NEW RELEASES
Kenshi Yonezu
Courtesy of Billboard JapanAtop a double-digit list of debuts by international acts on the June 12-dated Billboard global charts, four Japanese and South Korean acts add to their countries' increasingly long list of chart exports.
The week's highest debut on the Billboard Global Excl. U.S. chart is Kenshi Yonezu's "Pale Blue" at No. 48, while it starts on the Billboard Global 200 at No. 134. The song is the theme to the TBS mini-series Rikokatsu (translation: How to Get a Divorce For the Whole Family). It follows Yonezu's "Kanden," which hit No. 46 on the Sept. 19, 2020-dated survey.
It's not uncommon for acts from Japan to make chart hits out of songs associated with TV or film, with LiSA's "Homura" having hit No. 2 on the Global Excl. chart and No. 8 on the Global 200 last October, after it was released alongside Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba the Movie: Mugen Train.
Another Japanese act debuting its second song onto the Global Excl. U.S. chart is One OK Rock, with "Broken Heart of Gold" at No. 66 (and No. 173 on Global 200). The foursome released two versions of the song, one in English and one in Japanese. The same bilingual approach propelled "Renegades" to No. 18 last month.
Two South Korean boy bands make splashes, nearly back to back. Stray Kids arrive at No. 109 on the Global Excl. U.S. chart with "Wolfgang," just above Tomorrow X Together's No. 113 debut for "0X1=Lovesong (I Know I Love You)," featuring Seori.
Elsewhere, three European acts hit the Global Excl. U.S. chart. Mozznik (Kosovo/Albania) and Loredana (Switzerland) start at No. 146 with the German-language "Rosenkrieg"; Måneskin (Italy) debuts at No. 157 with "Coraline"; and Aya Nakamura (France/Mali) makes her fourth visit with "Bobo" at No. 186.
"Coraline" is one of three songs by Måneskin on this week's ranking, the most that an Italian act has simultaneously charted. Its 2021 Eurovision Song Contest-winning "Zitti E Buoni" is the first Italian-language song to grace the top 10, as it lifts 11-10, up 6% to 31.5 million streams outside the U.S., according to MRC Data. Plus, "I Wanna Be Your Slave" soars 73-21, up 114% to 23.4 million streams.
VULTURES 2 will go down as the worst Kanye West album. It was an absolute mess in terms of its rollout. The album went over its scheduled release date by months. When it did finally arrive, the mixes were an absolute mess. Kanye West corrected them in real time. He also tweaked the tracklist, and added songs once the extremely negative feedback came rolling in. "530" is a rare bright spot on the album, though. Kanye West gets personal and delivers one of his best lyrical performances in ages over a smooth vocal chop. And now we have a music video for it.
One might assume a track as heartfelt as "530" would get a heartfelt video. Kanye West has given fans some of the most iconic and memorable hip hop visuals of the 21st century. It would stand to reason that he could whip something up for the new single that was tonally appropriate. Well, West did what he does best, and defied expectations. The music video for "530" doesn't feature Kanye West or his VULTURES collaborator, Ty Dolla $ign. It doesn't feature any human beings, actually. Instead, the video is centered around puppets and people wearing cartoon masks.
The video doesn't follow a straightforward narrative. It strings together a bunch of low quality videos of these puppets and masked people seemingly doing random activities. One scenario sees a man walking the street with a bag in hand. Another sees a female puppet get an injection into her nose. There's a very unnerving quality to the visuals here, like a Twilight Zone episode conceived by, well, Kanye West. It's a bold visual direction to take things. Lyrically, "530" is about the rapper's ex-wife, Kim Kardashian. It also touches on the way Kardashian is raising their children, and the fears West has about their futures.
The most interesting aspect of "530," barring the striking visuals, is that it received a music video this long after VULTURES 2 was released. Kanye West has not done promo for the album, and everything we have heard from him has seemingly been in preparation for his next solo release, BULLY. The rapper had seemed as though he closed the chapter on VULTURES. Now, we don't really know what to think.
