R.E.M. Score Big from Mayans' 'End of the World' Prediction

R.E.M. Score Big from Mayans’ ‘End of the World’ Prediction

2012-12-29

Story by Cat Badra

R.E.M.’s 1987 hit saw a jump in sales thanks to the Mayans’ Dec. 21 apocalyptic prediction

The Mayans may have incorrectly predicted the end of the world to arrive on Dec. 21, but the guys of R.E.M. sure benefited from the defunct forecast. The alternative rock band’s trademark 1987 single, “It’s the End of the World As We Know It (And I Feel Fine),” garnered a big jump in sales and radio airplay the week of Dec. 21, thanks to the Mayans’ apocalyptic calculation.

As Billboard reports, sales of the song rose a mighty 612 percent from Dec. 17 through 23, marking an increase in sales from 3,000 to 19,000 units. The showing was significant enough to make the song re-enter the Billboard Alternative Digital Songs chart at No. 14 and the Rock Digital Songs chart at No. 18.

As for the radio waves, airplay on Nielsen-monitored radio stations rose from 50 plays on Dec. 20 to 135 on Dec. 21. The song was also the No. 1 most viral track on Spotify for the week of Dec. 17 through 23 according to MB.com, meaning it was the most shared song divided by the number of people who listened to it on various social networking sites.

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Cat Badra

Meet the expert - Cat Badra is a music writer for Audio Ink Radio and a range of other music, sports and lifestyle publications. She's a graduate of Michigan State University with a master's degree in theater and speech. Contact her at cat@audioinkradio.com.