CEO Of Shaun's Agency Directly Addresses Digital Chart Manipulation Controversy

Previously, singer Shaun raised suspicions of chart manipulation with his song “Way Back Home,” which suddenly topped music streaming sites, such as Genie, Olleh Music, and Bugs.

Park Seung Do, the CEO of his agency DCTOM Entertainment, addressed the issue himself, saying, “We didn’t do anything illegal. We requested investigators, including the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism, prosecutors, and the police, to clarify the allegations. If anyone did anything illegal, I hope they will be punished. I hope this situation, which is spreading into a social phenomenon, will be brought to an end soon.”

The CEO said Shaun was able to release a solo album because he is popular among EDM fans. He explained, “However, because we knew the EDM genre is not a popular one and that Shaun’s popularity was not up to the point of becoming a hot issue on the charts, our only focus was on creating and releasing new music.”

Park Seung Do also addressed the public’s antipathy towards his high ranking on the music charts, saying, “First off, we had no idea he would become no. 1 on the charts. He became no. 1 on Genie first, and we were touched. Then later on, he became no. 1 on Melon, and we were surprised. We thought that he had become Korea’s The Chainsmokers, but after being suspected of chart manipulation, we would feel better if he came down from the no. 1 spot.”

Then he added, “I don’t agree that he is receiving hostility from the public. Before the news was reported, people around him were expressing their congratulations to him. We were the only ones aware of some negative reactions but not the people around us.”

When compared to Nilo’s controversy of chart manipulation, the CEO responded, “From what I know, Limez Entertainment [Nilo’s agency] and the Facebook page of ‘Music Only For You’ have nothing to do with each other. We knew that was the page where Nilo’s song was promoted, but we weren’t conscious of it. If we had done this viral marketing while aiming for the charts, then we would’ve checked thoroughly, but that wasn’t the case, so we didn’t care about it.”

When mentioned that the video and song have gone viral due to the song rising on the charts, Park Seung Do commented, “People who raise suspicions say that ‘just because you get a million hits from Facebook doesn’t make it proportional to the real music chart users.’ That’s why I think there was a suspicion of chart manipulation. I didn’t see the number of video views reflected immediately on the music charts either. I think he became no. 1 after he was searched up and put on the real-time charts. Then news of it spread further.”

Then he added, “I think people heard his music more because it was an unfamiliar genre and he was a new singer. This kind of commotion can also be a trigger for people to search up his music more.”

Sources (1) (2)