Barely a month after extending her record as the Queen of Digital Downloads (and besting Beyonce to become the most Platinum-awarded Black female artist in history), Rihanna has increased the distance between herself and the competition in the record books of the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA).
See how inside.
On Tuesday (March 14), the RIAA took to press to announce ‘Lift Me Up’ – the chart-topping lead single from 2022’s ‘Black Panther: Wakanda Forever’ soundtrack – had pounced to Platinum.
Denoting sales equivalence of 1 million units in the United States, the new certification comes less than five months after ‘Lift Me Up’ was released and ups the Pop diva’s career count to 163.5 million singles sold in the territory (the most among women).
And, thanks to a critically acclaimed live showing at the 2023 Academy Awards just days prior to the RIAA’s announcement, the Tems-penned tune is enjoying a sales and streaming boost that may expedite its lift to double Platinum status.
The 43rd song of Rih’s career to be certified as high or higher, the only acts to have accumulated as many or more of the shiny plaques in the RIAA’s 70-year history are Drake (74), Kanye West (49), Taylor Swift (49), and Post Malone (43).
It’s of important note that while the GRAMMY-winning songstress is attached to a number of other Platinum-certified hits over her nearly 20-year career, artists’ official Gold, Platinum, multi-Platinum, and Diamond cumulative counts only include songs on which they are listed as lead performers.