RIAA certification

In the United States, the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) awards certification based on the number of albums and singles sold through retail and other ancillary markets. Other countries have similar awards (see music recording sales certification). Certification is not automatic; for an award to be made, the record label must request certification. The audit is conducted against net shipments after returns (most often an artist's royalty statement is used), which includes albums sold directly to retailers and one-stops, direct-to-consumer sales (music clubs and mail order) and other outlets.

Description and qualifications

Presently, an American RIAA-certified Gold record is a single or album that has sold 500,000 units (records, tapes or compact discs). Originally, the requirement for a Gold single was one million units sold and a Gold album represented $1 million in sales (at wholesale value). In 1975, the additional requirement of 500,000 units sold was added for Gold albums. Reflecting growth in record sales, the Platinum award was instituted in 1976 for albums selling one million units and singles selling two million units. The Multi-Platinum award was instituted in 1984, signifying multiple Platinum levels of albums and singles. In 1989, the sales thresholds for singles were reduced to 500,000 for Gold and 1,000,000 for Platinum, reflecting a decrease in sales of singles. In 1992, RIAA began counting each disc in a multi-disc set as one unit toward certification. Reflecting additional growth in music sales, the Diamond award was instituted in 1999 for albums or singles selling ten million units. Because of these changes in criteria, the sales level associated with a particular award depends on when the award was made.

J. Cole

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Jermaine Lamarr Cole (born January 28, 1985), better known by his stage name J. Cole, is an American hip hop recording artist and record producer. Cole first received recognition in 2007, following the release of his debut mixtape The Come Up. Shortly after the release of The Come Up in 2009, Cole was contacted by American rapper Jay Z and subsequently signed to his record label Roc Nation. In that same year, Cole released his second mixtape, The Warm Up, which was itself followed by Cole's third mixtape, Friday Night Lights, in 2010.

His debut album, Cole World: The Sideline Story, was released on September 27, 2011. The album debuted at number one on the US Billboard 200, Top R&B Albums and Top Rap Albums chart, selling more than 218,000 in its first week. He received a nomination for Best New Artist at the 54th Grammy Awards. Cole's second album, Born Sinner, was released on June 18, 2013. The album debuted at number two on the Billboard 200; however, Born Sinner later rose to number one, giving Cole his second number one on the chart. His third album, 2014 Forest Hills Drive, was released on December 9, 2014 and also debuted at number one on the Billboard 200, giving Cole his third number one album, which reached Platinum status. J. Cole became the first rapper to go platinum in 25 years without features.