This week, JAY-Z has more of a reason to repeat this one shiny line he left us with 20 years ago: “This time around it’s platinum, like the sh*t on my wrist.”
Just five days after its release, JAY-Z’s newest album 4:44 has already been certified platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America, having been streamed or sold the equivalent of one million copies. The feat gives Hall of Fame Hov yet another milestone, as he officially becomes the most decorated hip hop act in the RIAA Gold and Platinum program for achieving 13 platinum solo album awards and higher (17 platinum albums in total). In essence, this makes Jigga’s entire catalog a platinum to-go standard seeing as how every album of his has crossed the million mark.
While it took his earlier albums some time to hit platinum, Hov’s latest batch of releases have gone platinum faster than rabbits get… well, you get the expression. So to get a better understanding of this latest accomplishment, we took a look back at JAY-Z’s entire catalog to note how long it has taken each of his albums to go platinum.
Reasonable Doubt
Released: June 25, 1996
Reached Platinum: February 7, 2002
In My Lifetime, Vol. 1
Released: November 4, 1997
Reached Platinum: February 5, 1999
Vol. 2… Hard Knock Life
Released: September 29, 1998
Reached Platinum: November 2, 1998; Double Platinum: November 9, 1998; Triple Platinum: December 16, 1998; Quadruple Platinum: February 24, 1999; 5x Platinum: May 15, 2000
Vol. 3… Life and Times of S. Carter
Released: December 28, 1999
Reached Platinum: February 1, 2000; Double Platinum: February 1, 2000; Triple Platinum: February 14, 2001
The Dynasty: Roc La Familia
Release Date: October 31, 2000
Reached Platinum: December 4, 2000; Double Platinum: December 4, 2000
The Blueprint
Released: September 11, 2001
Reached Platinum: October 16, 2001; Double Platinum: May 1, 2002
The Best of Both Worlds
Released: March 19, 2002
Reached Platinum: May 14, 2002
The Blueprint 2: The Gift & The Curse
Released: November 12, 2002
Reached Platinum: December 10, 2002; Triple Platinum: December 10, 2002
The Black Album
Released: November 14, 2003
Reached Platinum: February 17, 2004; Double Platinum: February 17, 2004; Triple Platinum: August 16, 2005
Unfinished Business
Released: October 26, 2004
Reached Platinum: December 1, 2004
Collision Course
Released: November 30, 2004
Reached Platinum: July 19, 2005
Kingdom Come
Released: November 21, 2006
Reached Platinum: December 14, 2006; Double Platinum: December 14, 2006
American Gangster
Released: November 6, 2007
Reached Platinum: December 6, 2007
The Blueprint 3
Released: September 8, 2009
Reached Platinum: November 13, 2009
Watch The Throne
Released: August 8, 2011
Reached Platinum: September 15, 2011
Magna Carta… Holy Grail
Released: July 4, 2013 (online), July 9, 2013 (in stores)
Reached Platinum: July 9, 2013; Double Platinum: September 5, 2013
4:44
Released: June 30, 2017
Reached Platinum: July 5, 2017