From chart-topper to gold record: The effects of Billboard chart popularity on RIAA gold or platinum certification of #1 R&B/Hip-Hop singles in the Pre-SoundScan and SoundScan eras, 1977–2008

Introduction

The purpose of this paper was to examine the effects of genre-specific and mainstream Billboard chart popularity on RIAA gold or platinum certification of #1 R&B/Hip-Hop singles in the Pre-SoundScan (1977–1992) and SoundScan (1993–2008) eras. The first aim was to determine if there were any statistically significant differences in genre-specific and mainstream popularity between singles that achieved RIAA gold or platinum certification and those that did not reach that pinnacle in both eras. The second aim assessed the relative predictive power of genre-specific and mainstream popularity on RIAA gold or platinum certification of #1 R&B/Hip-Hop singles in the Pre-SoundScan and SoundScan eras while controlling for established brand.

Methods

In this comparative assessment of the relationships between Billboard chart data and RIAA gold/platinum certification data in the Pre-SoundScan and SoundScan eras, genre-specific popularity was measured by total weeks at #1 on Billboard's R&B/Hip-Hop charts and total weeks on the charts regardless of position. Mainstream popularity was evaluated with peak position on Billboard's Pop charts. The established brand construct was assessed with the artist's total prior #1 R&B/Hip-Hop singles and total prior #1s by the record label.

Results

A Mann–Whitney U test revealed statistically significant differences in mainstream popularity between gold or platinum singles and non-gold or platinum singles in both the Pre-SoundScan and SoundScan eras. Statistically significant differences in genre-specific popularity were also observed in both periods, but not in the hypothesized direction in the SoundScan era. A binary logistic regression model demonstrated that the two popularity constructs, while controlling for established brand, predicted RIAA gold or platinum certification of #1 R&B/Hip-Hop singles in both the Pre-SoundScan and SoundScan eras. The model better predicted gold or platinum certification in the Pre-SoundScan era. The most powerful predictor was mainstream popularity in both eras.

Conclusion

Gold or platinum certified #1 R&B/Hip-Hop singles had a significantly higher peak position on the mainstream Pop charts than those not certified gold or platinum in both the Pre-SoundScan and SoundScan eras. When observing genre-specific popularity, gold or platinum singles spent significantly more total weeks on the R&B/Hip-Hop charts than non-gold or platinum singles in the Pre-SoundScan era. In contrast, the reverse was observed in the SoundScan era. Mainstream popularity, as measured by peak position on the Pop charts, and genre-specific popularity, as measured by total weeks on the R&B/Hip-Hop charts, were good predictors of gold or platinum certification in both the Pre-SoundScan and SoundScan eras. The model was a better predictor of RIAA gold or platinum certification in the Pre-SoundScan era, suggesting that the Billboard chart methodology in the earlier era was more aligned with the RIAA auditing process than the SoundScan era methodology. Findings also raise questions about whether the initial exclusion of several African American independent retailers, who were generally the primary source for sales data in the Pre-SoundScan era, reduced the validity of SoundScan sales data. In other words, did the SoundScan data measure what it intended to measure, which was the popularity of R&B/Hip-Hop singles among the target audience of that genre? Future research should examine how the transition to SoundScan may have contributed to redefining the target audience for R&B/Hip-Hop music, impacted the quantity and quality of R&B/Hip-Hop music available to the public, and the effects of those outcomes on the broader culture and society.

Areas of Interest

Recording industry, organizations, stratification, race and ethnic relations, medical sociology, political sociology, quantitative and qualitative methods.