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Tone Loc’s “Wild Thing” was the first hip-hop single to go platinum

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Wild Thing (Released January 1, 1989), a single by Tone-Loc was the first hip-hop single to go platinum. The song was produced by Matt Dike and Michael Ross with additional writing credits from , best known for his 1989 Grammy winning hit “Bust a Move.”

“Wild Thing” was featured on ‘s Lōc-ed After Dark, and released via independent record label Delicious Vinyl. The song peaked at No. 2 on the Hot 100 in February 1989 and quickly sold a million copies. It was certified platinum and double platinum on February 3, 1989.

Tone-Loc Wild Thing was the first rap platinium single

Read: Run-DMC’s ‘Raising Hell’ was the first hip-hop album to go platinum

At the time, with rappers like Run-D.M.C. whose most famous single, the  rock version of Aerosmith’s 1975 song “Walk This Way”, is considered to be the first rap rock collaboration — rock and was combining to make history. “Wild Thing” had the requisite hard rock sample (Van Halen’s “Jaime’s Cryin'”) and a video that had its own twist on Robert Palmer’s “Addicted to Love” clip to cross over into the mainstream market.

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