Rock and heavy metal are the musical styles with the highest number of album sales in the United States in the first half of 2021, with nine positions in the Top 10 completely dominated by giants such as Metallica , AC/DC and The Beatles .
Data published by Chart Data only considers pure sales, meaning album purchases, whether physical or digital copies, without including streaming revenue. In this scenario, BTS leads, but all other positions in the ranking are held by rock artists.
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While the numbers don't necessarily reveal the return of the genre's popularity to the mainstream, precisely because they don't consider digital platforms and current trends, the genre's leading sales figure demonstrates the loyalty of its audience, who continue to purchase physical copies of CDs or secure the paid digital version.
Throughout the first half of the year, several rock and metal releases achieved prominent positions on sales charts around the world, with Gojira , The Pretty Reckless , Rob Zombie , and Helloween topping the charts with their new albums.
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