Fun fact: only 41 acts in the history of recorded music can boast the honor of having earned 20 or more Platinum-certified records from the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) over their careers.
For context, “Platinum” refers to sales equivalence of 1 million units in the United States.
An exclusive list undoubtedly boosted by the inclusion of streaming in the certification criteria, it’s still one that’s eluded Black female performers on mass as they represent less than 10% of the hitmakers in the exclusive club.
Recently, R&B diva SZA – thanks to the ongoing success of hits found aboard her long-awaited sophomore album ‘SOS‘ – helped the score increase for women of color.
As reported here, the RIAA took to press recently to announce SZA (born Solana Rowe) had been awarded a slew of new shiny plaques including three new Platinum certifications for the tunes ‘Seek & Destroy,’ ‘Ghost in the Machine,’ and ‘Open Arms.’
The news comes as one of many recent wins for Rowe who is also watched the ‘SOS’ hit ‘Snooze‘ make history for its extended stay inside the Hot 100.
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Mariah Carey isn’t black she’s biracial