How long has Metallica’s ‘Black Album’ been on the Billboard 200 chart?

Heavy metal band Metallica was formed in Los Angeles in 1981, and they have been a strong presence in the music industry since then. Their musical style has evolved and members may have come and gone, but Metallica remains one of the greatest bands of all time.

Metallica has reached many milestones throughout the years. In 2009, they were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, and they established their own record label — Blackened Recordings — in 2012. A year later, the Guinness World Records recognized Metallica as the first musical act to perform in all seven continents after they performed an hour-long show in Antarctica inside a clear dome. The band — which consists of James Hetfield, Lars Ulrich, Kirk Hammett, and Robert Trujillo — celebrated its 40th anniversary in 2021.

Recently, Metallica reached another milestone in their career when the official Billboard Charts X account announced on July 15 that the band’s eponymous album — more popularly known as The Black Album — has spent 750 weeks on the Billboard 200 chart.

The Black Album

The Black Album was released on Aug. 12, 1991. It’s Metallica’s fifth studio album and includes hits, such as “Enter Sandman,” “The Unforgiven,” and “Nothing Else Matters.” Hardcore fans noticed that the musical style was different from prior Metallica releases, and while the band expanded their audience, others weren’t so happy with the refined sound, particularly the so-called metal purists who accused the band of being sellouts. Metallica’s drummer, Ulrich, said of the album, “There was no place else to go. You couldn’t take the path we were on any further in the same direction. So the only option was to turn.” Furthermore, Ulrich said that they were being truthful to themselves by broadening their style.

Despite some backlash from fans, The Black Album was a big success. It has sold 17.1 million copies in the U.S. and 30 million copies worldwide. KISS’ Paul Stanley praised the band for doing what they wanted in terms of creativity. “Their appeal became massive, in capital letters, because it crossed boundaries,” Stanley told Louder Sound.

A rare milestone

To celebrate their 30th anniversary in 2021, Metallica rereleased The Black Album. The reissue includes all 12 tracks. As an added treat, the band decided to add covers of songs from the album performed by 53 artists from different genres all over the world. Some of the artists include Weezer, Biffy Clyro, Miley Cyrus, and Corey Taylor.

Spending 750 weeks on the Billboard 200 chart is no easy feat. In fact, Metallica is only the fourth musical act to have done so. The other three are Journey’s Greatest Hits (813 weeks), Bob Marley’s Legend (843 weeks), and Pink Floyd’s The Dark Side of the Moon (990 weeks). When it hit the 750th week, The Black Album was ranked No. 178 on the music chart. Here’s hoping it continues to stay on the charts for many more weeks to come.