Earlier this year, 3 Doors Down lead singer and frontman Brad Arnold passed away at the age of 47 after a public battle with cancer. In the wake of his death, fans of the rock band rushed to buy and stream many of the group’s most popular songs and bestselling albums. 3 Doors Down enjoyed a massive week on the Billboard charts, which served as a show of support from millions of listeners across America.
Less than six months later, 3 Doors Down scores a new appearance on one roster – not with a piece of previously unreleased music, but with the collection that started it all.
3 Doors Down Debuts The Better Life
3 Doors Down debuts The Better Life on this week’s Top Hard Rock Albums chart. The tally, compiled by Billboard, ranks the most-consumed hard rock collections throughout the United States. Both purchases and plays on platforms such as Spotify and Apple Music dictate where a full-length or EP settles on the 25-space ranking. The Better Life arrives at No. 21 this time around.
3 Doors Down Scores a Fourth Career Win
As The Better Life debuts, 3 Doors Down scores its fourth appearance on the Top Hard Rock Albums chart. The set marks the first new arrival from the group in a little more than a decade. The last time 3 Doors Down debuted a piece of music on the Top Hard Rock Albums list was in April 2016, when Us and the Night – the outfit’s most recent studio LP – missed out on ruling by just one space.
Another two titles by the group have led the charge. Time of My Life became the first set by 3 Doors Down to reach the Top Hard Rock Albums chart, and it launched at the summit in the summer of 2011. The Greatest Hits appeared for the first time on the genre-specific rundown a little more than a year later, but it wasn’t until this past February, following Arnold’s passing, that the compilation scored its first week at No. 1.
The arrival of The Better Life shows that Americans are still deeply interested in all things 3 Doors Down, even as its starting position now marks a new career low for the troupe.
Shinedown Leads With Ei8ht
Only two projects appear on the Top Hard Rock Albums chart for the first time this week. Shinedown collects its fifth champion as Ei8ht, the group’s aptly-named eighth full-length, opens in the highest rung. Other than Shinedown and 3 Doors Down, the ranking looks eerily similar when compared to the previous frame.
The Better Life Started It All for the Band
The Better Life introduced 3 Doors Down to the world more than a quarter-century ago. The set dropped in February 2000, only about a month after lead single “Kryptonite” was pushed. That track became a fast smash and kicked off a years-long winning streak for the alternative-leaning hard rockers. “Kryptonite” soared all the way to No. 3 on the Billboard Hot 100, while follow-up singles “Loser” and “Be Like That” also reached the ranking of the most-consumed songs in the U.S.
“Kryptonite” Climbs Again After Hundreds of Weeks
Speaking of “Kryptonite” – that track remains 3 Doors Down’s only hit in America at the moment as its parent album debuts on one list. “Kryptonite” climbs from No. 4 to No. 3 on the Hard Rock Streaming Songs tally. In the 314 weeks that the band’s introductory smash has spent as one of the most-played hard rock tunes on streaming platforms, it has spent just two of them at No. 1, beginning this February.