You never realize what you're missing until its gone. Many seem to have realized this following the death of actor Robin Williams, as his work as a comedian has skyrocketed in terms of sales in the wake of his suicide, according to Billboard.
Two of his albums reentered the Billboard 200 for the first time in years: Weapons of Self Destruction came up to no. 63. Although 5,000 copies sold may not seem like a terribly large amount, it was a 8,279 percent increase from the previous week. His 1987 Grammy Award-winning standup collection A Night At The Met sold 4,000 copies, rising to no. 69 on this week's chart.
Those two records also came in at no. 1 and 3 respectively on the Catalog Albums chart, which tracks records that have been released for at least 18 months and have previously dropped behind no. 100 on the Billboard 200. This marks the first time since 2007 that a comedy album has topped the chart.
Although the aforementioned albums pack some adult language, children are catching up with Williams as well on the Kid Digital Songs chart. Williams was noted for his role as Genie in Disney's Aladdin, and two songs that feature Williams have seen an uptick in sales. "Friend Like Me" and "Price Ali" came in at nos. 2 and 4 respectively this week.
Williams' own work may be receiving a boost in sales, but the death of Lauren Bacall has apparently led to positive sales for other performers. The actress is mentioned in many songs and a few of them are reaping the benefits. Bertie Higgins' "Key Largo" ("just like Bogie and Bacall") sold 3,000 downloads, up from negligible totals last week, and Madonna's "Vogue" rose 28 percent in downloads as well (Bacall is referenced during the list of A-listers read during the bridge).
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