Report Reveals Beenie Man & Bounty Killer Had Second Biggest Bump In Streaming After Verzuz
A new report shows that of all the Verzuz battles, the one between Beenie Man and Bounty Killer came in second for providing the biggest increase in streaming for its participants. The Verzuz battles created by Swizz Beatz and Timbaland continue to show that the world truly appreciates Dancehall, as Beenie and Bounty’s battle missed the top spot in Nielsen/MRC Data’s report by just one percent.
Nielsen/MRC Data powers Billboard’s music charts and tracks sales, streams, and radio airplay for the music industry. Their new report, released on Thursday, also analyzed the state of the industry for the first half of 2020 and broke down the COVID-19 pandemic’s effect on the business.
According to the report: “Instagram’s Verzuz battles, created and hosted by producers, became the pandemic’s hottest video series. At first, Verzuz was a friendly, head-to-head battle in which opponents took turns playing their music. The debut installment peaked at about 22,000 Instagram live viewers, but viewership grew quickly as word-of-mouth spread.”
“The-Dream and Sean Garrett had 46,000 viewers, DJ Premier and RZA had 849,000, and Teddy Riley and Babyface attracted over 500,000. Verzuz battles consistently gave participants’ tracks a boost at streaming services. (For each battle, the two artists’ combined catalogs are compared the two days prior to battle day and the following day),” the report said.
The May 23 Verzuz Battle between Beenie Man and Bounty created over 1 billion impressions for Brand Jamaica, and almost 500,000 fans took in the show on Instagram Live. For Dancehall fans, it was a big deal as both deejays are considered veterans in the genre.
Nielsen/MRC Data provided a breakdown of the artistes that received the biggest bumps in streaming on the day after their battle.
ERYKAH BADU VS. JILL SCOTT on May 9
+217%
BEENIE MAN VS. BOUNTY KILLER on May 24
+216%
BABYFACE VS. TEDDY RILEY on April 20
+90%
NELLY VS. LUDACRIS on May 16
+30%
According to the report, total audio consumption has also grown nearly 10 percent over the prior year, which is actually a great achievement considering that music was one of the hardest-hit industries during the coronavirus pandemic.
Both Dancehall artistes have been trying to cash in on the momentum as Beenie Man launched a clothing line and song with his new catchphrase from the clash: Do You Want To Be That Guy?
Bounty Killer hinted recently that a new album, produced by Damian Marley, and a ‘Verzuz’ tour with his dancehall compatriot, Beenie Man might be in the works.
Meanwhile, Verzuz announced on International Reggae Day (July 1) that they will be returning to the Caribbean for more clashes. Elephant Man, Ding Dong, Shaggy, Sean Paul, Sizzla, and Capleton have all been suggested for the next clash, while Trinidadians have been calling for Soca artistes to be featured.
The numbers signify that Dancehall is not only appreciated throughout the Caribbean region but the rest of the world, and it just might be the spark that is needed to increase the genre’s appeal globally.