Around 10pm (GMT) on Saturday night, DrownedinSound was watching with a dumb smile as Bradford Cox and Deerhunter ploughed the motorik beat of some incredible new song into the concrete of Barcelona’s Parc del Forum, from the bleachers by the ATP stage a few metres from the Mediterranean. Back in the UK, you were watching as 14-year-old Warrington lad George Sampson spasmed his way to victory in front of some scantily clad toddlers and a confused border collie on Britain’s Got Talent. While not wishing to rain on the winner’s parade, DiS is moving the fuck to Spain.
Anyway – so many people watched Sampson pop his body to Mint Royale’s version of ‘Singing in the Rain’ (the program attracted an average of 13.1m viewers and a peak of 14.4m according to unofficial overnight figures) that the track is tipped to top the UK singles charts this weekend. Well, it’s more than ‘tipped’ – it’s outselling closest rival and last week’s number one, Rihanna’s ‘Take a Bow’, by two-to-one.
But while this will presumably be seen as just another turd tossed atop British pop culture’s creaking coffin, the truly unprecedented thing is that this will be the first track to top the charts purely through the combined might of Google and iTunes. There is absolutely no push behind ‘Singing in the Rain’ from Mint Royale’s record company Sony – no stocking in shop shelves, or plugging through radio, press et cetera.
So essentially ‘Singing in the Rain’ is Britain’s first ever autonomous number one single, emerging from the limbo of singles past left to drift in the virtual realm to take 100 per cent of its profits through download. Not a single physical copy has been sold.
That's something for the industry to think about - along with just how they're going to turn Sampson's abysmal breakdancing into pound notes.
DiScuss: what single should George Sampson's whack dancing send to number one next?
Got news? Email us at newsdesk@drownedinsound.com
This is the future.
Oh, sorry. It's the present actually.
.
Katie_r_2k7
-2
Flag as inappropriate
03 June 2008
14:59
YA PROBA LUSH.. LURVE TO MEET YA..... ANEW YA CUD WIN... MIGHT SEE U ON TOUR... IF A DO GO I GIVE Y BDAII COZ NEARLY YA BDAII LURVE YA XXXX
^5
lol he looks like my rele good frend..kinda dresses like him too..hahhaha...now i can look at my frend and rememeber goerge sampson :)
Good time to bring back the VW ad?
In fact was it VW?
who cares?
Yep, Golf GTI
While there was no plugging on Radio,
pushing by the record company or stocking in the stores, the song did have mass exposure on television to millions of people, to be fair!
So it's not so much of a bizzare thing to happen really.
You are such a miserable cunt kev
I don't see why anyone is bothered. The charts are pretty irrelevant anyway. Its a fairly good remix and people want to listen to it. And George Sampson is clearly not abysmal.
i just saw that dog on popjustice
WOW
This ^^.
Probably the smuggest news story I've ever read on here.
there must be a lot of competition for that acolade
and obviously (i'm not sure why this isn't addressed) Britain's got Talent, X factor etc are all just giant and extremely successful marketing strategies anyway,
And another thing...
That Mint Royale album that has their version of Singing In The Rain had Duffy doing backing vocals on a couple of tracks.
Radio 1 played this..
..yesterday. They're jumping on the bandwagon it would seem.
.
'There is absolutely no push behind ‘Singing in the Rain’ from Mint Royale’s record company Sony – no stocking in shop shelves, or plugging through radio, press et cetera. '
I assume that they gave their permission for the song to appear on the show - and presumably this was considered advertising enough. A shrewd move. They will have paid nothing in costs and will rake in nothing but profit.
This is hardly a surprise is it?
If a singer had won it, they would be number 1 this week. Also this isn't that different to the success of the Gossip following their song being used on Skins.
I am disappointed that he does not have a comedy name unlike Pol Potts last year though.
george sampson's
dancing isn't abysmal. I rarely watch these things, but his whole singin' in the rain act was a tad above the others, despite winning because of little girls voting.
it wasnt abysmal
but it wasnt amazing. hes talented, but not above the majority of people who dance a lot
what about the
majority of 14 year olds who dance a lot?
but the question is:
worse than The Ting Tings?
^ this
basically.
"abysmal"
Kev, that is bullshit.
It is amazing though, how of all the talents of the British people, singing and dancing seem to be the only ones worthy of the show time.
I can pick my nose with my elbow....
I find this interesting
Have Mint Royale had the most sporadic chat career of the last decade or what?
I seem to remember...
Something similar happened a few years ago to Imogen Heap when one of her songs (that weirdly haunting harmonised vocodery acapella song) got used on the season finale of the OC. In an interview she said that she woke up the next day to find $15grand in her Itunes account. I dont think it got to number one but I remember Radio one grabbed hold of it and played it constantly, even if only so the DJ could slag it off (it kinda polarised opinion). It definately charted in the top ten.
Yeah, it's one of her shitter songs too
which is a shame.
I nicked...
That journey song off of Cr3ation when it appeared in the last episode of Sopranos. I wasn't likely to buy their whole back catalogue from HMV or even their GHits when %99 of it is shite.
I am not surprised this happens now, i just can't believe that the musicians don't demand a written credit after the performance "singin' in the rain: music by Mint Royale" now that would really boost figures
btw Elephant Stone MR remix is exceptional, download that