The feat of Ninho and his diamonds

Here in Quebec, it's often said that rap is sidelined, almost as if it were a given. But at the same time, French rap has long been ignored by major institutions in France and Europe. 

Despite this, rap artists have managed to gain recognition and obtain important certifications, generally reserved for variety singers here. 

Things changed radically in the 2010s, when rap became the most listened to music in France, the trend continued in Quebec and in many other places, not to say almost everywhere in the world. 

Photo: Ninho – Facebook

Since the advent of streaming, it seems that music certifications are pouring into the rap world. For some artists, earning a gold record remains an ultimate goal, but for others, dreams and ambitions are much bigger: now, success is measured in diamond discs.

In this game of success, French rappers have taken a considerable lead, but not all are on equal footing. Taking a look at the ranking of French rappers who have achieved the most diamond singles, we find at the top Ninho, with an impressive total of 54 diamond-certified pieces. Right behind him, Damso ranks second with 34 certifications, closely followed by Jul, the Marseille UFO, who has 25 diamond singles to his credit.

Nekfeu has 20 certifications, Booba has 19 diamond singles, Gazo has 20 and Niska has 18.

This is an opportunity to realize the incredible performance of Ninho, who must have really started selling records in 2015 and already has more than double the diamond singles of Booba, who nevertheless has a long career of 30 years behind him.