Top 40 hit for unsigned Essex band
Top 40 hit for unsigned Essex band Koopa
Essex 'punk-popsters' Koopa made UK chart history on Sunday January 14th. Brothers Stu and Ollie Cooper, along with third band member Joe Murphy, are the first unsigned band to achieve a top 40 hit on downloads alone.
Their song 'Blag, Steal or Borrow' reached 31 in the UK Top 40 on Sunday, after changes to downloading rules. Previously a song could only enter the chart if it was on sale on CD. Koopa attribute their chart hit to the new downloading rules, allowing their fans to pay for their downloads via text message. Frontman Murphy said "Under 16s don't have credit or debit cards but they all have mobiles".
Koopa's achievement has gained them international recognition. US news networks have been reporting on the band, and there are rumours that label Reprise Records (who signed American band Green Day) are keen to sign them; although this success is bittersweet in light of the recent bereavement of Stu and Ollie, who lost their father Martin to a fatal heart attack, just one week before their song hit the charts.
Their song 'Blag, Steal or Borrow' reached 31 in the UK Top 40 on Sunday, after changes to downloading rules. Previously a song could only enter the chart if it was on sale on CD. Koopa attribute their chart hit to the new downloading rules, allowing their fans to pay for their downloads via text message. Frontman Murphy said "Under 16s don't have credit or debit cards but they all have mobiles".
Koopa's achievement has gained them international recognition. US news networks have been reporting on the band, and there are rumours that label Reprise Records (who signed American band Green Day) are keen to sign them; although this success is bittersweet in light of the recent bereavement of Stu and Ollie, who lost their father Martin to a fatal heart attack, just one week before their song hit the charts.