AWOLNATION‘s “Sail” was certified diamond by the Recording Industry Association of America on Monday (June 14).
The alternative juggernaut has moved 10 million units in the 10 years after its release. According to the RIAA, one equivalent song unit is equal to a single digital song sale, or 150 on-demand audio and/or video streams.
“I wrote this song with the intention of showing a few friends and my family. It’s a very raw and honest song, so I was kinda nervous to share,” AWOLNATION founder Aaron Bruno said in a press release. “I continue to be shocked and humbled that this many millions of people have related. Never in my wildest dreams would I have even imagined this gift.”
“Sail” was released via Red Bull Records on Nov. 8, 2010, on the rock band’s debut EP Back From Earth and later featured on their first studio album Megalithic Symphony in 2011. The song debuted at No. 89 on the Billboard Hot 100 in September 2011 before reaching its peak of No. 17 in October 2013. After charting for 79 weeks on the Hot 100, “Sail” holds the record for second-longest run for any artist on the tally, after the record-setting 87 weeks of Imagine Dragons’ No. 3 hit “Radioactive.” The independently released sleeper hit also reached the top five of the Hot Rock & Alternative Songs chart.
“We’re honored to be a part of such an incredible accomplishment with an artist as talented as AWOLNATION,” adds Greg Hammer, Red Bull Records’ managing director. “It’s an amazing feat for an independent record to earn a certification of this level, and we as a company are immensely proud to see how far this release has come over the past ten years.”
Source
