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MG01MusicGOAT Index

The short answer

Is B.B. King greater than Curtis Mayfield?

Yes: B.B. King leads by 0.3 points.

Quick verdict

Yes

B.B. King opens with a 0.3-point lead in the all-time score.

B.B. King

87.5

Curtis Mayfield

87.3

Leads

B.B. King

#156 all-time · Classification under review

All-time score87.5

B.B. King appears in the provisional Music GOAT Index. Ranking scores remain visible while biographical and classification details are under review.

Opening verdict

B.B. King

Leads by 0.3 points

Curtis Mayfield

#165 all-time · Classification under review

All-time score87.3

Curtis Mayfield appears in the provisional Music GOAT Index. Ranking scores remain visible while biographical and classification details are under review.

The plain case

Why the answer lands here

Yes: B.B. King leads by 0.3 points. The result is still open to argument: inspect the full breakdown, move the weights and see whether it survives your version of greatness.

Biggest category edge

Public attention

Curtis Mayfield

owns a 4.0-point edge here

4.0

The current leader at a Public attention weight of 20.0% is B.B. King. Changing Public attention from 20.0% to 25.7% flips the lead to Curtis Mayfield; all other unlocked weights are rebalanced proportionally to keep the total at 100%.

B.B. King leads Curtis Mayfield by 0.3 points in All-Time Ranking.

Current leader

B.B. King

Classification under review

Scoring result87.5

Wins 3 of 6 active categories · 1 level

Current margin

0.3

B.B. King leads this version.

Curtis Mayfield

Classification under review

Scoring result87.3

Wins 2 of 6 active categories · 1 level

The verdict

B.B. King wins this scorecard.

The edge is 0.3 points in All-Time Ranking. Curtis Mayfield still has category wins worth arguing below.

The strongest weighted drivers for B.B. King are Longevity (4.0 raw gap at 15% weight) and Catalog (3.0 raw gap at 15% weight). 2 zero-weight context lenses are outside this verdict.

All-time list
MGI model 3.3.0July 2026 · MGI v3.3 archive6 factors counted2 context lenses

Commercial, Live are outside this verdict. Unavailable values stay N/A and are never treated as zero.

The current leader at a Public attention weight of 20.0% is B.B. King. Changing Public attention from 20.0% to 25.7% flips the lead to Curtis Mayfield; all other unlocked weights are rebalanced proportionally to keep the total at 100%.

Verdict logicWhy this verdict: B.B. KingAll-time list: Public attention, Influence, Longevity · 0.3 pts from Curtis Mayfield
All-time listNot counted here: Commercial + LiveUnavailable: Commercial + Live

B.B. King lands here because Public attention, Influence and Longevity do most of the work in this view. Commercial and Live are unavailable until reviewed evidence exists and cannot change this verdict.

B.B. King sits 0.3 points from Curtis Mayfield in this scorecard; the next move would most likely come through Current and Peak. Commercial and Live remain unavailable until reviewed evidence exists; this verdict is not recalculated with hidden replacement values.

What helps

Public attention21.2% of this score
Public attention score93.0
Provisional evidenceDerived evidence · 1/5 fieldsModel confidence highWeight 20

Provisional score retained from the published edition. Supporting narrative is withheld while classification and source context are reviewed.

Influence20.3% of this score
Influence score89.0
Provisional evidenceEditorial judgment · 1/5 fieldsModel confidence highWeight 20

Provisional score retained from the published edition. Supporting narrative is withheld while classification and source context are reviewed.

Longevity15.1% of this score
Longevity score88.0
Provisional evidenceDerived evidence · 4/6 fieldsModel confidence highWeight 15

Provisional score retained from the published edition. Supporting narrative is withheld while classification and source context are reviewed.

What could move it

Current and Peak are the softest scoring factors; movement there matters most near Curtis Mayfield.

More checking on Public attention, Influence and Peak would improve confidence before it changes the public score.

Commercial and Live remain unavailable until reviewed observation records pass; no alternate rank is published.

What decided it

The strongest weighted gaps

Public attention+0.8 pts

4.0 raw gap × 20% weight · edge to Curtis Mayfield

Longevity+0.6 pts

4.0 raw gap × 15% weight · edge to B.B. King

Catalog+0.5 pts

3.0 raw gap × 15% weight · edge to B.B. King

Active score parts

What decides this verdict

3-2 · 1 level
LongevityActive years, persistence and legacy after the first peak.Open B.B. King profile
B.B. King88.0
Curtis Mayfield84.0
Public attentionLong-horizon editorial cultural-footprint judgment. The frozen v3.3 compatibility score historically used a retired short-window Wikimedia Pageviews proxy; it remains provisional until replaced in a reviewed edition.Open Curtis Mayfield profile
B.B. King93.0
Curtis Mayfield97.0
CatalogDepth, spread and durability of the catalog.Open B.B. King profile
B.B. King87.0
Curtis Mayfield84.0
CurrentShort-window current-interest context derived from a dated Wikimedia Pageviews observation; it is not listening, sales or artistic quality.Open Curtis Mayfield profile
B.B. King80.0
Curtis Mayfield81.0
InfluenceCurated cultural and peer influence tier.Open B.B. King profile
B.B. King89.0
Curtis Mayfield88.0
PeakHow dominant the strongest era felt relative to peers.Level
B.B. King86.0
Curtis Mayfield86.0

Context only · zero weight

Useful context, outside this verdict

These gaps are visible for the debate, but they do not count until you raise their sliders or choose another view.

CommercialCommercial tier, sales evidence, certifications and scale.Not comparable
B.B. KingN/A
Curtis MayfieldN/A
LiveLive/touring reputation and durable concert draw.Not comparable
B.B. KingN/A
Curtis MayfieldN/A

Keep arguing

Best next moves

FAQ

B.B. King vs Curtis Mayfield questions

B.B. King or Curtis Mayfield: who leads the All-Time score?

Yes: B.B. King leads by 0.3 points. The published score is 87.5 vs 87.3; unavailable values remain N/A and are never scored as zero.

What is the biggest active category edge in B.B. King vs Curtis Mayfield?

Public attention is the biggest available active edge, with a 4.0-point gap for Curtis Mayfield.

Can the answer change?

Yes, when you change available score parts. A formula that gives positive weight to unavailable Commercial or Live evidence is rejected rather than silently rewritten.

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