Nearly 10 months after Nipsey Hussle’s March 31 shooting death, his final album Victory Lap has reportedly been certified platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA).
The Grammy Award-nominated project was initially released last February and debuted at No. 4 on the Billboard 200, selling roughly 53,000 album-equivalent units in its first week. Following his death, the album peaked at No. 2. with over 66,000 album-equivalent units sold in the first week of April 2019.
Prior to his passing, Neighborhood Nip averaged about two million audio streams. The day after he died, he earned 10 million audio streams and 57 million, while his video streams jumped from 900,000 to 9.7 million on the actual day of his death.
The month before Nip was gunned down by alleged killer Eric Holder, he celebrated the one-year anniversary of his major label debut Instagram.
“2day makes 1 year since I dropped my debut album,” he wrote in the caption. “My 1st release under our Partnership w @atlanticrecords. My 1st @recordingacademy Nomination. My 1st time charting on tha @billboard Hot 200. How y’all feel Tha Album Aged in a year?”
Nobody could’ve predicated what was to follow, but it’s safe to say there are many people out there keeping Nip’s legacy alive.