When American pop sensation Ariana Grande dropped her new single “Thank U, Next” on Nov. 10, it was assumed that her single would easily climb up the U.S Top Charts. However, not only did Chinese-Canadian singer Kris Wu earn the number one spot on the iTunes’ singles chart, he also had seven of the top 10 songs.
As a pop star based in China with little recognition in North America, holding the number one spot on iTunes is an astonishing achievement, but as second place, Ariana Grande and her management team were not happy. Rumors began to spread that Kris Wu’s achievement as number one was earned through bots, or internet robots that repetitively perform tasks at a much higher rate than would be possible for humans.
It is upsetting to see Kris Wu’s hard work demeaned and devalued because of his Chinese fans. iTunes removed Wu’s album, “Antares” from its chart, and Wu’s fans believe Ariana Grande and her manager Scooter Braun are the ones to blame. In fact, Braun tweeted and soon deleted, “He is using bots… It’s unfortunate but you can’t stop Ari… she is the real deal…Do it right. Do it real… or… thank u, next.” This tweet is clearly shady and is based on zero facts and evidence, and many believe it was the start of the rumor that spread like wildfire. Soon, memes about Kris Wu’s use of bots circulated the internet, even though there is no evidence to support the allegation that Wu’s success is based on anything other than fan love.
What is upsetting as an Asian American is the fact that the rumors that were spread completely degrade Wu’s success as an accomplished Asian singer. I am angered at the fact that Kris Wu’s album was taken off the iTunes charts because apparently, Chinese fans are not real people. Kris Wu worked extremely hard on his album, as every artist does, only to be accused of using bots.
Wu’s management, Universal Music China, released a statement requesting all false rumors to be removed due to legal issues regarding defamation. In fact, his fans from China worked together and used their own money to boost his sales in the U.S. charts using a VPN, or a virtual private network to access the U.S. network to buy his album. Through VPNs, Wu’s fans from China raised his ranking in the U.S. charts to number one. Although no evidence has been released to support the accusation against Wu, Ariana Grande’s fans were quick to spread the rumor that Wu used bots, which is deeply upsetting because they are basically saying that Wu’s Chinese fans, whether they are from Asia or of Asian decent, are not real.
It does not matter whether or not Wu used bots because it is extremely rude to assume such a nasty action simply because he is not an American or European pop star. Western media should not discredit Kris Wu as an artist just because of his Asian descent. With 44,814,063 followers on Weibo, China’s most popular social media platform, and the majority of his songs having more than one million listens on Spoify, his presence is overwhelming, yet Grande’s fans chose to spread rumors discrediting his success. Western countries discredit Asian successes too quickly, and they do not even give us a chance.
This pattern facing Asians today is something we have seen before. From Scarlett Johansson acting as an Asian heroine in the movie “Ghost in the Shell,” to Karlie Kloss dressing as a geisha in Vogue’s diversity issue, Asians have not been able to take a prominent role in Hollywood, the modeling industry, and after the rumors about Kris Wu, the music industry. Believe it or not, Asians are talented, and they deserve recognition. They should not be accused of using bots just because of their race.
This accusation discredits any success Kris Wu has achieved, and it seems as if the Western community is not giving Asians a fair chance. Why is it so surprising that Kris Wu reached number one on iTunes and beat Ariana Grande? Is it because he is Chinese? Are Asians not real? We are real people, and it is time we are recognized for our achievements and given the equal opportunities as white people. The same goes for every race and ethnicity.
TCHS School Newspaper