The Josh Innes Show - Why Phil Collins Is The Goat

Episode Date: September 21, 2026

I've had a lot of beer this evening. Prior to recording the podcast, I was watching a 1990 Phil Collins concert on Youtube. I guess I'm officially middle aged. Also, I'd like to argue that Phil Collins is pound for pound the greatest pop star of all time. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

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Learn more at Bloomberg.com. Before I came in here, I was just watching YouTube videos. And by YouTube videos, I mean music videos on YouTube. Because I have hit that age where I just watch YouTube videos. When I'm hammered, I just watch YouTube music videos and concerts. Like I was watching a Phil Collins concert from 1990. Let me tell you something about this, Phil Collins. This guy goes hard.

Now, granted, he's like on the verge of death now. But fucking Phil Collins used to kill it, bro. And when I like, you go back and watch these, I want you to think about the absurdity of the fact that Phil Collins was arguably the biggest pop star on the planet at one point. And that motherfucker was middle-aged, looked like some dude that works at like IBM had a widow's peak, all this shit. And you watch this dude and you're like, this guy was a fucking pimp. And like, can you imagine a universe that we could live in? where in 2026 a Phil Collins could be a big star, right? Like, how old was Phil Collins in 1990?

So the concert I was watching in 1990, I'm going to guess Phil Collins was in the 30s here. But let's, well, first of all, let's play a couple commercials. And then we will continue. Made it! Part of the Beast is the must-see adventure of the year. It's just you and me, boy.

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Phil Collins. How old was Phil Collins in 1990? Okay. So Phil Collins was born in 1951. So Phil Collins was 39 years old during this concert I was watching. All right? Taylor Swift was what, born in 1989? Taylor Swift's almost 37. Or is she 37? So Taylor Swift right now is about the same age as Phil Collins was in this concert I was watching. Let me make sure I got that right. So currently Taylor Swift is 36. In December, she will be 37.

Phil Collins was 39 in this concert I was watching. Like people who are 38 and 39 now look nothing like people who were 38 and 39 in 1990. Like back in 1990, if you were 38, you were going on like 70. Now it's like Taylor Swift, like she didn't look like she's 37, 38 years old, but she's, you know, about to be like she's about to be 30. I don't know. I know this is totally random, but like when I start drinking, I like to watch concerts. Like we watched all the football games today. Chiefs game ended. It's a good game, fun game. And I'm like, well, fuck it. I'm just going to start watching all my shit on YouTube, you know, and Jilly went to sleep. She's like, I'm not going to sit up and watch Phil Collins

concerts with you, you drunk, son of a bitch. I'm like, well, fine. I will watch Phil Collins by myself. So I'm going to watch something happen on the way to heaven, a little against all lots, little separate lives, you know. And then I went down the wormhole and the wormhole of watching music videos because one video pops up and I'm like, fuck, I'm going to watch this. Then before you know it, I'm watching like, oh, look, there's Survivor live in Japan. And like, oh shit, there's heart. And I just started watching all this shit. So before I came in here to record all this, I was just watching random fucking music videos on YouTube. But that's the thing, man. You hit a certain age in your life. And then you go from being like someone who's out at the

bars until like three in the fucking morning, getting stupid, getting wild. And then you become the guy that lays on the couch shirtless, hammered with a Miller light, by the way, a cooler of Miller lights sitting by the couch. God's honest truth. There's a fucking cooler of Miller lights sitting by the couch. I'm using the cooler as like a little table to put my beer on while there's beer in the cooler. And I'm sitting up till all hours of the night watching fucking meat.

music videos and concerts from the 1980s. Like, there's a point in life where you're like, I'm young, I'm vibrant, I'm wild, who knows what could happen. The sky is the limit. Where am I going to go? It's the game of life. Do I choose this path? Do I choose this path?

And then a moment happens. And before you know it, you are 40 years old. You're laying on the couch. You are shirtless. You've got a Miller light in your hand. you've got multiple Miller lights in a cooler. That cooler is sitting next to the fucking couch. And you are watching a Phil Collins concert from Berlin in 1990.

And you're fucking loving it. You know what I'm saying? Like it is the best time you've ever had. You would not trade this time for anything. You want to sit and dig in your ass on the couch, scratch your balls on the couch, while you watch Phil Collins with a headset drumming to end the, air tonight. Like, how do we get to that point in life? Where do we go from thinking we're kind of

badass? We're kind of cool. We're like, we're kind of rock stars. The sky is the limit. I've got big plans in life. My life is going to be great. And then I'm laying around and I'm like, well, now I'm watching heart music videos. Hey, it's all I want to do is make love to you. Hey, it's alone. Hey, it's what about love? You know, like, how do we get to that point? And then you start questioning things like how was Phil Collins pound for pound and I do believe this pound for pound Phil Collins is the greatest pop star that has ever walked the face of the earth like even like a Taylor Swift like you could see her being a pop star she has a look right you could look at Michael Jackson and go of course Michael Jackson's a big pop star Phil Collins has no reason to be a big pop star at all there's

Nothing, when you look at Phil Collins, there's nothing about Phil Collins, where you should go, you know who should be one of the biggest stars on the planet? Phil fucking Collins. But there he was. Looking like a dude who works at H&R Block, drumming on the fucking drums with a headset microphone on. He's got his dress shirt tecked into his khaki pants. He's got a widow's peak. He's drumming and you're like, there is no reason why this gentleman right here should be one of the biggest pop stars on the planet. but oh by the way all Phil Collins did was sold like a billion fucking albums and you're like pound for pound kind of like what they say about like AI like Alan Iverson they say Alan Iverson pound for pound is the greatest NBA player ever and I'm like okay pound for pound okay cool because he's a small guy pound for pound for pound Alan Iverson is the greatest basketball player ever one of the grades well pound for pound Phil Collins is one of the is arguably the greatest

pop star of all time. Let's look this up while I've got your attention here. The highest selling artists of all time. Let's see. Best selling music artists. Okay. So you're going to get your Michael Jackson's and the Beatles and shit, right? So the Beatles are number one. Allegedly they've sold 300 million units, allegedly, okay? Claim sales of over 600 million. Certified units sold almost 300 million. Michael Jackson, 300 million. Okay, fine. Elvis, Madonna, Elton John, Queen, Led Zeppelin, Rihanna, Pink Floyd, all right? Those are the people that are allegedly, like, in this giant club of, you know, like, allegedly Rihanna has sold 411 million units.

Okay, certified, fine. But then you go down to the next level of people. Like, let's, I need to see, like, a list. I need to see, like, an official, like, list. Show me a list. Uh, I need a list of the best selling artists of all time, like top to bottom, all right? chartmasters best-selling artists of all time right now you're in my wheelhouse so you've got the beetles michael jackson elvis queen taylor swift madonna the stones floyd sinatra emm elton john acdic dc lec lecepsleyn dion

drake maria carrie carrie rod's you can make a case for rod stewart pound for pound being the greatest pop star of all time let's see so where does phil collins fall into this category Now remember, Phil Collins also has the music of Genesis, which was basically Phil Collins. All right. So according to this list, Phil Collins is number 30. Now, who knows how accurate this is? 30th, all time, total estimated sales, Phil Collins, 158,000. Mind you, that doesn't include Genesis, Phil Collins, which would probably add 100,000 other, 100 million other copies. There is a case to be made.

that Phil Collins is the greatest pop star of all time. Like I'm looking at who he's around on this list. He is ahead of Billy Joel. He is ahead of Johnny Cash. He's ahead of Barbara Streisand. He's ahead of Santana and Bob Dylan and Garth and Coldplay and Rihanna and Bad Bunny and Aerosmith and Justin Bieber and Prince and The Weekend and David Bowie and G&R and all these people.

There's Phil Collins. And Phil Collins, I understand the world was a different place. I totally get this. the world was a different place whenever Phil Collins was a big star. You could have a Michael Bolt. Michael Bolton, even though Michael Bolton was only in his 30s, Michael Bolton could not be a star in 2026. I get that.

There were people who were big stars. John Waite could not be a star in 2026. I get all that journey, all these guys, they could not be big stars. But Phil Collins, with the way he looked, the way he dressed and all this shit, Phil Collins is arguably the greatest pop star in the history, the most unlikely pop star and the greatest pop star. You know who's right above him on this list? Neil fucking Diamond.

And Neil Diamond? One of the old-timers, baby. But I wouldn't consider Neil Diamond like an all-time. Like Neil Diamond's great, but Neil Diamond wasn't what Phil Collins was from like 1984 to about 1991. Let's do a little game here. Look, this is totally random. I get it.

Let's look at what Phil Collins was doing from like the time he released. What was it? No Jacket Required. Was that the first Big Phil Collins album? Right? So no jacket required until like 1992. So you had, hello, I must be going. There was no jacket required, but seriously, both sides.

All right? Those really just no jacket required and but seriously. Of course, you also had the song from the fucking Disney movie. be in my heart. None of that matters. So you have, hello, I must be going, which face value. Actually, let's go all the way back to face value because that had it in the air tonight. So basically, 81 to 91. Let's look at Phil Collins. You might say, Josh, this isn't why I tune in. I want to hear sports takes. You're going to hear about fucking Phil Collins. Because Phil Collins is a god and I'm hammered and I've been watching Phil Collins videos all fucking night. So let's go. So face value had in the air tonight and

missed again, missed again, underrated jam with horns and shit. Mist again, okay? How many albums did this, how many did he sell from this one? Let's see how many albums were sold. Allegedly, 12 million. All right, so that's face value. That's 12 million copies of face value. That's Phil fucking Collins.

Not even a remotely good-looking guy sells 12 million copies. Next album, Hello I Must Be Going, which has, You Can't Hurry Love. Okay, really not a great album, not a ton of hits on that album, okay? Fine. How many copies did that album sell? Three million. A shitty Phil Collins album sold three million copies.

The only good song on that album, the only hit on that album was you can't hurry love. A cover. Oh, no, sorry, and I don't care anymore is a good tune, too. I don't care anymore. Okay, it's good shit. But then no jacket required happens. I understand that this sounds like the ramblings of fucking psycho. It's like American Psycho right now.

Pretty soon I'm going to break down Huey Lewis, which by the way, fucking love Huey Lewis. But anyway, then you get to no jacket required. Okay, no jacket required has Sousudio. One more night. Don't lose my number. Take me home. Four giant hits.

Massive fucking album. Did it sell 12 million copies like the OG album? Let's see. It sold 25 million fucking copies. There aren't a ton of albums out there that have sold 25 million copies. In fact, let's see. Biggest selling albums of all time. All right, let's see here. Let's see where 25 million gets you. I mean, there's some. I mean, look. So let's see, 25 million copies. Okay, it's not even in the top 100. Fuck off, okay? Maybe I'm wrong on that.

But look, Phil Collins, but seriously, 1989, that album sold 31 million. No, packet required. Sold 30. Okay, so here we go. So Phil Collins has the 86th highest selling album of all time, the 84th highest selling album of all time. And I'm sure there's one more Phil Collins. And of course there's Genesis and shit too. This guy sold so many albums and it's had so many fucking hits. Phil Collins is a God is what I'm trying to convey to you. Why I'm arguing this, I don't know. I'm fucking hammered. I was watching a Phil Collins concert. Phil Collins fucking rules. 25 million copies of no jacket required. Great fucking album, right?

Then you move on to the next one. And by the way, we haven't even looked at where these songs charted. They were huge fucking hits. Then there was but seriously, and that had another day in paradise, and something happened on the way to heaven, and I wish it would rain down. And, I mean, a huge album. I'm telling you, this guy, he's a god.

Phil Collins is a god. And he's finally in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as a solo artist. Let me Google it. First of all, let's look at, okay, I understand you've got other things going on in your lives. And you're like, Josh, why the fuck are you doing this? Stop. Well, you know what? When you've had 17 Miller lights and you're hanging out and you're just up at 1 o'clock in the morning doing a podcast,

then you can pick the subject matter. But right now, we're going to look at fucking Phil Collins' discography and see how many fucking hits this guy had. A ton is the correct answer. And that's just by himself. That's not even when he took over Genesis. and they started making good music, not Prague rock bullshit. Here we go. Solo Phil Collins.

Here we go. In the air tonight, number 19. Missed again, number 19. You can't hurry love. 10. I don't care anymore. 39. Against all odds.

Number one. Easy lover. Number two. Susudio. One. One more night. One. Don't lose my number.

Four. Take me home. Number seven. Separate lives with Marilyn Martin. Number one. A groovy kind of love. Number one. hearts, number one, another day in paradise, number one, I wish it would rain down, number three,

something happened on the way to heaven, number four. Do you remember? Number four, my God, this is a man. I just need you guys to acknowledge, and maybe you have. You need to acknowledge that Phil Collins is a God. That's all I need you to do, because this guy is incredible. That's all I want. I don't ask you guys for a lot. Let's see how many albums Phil Collins has sold between Genesis and Phil Collins. How many, and I imagine somebody like, you know, Paul McCartney's probably sold, you know, a ton with the Beatles and Paul McCartney and John Lennon and shit. Fine.

How many albums has Phil Collins sold as a solo artist and with Genesis? Again, I'm hammered. Let me be. 150 records worldwide, okay, as a solo artist and 100 million with Genesis. He is one of only three recording artists in history alongside Paul McCartney and Michael Jackson to sell over 100 million records as both a solo artist and as a principal member of a band. Three people have ever fucking done that. And one of them is the great Phil Collins. Why am I arguing this?

I don't know that anybody's actually fighting with me on this because it's hard to tell. Like you don't know if anybody's fighting with you on this. I'm just sitting here. I'm in my fucking underwear. I'm drinking Miller Lights. I'm 17, 18 Miller Lights Deep. I've been watching football all fucking day.

And I want to argue about goddamn Phil Collins. I have issues. But man, I was watching. Dude, then I was watching Kenny Rogers. How many albums do you think Kenny Rogers is fucking sold? You want to get really deep into the weeds. How many albums is Kenny Rogers sold? How many, because I was watching a movie.

a Kenny Rogers concert too, because I'm fucking broken. And I'm in there watching Kenny Rogers and Dolly and a little real love, not infatuation, and a little fucking island's in the stream and Ruby don't take your love to fucking town. Let's see, how many albums has Kenny Rogers sold? About 120 million. I mean, that's a fucking man. 24 number one hits. Come on, man.

God, I love Kenny Rogers. Speaking of, you know, my dad wrote a song for Kenny Rogers, and that song got to like number 38 or 39 on the charts. So dad was at some event tonight in Nashville where it's like some songwriter's event where he got to perform on the stage at the Ryman. The Ryman, the original home, actually, it's not at the Ryman. I think this was at just the Grand Ole Opry, not at the OG Ryman. But still, you talk about a guy, and I hope my dad knows.

And, you know, I hope my dad knows how fucking cool. cool he is. Like we make fun of him and stuff. But my dad, from his weird humble, fucking upbringing, his humble beginnings of like his mom's into drugs and alcohol and she's married four fucking times and his dad kind of ignores him and all this kind of shit, my dad in this weird world that he grew up in, I hope my dad realizes how fucking incredible it is that he's done what he's done. It's truly like, I was born a poor black child. Like, like he's like the fucking jerk. But like, it's fascinating. So he's at this event.

I forgot what it's called. But like they're honoring songwriters in Nashville. And my dad is there performing. He's, I think, giving somebody an award or whatever. And he's performing. So I'm looking at his Facebook tonight and like, oh, there's my dad in Vince Gill. And there's my dad in Tony Orlando and Dawn. I'm like, like, I get it.

Like, maybe you don't care. And it's very possible. And this could just be the. ramblings of a dude that's fucking hammered. And that could very well be. But I think it's pretty fucking cool. Because I think my dad needs to be told this sometimes because nobody really tells him how fucking cool this shit he does is.

Like it is pretty fucking wild when you think about it. You know, a guy who has every reason to be a nobody, right? Like he's born in Poplar Bluff, Missouri. His dad kind of ignores him. His mom's into drugs. She gets married four times. He's dealt with, you know, like watching his mom get. her ass kicked by her different husbands and shit and all this shit that my dad dealt with never got

into drugs never got into alcohol sold himself and made something of himself and now this motherfucker is singing on the stage at the grand old opera like he's goddamn jelly roll or glen campbell or some such shit and that's something you know like like i don't know i just i think that's pretty cool you know i never tell my dad these things but like i think that's pretty fucking badass You know, I think it's pretty fucking sweet to be out there. And like from what my dad came from to do the shit he's done is phenomenal. You know, I mean, when you really think about coming from that kind of upbringing, he had every excuse to be a deadbeat that huffed paint behind the Walmart.

But he didn't. I've never seen my dad touch any sort of drugs other than, you know, well, the worst kind, like prescription drugs, but like, you know, like on Xanax and some shit. But there was a time we were in Memphis. We were driving. It was me. And we were driving to my sister's graduation. So this would have been in 2009, I guess.

And, yeah, or eight, 2008, I guess, because I had a girlfriend at the time. And we were driving, kind of following my dad to Memphis and then down to Arkansas, to watch my sister graduate. So this, I guess, would have been 2008. And it might have been early 2009. That's also possible. I guess it would have been early 2009. I guess that makes some sense.

Anyway, so my sister's graduating from high school in Piggott, Arkansas, which is a couple hours from Memphis. We stop in Memphis to have lunch, and my dad just has this massive panic attack where he thinks to have a heart attack. And he's like, oh, my God, Josh, go get me some baby aspirin. I'm dying. I'm having a heart attack. Blah, blah, blah, blah, blah.

I'm fine. So we call 911. The ambulance picks him up. They get him in the ambulance. I follow him over to the hospital in the car. and by the time I find him he's doing the Scooby voice for all these nurses and shit I'm like dad what the fuck like he he's like well it turns out I tried to quit uh lexapro cold turkey and I had a really bad reaction I'm like Jesus fucking Christ but that's my dad man like he's fucking

you know like we um and he's funny because he doesn't really drink a lot so like we'll have one beer. Like he'll like one of the times back when we lived in Houston, I'd go visit him in Baton Rouge. You go, come meet us for dinner and we'll have a beer together. I'm like, you ain't going to have a fucking beer. You can't drink on my level at all. I can have, I'll drink 14 beers before you've had half a one. I'm a fucking degenerate, dad, let's go, you know? And I, you know, we go meet up and we get some big beers. And he'll just, here, my dad's move is fucking wild. He takes one big gulp, like one or two big gulps of whatever the beer is. does not finish the beer.

And that's just how it is. I'll have like three, four, five beers. He takes two big gulps, and that's it. And he's already kind of buzzed. And I bring that up because I know you know these stories. But I bring this shit up because this guy had every excuse in the book to be a nobody. And now, what is he? He's about to be 60.

Jesus Christ's going to be 60. God damn, like two weeks. My dad's going to be 60. So, and it's wild because 10 years ago we were traveling from Philadelphia back to Houston to work there to go to my dad's 50th birth and that's about to be 60. Time fucking flies, guys. So my dad's about to be 60. And it's just fucking crazy to think that like 60 year old dad on stage presenting somebody at some songwriters thing at the opera and performing at the fucking grand old opera. Like that's pretty fucking phenomenal for a guy born in pop.

Bluff, Missouri, where most people who are born in Poplar Bluff, Missouri, don't become much of anything. But somehow my dad figured it out, you know. And that's a pretty fucking phenomenal thing, man. Like, that's commendable, you know. A lot of people who are born with a lot better circumstances don't do that, you know, but my dad did. I've never worried about my dad.

My dad always finds a way, you know. I'm envious of that. I wish I had that ability. But my dad always finds a fucking way. That's just what he does. man so but how did I get there oh all this started with talking about Phil Collins okay I love my dad he is not Phil Collins Bill Collins is a god but that concert I was watched was in Berlin and like just you look at the the outfit this guy's wearing it's a tucked

in like silk shirt into some slacks and shit like you watch this you're like how did this guy sell, you know, 200 million albums. It's pretty remarkable, but what are you going to do, man? It's Phil Collins. Let me search Phil Collins on this site. Phil Collins. So if you add up Phil Collins, his total solo album sales, okay, 32 million for No Jacket required, 31 million. So that's 63 million, about 64 million. Let's see, 84 million. I mean, this guy saw. I mean, this guy saw sold well over 100 million albums, which is pretty fucking phenomenal without Genesis.

Then you add in Genesis and you're like, this guy right here, just an absolute legend. All that to tell you, I truly have no idea how I got onto that diatribe. All I know is I love Phil Collins. He's a lovable guy. And I've had a lot of beer tonight.

So that's all you need to know. Maynig! Part of the Beast is the must-se the adventure of the year. It's just you and me, boy. One of the most extraordinary on-screen branch you'll ever see. I'll get you home.

Brad Pitt, Art of the Beast. September 25th. Get tickets now.