The plan to increase the sale of Estelle's physical CD failed and has caused its hit single 'American Boy' falling down to number 37 in Billboard Singles chart.
- Sep 2, 2008
AceShowbiz - Estelle's recording company, Warner Music Group, have recently decided to remove her latest album "Shine" from digital download service iTunes. According to a source, the label's move is aimed at encouraging fans to buy the whole album, not just individual songs.
The decision is triggered with Kid Rock's successful move, where his "Rock N Roll Jesus" album manages to reach at number one with 1.7 million selling point since it has been released in October 2007 even though taken off iTunes. Warner has then continued exploring whether fans of other artists could be persuaded to buy the physical CD and Estelle's album is chosen to be one of the experiments.
However, the plan has recently backfired as her Kanye West-featured single "American Boy", which had been sitting steadily at number eleven in Billboard Singles chart, suddenly drops down to number thirty seven. Furthermore, "Shine", which is nominated for the prestigious Mercury Music Prize in the UK, has also slipped to number 159 in the albums chart, after spending 17 weeks on the chart, peaking at number 38.
Asked for a comment on the disappointing news, Estelle's representative refuses to give any. Meanwhile, a Warner spokesman told the Wall Street Journal that the removal of Estelle's second studio album from the iTunes was just part of a strategy that is described as "uniquely tailored to each artist and their fan base in an effort to optimize and promote long term artist development."
Additionally, Estelle is now on a major North American tour to continue promoting "Shine". She is confirmed to collaborate with hip-hop stars such as Kanye, John Legend, will.i.am, and Cee-Lo.
