Ed Sheeran has nabbed his second “Diamond” certification for “Shape of You.” The Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA), known for issuing the gold and silver plaques that hang on many music company walls, designates over 10 million units in sales and streams for the award.
The accomplishment makes Sheeran the fourth artist to score multiple Diamond-certified songs since the RIAA implemented the category 20 years ago. Sheeran’s song “Thinking Out Loud” reached the ranking in 2017.
Diamond is the highest level of RIAA certification, above multi-platinum, platinum, and gold, which is 500,000 units.
The English singer-songwriter took to Instagram to share the news.
“Shape of You,” Sheeran’s lead single off his 2017 “÷” album, was the top song of 2017, according to multiple metrics, including BuzzAngle Music. And his tour set the world record in 2018 for highest grossing tour ever in a calendar year, $432 million per Pollstar.
The Grammy winner is also the first artist to ever have two singles make simultaneous top 10 debuts on the Hot 100, with his single “Castle On The Hill” reaching No. 6 on the charts and becoming 3x-Platinum certified while “Shape of You” was released in tandem.
Sheeran will resume his worldwide stadium tour in support of “÷” later this month.