Do we multiply the first week sales x2??

[shaniafan19]

I just want to know if 874,000 copies is correct? I thought they would count it as 2 cd's! Does anyone know the answer?!?

[AngelGuy]

From how I understand it, 874,000 is indeed the correct number.

Shania had 874,000 over-the-counter sales of UP! Over-the-counter sales do not get doubled.

The only thing that gets doubled in the case of a 2 CD set is the RIAA Certifications. But that's not the same thing as album sales.

[kwokster]

Let me get this straight:

The label shipped 4.1 million units of Up! Even if the album stopped selling, it will still be certified 4 times platinum?!?! Or, is this 8 times platinum if it's counted double. I thought records have to *actually* sell records in order to get the certification.

And since CD's are so cheap to press, what is to stop other artists from 'over-shipping' in order to get Diamond status or whatever?

[Cheyenne55]

Originally posted by kwokster
Let me get this straight:

The label shipped 4.1 million units of Up! Even if the album stopped selling, it will still be certified 4 times platinum?!?! Or, is this 8 times platinum if it's counted double. I thought records have to *actually* sell records in order to get the certification.

And since CD's are so cheap to press, what is to stop other artists from 'over-shipping' in order to get Diamond status or whatever?

I finally found the answer I was looking for, I hope it helps us all


This was on another web page (Talking about the group Wu-Tang Clan) but talked about the same issue we are discussing

Breakthrough hip-hop group Wu-Tang Clan's second album Wu-Tang Forever had one of the biggest debuts in modern album history with sales of 612,000 copies for its first week out.

(A note of explanation: Because, it's a double CD, 306,000 actual units were sold, but the Recording Industry Association of America still counts each disc separately if the pricing and musical material is equivalent to two, single-disc albums.)


The main point to look at here is the last sentence.

If the pricing and musical material is equivalent to two single cd's

Luke Lewis had it right all along, It's a buy one, get one free deal of a lifetime that Shania gave her fans. It is only counted as one CD due to pricing.

Well, that how I read it anyway:) :)

[Eilsel]

Yep, it's only counted as one by Soundscan, Billboard; but counted as two by RIAA.

[twaintrain]

So does this mean "Up!" will be certified 8Xplatinum for the month of November? :)

[SHANIANUTS!]

Yup!

[twaintrain]

Wow! That's amazing - Thanks! :)

GO SHANIA ;)

[shanilia]

I wish the RIAA didn't count "Up!" as 2 discs. That is so unfair to all those other singers who only has 1 disc in their albums.

[twaintrain]

After this, I bet a lot of artists will try something new like Shania. She seems to always set a new standard for everything. :)

[Cheyenne55]

Originally posted by shanilia
I wish the RIAA didn't count "Up!" as 2 discs. That is so unfair to all those other singers who only has 1 disc in their albums.

The Beatles, Stones, Whitney, Mariah, and Garth (To name a few) and many others have accomplished the same thing. In fact, soundscan will do it, but the CD has to be priced the same as two single CD's. If Shania would have priced it as Two, it would have counted as two by Soundscan. She elected to have it buy one it get free type of thing. Her sales are actual units sold and are not counted as two at least by soundscan anyway.