According to the National Music Publishers Association (NMPA), Lil Baby is the country’s biggest songwriter of the year so far. On Wednesday (May 13), the NMPA announced the top songwriters of the first quarter of 2020, which includes January, February and March of this year. In total, 805 songwriters were certified Gold, Platinum and Multi-Platinum. Lil Baby was the most successful songwriter of any artist within these three months, clenching a total of 22 certifications.
“Thank you very much to my [Quality Control Music] team, Wolfpack, 4PF, [Universal Music Publishing Group], my family, friends and all my fans for keeping me going to write these hits,” the Atlanta-born star said in a statement.
“I Low Key Ain’t None To Play With!!” he added on Instagram. “My Fans Ain’t Either.”
According to Music Business Worldwide, the NMPA identifies and certifies songwriters in partnership with the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) and uses its Gold and Platinum standards. The RIAA qualifies songwriting certifications by both sales and on-demand streams. Gold certification is awarded for releases with at least 500,000 units sold; Platinum is earned by 1 million and Multi-Platinum identifies releases with over 2 million units sold. The NMPA’s certification program has recognized thousands of songwriters since launching in 2007.
“Our new, quarterly announcements identify empirically the top songwriters in music today,” NMPA President & CEO David Israelite said in the release. “We are thrilled for all of the newly minted Gold & Platinum writers, particularly Lil Baby who has had a phenomenal Q1 run.”
“Music is more meaningful than ever as we all search for joy and connection through this difficult time, and we are incredibly grateful to these writers and their publishers,” he added.
Universal Music Publishing Group — which publishes Lil Baby’s music — Chairman and CEO Jody Gerson also spoke on his success.
“One of the most in-demand artists today, Lil Baby is a talented songwriter/artist and a proven hitmaker,” she said. “We are thrilled to be a part of his journey and look forward to supporting his continued success.”