“Enter Sandman” was the Metallica song from The Black Album that became the band’s first single to reach the U.S. Billboard Hot 100.
Released on July 29, 1991, it reached number 16 on the chart. The song’s broad appeal helped propel Metallica from major metal act to worldwide rock headliner, while its heavy riff and unsettling bedtime imagery remained closely tied to the band’s identity.
The recording was written musically by Kirk Hammett, James Hetfield, and Lars Ulrich, with Hetfield writing the lyrics. It was also the album’s opening track and lead single, giving it an unusually prominent role in the record’s campaign.
Other Black Album singles charted later, including “The Unforgiven,” “Nothing Else Matters,” “Wherever I May Roam,” and “Sad but True.” The question concerns the first Hot 100 breakthrough, not the song with the highest position on every international chart.