PROMOTING MUSIC - MEDIA, SOCIAL MEDIA & MORE
How to build a profile for your artists - the state of the music media, traditional and new publicity techniques, social media and the future of music PR. Wed 21 Sep

MUSIC RIGHTS - INSIDE & OUT
A beginner's guide to music copyright - everything you need to know about copyright law, licensing, monetising copyright, the fight against piracy and the future of the music rights industry. Wed 5 Oct

For more information or to book visit www.theCMUwebsite.com/training

PJ HARVEY WINS MERCURY PRIZE
So, around the table of business journalists I spent the evening with, in a sneaky corner safely away from the cameras at Barclaycard's big mercurial dinner in London last night, only the FT's representative guessed correctly that Team Mercury would hand PJ Harvey their big award for the second time. And this time in slightly more celebratory circumstances, Harvey's 2001 win being somewhat overshadowed by the fact that year's Mercury Prize took place on September 11.

In business terms, and assuming the Mercury organisers and/or their backers Barclaycard like their award to have a tangible impact on record sales, which they do, it was a good choice of winner. It's a critically acclaimed album, accessible - more or less - to a mainstream, slightly older audience, which has not previously reached market saturation, and which is backed by a major label able to capitalise on the benefits of a Mercury win. Though I should add that the FT's correspondent, hopefully like the Mercury judging panel themselves, picked 'Let England Shake' because she thought it was a brilliant record.

Accepting her second Mercury Prize, Harvey said: "Thanks for the recognition of my work on this album. It took a long time to write. I wanted to write something that was meaningful, not just for myself but for other people - something that would last. I'm delighted and happy to have won the Prize tonight because I put so much into this album. It's wonderful to have this recognized and to have the opportunity to reach out to a wider audience".

Meanwhile the chair of the Mercury judging panel, Simon Frith, remarked: "In a very fine year for British music, PJ Harvey's 'Let England Shake' is a record off exceptional depth, passion and imagination: a musical meditation on Englishness that is gripping and profound ".

Harvey beat competition from fellow short-listers Adele, Anna Calvi, Elbow, Everything Everything, Ghostpoet, Gwilym Simcock, James Blake, Katy B, King Creosote & Jon Hopkins, Metronomy and Tinie Tempah, all of whom performed on the night, with the exception of Adele who, having recently cancelled some live shows because of a chest infection, and therefore was unable to play live.

Elsewhere in London, with Mercury fever in the air, Popjustice presented their Twenty Quid Music Prize for best pop song of the year to The Saturdays for 'Higher', while Drowned In Sound presented their Neptune Prize to the eponymous debut long player from 'SBTRKT'. We don't have a Mercury-like prize here at CMU, though I am quietly starting a campaign for meat instead of fish for next year's Mercury dinner.

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MURRAY TRIAL JURY SELECTION TO GO AHEAD AS PLANNED
The judge overseeing the trial of Conrad Murray, the doctor accused of causing the death of Michael Jackson through negligence, has said jury selection will begin tomorrow as planned unless the Californian appeals courts instruct him otherwise.

As previously reported, the Murray defence team are trying to have the jury in the manslaughter trial sequestered, ie kept away from external influence 24/7 during the trial. They argue that media interest in the case will be so rampant, it will be impossible for jurors to not be influenced by coverage and comment outside the courtroom.

But Judge Michael Pastor says he trusts the jurors to not allow themselves to be influenced in that way, and therefore he does not believe the cost and stress of keeping the jury in hotel rooms between court hearings is necessary. Team Murray are appealing Pastor's ruling on this point, and had asked the judge to delay starting the doctor's trial until an appeals court had ruled on the matter.

But Pastor said yesterday he intended to begin jury selection tomorrow as planned. The first part of jury selection should take about three days, with 480 potential jurors questioned before 100 are presented to legal reps for both the prosecution and defence later this month. It is unlikely a final jury will be in place before the last week in September, so Pastor is possibly confident an appeals court will have ruled re the sequestering proposal by then anyway.

The prosecution will say Murray acted negligently in administering the surgical anaesthetic propofol to Jackson at the singer's home as a cure for insomnia. Murray's team are expected to argue Jackson self-administered the lethal shot of the drug, possibly in a bid to commit suicide.

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FORMER MCR DRUMMER COMMENTS ON WHAT LED TO HIS SACKING
Short-lived My Chemical Romance drummer Michael Pedicone has spoken about the circumstances around his abrupt axing from the band last weekend. As previously reported, Pedicone, who joined MCR late last year to replace previous drummer Bob Bryar, was fired last week after apparently being caught stealing from the band.

After MCR guitarist Frank Iero confirmed the reason for Pedicone's dismissal, the drummer took to Twitter to say the situation was "more complicated" than the band's statement suggested. Now, via a statement given to Kerrang!, he's revealed last week's incident was the result of an ongoing feud between him and a member of MCR's tour crew. He says he accepts that he did something very stupid - seemingly in a bid to embarrass said tour crew member - but that his actions were not straightforward theft.

Says Pedicone: "Almost as soon as I began touring with MCR I ran into problems with a member of the band's crew who I'll not name. The problems were many, big and small, but some of them were large enough that they began to greatly impact me and, by extension, my family. I'd reached my wits' end, and I made what was certainly the poorest decision of my life. I would have liked an opportunity to share my side of the story with MCR, an opportunity to express my remorse. I was never given one".

On the stealing incident, he continues: "Rather than address the issues that I had with the crew member in an open and honest manner, I tried to make them look irresponsible. My intention was to make this person look incompetent. I had no intention of profiting whatsoever. Again, I cannot overstate how poor my judgment was in this situation; it was a tremendous mistake, and it's one I'll regret for years to come. I'd like to thank MCR's members, crew, and supporters for giving me some of the best musical experiences of my life in the past several months. However brief our partnership, it was an honour and a dream come true to play with such a talented bunch of individuals".

As previously reported, Dead Country's Jarrod Alexander has been filling in on drums for MCR's live shows since Pedicone's axing.

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ROBBIE DECIDING ON TRACKS FOR ALBUM NINE
According to The Sun, Robbie Williams is currently working with former EMI A&R Chris Briggs to decide which of the various songs he has worked on of late should appear on his next solo album. According to various reports, and a blog post from Robbie himself, Williams has been very productive in recent months and is sitting on way more tracks than he'll need for his next long player.

Of course it still remains to be seen how Williams' and his management team at ie:music decide to release the follow up to 2009's 'Reality Killed The Video Star', he having completed his commitments to EMI. Briggs is now working with Sony, leading some to speculate they might sign up the rights to the next album, though Take That's label, Universal's Polydor, have also been mooted as possible partners.

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JOHANSSON PLAYS BARDOT ON SERGE GAINSBOURG TRIBUTE
Serial cover-killer and some-time actress Scarlett Johannson has recorded a duet with Serge Gainsbourg's son Lulu, which will feature on a forthcoming tribute LP dedicated to the late auteur, entitled 'From Gainsbourg To Lulu'.

The duo cover 'Bonnie & Clyde', with Johansson translating the lyrics originally sung by Brigitte Bardot (the original Bonnie, circa 1968) into English, a move which is slightly odd given Lulu sings his father's part in French. I'm not sure it works to be honest, but have a listen via this video, which I think doubles up as an ad for Moet. Scarlett certainly quaffs a lot of the stuff.

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KURT VILE PREPS NEW EP, GIVES AWAY FREE TRACK
Following the grand reception his latest album, 'Smoke Ring For My Halo', garnered when it came out earlier this year, singer-songwriter Kurt Vile has confirmed that he'll release a new six-track EP via 4AD/ Matador on 7 Nov.

Made up largely of deconstructed cuts from his 'Smoke Ring' sessions, 'So Outta Reach' will also feature a cover of Bruce Spingsteen's 'Downbound Train'. The track list is below, and you can glean a complimentary preview by downloading first song 'The Creature' from the Matador website.

The Creature
It's Alright
Life's A Beach
Laughing Stock
Downbound Train
(So Outta Reach)

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SMASHING PUMPKINS ANNOUNCE TOUR
Those Smashing Pumpkins, aka Billy Corgan and some other bods, have announced details of a UK tour. This comes as the band reveal they are close to finishing work on their ninth album 'Oceania', Corgan et al's first full-lengther since 2007's 'Zeitgeist'.

As previously reported, EMI also plan to release remastered versions of the band's first four albums over the next year and a half, which is rather exciting.

But enough of the release talk, here are those tour dates:

11 Nov: Manchester, O2 Apollo
13 Nov: Glasgow, O2 Academy
14 Nov: Newcastle, O2 Academy
15 Nov: London, O2 Academy Brixton
16 Nov: London, O2 Academy Brixton
18 Nov: Sheffield, O2 Academy
19 Nov: Birmingham, O2 Academy

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TINCHY TO TOUR
Things are looking up for Tinchy Stryder, who, last time we saw him, was bemoaning the less than brilliant sales of his latest LP 'Third Strike'. One MOBO-nominated Dappy collaboration later, though, and the rapper is raring to debut tracks from his TBA fourth album, due out next year, on a just-announced national tour. He's also involved in Gary Barlow's Children In Need single, a collective cover of Massive Attack's 'Teardrop', which is going to be grand, I'm sure.

Anyway, here are those Tinchy tour dates:

9 Nov: Liverpool, O2 Academy 2
10 Nov: Manchester, Club Academy
11 Nov: Nottingham, Rescue Rooms
12 Nov: Norwich, Waterfront
13 Nov: London, Scala

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NEW ZOLA JESUS TRACK, TOUR DATES
Plummy-toned alt-pop sort Zola Jesus has supplemented her hitherto sparse UK live calendar with several new November shows, two of which are in partnership with high-ranking CMU favourite EMA, which is nice.

This announcement comes as a new track emerges from Zola Jesus' new LP 'Conatus', which is due out on 26 Sep. Have a blast of delightfully angular jam, 'Seekir', below.

soundcloud.com/zolajesus/seekir

Tour dates:
26 Sep: London, Toynbee Studios
22 Nov: Bristol, Anson Rooms, Bristol
23 Nov: London, Heaven, London (w/ EMA)
24 Nov: Manchester, Academy 3 (w/ EMA)
25 Nov: Liverpool, Karizmer

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FESTIVAL LINE-UP UPDATE

CONSTELLATIONS FESTIVAL, Leeds University, Leeds, 12 Nov: Acts including Dutch Uncles, Eagulls, Gross Magic, Hookworms, Spector, Summer Camp and Vessels join Big Deal, The Antlers, Three Trapped Tigers, Stephen Malkmus & The Jicks and Givers on this year's overall Constellations bill. Oh, and possibly most exciting, WARP Films will be curating a pop-up cinema. www.constellationsfestival.com

ICELAND AIRWAVES, Various Venues, Reykjavík, 12-16 Oct: Supercool new additions to the already sub-zero Airwaves bill include James Murphy with his DJ hat on, Sinéad O'Connor, Raised Among Wolves, Iceage and Mugison, who join a pleasantly frosty existing roster of such types as Yoko Ono Plastic Ono Band, SBTRKT, Beach House, Tune-Yards, Austra and Glasser. www.icelandairwaves.is

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BASCA ANNOUNCE DETAILS OF SONGFEST 2011
The British Academy Of Songwriters, Composers And Authors - BASCA to its closer friends - has announced details of the year's SongFest, the annual event for songwriters staged for the first time last year. This time round the event will take place at The Bedford in Balham, and already confirmed to speak are Chris Difford, Sway, Nerina Pallot, Kim Appleby and Steve Levine, among others.

Topics for discussion will include what makes a number one record, the craft of songwriting, common pitfalls when signing deals, tips on bedroom recording, and the ins and outs of promoting and monetising your music. More info at www.songfest.org.uk

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VIVENDI CONFIRM SEETICKETS ACQUISITION
Universal Music owners Vivendi have confirmed their takeover of See Tickets UK, giving them a sizable slice of the British ticketing market.

As previously reported, CTS Eventim were thought to be favourites to win the bidding for the ticketing firm, but last weekend it emerged Vivendi had done the deal with former owners Parcom Capita. It extends a move into the ticketing space for the French conglom, which began with the buying of a 65% stake in France-based Digitick last year.

In a simple statement earlier this week, Vivendi said: "We have acquired the UK ticketing company See Tickets UK for a purchase price of approximately 96 million euros (£83 million with an enterprise value of £94 million). This acquisition complements the group's different businesses. It follows the acquisition in December 2010 of French leading on-line ticketing company Digitick".

Elsewhere in Vivendi-related takeovers, the aforementioned Universal Music has bought Danish label and music publishing group MBO, which includes labels Copenhagen Records, A:larm and RecArt.

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BMI PROMOTE LEGAL MAN
US-based publishing rights collecting society whatnot BMI has announced the promotion of Stuart Rosen to the role of Senior VP and General Counsel, he having previously been VP Legal. In his new role he will oversee the global operations of BMI's legal department and direct the organisation's legal affairs.

He will report to CEO Del Bryant, who told reporters: "Stuart has been a key member of the legal department since joining BMI in 1996 and he has played an instrumental role in a wide range of activities. As General Counsel, Stuart will maintain BMI's extraordinarily high standards for rights management, vigilantly protecting the creative works and legal rights of the more than half a million songwriters, publishers and content creators we proudly represent and defend".

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ESTEFAN DOES EXCLUSIVITY DEAL WITH TARGET
Gloria Estefan is the latest artist to strike up an exclusivity deal with a retailer, albeit only in the US.

Her new long player 'Little Miss Havana', out later this month and her first English language album since 2003, will only be available physically via retailer Target, and digitally will only be on sale via the iTunes store. The exclusivity deals follow Estefan's decision to work with Universal on the distribution and marketing of this record.

As previously reported, Estefan is also set to present a series of programmes about the history of Latin music for Radio 2 this Autumn.

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YAHOO! FIRE CEO
The boss of flagging web firm Yahoo! has been fired, despite the company's Chairman confirming his board's support for the company's current management at an AGM in June. Carol Bartz announced her sudden departure to her staff via a brief email that said, simply, "I am very sad to tell you that I've just been fired over the phone by Yahoo's chairman of the board. It has been my pleasure to work with all of you and I wish you only the best going forward".

Bartz was brought into Yahoo! in 2009 in another attempt to turn around the fortunes of the web firm which, although still a big player in terms of traffic, has seen newer competitors, and especially Google and Facebook, increasingly dominate in terms of audience and advertising share.

It was hoped Bartz could succeed where her predecessor, Yahoo! founder Jerry Yang, had failed. But, despite initial high hopes, her leadership had come under increased criticism in investment circles, particularly since public bickering between Yahoo! and the management of the Alibaba Group, a Chinese company in which the web giant has a 40% stake. Yahoo! CFO Timothy Morse will fill in as CEO until a replacement can be found. Another restructure and possible downsizing is now expected, possibly even before a new CEO is appointed.

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7DIGITAL SAY THEY NOW HAVE A MILLION ACTIVE MOBILE USERS
Digital music provider 7Digital has announced it now has one million active users for its mobile-based content services, and that said mobile-users now account for 20% of all downloads.

The firm's rapid expansion of its mobile user-base has been helped, of course, by 7Digital powered apps and players being preinstalled on mobile and tablet devices made by all sorts of electronics firms, including Samsung, Sony Ericsson, Philips, Toshiba and Blackberry. And just in case you're interested, the Samsung Galaxy SII is the most popular device among 7Digital's mobile user base, followed by the BlackBerry PlayBook.

Commenting on his firm's latest user-stats, 7Digital chief Ben Drury told CMU: "Sales to devices were less than 5% of our sales in 2010 and are now over 20% and growing fast. Our approach to be an open, agnostic digital content partner to the consumer electronic industry is really working. We know that consumers want access to their music collection on the device of their choice, anytime, anywhere and we're helping enable that. 7digital's catalogue of over 15 million high quality DRM-free tracks and open API platform mean we are the de facto choice for device manufacturers' partnerships".

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KASABIAN TOM DISSES X-FACTOR
Last month Kasabian's Tom Meighan vowed to stop slagging off other artists. But that pledge said nothing about 'X-Factor'. Though it's possible slating 'X-Factor' contestants does, in fact, constitute "slagging off other artists". But I'm happy to let the European Court Of Human Rights rule on that one.

Meanwhile, here's what Meighan had to say when asked about the talent show after singing some songs on a plane for VEVO: "It's just really tragic. It's not about singing, it's about TV. You get the contestants who are all, like, drooling. Pathetic isn't it? The egos are awful. Awful!"

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