Love him or hate him, Chris Brown’s figures are irrefutable, particularly at the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA).
As if breaking Elvis Presley’s record for the most Gold-certified singles (among male vocalists) wasn’t enough, he is also the first male vocalist in the organization’s 72-year history to have 20 Platinum-certified hits.
For context, “Gold” denotes sales of 500,000 in the United States, while “Platinum” refers to sales equivalent to 1 million in the same territory.
Now, thanks to the ongoing success of hits like ‘No Guidance,’ ‘Loyal,’ ‘Look at Me Now,’ and more, Brown’s broken even more new ground at the RIAA.
On Tuesday (November 12), Chris went to press and was greeted with the news that his certifications log at the RIAA had been refreshed with several upgrades.
See the full list below.
Diamond (for sales of 10 million)
- No Guidance (Single)
6x Platinum
- With You (Single)
5x Platinum
- Under the Influence (Single)
4x Platinum
- Heat (Single)
3x Platinum
- Privacy Party (Single)
- Indigo (Album)
2x Platinum
- Tempo (Single)
- She Aint You (Single)
- Take You Down (Single)
Platinum
- Indigo (Single)
- Call Me Every Day (Single)
- To My Bed (Single)
Gold
- Breezy (Album)
- Juicy Booty (Single)
- Warm Embrace (Single)
- Angel Numbers (Single)
The updates above bring Chris’ cumulative single sales to 114.5 million – the most of any male R&B singer in music history.
After The Weeknd (whose single sales now sit at 126 million), Brown is the second Black male vocalist to cross the RIAA’s 100 million threshold.
When all genres are considered, Brown is listed 10th place on the all-time list behind Drake (244 million), Rihanna (183 million), Eminem (167 million), Kanye West (160.5 million), Taylor Swift (137.5 million), Post Malone (136 million), The Weeknd (126 million), Justin Bieber (121.5 million), Travis Scott (121 million), and Beyonce (114.5 million).
