Country Artist Morgan Wallen Tops Billboard's Album Chart

Morgan Wallen

Morgan Wallen broke the record for the most streams by a country album in a week, as country music gets more traction online and becomes a bigger part of overall listening on streaming services, reports The Wall Street Journal.

“Dangerous: The Double Album,” by the mullet-wearing country star from East Tennessee, tops the new Billboard 200 album chart, powered by its 240 million U.S. streams in the week ended Jan. 14. That more than doubles the prior record, 102 million streams, achieved by Luke Combs last October. In its debut week, “Dangerous” also sold 74,000 U.S. copies as a full package, bringing its total to the equivalent of 265,000 in sales, according to MRC Data, formerly Nielsen Music.

“Dangerous,” which was released on Jan. 8 on Big Loud Records and Republic Records, is considered a bid for superstardom by Wallen, whose rapid rise has captured the attention of music-industry watchers. Billboard magazine, the music trade publication, put Wallen on its cover this month. The New Yorker magazine called him “the most wanted man in country.”  Wallen also made headlines when “Saturday Night Live” dis-invited him as musical guest, after he broke Covid-19 protocols, before inviting him again in December.

Wallen’s popularity is a big moment for country music, which historically has lagged behind hip-hop, rock and pop on streaming services like Spotify and Apple Music. Increasingly, more country stars are succeeding thanks in part to streaming, with Sam Hunt, Luke Combs and Gabby Barrett joining streaming success stories like Florida Georgia Line.

The success of Wallen, 27, is fueled in part by a long-standing trend in country music: A sound that evokes classic arena and country rock from the 1970s—say, artists like the Eagles or Bruce Springsteen—but with a Southern accent, and sometimes a hip-hop beat. Other country artists with rock leanings include Chris Stapleton and Eric Church.

Wallen’s debut album, 2018’s “If I Know Me,” had multiple country hits. The follow-up, “Dangerous,” is mainstream country, yet was produced by Joey Moi, who is known for his work with the radio-friendly rock band Nickelback.

One of the reasons for country music’s recent streaming surge is the pandemic, which froze the live-music business. From the initial lockdown to early May, country audio streams in the U.S. surged more than 20%, making it—along with children’s music—an early beneficiary, according to MRC Data. By the end of last year, country saw a roughly 15% spike in streams, compared with pre-pandemic levels, led by artists like Mr. Wallen. That dwarfs the 3% increase across genres overall. Country music remains a laggard—it’s still just 7.5% of all U.S. audio streams—but that is up from 6.9% before Covid-19, a notable gain for the genre.