Only five female acts can boast watching their first albums score a Diamond plaque from the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA):  Norah Jones, Lauryn Hill, Jewel, Britney Spears, and Whitney Houston.  The certification measure denotes sales equivalence of 10 million in the United States.

Houston held the record for highest-certified female debut LP for her self-titled 1985 effort for nearly two decades before Spears’ ‘Baby One More Time’ crossed the 14x Platinum threshold in 2004 (just five years after its release).

This week (nearly two decades after the Pop princess Britney grabbed the crown), Whitney’s inaugural opus seems poised to reclaim the throne.

Details inside.

As her critically acclaimed big-screen biopic, ‘I Wanna Dance With Somebody,’ continues to introduce new audiences to Houston’s timeless catalog, viewers seem to be taking their admiration for her to digital outlets.

Proof of this came Friday (January 27) when the RIAA published a slew of certification upgrades for some of the late diva’s greatest hits including ‘Greatest Love of All,’ ‘I’m Your Baby Tonight,’ ‘So Emotional,’ and more.

See the full list of updates below.

Gold (equates to sales of 500,000 in the U.S.)

• ‘Do You Hear What I Hear (with Pentatonix)’ (Single)

1x Platinum (equates to sales of 1 million in the U.S.)

• ‘When You Believe (with Mariah Carey)’ (Single)
• ‘So Emotional’ (Single)
• ‘I’m Your Baby Tonight’ (Single)
• ‘I Look to You’ (Single)

2x Platinum

• ‘Greatest Love of All’

14x Platinum

• ‘Whitney Houston’ (Album)

Of particular note is ‘Whitney Houston,’ the 1985 debut album of Whitney’s that famously features the hits ‘Greatest Love of All,’ ‘Saving All My Love For You,’ You Give Good Love,’ and ‘How Will I Know,’ has been elevated to 14x Platinum status.

The update not only extends the project’s reign as her best-selling studio album yet (and one of the highest-certified female albums of all time overall), but – as of time reported – also ties it with Britney’s ‘Baby One More Time’ for the record of highest-certified female debut LP ever.

Highest-Certified Female Debut Albums

Whitney Houston’s ‘Whitney Houston’ (14x Platinum)

Britney Spears’ ‘Baby One More Time’ (14x Platinum)

Jewel’s ‘Pieces of You’ (12x Platinum)

Norah Jones’ ‘Come Away with Me’ (12x Platinum)

Lauryn Hill’s ‘Miseducation of Lauryn Hill’ (10x Platinum/Diamond)

[source]

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