Editing Music recording certification (section)

== History ==
[[File:Saadoaliw1.jpg|thumb|[[Somali people|Somali]] singer [[Saado Ali Warsame]] receiving a gold record Lifetime Achievement Award]]

The original gold and silver record awards were presented to artists by their own record companies to publicize their sales achievements. The first silver disc was awarded by [[Regal Zonophone]] to [[George Formby]] in December 1937 for sales of 100,000 copies of "[[The Window Cleaner]]".<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.georgeformby.co.uk/alan_randall/memorobilia/list.htm |title=Alan's treasured possessions |work=Alan Randall's Memorabilia |access-date=12 June 2017 |archive-date=24 July 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210724104325/https://www.georgeformby.co.uk/alan_randall/memorobilia/list.htm |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=PUFMCAAAQBAJ&pg=PT54 |title=George Formby: An Intimate Biography of the Troubled Genius |publisher=Lulu Press |first=David |last=Bret |page=54 |date=2014 |isbn=978-1-291-87257-6 |access-date=12 June 2017 |archive-date=3 April 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230403064001/https://books.google.com/books?id=PUFMCAAAQBAJ&pg=PT54 |url-status=live }}</ref>

The first literal gold record award was presented to  [[Glenn Miller and His Orchestra]] by [[RCA Victor]] (for subsidiary label [[Bluebird Records]]) on February 10, 1942, celebrating the sale of 1.2&nbsp;million copies of the single, "[[Chattanooga Choo Choo]]".

Further examples of company awards are the gold records awarded in 1956 by RCA Victor to [[Harry Belafonte]] for his album ''[[Calypso (album)|Calypso]]'' for being the first [[LP record]] album to sell more than one million copies and [[Elvis Presley]] for one million units sold of his RCA Victor single "[[Don't Be Cruel]]". Also in 1956, [[Decca Records|Decca]]'s presented a gold record award to [[Jerry Lewis]] for the single "[[Rock-a-Bye Your Baby with a Dixie Melody]]".

At the industry level, in 1958 the [[Recording Industry Association of America]] (“RIAA”) introduced its gold record award program for records of any kind, [[LP record|albums]] or [[single (music)|singles]], which achieved one million dollars in retail sales. These sales were restricted to U.S.-based record companies and did not include exports to other countries.<ref name="Venable2011">{{cite book |title=Gold: A Cultural Encyclopedia |publisher=[[ABC-CLIO]] |first=Shannon L. |last=Venable |year=2011 |isbn=978-0-313-38431-8}}</ref><ref name="Shelton1986">{{cite book |title=No Direction Home: The Life and Music of Bob Dylan |publisher=William Morrow |location=New York |first=Robert |last=Shelton |page=[https://archive.org/details/nodirectionhomel00shel/page/389 389] |year=1986 |isbn=0-688-05045-X |url-access=registration |url=https://archive.org/details/nodirectionhomel00shel/page/389}}</ref> For albums in 1968, this would require shipping domestically approximately 670,000 units, while for singles the number would be 1,000,000.<ref name="Shelton1986" />

In 1976, the RIAA introduced the platinum certification for the sale of one million units for albums and two million for singles, with the gold certification redefined for sales of 500,000 units for albums (singles remained at one million).<ref name="White1990">{{cite book |title=The Billboard Book of Gold & Platinum Records |url=https://archive.org/details/billboardbookofg00whit |url-access=registration |publisher=Billboard Books |first=Adam |last=White |page=viii |date=1990 |isbn=978-0-7119-2196-2}}</ref> No album was certified platinum prior to this year. The 1958 RCA Victor recording by [[Van Cliburn]] of [[Tchaikovsky Piano Concerto No. 1 (Van Cliburn 1958 recording)|the Tchaikovsky Piano Concerto]] would eventually be awarded a platinum citation, but this did not occur until two decades after its release. In 1999, [[list of best-selling albums in the United States|the diamond certification]] was introduced for sales of ten million units. In the late 1980s, the certification thresholds for singles were dropped to match that of albums.<ref name="White1990" />

=== RIAA certification ===
{{Main|RIAA certification}}

[[File:Artie's Gold Record.jpg|right|thumb|upright|Gold record presented to [[Artie Schroeck]] for his arrangement on "[[Can't Take My Eyes Off You]]", 1967]]
The first official designation of a "gold record" by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) was established for [[single (music)|singles]] in 1958, and the RIAA also trademarked the term "gold record" in the United States. On 14 March 1958, the RIAA certified its first gold record, [[Perry Como]]'s hit single "[[Catch a Falling Star]]". The ''[[Oklahoma! (soundtrack)|Oklahoma!]]'' soundtrack was certified as the first gold album four months later. In 1976, RIAA introduced the platinum certification, first awarded to the [[Eagles (band)|Eagles]] compilation album ''[[Their Greatest Hits (1971–1975)]]'' on 24 February 1976,<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.riaa.com/gold-platinum/?tab_active=default-award&ar=Eagles&ti=Their+greatest+hits&lab=&genre=&format=&date_option=release&from=&to=&award=&type=&category=&adv=SEARCH |title=Gold & Platinum: Eagles/Their Greatest Hits 1971 – 1975 |publisher=RIAA |access-date=14 August 2017 |archive-date=20 January 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220120162654/https://www.riaa.com/gold-platinum/?tab_active=default-award&ar=Eagles&ti=Their+greatest+hits&lab=&genre=&format=&date_option=release&from=&to=&award=&type=&category=&adv=SEARCH |url-status=live }}</ref> and to [[Johnnie Taylor]]'s single "[[Disco Lady]]" on 22 April 1976.<ref name="riaa-story">{{cite web |url=https://www.riaa.com/gold-platinum/story/ |title=Story of Gold & Platinum |publisher=RIAA |access-date=14 August 2017 |archive-date=9 January 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160109215641/http://www.riaa.com/gold-platinum/story/ |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.riaa.com/gold-platinum/?tab_active=default-award&ar=&ti=&lab=&genre=&format=&date_option=release&from=&to=&award=P&type=&category=&adv=SEARCH&col=certification_date&ord=asc#search_section |title=Gold & Platinum: Platinum Awards |publisher=RIAA |access-date=14 August 2017 |archive-date=18 October 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221018162308/https://www.riaa.com/gold-platinum/?tab_active=default-award&ar=&ti=&lab=&genre=&format=&date_option=release&from=&to=&award=P&type=&category=&adv=SEARCH&col=certification_date&ord=asc#search_section |url-status=live }}</ref> As music sales increased with the introduction of compact discs, the RIAA created the Multi-Platinum award in 1984. Diamond awards, honoring those artists whose sales of singles or albums reached 10,000,000 copies, were introduced in 1999.<ref name="riaa-award-history">{{cite news |url=https://www.riaa.com/gold-platinum/about-awards/ |title=About the Awards |newspaper=RIAA |access-date=14 August 2017 |archive-date=9 January 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160109215629/http://www.riaa.com/gold-platinum/about-awards/ |url-status=live }}</ref>

In the 20th century, and for a part of the first decade of the 21st, it was common for distributors to claim certifications based on their shipments – wholesale to retail outlets – which led to many certifications which outstripped the actual final retail sales figures. This became much less common once the majority of retail sales became paid digital downloads and digital streaming.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.tunecore.com/blog/2011/04/getting-a-gold-record-by-selling-nothing.html |title=Getting A Gold Record By Selling Nothing |publisher=TuneCore |first=Jeff |last=Price |date=28 April 2011 |access-date=7 July 2015 |archive-date=23 September 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170923201839/http://www.tunecore.com/blog/2011/04/getting-a-gold-record-by-selling-nothing.html |url-status=live }}</ref>

=== Digital media certification ===
In most countries, certifications no longer apply solely to physical media but now also include sales awards recognizing digital downloads (in the US and UK since 2004).<ref>{{cite web |title=Goodbye, 2004. Hello, 2005! |url=https://www.riaa.com/newsitem.php?news_year_filter=&resultpage=30&id=D518ECA3-C7F5-6CDB-F346-A6E9BDEF73C9 |publisher=Recording Industry Association of American |access-date=23 June 2012 |archive-date=24 September 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150924161335/http://www.riaa.com/newsitem.php?news_year_filter=&resultpage=30&id=D518ECA3-C7F5-6CDB-F346-A6E9BDEF73C9 |url-status=live }}</ref> In June 2006, the RIAA also certified the [[ringtone]] downloads of songs. Streaming from on-demand services such as [[Apple Music]], [[Spotify]], [[Tidal (service)|Tidal]] and [[Napster (streaming service)|Napster]] has been included into existing digital certification in the US since 2013, and the UK and Germany since 2014. In the US and Germany, video streaming services like YouTube, [[VEVO]], and [[Yahoo! Music]] also began to be counted towards the certification, in both cases using the formula of 100 streams being equivalent to one download.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.riaa.com/newsitem.php?content_selector=newsandviews&news_month_filter=5&id=03662575-C88F-51CF-779C-8396A2B8D74D |title=RIAA Adds Digital Streams To Historic Gold & Platinum Awards |publisher=RIAA |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150924161215/http://www.riaa.com/newsitem.php?content_selector=newsandviews&news_month_filter=5&id=03662575-C88F-51CF-779C-8396A2B8D74D |archive-date=24 September 2015 }}</ref><ref name="stream">{{cite magazine |url=http://www.billboard.com/biz/articles/news/1560846/exclusive-on-demand-streams-now-count-toward-riaa-gold-platinum |title=Exclusive: On-Demand Streams Now Count Toward RIAA Gold & Platinum |author=Alex Pham |date=9 May 2013 |magazine=Billboard |access-date=21 January 2014 |archive-date=22 February 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140222115248/http://www.billboard.com/biz/articles/news/1560846/exclusive-on-demand-streams-now-count-toward-riaa-gold-platinum |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.musikindustrie.de/aktuell_einzel/news/neuer-diamond-award-fuer-die-erfolgreichsten-singles-und-alben-in-deutschland/ |title=Neuer DIAMOND AWARD für die erfolgreichsten Singles und Alben in Deutschland |publisher=Bundesverband Musikindstie |access-date=15 May 2014 |language=de |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140626082058/http://www.musikindustrie.de/aktuell_einzel/news/neuer-diamond-award-fuer-die-erfolgreichsten-singles-und-alben-in-deutschland/ |archive-date=26 June 2014 }}</ref> Other countries, such as Denmark and Spain, maintain separate awards for digital download singles and streaming.<ref>{{cite book |url=http://www.ifpi.dk/?q=node%2F11 |title=IFPI Denmark: Guld og platin (2014) |year=2014 |publisher=[[IFPI]] Denmark |language=da |access-date=31 May 2014 |archive-date=11 April 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110411134535/http://www.ifpi.dk/?q=node%2F11 |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.promusicae.es/listas/semanales |title=Listas semanales: 14 July 2014 – 20.7.2014 |publisher=[[PROMUSICAE]] |language=es |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140727040623/http://www.promusicae.es/listas/semanales |archive-date=27 July 2014 |date=July 2014 |access-date=21 August 2014}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.xn--5dbgahm7ao3dh.co.il/|title=שיר בהזמנה &#124; כתיבת שיר מקורי לאירוע &#124; שיר במתנה בהזמנה אישית|website=שיר בהזמנה}}</ref>

===Symbolic certifications===
[[File:Disco de Uranio.jpg|thumb|upright|"[[Uranium]] disc" granted to [[Raphael (singer)|Raphael]] by his label [[Hispavox]] in 1980<ref name="rapahel2">{{Cite web |date=15 January 1982 |title=Premios – Homenajes |trans-title=Awards – Tributes |url=https://efs.efeservicios.com/foto/premios-homenajes/8002973288 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221129191323/https://efs.efeservicios.com/foto/premios-homenajes/8002973288 |archive-date=29 November 2022 |access-date=29 November 2022 |publisher=[[EFE]] |language=es |publication-place=Madrid, Spain}}</ref><ref name="rapahel1">{{Cite news |last=Ullan |first=José Miguel |date=27 September 1980 |title=La noche más feliz de Raphael Recital – conmemorativo de veinte años de canciones |trans-title=Raphael's happiest night – Commemorative recital of twenty years of songs |url=https://elpais.com/diario/1980/09/28/cultura/338940013_850215.html |url-access=limited |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240510004836/https://elpais.com/diario/1980/09/28/cultura/338940013_850215.html |archive-date=10 May 2024 |access-date=10 May 2024 |work=[[El País]] |page=25 |language=es |publication-place=Madrid, Spain |issn=0213-4608}}</ref>]]

Other recording artists have received special and symbolic recognitions, including [[Raphael (singer)|Raphael]] with a "[[Uranium]] disc" granted by [[Hispavox]] and [[Sociedad General de Autores y Editores|SGAE]] in 1980,<ref name="rapahel1" /><ref name="rapahel2" /> [[Luis Miguel]] received in 1999 a "[[Lapislazuli]] disc" for his sales of over 1.7 million in Chile,<ref name="Lapis">{{cite news|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=wyFdAAAAIBAJ&pg=PA15&dq=Luis+Miguel&article_id=1561,5311405&hl=en&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwjNkYOYleqJAxXVSjABHXRzKLU4FBDoAXoECAwQAg#v=onepage&q=Luis%20Miguel&f=false|title=Reconoce Luismi estar ilusionado de Mariah|newspaper=La Opinión|access-date=November 19, 2024|date=November 24, 1999|language=es|page=15|author=Notimex|author-link=Notimex}}</ref>  and [[Luis Fonsi]] received the "[[Plutonium]] disc" from [[Universal Music Group]] recognizing the global sales of "[[Despacito]]" in 2017.<ref>{{cite magazine|url=https://www.cosmopolitan.com/es/famosos/musica/a10434/el-exito-de-luis-fonsi-despacito-con|title=El éxito de Luis Fonsi, 'Despacito' consigue Disco de Plutonio en España|magazine=[[Cosmopolitan (magazine)|Cosmopolitan]]|last=Gómez|first=Virginia|date=6 July 2017|access-date=6 November 2022|language=es|archive-date=3 April 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230403063951/https://www.cosmopolitan.com/es/famosos/musica/a10434/el-exito-de-luis-fonsi-despacito-consigue-disco-de-plutonio-en-espana/|url-status=live}}</ref>

=== IFPI certification ===
The [[International Federation of the Phonographic Industry]] (IFPI) was founded in 1933, and since 1996, has granted the Platinum Europe Award for album sales over one million within Europe and (as of October 2009) the Middle East. Multi-platinum Europe Awards are presented for sales in subsequent multiples of one million. Eligibility is unaffected by time (from date of release), and is not restricted to European-based artists.

=== IMPALA certification ===
[[File:CAIN Damien Kirsten Impala Award.jpg|thumb|left|upright|German band CAIN receiving an Impala Diamond Award in 2011]]

The [[Independent Music Companies Association]] (IMPALA) was founded in April 2000 to grow the independent music sector and promote independent music in the interests of artistic, entrepreneurial and cultural diversity. IMPALA launched sales awards in 2005 as the first sales awards recognising that success on a pan-European basis begins well before sales reach one million. 

The award levels are Silver (20,000+), Double Silver (40,000+), Gold (75,000+), Double Gold (150,000+), Diamond (200,000+), Platinum (400,000+) and Double Platinum (800,000+).