This past January, the RIAA confirmed that Taylor Swift’s surpassed Katy Perry to become the biggest digital singles artist in history.
Wednesday, it confirmed that Rihanna has passed Taylor Swift on the list.
Awarded certifications for 48 million additional units this week, Rihanna’s total now stands at 100 million digital units. A unit is equivalent to either 1 single sale or 100 streams.
Taylor Swift’s total currently stands at 88 million. Katy Perry follows with 79 million, while Kanye West and Lady Gaga complete the top five with tallies of 46.5 million and 39.5 million, respectively.
“Gold & Platinum is the industry’s premier way to celebrate achievement in the marketplace,” said Cary Sherman, Chairman & CEO, RIAA. “We’ve given awards to artists for nearly 60 years, but it’s rare that we have the opportunity to recognize a milestone like the one Rihanna has reached. Congratulations to Rihanna! She has not only surpassed RIAA’s one-hundred million mark, but also is the first artist to do so. It’s an historic feat and a testament to an extraordinary career.”
The new Rihanna certifications include a 9x platinum mark for “We Found Love,” a 6x platinum certification for “Stay,” “What’s My Name” and “Only Girl (In The World),” a 2x platinum label for “FourFiveSeconds” and a platinum distinction for “Bitch Better Have My Money.”
In addition to her 100 million certified digital units, Rihanna is also credited with 7.5 million US album sales.