RECORDS/Arista Nashville artist Matt Stell thought he was being “fooled” on 4/1 when he joined a Zoom video call with Wide Open Music's Ash Bowers, RECORDS' Barry Weiss, Sony Music Nashville's Randy Goodman, and the RIAA's Mitch Glazier and Jackie Jones. The group surprised Stell with a virtual platinum song plaque, the first of its kind, celebrating his multi-week #1 single, “Prayed For You,” hitting the 1m unit milestone. As one of only 30 RIAA platinum-certified country songs in the last two years, “Prayed For You,” written by Stell with Bowers and Allison Veltz Cruz, joins an elite group. Watch the surprise moment and Stell’s reaction here.

Stell’s new single, “Everywhere But On,” from his EP of the same name, is currently Top 40 at country radio and climbing.

In response to the global pandemic impacting in-person live shows, Stell, Lindsay Ell and Jameson Rodgers take to Instagram and Facebook every Wednesday at 9pm ET/8pm CT/6pm PT for Stell's weekly livestreamed series Penned Up, to each perform a new song written solo that week.

Pictured (l to r), just before raiding their respective kitchens for snacks while probably not wearing any pants, are: RIAA VP Artist & Industry Relations in Nashville Jackie Jones, Wide Open Music President Ash Bowers, RIAA Chairman and CEO Mitch Glazier, Sony Music Nashville Chairman and CEO Randy Goodman, RECORDS co-founder and CEO Barry Weiss, and Stell.