After only being out for a few days, Rihanna‘s album, ANTI, has already been certified platinum by the RIAA because of the way that Tidal and Samsung executed the release. Since Samsung purchased one million copies of the album in advance that were then given away as a free download, RIAA gave it the platinum certification. This is similar to what happened when Jay Z released his Magna Carta Holy Grail album back in 2013, when Samsung bought copies in advance.
Though the album is now available on iTunes and has been streamed over 14 million times on Tidal, it’s unclear how many actual copies of the project Rihanna will sell in the first week. It’s still probably safe to assume that she will debut at No. 1 on the charts, but it’s unclear what her true sales will be because Billboard isn’t counting the million copies that Samsung purchased. Rihanna signed a $25 million deal with Samsung last year, and they will also sponsor her tour with Travi$ Scott next month.
source: complex.com BY ZACH FRYDENLUND
The Fat Cat Collective 