However, album sales and radio plays have both decreased.
The reaction to
Leaving Neverland has been a long time coming.
Initially screened at the Sundance Film Festival back in January, it went on to be premiere in the States in late February, before airing on Channel 4 in this part of the world in early March.
The shockwaves and ramifications and think-pieces on the four-hour documentary are still being doled out a daily basis since that initial screening.
One of the big questions following the screening was whether Michael Jackson fans would continue to play his music in light of the accusations, with both
Ryan Tubridy and
multiple radio stations around the world announcing that they would no longer be putting MJ songs on their playlists.
However,
Billboard have released new data which shows that in the days following the screening in the US, streaming numbers on the artist's songs and albums actually increased.
In terms of both streamed audio and video views, Jackson's songs saw an increase of 6%, with 19.7 million plays from March 3-5, up from 18.7 million plays from February 24-26.
Additionally, his individual singles sales increased, also by 6% during that same time period.
On the other hand, Jackson's album sales dropped nearly by nearly 40%, while his airplay on US radio dropped by approximately 13% in the week following the documentary's screening.
It may take some time to see the full impact the documentary will have on the artist's sales and streaming numbers.
Meanwhile, for those who have watched the documentary, this
follow-up interview with Oprah Winfrey is a must-watch.
