PewDiePie's New Track Removed For Safety Concerns
PewDiePie has long been considered one of YouTube's most controversial stars, but one of his most recent videos has been considered to be a bit more serious than his previous feuds with fellow content creators. In fact, PewDiePie's latest diss track has been removed from his channel by YouTube, with the platform citing safety concerns.
PewDiePie released a new song and music video, "Coco," making fun of popular children's program Cocomelon, which was Netflix's #1 show in 2020. Cocomelon also has its own YouTube channel, which has been racking up insane viewership numbers and had him briefly considering joining forces with his competition. The video was abruptly pulled from YouTube, which prompted fans on Twitter to ask the video-sharing platform what was up.
The official TeamYouTube Twitter account responded, explaining that the video was found to be in violation of two of the platform's guidelines. According to TeamYouTube, the video broke the rules regarding "[One,] Child safety: by looking like it was made for kids but containing inappropriate content. [Two,] Harassment: by inciting harassment [at] other creators – we allow criticism but this crossed the line."
Unfortunately for fans who enjoyed the original track, TeamYouTube has also warned that any re-uploads of the song or the video will result in a similar takedown. This includes even brief excerpts and clips, although TeamYouTube did mention, "Still images are ok."
PewDiePie's fans were none too pleased with TeamYouTube's explanation, with some saying that the platform is harassing the YouTuber. Content creator Lubcubs wrote, "It's clearly marked not made for kids. Using your own upload settings." Others have cried foul, accusing YouTube of censoring PewDiePie's uploads and favoring higher performers like Cocomelon. Several fans have reiterated that the song was never intended to be for children, which has led to a great deal of confusion regarding YouTube's invocation of child safety guidelines.
Even so, YouTube has remained firm on its decision to pull the video. In a statement to Metro, the platform said, "Our policies prohibit content that leads to repeated patterns of harassment on- and off-platform. Following a review, we've removed the video in question for violating those policies because they had the effect of encouraging abusive fan behavior."
Strangely enough, this isn't the first time that PewDiePie has released a shady diss track that has landed him in hot water. As longtime fans of the streamer likely know, his 2018 song "B**** Lasagna," which took aim at Indian music label T-Series, drew accusations of racism from critics. The video for "B**** Lasagna" was banned in India.