The music business explained: news, analysis, insights and jobs for music industry professionals

Universal put “corporate greed” before Drake’s safety, says defamation lawsuit filed over Kendrick Lamar diss track

Beware the “wolf under the cape” in Universal’s Downtown land grab, warns Beggars boss as IMPALA calls for regulators to block the deal

EU AI Act can only provide a “temporary fix” to the “darker aspect” of AI’s “profound disruption” to creative industries says open letter

AI generated music will suck €4 billion a year away from music creators by 2028 says CISAC

Village People founder loves Trump using YMCA, but hates people calling it a gay anthem

Executives from BMG, Absolute Label Services, Mahogany Music, Punch Records and more to join award winning female entrepreneurs in Liverpool as first Sound City+ 2025 speakers unveiled

AIF makes desperate call for government to “step up, and step up now” to get festivals through “devastating period”, as MVT launches new Liveline fund

New AI transparency proposal in US Congress will “pave the way” for creator compensation says ASCAP boss

SXSW ditches weapons sponsors to burnish brand - so why won’t it ditch its ties to Saudi Arabia?

SXSW London could disrupt delicately balanced music ecosystem and should reconsider its date

Suno • 3 min read

Suno’s content “obviously infringes copyrights” of prominent German songwriters says GEMA lawsuit

GEMA has sued another AI company for copyright infringement. Having sued OpenAI last year, it has now filed a lawsuit against music AI platform Suno. While Suno has already been sued by the major labels in the US, this lawsuit will test the copyright obligations of the AI company under European law…

Chris Cooke • 21 Jan 2025

TikTok • 4 min read

As TikTok gets 75-day reprieve, industry experts urge artists and labels to diversify social strategy

The TikTok ban in the US has been officially paused for 75 days by incoming President Donald Trump. However, the app’s future in the US remains uncertain, meaning artists should use those 75 days to strengthen their presence on other platforms and to also encourage fans to connect by email…

Chris Cooke • 21 Jan 2025

CMU Approved • 1 min read

🎧 Approved: Courting

Fresh off their first US tour and gearing up for their third album, Liverpool’s Courting defy easy-categorisation; proving themselves as one of the most exciting rising indie bands. Their new single, ‘After You’, fills the room, the weight of the guitars balanced by a hypnotic lyrical ease…

Kaya Robertson • 21 Jan 2025

TikTok • 4 min read

Trump says USA should own TikTok after blink-and-you-miss-it ban kicks in

The TikTok ban in the US went into force yesterday, taking the app offline. For a short time. It then returned after incoming President Trump vowed to issue an executive order later today pausing the ban and removing any liability from companies that continued working with TikTok in the meantime…

Chris Cooke • 20 Jan 2025

John Lydon • 2 min read

John Lydon in court battle over who owns copyright in Public Image Ltd logo - forty five years after it was created

A legal battle is ongoing between John Lydon and photographer Dennis Morris over who owns the copyright in the logo for Public Image Ltd. Following a pre-trial hearing in court last month, Lydon has filed an amended lawsuit, with Morris then submitting an amended defence and counterclaim last week…

Chris Cooke • 20 Jan 2025

Live industry news including ticketing, venues, festivals and more • 1 min read

Scientists monitor heart rates at Yetii concert to understand the effect of live music on the human body

Bristol boffins want to understand the effect live music has on the human body: earlier today they were counting the heart beats of audience members of a Yetii show in Bristol - and simultaneously monitoring the pulse rates of a group of people watching a livestream of the performance…

Chris Cooke • 17 Jan 2025

Nelly • 2 min read

Nelly wants former bandmate’s lawyers sanctioned in dispute over ‘Country Grammar’ copyrights

Last year Nelly was sued by a former bandmate who claimed he co-wrote songs on the musician’s 2000 debut album ‘Country Grammar’ but was never paid any royalties. Now Nelly’s team want the former bandmate’s lawyers sanctioned on the basis the copyright claim was “objectively frivolous”…

Chris Cooke • 17 Jan 2025

TikTok • 3 min read

US Supreme Court upholds TikTok ban, app’s American future now in the hands of Donald Trump

TikTok is due to be banned in the US on Sunday, after the country’s Supreme Court declined to block the law that instigates the ban. However, Donald Trump seems likely to intervene when he becomes President on Monday. He says, unhelpfully, “you’re going to see what I’m going to do”…

Chris Cooke • 17 Jan 2025

Lucian Grainge • 6 min read

As big money calls the shots at Universal Music: is Lucian losing control?

As Pershing Square forces humiliating U-turn on US listing, does Universal Music top dog’s €100m ‘megabonus’ begin to look more like an exit package, while questions mount over who really pulls the strings at the “world's most successful music company”…

Sam Taylor • 17 Jan 2025

Horizon Future Leaders • 4 min read

🌅 Horizon Future Leaders - Quentin Martins Q&A

As part of our Horizon Future Leaders series, we’re connecting with the music industry’s next generation of leaders to gather candid advice and insights into their career journeys. This week we caught up with Quentin Martins, Senior Manager Of Commercial Partnerships at Merlin.…

Horizon Music Jobs • 17 Jan 2025

Drake • 5 min read

Universal put “corporate greed” before Drake’s safety, says defamation lawsuit filed over Kendrick Lamar diss track

Drake has sued his own label, Universal Music, for defamation over the lyrics in Kendrick Lamar’s diss track ‘Not Like Us’, which the major also released. A lawsuit claims that the lyrics make defamatory allegations against Drake which have jeopardised the safety of the musician and his family…

Chris Cooke • 16 Jan 2025