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Jedward “outraged” after debut single is deleted from streaming services
By Andy Malt | Published on Monday 20 July 2020
Right, so, Jedward are angry. And I’m not sure that’s a sentence I ever expected to write. But they are. They’re absolutely livid. Because, it seems, the first point on Sony Music’s to-do list after restructuring its business partnership with Simon Cowell last week was to delete Jedward’s debut single.
The duo tweeted on Friday: “Yo @SimonCowell and @SonyMusicUK. Why have you removed our iconic first single ‘Under Pressure (Ice Ice Baby)’ from all streaming platforms and deleted the official music video? That’s our legacy! We’re outraged, it’s part of pop culture! We demand a response!”
A response there has not been. Nor have the song and video been returned to the internet. But appealing to Simon Cowell is futile because as of last week he no longer has any control over the recording. He bought Sony Music out of the Syco TV business, leaving the recorded music side of the company with the major.
A mash-up of Queen’s ‘Under Pressure’ and Vanilla Ice’s’ ‘Ice Ice Baby’ – featuring Vanilla Ice himself – ‘Under Pressure (Ice Ice Baby)’ was Jedward’s debut single, and their only release through Sony Music.
Despite it getting to number two in the UK singles chart, the major label decided not to extend the short term contract it had signed with the duo to as part of their appearance on the 2009 series of ‘X Factor’. Instead, they signed a three album deal with Universal.
The first of those albums for Universal, ‘Planet Jedward’, also featured ‘Under Pressure (Ice Ice Baby)’. That entire album, it’s probably worth noting, is also currently missing from streaming services. Something Jedward did not note in their angry tweet, but which adds a whole extra layer to this anti-Jedward conspiracy.
Of course, there are any number of legitimate reasons why these releases might temporarily disappear from all music services. Perhaps someone slipped and accidentally hit the delete button. Twice. Or maybe a virtual dog ate the files. Though if you’re thinking this might be part of a wider scheme to wipe the more embarrassing bits of ‘X Factor’ from history, well, I just checked and the full Same Difference catalogue is still available.
The way Jedward talk about their debut single, you might be forgiven for thinking that was the only thing they ever released. Although, as I’ve already said, they did put out a total of three albums through Universal. And, after a gap of seven years, they finally released a fourth album, ‘Voice Of A Rebel’, independently last year.
Yesterday they put out the video for a track from it, ‘Taste The Heat’. So, you see, the legacy is still growing. And what a legacy. Although, I’d argue, their real legacy remains this contribution to the all time great typos. Anyway, here’s that new video:
