Justin Bieber’s manager, Scooter Braun, lit a fire among Beliebers on Tuesday (May 19), when he tweeted a message suggesting a music video for the Biebs’ Jack Ü collaboration “Where Are Ü Now” is on the way.
Braun wrote, “@justinbieber @Skrillex @diplo #WhereAreÜNowvideo”
@justinbieber @Skrillex @diplo #WhereAreÜNowvideo
— Scooter Braun (@scooterbraun) May 19, 2015
Naturally, Justin Bieber fans took that hint and ran with it, as Braun surely intended. The hashtag “WhereAreÜNow” trended for a few hours on Tuesday.
So, is a music video for the chart-buoyant Bieber-Jason Boyd-Skrillex-Diplo-written EDM single coming down the pipeline?
Well, based on Diplo’s reply to Braun, there is no official record company-backed budget allocated for a “Where Are Ü Now” music video.
Diplo tweeted, “@scooterbraun @justinbieber @Skrillex can we just do a kickstarter for it?”
@scooterbraun @justinbieber @Skrillex can we just do a kickstarter for it?
— diplo (@diplo) May 19, 2015
Braun later replied to Diplo, writing, “@diplo @justinbieber @Skrillex we can do that…and we can just shoot it this week:) #WhereAreÜNow.”
@diplo @justinbieber @Skrillex we can do that…and we can just shoot it this week:) #WhereAreÜNow
— Scooter Braun (@scooterbraun) May 19, 2015
If Diplo’s tweet is on the level, his mention of the global crowdfunding platform Kickstarter as a means to generate external monies for a “Where Are Ü Now” music video indicates that the record companies involved are either unable or unwilling to provide the necessary funds.
These are: Diplo’s Mad Decent record label and Skrillex’s (alongside others) vanity record label OWSLA. The latter is distributed by Atlantic Records Group, an umbrella label which was founded by Warner Music Group to supervise labels under its Atlantic Records unit.
Reasons why Diplo, Skrillex, and Atlantic aren’t stumping up for a video? Possibilities are the financial and/or time demands of Diplo and Skrillex’s other projects, and the relatively old chart age of “Where Are Ü Now,” which may account for Atlantic’s reticence. The song was officially sent to radio on April 21, but started streaming months ago when the Skrillex and Diplo Present Jack Ü album was stealth-dropped on February 27.
The single is currently No. 1 on Billboard’s Dance/Electronic Streaming Songs chart. It is No. 3 on Shazam UK Top 100 chart after a previous No. 1 spot, and has risen to No. 24 on Billboard’s Hot 100 chart. It peaked at No. 3 on Australia’s ARIA singles chart and still sits at No. 3 on ARIA’s dance singles chart.
In the UK, the song is No. 7 on the UK’s Official Top 100 Midweek Singles chart and No. 7 on the UK’s Official Top 40 singles chart. It’s No. 6 on iTunes UK, and this week vaulted to No. 20 on Mediabase’s pop airplay chart .
Bieber, Skrillex, and Diplo have yet more reasons to smile. The trio’s dance slayer was the fifth most streamed track on Spotify in the U.S. from May 11 to May 17. During that period, it was the fourth in the UK and seventh globally. Dropping a great video for “Where Are Ü Now” could catapult it into upper positions in the Hot 100 , iTunes, and international charts.
Back in April, Braun told fans in a Twitter Q & A that a “Where” video would be filmed that month. Bieber then shared a Facebook post on April 27 just before flying to Rome to shoot his Zoolander 2 cameo. In that Facebook post, the Biebs wrote, “Did you get it yet? Video coming ?#?soon?. Where are U now.”
@CitlaliEsquive4 shooting this month
— Scooter Braun (@scooterbraun) April 19, 2015
It certainly suggested plans for a “Where Are Ü Now” music video were in motion. Braun’s Tuesday teaser added to that impression. Meanwhile, online chatter reveals some Bieber fans are waiting to see whether a visual for the single will actually happen.
[Images via Getty Images]