12 Western songs that have gone platinum in Russia
After the Russian pop singer Alsou finished second at the 2000 Eurovision Song Contest with ‘Solo’, the CD version of that single started selling like hot shalotkas in her native country, with some media sources tracking it as the best-selling single in Russia‘s history.
The only caveat there is that nobody really knew how many units of any particular single were sold in Russia for most of the 40 years prior, as there wasn’t an equivalent to the type of external certification bodies that exist in the US and the UK.
Instead, there was a single, state-run mega-label, called Melodiya, which dictated just about any music released officially in the country from the 1960s to the 1990s, and they weren’t exactly opening up their ledgers.
Even during Alsou’s breakout success in the post-Soviet 2000s, a representative for Universal Music’s Russian distribution wing told Billboard magazine that the most remarkable aspect of Alsou’s achievement was that she’d managed to sell that many discs over the counter, considering “pirates control 95 per cent of the Russian music market”.
The Russian record business was starting to get a little more streamlined and transparent in the 2010s, but of course, the country has become largely cut off from the Western world once again, leaving only a small pocket of time when we could get a sense of which Western songs were crossing over and resonating with Russian audiences.
The folks over at Chartmasters did make a noble effort several years ago to retroactively calculate sales data based on old Melodiya records moving through Discogs and other sites, and through their research, combined with more above-board tracking in the 21st century, we can name at least 12 Western songs that probably went ‘platinum’ in Russia; which seems to equate to 200,000 units sold.
Those records, and their very loosely estimated sales totals, are included below.
Estimated top-selling singles by Western artists in Russia:
- The Three Degrees – ‘Falling in Love Again’ (1982): 1,010,000
A silky, string-soaked disco ballad from the Philadelphia soul gal trio; safe bet you didn’t have it on your multi-platinum USSR bingo card. - Adriano Celentano – ‘People’ (1983): 905,000
Moody Euro-pop single by one of Italy’s most iconic singer-actors and perennial chart toppers. - Lady Gaga – ‘Alejandro’ (2010): 800,000
One of the Euro-disco–influenced hits from Gaga’s early Fame Monster era. - Space – ‘Magic Fly’ (1983): 764,000
A pioneering instrumental synth-disco track by the French space-pop outfit that helped define that genre’s sound. - Eminem ft Rihanna – ‘Love the Way You Lie’ (2010): 600,000
The only bit of hip hop on the list, but again, we’re grasping at straws here. - Enrique Iglesias – ‘Tired of Being Sorry’ (2007): 600,000
Polished slice of Latin pop melancholy from the aughts. - Stromae – ‘Alors on danse’ (2009): 600,000
A stark, minimalist dance anthem that introduced the Belgian artist’s blend of pop, house, and social commentary. - Paul McCartney and Wings – ‘Silly Love Songs’ (1983): 489,000
Macca’s unapologetically catchy response to critics who said he only wrote lightweight pop; the Russians got the joke, I guess. - Ottawan – ‘Hands Up (Give Me Your Heart)’ (1985): 440,000
An exuberant French disco singalong that became a defining party staple of the early ’80s. - John Lennon – ‘Imagine’ (1983 version): 417,000
The definitive peace anthem from Lennon’s solo career, reissued and rediscovered in Russia after his death, it appears. - Bee Gees – ‘Spirits’ (1983): 417,000
Lesser-known post-disco single from the brothers’ prolific early ’80s period. - Amanda Lear – ‘Fashion Pack’ (1981): 387,000
A chic, tongue-in-cheek disco classic from the art-pop provocateur and Salvador Dalí muse.
