When your previous lead singles achieve Double Platinum status, then yes, only achieving Platinum is an "underperformance" to a certain degree.

 

 

By that logic Oops I did it again by Britney was an under-performance too then was it?

 

Previous lead single BOMT sold 1.6 million compared to Oops which sold 475,000...

 

Obviously it's a completely different market with streaming for Britney and Little Mix (so things like having the most platinum sellers or multiple million sellers doesn't hold the same weight nowerdays), however SOTME and WLM hold the same comparison as BOMT and OIDIA as both belong to eras where their sales come from same formats (streams/downloads/sales for Little Mix - just sales for Britney).

By that logic Oops I did it again by Britney was an under-performance too then was it?

 

Previous lead single BOMT sold 1.6 million compared to Oops which sold 475,000...

 

Obviously it's a completely different market with streaming for Britney and Little Mix (so things like having the most platinum sellers or multiple million sellers doesn't hold the same weight nowerdays), however SOTME and WLM hold the same comparison as BOMT and OIDIA as both belong to eras where their sales come from same formats (streams/downloads/sales for Little Mix - just sales for Britney).

 

Oops has actually sold over 600,000...

 

I suppose in theory Oops did underperform compared to Baby, but of course Baby was such a MASSIVE hit and it's such an ICONIC song, that the comparison is ludicrous.

 

I would say this though, physical sales had dropped quite a bit from February 1999 to May 2000 (cassette tapes in particular), so Oops was never going to do as well as Baby.

I seriously don't consider 'Woman Like Me' to be an underperformance. The rest of the era though is a different story.

I seriously don't consider 'Woman Like Me' to be an underperformance. The rest of the era though is a different story.

 

 

It's basically an under-performance if you expected them to do do Shout Out numbers forever.

I think a lot of it is LM5 underperforming as an album which has cast a shadow over WLM, an obvious success.

I think a lot of it is LM5 underperforming as an album which has cast a shadow over WLM, an obvious success.

That's what I was coming to say. Woman Like Me performed fine but the fact the album underperformed and the era felt like it was dead by January has tainted the perception of Woman Like Me's success. If the era was still going strong, Woman Like Me would still feel very 'present' but instead I feel like that longevity has been cut short.

It's sad how f***ed this era was. It has probably hindered their success long-term as well. It's going to be a struggle to get massive smashes and big album sales from here on out.

It's sad how f***ed this era was. It has probably hindered their success long-term as well. It's going to be a struggle to get massive smashes and big album sales from here on out.

I agree. I can see the media really turning on them too (I know they have always received criticism but I think from now on it will be really damaging). This is their best album for me. It gets the balance of accessible catchy pop and slightly unconventional pop just right and it makes for such an exciting listen. I really wish they pushed through with the era although I understand there's probably a lot we don't know behind the scenes.

 

I just hope they don't feel like they have to regress their sound in order to be successful, particularly as I don't think that will work either and then they'll have compromised themselves artistically as well.

Why they didn't have Think About Us ready to send to radios/ selected as a single in December/January when it got two decent TV performances and pushed it in March instead...eek.

Yeah I can't fathom that one. Whatever label issues were going on, surely they could have put the song out there for radio, even if they couldn't promote it any other way at the time. As you say, they already had two TV performances of it, people just wanted to hear it played!

I mean, sure - the did have some major management and label issues that hurt them but still, Think About Us could've done a lot better if they played it off more strategic like they usually do.

they should have pushed strip instantly after album instead of changing their mind

they should have pushed strip instantly after album instead of changing their mind

 

 

Nah, "Strip" was never going to do well.

 

I understand the girls really like that song, but as a single was never going to work and no major label was going to support it.

 

The girls messed up and prematurely ended the era by not having at least three strong pop singles. "Woman Like Me" did well and SYCO made it a single for a good reason. But that was also the strongest candidate for a single.

 

 

The girls played the game so well during the "Get Weird" and "Glory Days" eras, but this time they failed. Perhaps they thought they had so much success that they could stop playing the game and still be successful. They were proven wrong.

Imo they should have followed WLM straight with monster in me in December. It would have been a great winter single and a much bigger album seller. Especially if they’d done it on GN.

Imo they should have followed WLM straight with monster in me in December. It would have been a great winter single and a much bigger album seller. Especially if they’d done it on GN.

 

If I was at any label and sat down to listen to the album for the first time, this would have made the most sense to me also. Think About Us is a cute Spring/Summer single, but in late winter didn't really make too much sense.

This has become their 6th song to hit 200 million streams on Spotify, and is their quickest song to do so! It took 7 months, (Shout Out took just under 12 months to reach this!)

Flop!

Flop!

 

:lol: :lol: :lol:

I still absolutely bop to WLM and wish the fan-base didn't hate it so much. I feel like its blamed for the LM5 lower sales, but it is absolutely the label to blame for pretty much abandoning the campaign after one single.

This has become their 6th song to hit 200 million streams on Spotify, and is their quickest song to do so! It took 7 months, (Shout Out took just under 12 months to reach this!)

 

Impressive for WLM, but it probably got there quicker than SOTME because streaming is much higher now than it was in 2016/17. I also think Nicki Minaj would have helped too.

 

Flop!

 

I know you were trying to be funny, but there is a difference between ‘underperforming’ and ‘flopping’.

 

I still absolutely bop to WLM and wish the fan-base didn't hate it so much. I feel like its blamed for the LM5 lower sales, but it is absolutely the label to blame for pretty much abandoning the campaign after one single.

 

I just don’t like the song, it’s got nothing to do with how LM5 performed. I do, however, think it put a lot of the casual fans off from buying the album.