The music industry may not yet be out of its
Internet-induced slump, but it may be on the road to recovery.
That's according to the 2011 data released Thursday by Nielsen
Soundscan which found that total U.S. album sales rose for the first
time since 2004, with sales of 330.6 million representing a 1.3 percent gain over 2010.
The achievement was reached largely thanks to a 19.5-percent
boost in digital album sales. Sales of physical albums dropped by 5
percent, an improvement over 2010, when they lost 19.5 percent.
Overall music sales, which include sales of albums, music videos and
digital tracks, reached 1.6 billion, a 6.9-percent rise over the
previous year.
Adele was the top-selling artist of the year with 6,744,000 albums
flying off the shelves, almost double the number of second-placed
Justin Bieber who sold 3,393,000 albums. Other top selling album
artists include Michael Buble, Lady Gaga and Li'l Wayne.
Adele's "21" was the top selling album with 5,824,000 followed by
Michael Buble's "Christmas" with 2,452,000 sales and Lady Gaga's "Born
This Way" with 2,101,000 units sold.
