iPedia Free Information Center

Information about Riaa Certification

In the United States, the Recording Industry Association of America awards certification based on the number of albums and singles sold through retail and other ancillary markets.[1] (Some other countries have similar schemes. See Music recording sales certification.) Certification is not automatic; for an award to be made, the record label must pay a fee to have the sales of the recording audited. The audit is conducted against unit shipments (most often an artists' royalty statement is used), which includes albums sold directly to retailers and one-stops, direct to consumer sales (music clubs & mail order) and other outlets. Shipments that could potentially be returned to the label can not be counted.

Contrary to popular belief, Nielsen SoundScan figures are not used in RIAA certification; the RIAA system predates Nielsen SoundScan and includes sales outlets Nielsen misses. Prior to Nielsen SoundScan, RIAA certification was the only audited and verifiable system for tracking music sales in the U.S.; it is still the only system capable of tracking 100% of sales (albeit as shipments less potential returns, not actual sales like Nielsen SoundScan).

List of certifications

Currently, the normal RIAA certifications for albums are:
  • 500,000 units: Gold album.
  • 1,000,000 units: Platinum album.
  • 2,000,000 units: Multi-Platinum album.
  • 10,000,000 units: Diamond album.
The following certifications are given only to recordings of which over 50% of the content is in the Spanish language [1]:
  • 100,000 units: Oro album.
  • 200,000 units: Platino album.
  • of 400,000 units: Multi-Platino album.
Multi-disc albums are counted once for each disc within the album, if the album is 100 minutes or more in total length. For example, each copy of OutKast's Speakerboxxx/The Love Below (running time of 134:56) and Shania Twain's Up! (145:44), both double albums, were counted twice, meaning each album was certified diamond after only 5 million copies were shipped; however, each copy of Christina Aguilera's Back to Basics (running time of 78:55) and Pink Floyd's The Wall (running time of 81:20 and was released as one cassette and one 8-track cartridge) will only count once despite its being a double album.

Records

Top selling artists [2]
(updated 17 July, 2007)
Artist Units
(millions)

Beatles, The170
Presley, Elvis118.5
Brooks, Garth116
Led Zeppelin109.5
Eagles91
Joel, Billy79.5
Pink Floyd73.5
Streisand, Barbra71
John, Elton69.5
AC/DC69
Rolling Stones, The66
Aerosmith65.5
Strait, George65.5
Madonna63
Springsteen, Bruce62.5
Carey, Mariah61.5
Jackson, Michael60.5
Metallica57
Van Halen56.5
Houston, Whitney54
U252
Rogers, Kenny50.5
Linkin Park50
Dion, Celine49
Fleetwood Mac48.5
Kenny G48
Diamond, Neil48
Twain, Shania47
Alabama46
Journey45
Santana43
Clapton, Eric42
Jackson, Alan42
Seger, Bob and the Silver Bullet Band40
Prince39.5
Guns N' Roses38.5
Simon & Garfunkel38.5
Chicago38
McEntire, Reba38
Backstreet Boys37
Stewart, Rod37
Dylan, Bob37
2Pac36.5
Foreigner36.5
Def Leppard35
Nelson, Willie35
Bone Thugs-n-Harmony35
Collins, Phil33.5
Bon Jovi33
Queen32.5
Denver, John32.5
Taylor, James32.5
Doors, The32
Kelly, R.32
McGraw, Tim31
Spears, Britney31
Boston31
Matthews, Dave Band31
Dixie Chicks30.5
Ronstadt, Linda30
Pearl Jam30
Petty, Tom & The Heartbreakers28.5
Osbourne, Ozzy28.25
Lynyrd Skynyrd28
Bolton, Michael28
'N Sync28
Mellencamp, John27.5
Boyz II Men27
Mannheim Steamroller27
Eminem27
Manilow, Barry27
Brooks & Dunn26
Creedence Clearwater Revival26
Bee Gees26
Enya26
Jackson, Janet26
Sinatra, Frank25.5
Rush25
Nirvana25
Hill, Faith25
Jay-Z25
ZZ Top25
Vandross, Luther24.5
Carpenters, The24.5
Miller, Steve Band24.5
Creed24
Mötley Crüe23.5
Earth, Wind & Fire23.5
Cars, The23.5
Gill, Vince23.5
Buffett, Jimmy23
Police, The22.5
Sade22.5
Hendrix, Jimi22
Doobie Brothers22
Richie, Lionel22
Keith, Toby22
Green Day22
TLC22
Beastie Boys22
Outkast22
Megadeth22

Gold and Platinum albums [3]
(updated 17 July, 2007)
Artist Gold Platinum Multi-Platinum
AC/DC191911
Aerosmith251812
Alabama222010
Beach Boys, The2096
Beatles, The453924
Brooks, Garth151514
Buffett, Jimmy1793
Cash, Johnny18105
The Cheetah Girls131
Chicago22188
Clapton, Eric24128
Denver, John20137
Diamond, Neil392111
Doors, The18145
Dylan, Bob36165
Grateful Dead1964
Hendrix, Jimi1796
Isley Brothers15103
Jackson, Alan16148
Jefferson Airplane/Starship2051
Jethro Tull1531
Joel, Billy181712
John, Elton372612
Kenny G15118
Kiss24102
Led Zeppelin181713
Lynyrd Skynyrd19137
Madonna171712
Manilow, Barry23136
Mannheim Steamroller1774
Mathis, Johnny1662
Mc Entire, Reba24188
Mellencamp, John15125
Nelson, Willie22167
Petty, Tom & The Heartbreakers1585
Pink Floyd181512
Presley, Elvis814524
Prince23167
Queen18116
Rogers, Kenny30198
Rolling Stones, The422811
Ronstadt, Linda17137
Rush24143
Santana20107
Sinatra, Frank33103
Springsteen, Bruce191610
Stewart, Rod261810
Strait, George353213
Streisand, Barbra503013
Taylor, James19145
Temptations, The1961
U2151511
Vandross, Luther18157
Who, The18105
Williams, Hank, Jr.2281
Young, Neil1873

Diamond sales

Diamond(10+ Million) Certified (RIAA)[4]

EX:

Artists with most Gold, Platinum and Multi-platinum singles

Main article: RIAA single certification


Each Platinum or Multi-platinum single has already been certified Gold.
  1. Elvis Presley (24G+28P, tops for Platinum, for a total of 52 Gold awards. Presley went Multi-platinum with 7 of them, the most for any artist or group.)
  2. Madonna (25G+4P)
  3. Mariah Carey (24G+12P)
  4. Tommy James & The Shondells (23 Gold singles)
  5. Janet Jackson (23 Gold single awards, only female with 26 gold)
  6. The Beatles (18G - most for any group+6P)
  7. Whitney Houston (14G+6P)
  8. Elton John (13G+6P)
  9. The Temptations (10G+6P)
  10. George Michael (7G+2P)
  11. Billy Joel (4G+2P)[2]
  12. Aretha Franklin (15G)


Julio Iglesias has more platinum, gold, and the Guiness Diamond album for selling more records in more languages than any other musical artist in history (Spanish, German, Japanese, English, Italian, Portuguese, French, Tagalog...)

See also

References

Main: [5]

External links

Motto
"In God We Trust"   (since 1956)
"E Pluribus Unum"   ("From Many, One"; Latin, traditional)
Anthem
..... Click the link for more information.
highly specialized aspect of its associated subject.
Please help [ improve this article] by adding more general information.


"RIAA" redirects here. You may also be looking for RIAA equalization.

..... Click the link for more information.
album or record album is a collection of related audio or music tracks distributed to the public. The most common way is through commercial distribution, although smaller artists will often distribute directly to the public by selling their albums at live concerts or on
..... Click the link for more information.
In music, a single is a short recording of one or more separate tracks. This can be released for sale to the public in a variety of different formats.
  • Vinyl singles consist of one or more tracks on a traditional gramophone record.

..... Click the link for more information.
Music recording sales certification is a system of certifying that a music recording has sold a certain number of copies.

Almost all countries follow variations of the RIAA certification categories, which are named after the precious materials gold, platinum
..... Click the link for more information.
In the music industry, a record label is a brand and a trademark associated with the marketing of music recordings and music videos. In everyday usage, a record label is also a company that manages such brands and trademarks; coordinates the production, manufacture, distribution,
..... Click the link for more information.
Nielsen SoundScan is an information system created by Mike Fine and Mike Shalett that tracks sales data for singles, albums, and music video products in Canada and the United States for Billboard and other music industry companies.
..... Click the link for more information.

 Spanish, Castilian}}} 
Writing system: Latin (Spanish variant)
Language codes
ISO 639-1: none
ISO 639-2: —
ISO 639-3: —

Spanish (
..... Click the link for more information.
OutKast is a popular American Grammy award winning hip hop duo based out of East Point, Georgia, a suburb of Atlanta, Georgia. Their original musical style was a mixture of Dirty South and G-Funk; since then, funk, soul, pop, electronica, rock, spoken word poetry, crunk, jazz, and
..... Click the link for more information.
Speakerboxxx/The Love Below
(2003) Idlewild
(2006)

Speakerboxxx/The Love Below is a double album by the hip hop group OutKast, released on September 23 2003 on LaFace Records.
..... Click the link for more information.
Shania Twain, OC (born Eilleen Regina Edwards, August 28, 1965, Windsor, Ontario) is a Canadian singer and songwriter in the country and pop music genres. Her third album Come on Over
..... Click the link for more information.
Up! was the first all-new studio album by Canadian singer Shania Twain in 5 years, released in November 2002 (see 2002 in music). The album was recorded in three different ways: country ("Green" disc), pop ("Red" disc) and international ("Blue" disc).
..... Click the link for more information.
A double album is an audio album of sufficient length that two units of the medium in which it is sold (especially records and compact discs) are necessary to contain the entirety of it.
..... Click the link for more information.
This article or section is currently being developed or reviewed.
Some statements may be disputed, incorrect, , biased or otherwise objectionable. Please read the discussion on the before making substantial changes.
..... Click the link for more information.
Back to Basics
(2006)

Singles from Back to Basics
# "Ain't No Other Man"
Released: June 3, 2006# "Hurt"
Released: October 18, 2006#
..... Click the link for more information.
Pink Floyd are an English rock band that initially earned recognition for their psychedelic rock music, and, as they evolved, for their progressive rock music. They are known for philosophical lyrics, sonic experimentation, innovative cover art, and elaborate live shows.
..... Click the link for more information.
The Wall
(1979) A Collection of Great Dance Songs
(1981)

The Wall is a concept album/rock opera by the English progressive rock band Pink Floyd, released in 1979.
..... Click the link for more information.
Compact Cassette

Typical 60-minute Compact Cassette
Media type: magnetic tape
Encoding: analog signal
Capacity: 23 minutes per side (C46)
30 minutes per side (C60)
45 minutes per side (C90)
50 minutes per side (C100)
60 minutes per side (C120)
..... Click the link for more information.
Stereo 8

An 8-track cartridge of Never Mind the Bollocks, Here's the Sex Pistols
Media type: magnetic tape
Encoding: analog signal
Capacity: Four pairs of stereo channels
Read mechanism: tape head
Write mechanism: magnetic recording head
..... Click the link for more information.
July 17 is the 1st day of the year (2nd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. There are 0 days remaining.

Events

  • 180 - Twelve inhabitants of Scillium in North Africa executed for being Christians.

..... Click the link for more information.
20th century - 21st century - 22nd century
1970s  1980s  1990s  - 2000s -  2010s  2020s  2030s
2004 2005 2006 - 2007 - 2008 2009 2010

2007 by topic:
News by month
Jan - Feb - Mar - Apr - May - Jun
..... Click the link for more information.
The Beatles were an English musical group from Liverpool whose members were John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison, and Ringo Starr. They are one of the most commercially successful and critically acclaimed bands in the history of popular music.
..... Click the link for more information.
Elvis Aaron Presley[1][2] (January 8, 1935–August 16, 1977), was an American singer, musician, actor, writer, and producer. He is a cultural icon, often known as "The King of Rock 'n' Roll", or simply "The King".
..... Click the link for more information.
Troyal Garth Brooks (born February 7, 1962 in Tulsa, Oklahoma) is an American country music singer-songwriter. Successfully integrating pop and rock elements into his recordings and live performances, Brooks soon began to dominate the country singles and country album charts and
..... Click the link for more information.
Led Zeppelin were an English rock band that formed in September 1968. Led Zeppelin consisted of Jimmy Page, Robert Plant, John Paul Jones and John Bonham. With their heavy, guitar-driven sound, Led Zeppelin are regarded as one of the first heavy metal bands.
..... Click the link for more information.
Eagles (commonly referred to as "The Eagles") are an American rock band that was formed in Los Angeles, California in the early 1970s. With five number-one singles and four number-one albums, the Eagles
..... Click the link for more information.
William Martin "Billy" Joel (born May 9, 1949) is an American singer, pianist, songwriter, composer and musician. He released his first hit song, "Piano Man", in 1973. According to the RIAA, he is the sixth best-selling recording artist in the United States.
..... Click the link for more information.
Pink Floyd are an English rock band that initially earned recognition for their psychedelic rock music, and, as they evolved, for their progressive rock music. They are known for philosophical lyrics, sonic experimentation, innovative cover art, and elaborate live shows.
..... Click the link for more information.
Barbra Streisand (pronounced STRY-sand, IPA: /ˈstraɪsænd/; born April 24, 1942) is an American singer, theatre and film actress, composer, liberal political activist, film producer and director.
..... Click the link for more information.
Sir Elton Hercules[1] John CBE[2] (born Reginald Kenneth Dwight on 25 March, 1947) is a five-time Grammy and one-time Academy Award-winning English pop/rock singer, composer and pianist.
..... Click the link for more information.


This article is copied from an article on Wikipedia.org - the free encyclopedia created and edited by online user community. The text was not checked or edited by anyone on our staff. Although the vast majority of the wikipedia encyclopedia articles provide accurate and timely information please do not assume the accuracy of any particular article. This article is distributed under the terms of GNU Free Documentation License.
Herod_Archelaus


page counter