Abel “The Weeknd” Tesfaye is one of the most commercially successful music artists of the last decade. The Canadian singer/songwriter just collected the fifth Diamond-certified single of his career.
“Earned It (Fifty Shades of Grey)” surpassed the 10 million units sold mark. “The Hills,” “Blinding Lights,” “Can’t Feel My Face,” and “Starboy” featuring Daft Punk also earned Diamond Awards from the RIAA.
The Weeknd is now the first artist in history to have three Diamond singles on one project. 2015’s Beauty Behind the Madness hosts the “Earned It,” “The Hills,” and “Can’t Feel My Face” tracks.
Beauty Behind the Madness debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 album chart with 412,000 album-equivalent units. The RIAA certified the studio LP as 6x-Platinum in December 2022.
Both “The Hills” and “Starboy” are currently 11x-Platinum. The Weeknd also joins Bruno Mars (6), Drake (5), and Post Malone (5) as the only acts in history to have a least five songs reach Diamond status.
“Earned It (Fifty Shades of Grey)” obtained a Diamond certification on Weekend’s 33rd birthday. In addition to being one of his best-selling songs, “Earned It” won the Grammy Award for Best R&B Performance.
The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences also nominated “Earned It” for Best Original Song at the 88th Academy Awards. Sam Smith’s “Writing’s on the Wall” from the James Bond film Spectre won that year.
HBO will air The Weeknd: Live At SoFi Stadium concert special on February 25 at 8 pm ET/ 5 pm PT. Abel “The Weekend” Tesfaye will also star in and executive produce the forthcoming HBO drama series The Idol.