New York City is the No. 1 market for country music albums according to new data released by Nielsen SoundScan which measures 2011 YTF through Oct. 30. Los Angeles and Dallas-Fort Worth are second and third largest markets respectively. Over 31.8 million country albums have been purchased during the measured period.
Eric Weinberg, Nielsen President Entertainment sates, “New York owes its top spot more to population than popularity. When looking at music sales by genre, the South and Midwest stayed true to their country roots. Music lovers in Charleston-Huntington, W.V., were the most likely to buy country albums, and Nashville holds the number five spot in this list. Nashville residents were nearly twice as likely to buy country albums as the general U.S. population.”
Surprisingly, New York, is the only top media market to not have its own country radio station. Country currently ranks fourth among top selling genres behind Rosck, R&B and Alternative.
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David M. Ross has been covering Nashville's music industry for over 25 years. dross@musicrow.comView Author Profile
