The SFX Entertainment purchase of Beatport was not the only surprising EDM news to hit last night; word from Billboard is that Warner Bros. and Mad Decent have struck up a deal that will allow Warner Bros. worldwide distribution rights to Baauer's "Harlem Shake." The song has already been hitting radio stations worldwide on its own, but it looks like Warner Bros. will be pushing it to places that might not have already been playing it.
It will be interesting to see how this plays into any continued chart success for "Harlem Shake." There's a feeling that the meme ran its course over a week ago, which can seem like eons in Internets time, but people like your old uncle or hip grandmother might just now be hearing about it, and stations like Hot 97 in NYC are talking about it just this week. We'll see how it plays out this week, and if it even lasts into March.
For those of you who need to be brought up to speed, check out this excerpt from Billboard's cover story on Baauer. Find out why Azealia Banks beefed with Baauer and Diplo over the track, and find out which reggaeton star might be suing Baauer over "Harlem Shake."
