Metallica's The Black Album first entered the Billboard 200 in 1991.
The album was released on August 12, 1991, and debuted at number one on the U.S. Billboard 200. It remained at the top for four consecutive weeks, making it Metallica's first album to reach the summit of that chart.
The record's chart performance reflected a major expansion of the band's audience. Its songs kept the force of heavy metal while using more concise structures, slower grooves, and a polished production style. The success also helped establish the album as Metallica's best-selling studio release.
The album's later chart history is unusually long. It continued returning to or remaining on the Billboard 200 over many years, including a 550-week milestone in 2019. Those later appearances are sometimes mistaken for its original chart entry, but the first entry and number-one debut occurred in 1991.