Ghost released their Seven Inches Of Satanic Panic 7" in September 2019, which featured "Mary On A Cross" and "Kiss The Go-Goat." The story behind the 7" was that it was found in Ghost's "1969 archives" and featured two songs recorded by Papa Nihil's band prior to Ghost.
The 7" came out, Ghost fans were happy, and that was that. Then in 2022, "Mary On A Cross" blew the absolute fuck up thanks to TikTok. The song quickly became Ghost's most streamed track on Spotify (currently closing in on 421 million listens), and became a staple at live shows.
Now four years later, "Mary On A Cross" has become Ghost's first-ever platinum-certified single in the United States. "Mary On A Cross" was deemed platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) on September 7, meaning that it's achieved 1 million sales and streaming equivalents.
Funnily enough, Ghost mastermind Tobias Forge wasn't even aware the song became a viral Internet sensation until his daughter pointed it out. "I think it was my daughter who spotted it first," said Forge in a 2022 interview. "She said, 'I heard Mary On A Cross on TikTok.' She's done that before with other songs. Then I was summoned to a label meeting and they were like, 'Are you aware of what's going on?', and they started presenting stats."
