Eric Church is set to finish 2014 as country music’s top-selling artist with the highest debut and sales of any release in the format for 2014 as the critical and commercial success The Outsiders reaches Platinum status, marking more than 1 million in sales.

The Outsiders was one of the year’s top albums regardless of genre as verified by Billboard. Released Feb. 11, the album sold more than 288,000 copies in its first week.

The Outsiders also won the Album of the Year Award at last night’s inaugural American Country Countdown Awards.

The album was strong enough to garner Eric four GRAMMY nominations bringing his career total to seven. He received nominations in all four genre categories: Country Album of the Year for “The Outsiders,” Country Song of the Year and Country Solo Performance of the year for “Give Me Back My Hometown,” written by Eric and Luke Laird, and Country Group/Duo Performance of the Year for “Raise ‘Em Up” with Keith Urban.

American Songwriter raves, “Above all, Church unfurls a mythology of artistic rebellion against the commercial establishment, complete with an anthem, a creed, a hymn to survival and an origin story, each delivered with the gravitas, bluster or poetic delicacy that they deserve.”