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SoundCloud’s amended AI clause still “fundamentally terrible for artists” says Ed Newton-Rex

Guardrails aren’t proof of infringement says Anthropic as judge spanks AI company for “hallucinated” filin

Drake’s Super Bowl gripes in amended lawsuit show defamation action is really an attack on Kendrick Lamar’s success, says Universal

“I just don't understand how that can be fair use”, says judge in Meta AI trial

Pressure mounts for Universal Music Group’s $775 million Downtown acquisition as MEP highlights UMG’s “unprecedented control” of music ecosystem

Suno AI’s faulty guardrails mean its ‘ReMi’ lyric model will spit out entire lyrical works with basic prompting

Did Ticketmaster’s UK boss Andrew Parsons mislead MPs at a select committee hearing?

With the US record industry officially in recession can superpremium and superfans really save the major labels from streaming’s slowdown?

Record industry’s modest growth should make other industries jealous says IFPI boss, as labels weigh in on growth opportunities and AI threats

Trump must “weigh in” on AI copyright debate and pressure “less innovative countries” on copyright rules, says OpenAI

Everyone’s making loads of money but don’t point the finger at us if you’re not, says Spotify’s updated Loud & Clear

Andrew Tate course on ‘pimping’ and exploiting women remains on Spotify as petition passes 25,000 signatures

Universal will spend billions to dominate emerging markets, says Grainge during Q4 earnings call as major sets out its “eat the world” strategies

Liverpool “new heart of music business” says Sound City as major label execs and industry heavyweights head north

Live Nation boss dismissive of streaming platforms’ superfan ambitions as company reports record year

Spotify wants to be “the best in the world at building AI products” and is focused on “accelerated execution”... but still no super-premium launch

Judge throws out MLC’s audiobooks bundle lawsuit, says Spotify can keep cutting songwriter royalties through its “cynical trick”

Universal Music’s new Spotify deal could be a knock-out blow for streaming platform’s audiobook bundling trick

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

EU Artificial Intelligence Act • 5 min read

ABBA’s Björn Ulvaeus and country star Martina McBride lead transatlantic creator fightback as AI companies face legislative squeeze

This week saw coordinated creator lobbying in Brussels and Washington as the EU battles over AI Act implementation while the US considers new deepfake protections. Even YouTube is backing federal regulation, suggesting the tide may finally be turning…

Chris Cooke • 22 May 2025

Kneecap • 3 min read

Kneecap threaten to sue industry execs urging festivals to cancel their sets, as band member charged over Hezbollah flag

A member of Kneecap has been charged with a terrorist offence over allegations he expressed support for Hezbollah, a proscribed terrorist group, at a gig last year. It comes as the group’s lawyers threaten legal action against industry execs seeking to get them removed from the Glastonbury line-up…

Chris Cooke • 22 May 2025

Horizon Future Leaders • 6 min read

🌅 Horizon Future Leaders - Philippa Arrowsmith

As part of our Horizon Future Leaders series of interviews, we are connecting with the music industry’s next generation of leaders to gather candid advice and insights into their career journeys. This week, we spoke to Philippa Arrowsmith, music publicist and content strategist at Morena Comms.…

Horizon Music Jobs • 22 May 2025

CMU Approved • 1 min read

🎧 Approved: nabeel (نبيل)

nabeel (نبيل)’s lyrics carry the compact intensity of Arabic poetry, set against a backdrop of shoegaze and slowcore influences of Richmond, Virginia. New single ‘yalma يلمع’ is a meditation on ephemerality and the ache of belonging when suspended between two worlds.…

Kaya Robertson • 22 May 2025

Brockwell Live • 4 min read

South London festival drama continues as Field Day disses private equity owners and residents vow to fight on

Dramas around the festivals due to take place in London’s Brockwell Park this month continue. Local residents insist the events shouldn’t go ahead after their win in the High Court last week. Meanwhile Field Day has had a second go at responding to criticism of its owner, private equity firm KKR…

Chris Cooke • 21 May 2025

Web blocking • 4 min read

US ISPs demand piracy immunity in exchange for implementing web blocking

Proposals to introduce web-blocking as an anti-piracy tactic in the US have been introduced in Congress this year. It will be much easier to make those proposals law if the ISPs could be persuaded to back the web-blocks. That could as yet happen, but the ISPs seemingly want something in return…

Chris Cooke • 21 May 2025

Artificial Intelligence • 3 min read

Government should have “leapt at opportunity” to save creative industries says Kidron, as Data Bill ping pong continues

The House Of Lords is still trying to get transparency obligations for AI companies into the Data Bill, despite the government working hard to stop that from happening. They have again voted to put that obligation back into the legislation, urging the government to support the move this time…

Chris Cooke • 20 May 2025

Salt N Pepa • 3 min read

Universal sued after “tanking the value” of Salt N Pepa’s catalogue

Salt N Pepa are trying to regain control of their old recordings from Universal by exercising their termination right under US law. But the major has rejected their termination notices, arguing that their original deals were work for hire arrangements, meaning the termination right does not apply…

Chris Cooke • 20 May 2025

CMU Approved • 1 min read

🎧Approved: BIG WETT

BIG WETT stomps over the line between pop star and chaos agent. Her new single ‘No Regrets’ is a filthy, fun breakbeat track built for bad decisions and good nights. DIY visuals and barked-out mantras seal the deal…

Kaya Robertson • 20 May 2025

Ed Sheeran • 3 min read

No need for US Supreme Court to intervene in ‘Thinking Out Loud’ song-theft dispute, argues Ed Sheeran

When a US appeals court ruled that Ed Sheeran’s ‘Thinking Out Loud’ does not infringe the copyright in Marvin Gaye’s ‘Let’s Get It On’, did it rely on guidance from the Copyright Office? If it did, that might be grounds for the US Supreme Court to review the case. Sheeran insists it did not…

Chris Cooke • 19 May 2025