Awards. Oh yeah, his ninth solo album, Tha Carter IV, nearly went platinum in its first week out, selling more than 964,000 copies. What a year! — R.M.

7. Beyoncé Like every other Beyoncé fan, I'm thrilled the star is expecting her first child with hubby Jay-Z, but the delivery of her album 4 was just as exciting. The LP, her most mature to date, is a collection of soulful ballads and midtempo tracks tracks tempered with a deep nostalgic streak. And those singles, the best of which were joyful, horn-blasting throwback jams like "Love on Top" and "Countdown," were unlike anything else on pop radio. Maybe that's why 4 didn't connect commercially the way many of her past records have. But B's 2011 arc has been steady and, most important, certain. Everything she touched in 2011, from 4 to those acclaimed dates at New York City's Roseland Ballroom in August (to that belly!), was golden. — John Mitchell

6. Rihanna Rihanna had us buzzing about songs off not one, but two albums in 2011. There were a number of hits that dropped this year from 2010's Loud, including a remix of "S&M" with the one-and-only Britney Spears. And while she was still riding high off the momentum of her fifth album, Rih went back into the studio mid-tour and cranked out the sexy, grinding Talk That Talk. Thanks to "We Found Love," the chart-topping lead single off TTT, Rihanna reinvented herself as a punked-out club kid looking for love ... knowing that it's not always easy to find. — J.V

5. Lady Gaga Gaga is that girl you knew in college with a triple-major in finance, modern dance and molecular chemistry who also played cello and made her own whole-wheat gnocchi on weekends. In 2011, she hit just about every talk show and awards ceremony known to man. And while she did all that, she also toured, released a string of controversial high-concept music videos, spoke out against bullying and starred in an HBO concert film and a prime-time Thanksgiving special. Oh, she also spent the year spinning off a string of hits that mined everything from classic rock to decadent disco. She never slows down, it's never enough and she's set a torrid pace for all divas to come. And that's exactly how she likes it. — Gil Kaufman

4. The Throne Be honest, you didn't think this was going to work out. After all, the track record for superstar team-ups isn't exactly great (just ask Jay-Z about the Best of Both Worlds Tour), and the Throne are perhaps the super-starriest team-up in recent history. But somehow, Jay and Kanye made it happen, ditching their egos and delivering a classic album ... and a sold-out tour too. Sure, they may play "N---as in Paris" 15 times a show, but that's only because they've earned the right to do so. — James Montgomery

3. Adele No artist was more quietly ubiquitous this year than Adele. When it came to the charts, she dominated: 21 was the top-selling album of 2011 and "Rolling in the Deep" was the year's biggest song. She ruled because everyone, from millennials to their mothers and maybe even their grandparents, could all agree that hers was the best, most universally appealing mainstream music released this year. There was no need for a year-round media assault, no reason to cause a Twitter beef; heck, she only needed to release two singles to keep it all afloat. Why? Because she's just that good. — J.M.

We've counted down #10 to #3, but who will come out on top in the final two? Stick with us as we reveal the Best Artist of 2011 today 4:59 p.m. ET on MTV!
All this week, watch "AMTV" on MTV every day at 8 a.m. ET for our Best of 2011 lists. Then, come to MTVNews.com at 5 p.m. as we reveal our top picks of the year!

Katy Perry has one of those spots.

Rihanna, Drake and Beyoncé

Katy's #2, Britney's #1.

Every artists' list with Adele not sitting on the #1 chair is invalid. And Katy better be outside of the top10.

nope MTV announced it's between katy perry & nicki minaj

"She never slows down, it's never enough and she's set a torrid pace for all divas to come."

Yes. Even with a "flop era," Gaga is making all of these year-end lists effortlessly.

I can't at Nicki Minaj and Katy Perry being over Adele.

Nicki #2, Katy #1!

ADELE should be #1 so far.

Drake, Lil Wayne and The Throne

Can't wait for Katy

Nicki shouldn't even be a contender. Katy FTW.

It's MTV, so I am sure Britney will have #1 and Katy #2. Adele should be #1 though. No one, I mean no one, did what she did this year.

Nicki?

SOME OF THESE BITCHES OVER BRITNEY? NOT HERE FOR THAT

Adele should be #1... but Katy and Nicki we'll see

The Top 5 on this SHOULD be:

1.Katy Perry
2.Rihanna
3.Adele
4.Lil Wayne
5.Justin Bieber

but what is with the Bruno snub?

I stopped reading at "10. Justin Bieber".

Lmao are you kidding me,but you think britney should? Anyway the cultural impact of super bass and Nicki's accomplishments speak for themselves