It’s been over 8 years since Rihanna reigned over Billboard charts with her last studio album, ‘Anti,’ but the exhausting wait for new music from the singer-turned-beauty-mogul has led her beloved fans (affectionately called #TheNavy) to cling to her hits of yesteryear.
So much so, 4 of her biggest hits – ‘Needed Me,’ ‘Stay,’ ‘Umbrella,’ and ‘Work’ – worked their way across the Recording Industry Association of America’s (RIAA) threshold for Diamond certification on May 31. “Diamond” denotes sales equivalence of 10 million in the United States.
Bringing her career collection of Diamond-certified songs to 6, the sum made her the vocalist with the most overall number of hits certified as high in the 71-year history of the RIAA.
And while Rih’s reign in the organization’s log didn’t seem poised to let up any time soon, not even three weeks went by before The Weeknd (born Abel Tesfaye) snatched the title.
Taking to press Thursday (June 20), the RIAA announced a slew of Tesfaye’s singles had their certification statuses upgraded.
See the full list below.
Diamond
- ‘Save Your Tears’ (Single)
- ‘Die for You’ (Single)
Platinum
- ‘Popular’ (Single)
- ‘One of the Girls’ (Single)
Thanks to the above, the Canadian hitmaker now boasts 7 Diamond singles – helping him surpass Rih to become the first vocalist to rack up as many single certifications of this caliber.
Among all acts, only rapper Post Malone has more (8).
Collectively, the sales updates increase his careerwide sales to 126 million in the U.S. – extending his record as the best-selling Black male singer in the history of recorded music for singles.
When all Black acts are considered, only Drake (244 million), Rihanna (183 million), and Kanye West (160.5 million) can boast higher cumulative single sales.
He honestly deserves it. His vocals are top notch and music is always good. Props Weeknd!!
Y’all like gassing other artists up over Rihanna… Stop being shady Rihanna still holds the record for most diamond certified singles by a female. And post Malone still has more among male artists. Congratulations to the weekend but y’all need to do better