Relationship rumors between Zedd and Selena Gomez based on juicy Instagram photos may be causing us in the media to salivate but in the long run the effects of the headlines might do well for the EDM DJ as well. So far the only charts that can demonstrate the effect of the rumors is Billboard's Social 50 chart, where the German producer debuted this week at no. 40.
Granted, social media references don't automatically equal song and album sales. But they sure don't hurt. Just as any performer who appears on major broadcasts, such as The Grammys, will see a boost in sales during the weeks following their performance, getting caught in the papers with one of the media's favorite pieces of headline fodder will also encourage fans of the bigger name to check out the smaller one (although Zedd is a fairly big deal already). Gomez always gets plenty of online clicks because the TMZ's of the world are sure to mention her previous involvement with Justin Bieber (as well as a Jonas brother and rumors of Niall Horan of One Direction). Teen.com even has a timeline that updates whenever she adds a new name to the black book (although it's a tad slow on the news this month).
The Instagram photos that began the furor were posted by Zedd on Tuesday, featuring Gomez lounging in bed. Rumors that the pair were working together on new music were good enough, the implication that Zedd was in her bedroom blew things up. For what it's worth, the photo came with a caption referencing the Tommy Wiseau film classic The Room.
We're more interested in the music of course but the rise in interest for Zedd as a human being in the wake of the photo can't be ignored. Wikipedia searches for his name increased 288 percent over the last few days, according to Billboard.
