LiAngelo Ball's "Tweaker" Nabs RIAA Platinum Certification

BY Zachary Horvath 807 Views
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NBA: Charlotte Hornets at Chicago Bulls
Jan 17, 2025; Chicago, Illinois, USA; Rapper LiAngelo Ball watches his brothers Chicago Bulls guard Lonzo Ball (2) and Charlotte Hornets guard LaMelo Ball (1) during warm ups at United Center. Mandatory Credit: David Banks via Imagn Images
LiAngelo Ball, aka GELO, burst onto the music scene at the top of 2025 with "Tweaker," a track that would change his career trajectory.

Unfortunately for LiAngelo Ball, his dreams of playing in the NBA were never fully realized. His older and younger brothers Lonzo and LaMelo have gone onto have successful careers in the own right. But that doesn't mean that the middle child hasn't done well for himself.

He found his passion for music seemingly behind the scenes and decided to drop his first official track in January, "Tweaker." It initially caught buzz after LiAngelo previewed it during a stream with N3on, partially for its meme-worthy chorus.

But it quickly gained a cult-like following and has remained as his most popular song by far. Now, after 10 months of being on the market, it's officially platinum. Per TMZ, the nostalgic Southern-flavored cut was certified by the RIAA earlier today.

For those who don't know, platinum status means a record has sold one million units in the U.S.

For now, it's his only record to receive any sort of plaque. Many doubted this would actually lead to a stable career in music. But you have to give the former basketball prospect his proper credit for pivoting and finding his niche.

It's been nothing short of remarkable to watch unfold as "Tweaker" landed him an insane deal with Def Jam/UMG days after its release.

LiAngelo Ball's Music Career

It's worth $13 million in fact, with $8 million of it completely guaranteed. On top of making him a more than livable income, the song has taken him to some incredible places. A Lions playoff game, NBA All Star Weekend, Rolling Loud, and a spot on the XXL Freshman list are a few.

"Tweaker" eventually became the lead single for his debut album, League of My Own, which landed in July. That project would go on to house other splashy tracks like "Law N Order" and "Can You Please" with GloRilla.

Shockingly, "Tweaker" puts GELO in rare air. For 2025, only a handful of hip-hop and R&B artists have platinum-certified singles. That list includes himself, Mariah the Scientist, BigXthaPlug, Lil Tecca, and Drake(!).

About The Author
Zachary Horvath is one of the Music Freelance News Writers at HotNewHipHop and has held that title since August 2023. Prior to this position, he held another freelance gig covering local high school football, girls and boys varsity basketball, in addition to recapping Cleveland Cavaliers games remotely. He's taken the previous experience and used it to become a jack of all trades at HotNewHipHop. Zach has thoroughly enjoyed tackling some of the trending topics in sports, with a larger focus on hip-hop and pop culture. Some of those include Bronny James's draft stock, a multitude of angles swirling around the Drake and Kendrick Lamar beef, as well as Diddy's arrest and lawsuits. Separate from the headlines that everyone wants to hear about, he was fortunate enough to help spread Zaytoven's current thoughts at the time around mid-December in 2023. Even though being able to give his expertise on these stories is fulfilling, being able to share his passion for releases trumps that ever so slightly. Having the chance to express his excitement indirectly about what he thinks our readers should be checking out/revisiting grows his passion for writing that much more.

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