Metallica's The Black Album reached number one on the United States Billboard 200. It was the band's first album to top that chart.
The record sold 598,000 copies in its first week and spent four consecutive weeks at the top. Its success marked a dramatic expansion of Metallica's audience after four albums that had already made the band a major force in thrash metal.
The album also debuted at number one in ten countries, including the United Kingdom. Singles such as “Enter Sandman,” “The Unforgiven,” and “Nothing Else Matters” helped maintain attention after the initial release and turned the album into a long-running commercial phenomenon.
A frequent confusion is between debuting at number one and spending multiple weeks there. The Black Album did both in the United States: it entered the Billboard 200 in first place and remained there for four consecutive weeks.