16 million: Lil Nas X’s “Old Town Road” now the RIAA’s top-certified single of all time16 million: Lil Nas X’s “Old Town Road” now the RIAA’s top-certified single of all time
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Congratulations are in order to Lil Nas X and Ellie Goulding, because the RIAA gave them additional bragging rights on Tuesday: They respectively earned all-new Diamond and Platinum certifications.
Lil Nas X, who just recently returned to the public eye after an unexplained four-month hiatus, sees his smash hit debut single “Old Town Road” officially certified Diamond. The Diamond certification is for 10 million units sold, but “Old Town Road” has actually sold over that amount: The RIAA has certified it for sales of 16 million.
That makes it the highest-certified song of all time, replacing the previous leaders, Imagine Dragons’ “Radioactive,” Gotye‘s “Somebody That I Used to Know” and The Chainsmokers‘ “Closer,” all of which have been certified for sales of 14 million units.
Ellie Goulding also got some metal: Her sophomore album Halcyon is officially two-times Platinum for sales of more than two million units. The studio effort, which dropped in October 2012, contained the hits “I Need Your Love” and “Anything Could Happen.” The 2013 reissued version features Ellie’s four-time Platinum hit “Burn.”
Disney’s Encanto also enjoyed some love from the RIAA, with its soundtrack earning Gold certification, while two of its tracks — “Surface Pressure” and “We Don’t Talk About Bruno,” are now Platinum.
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