Country Album Sales Boosted By Big Names

A few of country’s biggest names helped to salvage a tough year in album sales for the industry.
 
According to a report from Nielsen SoundScan, all-genre album sales have decreased 12.7 percent over the past year, while country sales saw a 5 percent decline.
 
Late-year releases from acts like Taylor Swift, who’s sold nearly 3 million copies of "Speak Now" in just 10 weeks, helped to lessen country music’s descent.
 
In fact, six country acts sold more than half a million albums during the holiday season, yet the industry still retains a 44 percent drop in sales since 2004.
 
“You can look at this over the years and see a precipitous fall for country from 2005 to 2008, and it's slowed down since then, though it's still inching downward,” said David Ross, publisher of Nashville music industry publication Music Row.
 
Other acts like Lady Antebellum and Zac Brown Band also boosted album sales in 2010.
 
Source: The Tennessean