Metallica’s self-titled album hits 500 weeks on Billboard’s Top Hard Rock Albums chart, marking a rare achievement for even the biggest bands. LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA – APRIL 12: (L-R) Robert Trujillo, James Hetfield, Lars Ulrich, and Kirk Hammett of Metallica visit SiriusXM’s ‘The Howard Stern Show’ at SiriusXM Studios on April 12, 2023 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Emma McIntyre/Getty Images for SiriusXM)
Getty Images for SiriusXM
There are several bestselling albums in Metallica’s catalog, but none have performed better than the group’s self-titled effort. That collection has been moving thousands of units every week in the United States for decades — initially thanks only to strong sales, and more recently due to its continued popularity on streaming platforms.
Metallica stands as the band’s sole charting title in the U.S. this week, in what has turned out to be an exciting frame for both the group and the full-length itself. Metallica appears on three Billboard tallies and slips slightly on all of them at the moment, but it also hits a longevity landmark that most projects won’t ever approach.
500 Weeks on the Hard Rock Chart
The band’s self-titled effort dips one rung to No. 12 on the Top Hard Rock Albums chart, but while it declines, it reaches a major milestone. Metallica hits 500 weeks on the Top Hard Rock Albums chart, which ranks the most successful hard rock collections — regardless of length or format — in America.
Master of Puppets Follows
Metallica is the first release from the band to reach 500 frames on the 25-spot Top Hard Rock Albums chart. Only one other project from the Grammy-winning outfit, Master of Puppets, has managed a triple-digit stay, as that bestseller recently made it to 104 weeks, or exactly two full years, on the tally.
Just One Week at No. 1 for Metallica
Despite the fact that it has lived on the Top Hard Rock Albums chart for 500 weeks — just shy of a decade — Metallica has only ever spent a single frame at No. 1. After debuting in August 2007, the standout studio LP climbed to the highest rung for the first and so far only time in September 2021.
It is one of five champions from the band, three of which — Hardwired…to Self-Destruct, Death Magnetic, and 72 Seasons — have managed lengthier stays in the top spot, though not on the ranking overall.
Metallica Joins AC/DC
500 weeks on any of Billboard’s albums charts is relatively rare, and it’s especially uncommon on lists that are not the Billboard 200, the longest of them all. However, Metallica is not the only full-length on the Top Hard Rock Albums chart at the moment to reach that sum.
AC/DC’s Back in Black, which likewise slips one rung, is up to 548 frames. In just a few weeks, Greatest Hits by Guns N’ Roses will likely join this club, as the compilation, which continues to live inside the top 10, is up to 494 stays somewhere on the tally.
Source: https://www.forbes.com/sites/hughmcintyre/2025/08/02/metallica-joins-acdc-in-a-historic-milestone/