Kris Wu's iTunes Sales Downgraded by Billboard After Controversy

ThatsShanghai 2019-06-23

By Bryan Grogan

After crushing the US iTunes Singles Charts early last week, only to then be accused of cheating, Kris Wu missed out on the Billboard Hot 100 yesterday, while his album Antares landed at No.100 on the Billboard 200.

The record includes features from the likes of Jhene Aiko, Travis Scott and Rich the Kid, as well as production credits for the likes of Murda Beats, who also worked on one of the most popular releases of the year, ‘Fefe,’ alongside 6ix9ine and Nicki Minaj.

In an article published by Billboard this morning, a rep from Nielsen Music said, “As with all instances when providers are unable to validate sales, Nielsen decides on a case-by-case basis whether streaming or sales activity is chart-eligible. In this case, we did not receive the required validation of certain Kris Wu sales for last week and have decided to remove all unverified activity for the week ending November 8.”

Meanwhile, Wu’s main competitor at the top of the US iTunes Singles Charts, Ariana Grande, came in at No.1 on the Billboard Hot 100, with her single 'Thank U, Next.'

The former member of boy-band EXO hit the headlines last week after accusations were leveled against him for cheating. While many believe that his ascent to the top of the iTunes Chart was a concerted effort by fans to see him hit No.1, there is little-to-no evidence to accuse Wu and his team of any involvement in the campaign.

In a humorous poke at these allegations, Wu posted these photos to his Twitter account:

Screengrab via @KrisWu/Twitter

After the controversy came to light, Wu’s songs all but disappeared from the iTunes charts.

In response to rumors that Wu’s music was removed from iTunes, his label, Universal Music China, took to Weibo to deny the news, while also stating that any reports alluding to the idea could be reported as libel.

However, allegations against Wu’s Chinese fans, who are said to have used virtual private networks (VPN) to help catapult Wu to the top of the charts, remain.

The Rap of China judge’s followers, also known as meigeni (梅格妮), are a notoriously devoted bunch, according to a report by Radii China. One of these fans groups, @meigeniexpress, posted a notice on Twitter explaining their own take on the controversy.

Screengrab via @meigeniexpress

In a report released by Global Times, they defined the coordinated action as shuabang (刷榜). This term, which literally translates to brushing the list, is explained on Zhihu: “Brushing the list means increasing the ranking of apps in the App Store or other app stores by unconventional techniques. It is an act that violates the regulations.”

Some Chinese celebrities have come out in criticism of Wu, with Edison Chen posting “MONEY CANT BUY U LOVE, MONEY CANT BUY U FAME, MONEY CANT BUY U CHARTS” on his official Weibo account, which some took as a veiled reference to the Kris Wu situation.

Screengrab via @edc陳冠希

Listen to Wu's ‘November Rain,’ and let us know what you think.

https://v.qq.com/txp/iframe/player.html?width=500&height=375&auto=0&vid=l0788oph8vi

[Cover image via kriswu/Instagram]

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