‘Hamilton’ Makes Chart History: First Cast Album to Spend 500 Weeks on the Billboard 200
Lin-Manuel Miranda’s Hamilton: An American Musical has notched yet another milestone, becoming the first original-cast recording ever to log 500 weeks on the Billboard 200. The double album, released in 2015, debuts in the history books scarcely a month after it was added to the U.S. National Recording Registry in its first year of eligibility.
From Record Debut to Half-Millennium Run
When Hamilton opened on Broadway, its cast album bowed at No. 12—the highest debut for a show recording in more than half a century. Five years later, in July 2020, the album surged to No. 2 on the chart following Disney+’s streamed stage film, marking the best chart position for a cast set since Hair reigned in 1969. Now the hip-hop–infused score has reached a landmark 500-week run, fueled by enduring streaming numbers and a 46-track playlist that continues to attract new listeners.
Miranda, who wrote the book, music and lyrics (and starred as Alexander Hamilton in the original production), has already earned two Tony Awards, a Grammy, a Pulitzer Prize and a Primetime Emmy for the phenomenon. With the album’s latest feat, Hamilton cements its status as a pop-culture juggernaut that transcends the Broadway stage.
How Streaming Changed the Game
Cast albums once faded quickly from the Billboard 200, but chart methodology shifts have reshaped their fortunes. Since 2014, streaming and track-equivalent sales have been blended into traditional album metrics, allowing titles with extensive track lists to rack up chart-qualifying activity week after week. In addition, since 2009, “catalog” releases more than 18 months old have competed side-by-side with current titles, opening the door for decades-old show recordings to stage lengthy returns.
The 10 Longest-Running Cast Albums
To put Hamilton’s achievement in context, here are the ten cast albums with the most weeks on the Billboard 200 since the chart’s inception in 1956.
| Rank | Album | Weeks on Chart | Peak Position & Year | Songwriter(s) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Hamilton: An American Musical | 500 | No. 2 (2020) | Lin-Manuel Miranda |
| 2 | My Fair Lady | 480 | No. 1 (1956) | Frederick Loewe & Alan Jay Lerner |
| 3 | Highlights from The Phantom of the Opera | 331 | No. 46 (1992) | Andrew Lloyd Webber & Charles Hart |
| 4 | The Sound of Music | 276 | No. 1 (1960) | Richard Rodgers & Oscar Hammerstein II |
| 5 | Camelot | 265 | No. 1 (1961) | Frederick Loewe & Alan Jay Lerner |
| 6 | The Phantom of the Opera (full cast) | 255 | No. 33 (1988) | Andrew Lloyd Webber & Charles Hart |
| 7 | The Music Man | 245 | No. 1 (1958) | Meredith Willson |
| 8 | Fiddler on the Roof | 206 | No. 7 (1965) | Jerry Bock & Sheldon Harnick |
| 9 | West Side Story | 186 | No. 5 (1962) | Leonard Bernstein & Stephen Sondheim |
| 10 | Man of La Mancha | 167 | No. 31 (1967) | Mitch Leigh & Joe Darion |
A few highlights:
-
Dual dominance for Lloyd Webber – The Phantom of the Opera appears twice: the original London double album at No. 6 and a single-disc highlights set at No. 3.
-
Lerner & Loewe’s double play – The golden-age duo place both My Fair Lady and Camelot in the top five, testament to Julie Andrews’ star-making turns in each.
-
One-writer wonders – Only two shows on the list feature a lone songwriter handling both music and lyrics: Meredith Willson’s The Music Man and Miranda’s Hamilton.
What’s Next for ‘Hamilton’?
With touring companies still selling out worldwide and a London run entering its seventh year, the Hamilton recording shows no signs of slowing. Streaming’s global reach means fresh audiences discover the score daily—everything from rousing opener “Alexander Hamilton” to show-stopping closer “Who Lives, Who Dies, Who Tells Your Story.”
At 500 weeks, the album stands as a benchmark for future cast recordings in the streaming era. Whether another show can match—or surpass—its half-decade reign remains to be seen. For now, Hamilton occupies “the room where it happens,” rewriting the chart history one week at a time.
Photo Credit: DepositPhotos.com
