before i lose my style

“Party Like a Rockstar” was a mid-charting hit in the United States as an airplay-only single. Confusion ensued, however, when a similarly titled song by hip hop artist Freak Nasty titled “Do It Just Like a Rock Star”, was erroneously listed in the U.S. iTunes Store with the title “Party Like a Rockstar”. This led to Freak Nasty’s song, recorded in 2005, selling approximately 30,000 digital downloads even though his track was completely different.^[5] In the Billboard issue dated May 26, 2007, the Shop Boyz were at number 54 on the Hot 100 due to strong airplay while Freak Nasty was number 56 due to strong sales. The following week, after the Shop Boyz had an official digital release of their single, “Party Like a Rockstar” shot to number two while Freak Nasty dropped completely off the chart.

Amid accusations of Freak Nasty taking advantage of the popularity of the Shop Boyz song, he responded in Billboard magazine’s letters to the editor, stating in part, “I expect any artist that’s signed to a major to do far better than any independent artist. Unlike Shop Boyz, I don’t have a video. I also don’t have any radio play or marketing. They do. My song sounds totally different from theirs, and our names are distinctly different. So how can consumers be confused? I have much love and respect for Shop Boyz, and I would never do anything to block their shine.”^[6] The song was prevented from reaching the top spot on the Hot 100 by Rihanna’s seven-week run with her hit, “Umbrella”.

(Source: madeupmemories)