SINGER

Ben E. King

1938 - 2015

Photo of Ben E. King

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Benjamin Earl King (né Nelson; September 28, 1938 – April 30, 2015) was an American soul and R&B singer and record producer. He is best known as the singer and co-composer of "Stand by Me"—a U.S. Top 10 hit, both in 1961 and later in 1986 (when it was used as the theme to the film of the same name), a number one hit in the United Kingdom in 1987, and number 25 on the RIAA's list of Songs of the Century—and as one of the principal lead singers of the R&B vocal group The Drifters, notably singing the lead vocals of one of their biggest global hit singles (and only U.S. No. 1 hit), "Save the Last Dance for Me". Read more on Wikipedia

Since 2007, the English Wikipedia page of Ben E. King has received more than 1,863,854 page views. His biography is available in 46 different languages on Wikipedia (up from 45 in 2019). Ben E. King is the 156th most popular singer (down from 120th in 2019), the 1,021st most popular biography from United States (down from 796th in 2019) and the 49th most popular American Singer.

Ben E. King is most famous for being the lead singer of the group The Drifters.

Memorability Metrics

  • 1.9M

    Page Views (PV)

  • 70.59

    Historical Popularity Index (HPI)

  • 46

    Languages Editions (L)

  • 4.97

    Effective Languages (L*)

  • 4.12

    Coefficient of Variation (CV)

Page views of Ben E. Kings by language


Among SINGERS

Among singers, Ben E. King ranks 156 out of 3,541. Before him are Charles Trenet, Ivan Rebroff, Georges Brassens, Nina Hagen, Caterina Valente, and Billy Joel. After him are Shakira, Suzi Quatro, Manu Chao, Otis Redding, Susan Boyle, and Thomas Anders.

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Contemporaries

Among people born in 1938, Ben E. King ranks 56. Before him are Jean Seberg, Alpha Condé, César Luis Menotti, Pedro Pablo Kuczynski, Tomas Lindahl, and Jerry West. After him are Jiří Menzel, István Szabó, Elliott Gould, Terence Stamp, Kurt Wüthrich, and J. J. Cale. Among people deceased in 2015, Ben E. King ranks 48. Before him are Charles H. Townes, Faten Hamama, Irwin Rose, Maureen O'Hara, Yoichiro Nambu, and Yitzhak Navon. After him are James Horner, Michele Ferrero, René Girard, Val Logsdon Fitch, Chandra Bahadur Dangi, and Khaled al-Asaad.

Others Born in 1938

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Others Deceased in 2015

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In United States

Among people born in United States, Ben E. King ranks 1,021 out of 15,968. Before him are Bill Haley (1925), Jerry West (1938), Robert Noyce (1927), Meg Ryan (1961), William Kemmler (1860), and Norman Foster Ramsey Jr. (1915). After him are G. Stanley Hall (1846), Steve Buscemi (1957), Shelley Winters (1920), Suzi Quatro (1950), James Horner (1953), and Dick Fosbury (1947).

Others born in United States

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Among SINGERS In United States

Among singers born in United States, Ben E. King ranks 49. Before him are John Lee Hooker (1917), Harry Belafonte (1927), Gloria Gaynor (1947), Kris Kristofferson (1936), Jon Bon Jovi (1962), and Billy Joel (1949). After him are Suzi Quatro (1950), Otis Redding (1941), John Denver (1943), Chester Bennington (1976), Tony Bennett (1926), and Al Jarreau (1940).

American born Singers

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