What is Metallica’s The Black Album officially titled?

Metallica’s The Black Album is officially titled Metallica.

The album is self-titled, meaning its name is the same as the band’s name. Fans and journalists commonly use The Black Album because of the cover’s almost entirely black design, which features a subtle gray image of a coiled snake and the band’s logo.

The nickname can cause confusion because “The Black Album” is not a unique official title. Prince, Jay-Z, and other artists have also released albums known by that phrase. In Metallica’s case, the formal title remains Metallica, while The Black Album is the widely recognized informal name.

Released in 1991, the album marked a shift from the band’s earlier thrash-metal approach toward a slower, heavier, and more polished sound. It became Metallica’s first album to reach number one on the Billboard 200 and introduced several of the group’s best-known songs.