Well, that was fast — earlier today, it was revealed that Metallica‘s “Master of Puppets” had garnered 17.5 million streams in the last week since the final episodes of Stranger Things aired on July 1, and now, it’s entered Billboard’s Hot 100 chart for the first time ever.
Metallica are obviously a massive band and have quite a large audience, ranging from rock and metal fans to attendees of sporting events and more. They’ve had a total of 16 singles land on the Billboard Hot 100 (see their 10 highest-charting songs here), but, they’ve never had one reach the very top of the chart.
Thanks to Stranger Things’ epic Season 4 finale, which featured Eddie Munson shredding along to “Master of Puppets,” the track has entered the Hot 100 for the first time ever — despite it being about 36 years old. As the song continues to go viral because of the Netflix series, it could very well make its way to the top. Kate Bush’s 1985 single “Running Up That Hill (A Deal With God)” has been continuously climbing charts and going viral on TikTok as a result of the show too.
We’ll have to stay tuned and continue to monitor its success. Currently, Harry Styles’ “As It Was” resides at the top.
A couple of days ago, the educational music company Yousician reported an increase in its patrons’ interest in learning to play “Master of Puppets.” More specifically, that interest was up 1,700 percent since July 1, which is the day that Munson’s heroic scene in the show’s finale was released into the world.
We would like to give a personal shout out to the Stranger Things creators for putting the spotlight on rock and metal, which is a rare phenomena in 2022.
If you’re trying to see Metallica tackle “Master of Puppets” live this year, check out tickets here for the handful of shows they have left.