Now That's What I Call Music! 42 was released on May 1, 2012. The album is the forty-second edition of the (U.S.) Now series. It peaked at number 1 and 13 on the Billboard 200 and has been certified 2x Platinum by the RIAA. The compilation includes two songs which reached the Billboard Hot 100: "Stronger (What Doesn't Kill You)" & "Somebody That I Used to Know".
The cover is inspired by the NOW 82 UK cover released in the same year.