The group debuted as a subunit of the Japanese idol group Sakura Gakuin, performing the track "Doki Doki ☆ Morning" on their debut album Sakura Gakuin 2010 Nendo: Message (2011), releasing several other singles through the years.

The songs released would appear on the group's eponymous debut album Babymetal in 2014.

The album would chart in several countries, including on the Billboard 200 in the United States, a rare feat for Japanese artists.

Babymetal later rereleased the album physically internationally in 2015, promoting the single "Road of Resistance", and has since been certified Gold in Japan.

The group's second album, Metal Resistance was released in 2016, peaking at number two on the Oricon Weekly Albums chart, certified Gold in Japan, entering the top forty on the Billboard 200, and setting a record for the highest position on the UK Albums Chart for a Japanese artist at number fifteen.