No surprise here: Rush sales and streams rocket after the death of Neil Peart
It’s a morbid reality. Whenever a famous musician dies, interest in their work explodes, something that can be measured down to a molecular level.
Following the announcement of the death of Neil Peart, sales of Rush albums are up over 1,000% in the US, led by surging sales of 2112. Individual song sales are up by 1,575%.
Audio streams are also up by about 340% in America. “Tom Sawyer” is the most popular (3.1 million streams) followed by “Limelight” (1.8 million), “The Spirit of Radio” (1.6 million) and “YYZ” (just under 1.6 milion).
Looking at US SoundScan numbers, Spirit of Radio: Greatest hits is the ninth highest-selling album in the country. In the week for we heard about Neil, it sold 337 copies. Last week, that number hit 4,746.
In Canada, streams of “The Spirit of Radio” are up by 410%, while “Tom Sawyer” streams are up 296%. “YYZ” and “Limelight” also saw big boosts.
In a weird twist, there are no Rush albums listed on this week’s SoundScan charts. I guess it’s because we already own all of them.
