A controversial video calling for the release of a convicted killer sent Dappy’s digital fans into overdrive.
The N-Dubz rapper saw eight times as many digital fans add him across social networks on last Tuesday, according to global analysts Musicmetric, who monitor the digital space for record labels around the world.
A whopping 3,822 new fans followed or liked Dappy on Tuesday compared to his daily average 440 for the previous month. By Wednesday it had reduced to 2,516, giving him a total of 586,000 online fans.
See the latest stats for Dappy here: http://bit.ly/MEBwIl
The rapper called for jailed killer Learco Chindamo to be freed in the opening credits of his new video Tarzan 2.
A disclaimer at the start reads “the views & opinions expressed in this video are those of the artist only” — with a message saying “Free Leo Chindamo”.
Chindamo knifed to death Philip Lawrence, 48, outside St George’s RC School in west London aged just 15, after the head intervened in a fight by the gates in 1995. Dappy, 25, went to the same school.
Chindamo, 31, served 14 years for murder and was released on licence in July 2010. But he was sent back to prison for breaching the conditions of his licence, after he was caught associating with gang members after his release.
Tulisa slammed the video, tweeting: ‘Just puttin it out there..dont involve me in dappy’s latest hype, I don’t condone it in anyway.N its a shame I’m not around 2 control him [sic].
Philip’s widow Frances of Ham, West London, told The Sun newspaper: “I haven’t heard the song yet. But I don’t think it is right someone should be making money from using his name in a song.”
Tulisa has more than four times as many fans than Dappy – 2,466,000. See the latest stats for her here: http://bit.ly/M45juq
Marie-Alicia Chang, Musicmetric co-founder, said:
“The idea that ‘controversy sells’ is hardly new, but it’s clear that, for whatever reason, the public is interested. The massive spike in digital fans for Dappy – an artist purely of the digital generation – could be a goldmine in helping sell downloads or lucrative gig tickets. Of course many others could be mightily offended by this kind of thing.
“But if labels can determine where their fans are, how they access their favourite artists and, most importantly, when, they’re able to get a lot more out of them. And at a time where music needs all the support it can get, being able to embrace technology in this way could be vital.”