“Tennessee Whiskey” Becomes the First Country Song Ever Certified Double Diamond by RIAA

On January 13, 2026, the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) certified Chris Stapleton's recording of "Tennessee Whiskey" as Double Diamond — the first country song in the history of the certification to reach that tier. The designation requires more than 20 million units sold in the United States alone, counting sales, streams, and digital downloads. Only two other songs had previously achieved the milestone: Bruno Mars's "Just the Way You Are" (2010) and "Sunflower" by Post Malone and Swae Lee (2018).
RIAA Chairman and CEO Mitch Glazier marked the occasion with a statement: "Chris Stapleton's undeniable vocal grit and storytelling have connected deeply — driving chart successes, earning major awards and most importantly, resonating with fans. RIAA is proud to celebrate him alongside MCA as 'Tennessee Whiskey' today makes history, becoming the first country single ever to earn a Double Diamond certification with twenty million units in the U.S. alone."

The song's backstory is itself a piece of American music history. "Tennessee Whiskey" was originally recorded by David Allan Coe in 1981, written by Dean Dillon and Linda Hargrove, where it peaked at a modest #77 on the Billboard Hot Country Singles chart. George Jones covered it in 1983 and took it to #2. Stapleton's version, recorded for his debut album Traveller (2015), became the definitive recording after his jaw-dropping duet performance with Justin Timberlake at the 2015 CMA Awards launched both the song and his solo career into the mainstream stratosphere.

The song has since never truly left the charts. Over a decade after its release, it continues to appear on Apple Music's Top 100 Songs. It has been covered by artists spanning T-Pain to Carín León. When asked by Rolling Stone how to explain the track's cross-genre resonance, Stapleton offered only: "I don't pretend to know how to explain magic or how to use it."

There are currently only 18 Diamond-certified country songs in RIAA history. The Double Diamond puts "Tennessee Whiskey" in a category of its own — a commercial anomaly that no Nashville executive or streaming algorithm fully anticipated.
Stapleton's All-American Road Show continues through 2026 with shows at Nashville's Nissan Stadium, Atlanta's Mercedes-Benz Stadium, Boston's Fenway Park, Detroit's Ford Field, and Toronto's Rogers Stadium, among other dates.

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Chris Stapleton