Jay-Z’s album 4:44 is officially not platinum; He sold much less than 500,000

Despite reports that Jay Z's new album hit
platinum within weeks of its release, and the
RIAA issuing him a platinum plaque, it's
been revealed that it actually didn't.


According to BuzzAngle, Jay-Z’s current
album, 4:44, actually sold much less than
500,000 copies or downloads.


"The fact that 4:44 has sold so much
less than 500,000 is startling. 4:44
has sold a total of 264,100 albums.


That includes CDs and downloads but
not streaming. If you count in
streaming, including singles, the
number still comes only to 364,000.



This is a far cry from the 500,000
level that the RIAA requires for a
gold record, and 1 million copies
shipped for platinum.


Still, the RIAA
awarded Jay Z a platinum album
based on private sales through Tidal
streaming and direct deliveries to
Sprint customers. 4:44 did not reach
platinum status.



Jay-Z’s people
claimed the album was downloaded
or streamed over a million times in
one week. But even that is a lie. ”
writes Roger Friedman.