Did Selena Gomez’s Music Get a Streaming Boost From Hailey Bieber Feud Headlines?

While Selena Gomez has been dealing with some tough online drama over the past few weeks, the star’s fans have been supporting her every step of the way — especially when it comes to her music.

Gomez’s songs (on which she is the lead artist) registered 16.1 million on-demand U.S. audio streams in the week ending March 2, according to Luminate, up from 11 million the week before. The new total is her best audio streaming week since the week ending Nov. 10, 2022 (17.6 million), which was most likely linked to the release of her Selena Gomez: My Mind & Me documentary on Nov. 2.

That extra 5.1 million streams in the U.S. comes out to a bonus $27,030 for the recording rights holders, plus another $6,245 in publishing revenue, Billboard estimates.

While there is no clear cause of the boost, Gomez has been in the headlines quite a bit recently related to her alleged feud with Hailey Bieber, who is married to her ex-boyfriend, Justin Bieber. It all started after the Only Murders in the Building star confessed on TikTok in February that she’d over-laminated her eyebrows. Kylie Jenner then shared a photo with her friend Hailey holding the camera close up to their own professional-looking brows.

Fans believed that the similarities between the posts was no coincidence, and that perhaps the reality star and model were making fun of Gomez. “This is reaching,” the Kardashians star commented about the situation on a TikTok. “No shade towards selena ever and I didn’t see her eyebrow posts! u guys are making something out of nothing. this is silly.”

At the time, Gomez added that she’s “a fan of Kylie,” though she has since commented on fan-made TikToks shading Hailey, writing “I love you” to one fan who slammed the Rhode founder for being a “nepo baby” and a “mean girl.” On a resurfaced video of Hailey pretending to gag at the mention of Taylor Swift’s music, Gomez replied, “So sorry, my best friend is and continues to be one of the best in the game.”

However, most recently, Gomez has encouraged her followers to be more empathetic. “Please, please be kinder and consider others mental health,” Selena commented on one of her recent TikToks sharing her makeup routine. “My heart has been heavy and I only want good for everyone. All my love.”

—Additional reporting by Trevor Anderson & Colin Stutz

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