There is a huge drama happening on Twitter right now which involves Canadian-Chinese star Kris Wu, American pop princess Ariana Grande, her manager Scooter Braun, and their fans.
Here is the break down of the whole drama:-
1. Kris accused of using bots to boost his chart performance
https://twitter.com/KrisWu/status/1058386059254476800?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1058386059254476800&ref_url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.asianjunkie.com%2F2018%2F11%2F07%2Fkris-involved-in-pointless-fandom-mess-that-ends-with-umgc-defending-him-scooter-braun-getting-apologetic%2F
It all happens when Kris’ latest album “Antares” claimed the #1 album spot, beating both Ariana Grande and Lady Gaga off the U.S. top spots upon launch, and took up 6 spots in the top 7 songs in the iTunes’ US chart, eclipsing Grande’s new single “Thank U, Next,” which debuted in the 4th spot a day later.
Even though Kris, who is a former member of famous boy band EXO, has a huge fan base in China and Asia as a whole, he is not very well known among western audience, so many – especially Arianators – have accused him of using underhanded methods to manipulate the chart and get the #1 spot.
Kris Wu sending his bots when thank u, next is about to hit #1 on iTunes https://t.co/no8jGbaHsu
— R 💋 (@arianaspilltea) November 6, 2018
https://twitter.com/druenellie/status/1058939033290588160
https://twitter.com/_BangGrande/status/1059062640524312576
2. iTunes removed “Antares” from its chart, Kris’ fans suspect Ariana and Scooter are the ones to be blamed
With news about Kris using bots to manipulate chart going viral on Twitter, not long after that his album seems to have been removed from iTunes chart completely, and this sparked rage among his fans who suspected that Ariana and her manager were the ones who have been pulling the strings.
According to some screen captures from fans, Scooter has been replying some fans on Twitter, confirming that Kris had indeed used bots to boost chart performance, though he later denied tweeting the post, saying that it is a fake account. The suspicion gets wilder when Ariana liked several shady tweets that defamed Kris.
Thus, the war between the 2 fandoms ensues and everything became a huge mess.
3. Universal Music steps in, Scooter Braun releases statement
Universal Music Group China released an official statement confirming that Kris album and singles are still on iTunes, and that they will be taking legal action against those who continue to spread false rumours.
Scooter then also released a statement on his Instagram, explaining that Kris’ album was never removed from iTunes, and he “never wished anything bad for Kris nor any other artist and those saying otherwise are wrong.”
https://www.instagram.com/p/Bp4P0l6gZYk/?utm_source=ig_embed
Scooter explained that the reason the numbers spiked up is due to Kris’ album release was delayed in China, so the fans there used every method they have to get the music from U.S. iTunes.
4. Kris Wu’s fans demand apology from Ariana Grande and Scooter Braun
Despite the explanations, Kris’ fans are not entirely pleased with how things are solved, and they demanded for both Ariana and Scooter to apologise to Kris for giving his bad reputation in the western music industry.
So this bitchass aka Ariana Grande's manager accused Kris of using bots (with no proof AT ALL), turns out Kris really did chart higher than Ariana???? Lmao @scooterbraun apologize you headass pic.twitter.com/imgHUcVdCd
— 𝐫𝐚𝐧𝐢𝐚 🇩🇿 (@mirageofkjd) November 6, 2018
https://twitter.com/layzhangsgf/status/1060170719835770880?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1060170719835770880&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.koreaboo.com%2Fnews%2Fkris-agency-respond-chart-controversy%2F
You really tried to defame him and ruin his career and now you are wishing him a happy birthday what a fake person you are,you and your artist both are racist.APOLOGIZE TO KRIS WU
WE WANT A FORMAL APOLOGY FROM YOU AND YOUR ARTIST— Lizzie🌷 (@BuunyKJM) November 7, 2018
5. Kris Wu’s “Antares” iTunes sales in the U.S. won’t count toward charts as it is acquired “fraudulently”
In the latest report by Variety, it has been stated that Kris Wu‘s “Antares” album sales from the U.S. iTunes store were acquired “fraudulently” and will not be counted towards the Billboard charts.
ok ,fine ! I think so do her fans pic.twitter.com/yU991gKGp8
— 叫kakaの브너라@Antares-KW (@florakaka) November 8, 2018
The reason is because of speculations that Kris’ fans have been manipulating their VPN to access the U.S. iTunes store to purchase the album, and some has suggested that it was a mobilised fan initiative to “game the U.S. system to gain traction in the U.S. and mobilise a new audience.”
Also, as soon as Kris album was available in China, it dropped down to #90 on the charts. Apple has declined to comment.
So what you think of the whole drama?
Sources: Koreaboo, Asian Junkie.
