DEALS
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Disney Music Group and AudioShake have announced a collaboration to apply stem separation and lyric transcription technologies to Disney’s music catalogue. The partnership will enable Disney to generate instrument stems for older recordings, potentially expanding their use in sync licensing, remastering projects and immersive audio formats. Additionally, AudioShake’s lyric transcription tool will be used to improve metadata and facilitate more efficient sync searches. David Abdo, SVP and General Manager of Disney Music Group, says, “AudioShake is a great example of cutting-edge technology that can benefit our artists and songwriters”. Jessica Powell, CEO of AudioShake, adds: "Stems and lyrics are crucial assets that labels and artists can use to open up recordings to new music experiences. We’re THRILLED to deepen our partnership with Disney Music Group”.
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Eventbrite and TikTok have announced a partnership to enable direct ticket purchases through TikTok videos, aiming to boost event discovery. The collaboration comes as the ticketing company reports music as its most attended global category in the past year. Ted Dworkin, Chief Product Officer at Eventbrite, says, “We're giving creators a simple way to jump into trending conversations and bring online communities together in real life through events they're passionate about”. Isaac Bess, Global Head Of Distribution Partnerships at TikTok, adds, “Our partnership with Eventbrite will help event creators to connect with the TikTok community, and introduce a wealth of fantastic real-world events to our users”.
APPOINTMENTS
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Warner Music’s 300 Entertainment has promoted Az Cohen to Vice President, A&R & Research, Janelle Gibbs to Vice President, Publicity, and Tashana Ventura to Vice President, Marketing. Co-Presidents Rayna Bass and Selim Bouab praised the trio’s dedication and impact, stating they “represent a new vanguard of music industry executives”. Cohen, who joined in 2014, will focus on talent development and has been instrumental in launching Sparta Distribution. Gibbs, who joined in 2022, will lead media strategy for the label’s roster, while Ventura, with the company since 2018, will oversee marketing efforts and partnerships across the label.
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Universal Music merch outfit Bravado has appointed Mallary Birdsong as Senior Director Of Brand Management, based in Nashville. Birdsong, who previously served as Director Of Merchandise at Make Wake Artists, will report to Brian Schechter, SVP Head Of Brand Management. “I'm THRILLED to be a part of the Bravado team and to grow with a company that is truly in a league of their own”, says Birdsong.
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Universal Music’s Republic Records has appointed Miles Beard and David Wolter as co-heads of A&R, reporting to President and Chief Creative Officer Wendy Goldstein. The duo, who joined Republic in 2022, will jointly lead A&R development and strategy, overseeing partnerships alongside Executive VP Danielle Price. Goldstein praised their complementary skills, stating, “Their partnership is genuinely next-level and will be integral to our success going forward”.
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Shira Perlmutter, the Register Of Copyrights and Director of the US Copyright Office, has announced that Malcolm ‘Hawk’ Hawkins has been appointed Deputy Director Of Operations. Hawkins, who joined the Office in November 2020 as Chief of the Administrative Services Division, will assist with strategic planning, financial management and business processes. Prior to joining the Copyright Office, Hawkins held various roles at the Department Of Defense and served over 20 years in the United States Air Force. In his new role Hawkins will leverage his experience in advisory positions and programme oversight to support the Office’s operations, assisting Jacqueline Napier, the Assistant Register and Director Of Operations.
LEGAL
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Judge Ural Glanville has been removed from the high-profile racketeering and gang case against rapper Young Thug and others in Atlanta. Another judge, Rachel Krause, granted motions for recusal filed by two defendants, citing a meeting Glanville held with prosecutors and a state witness. While not faulting Glanville’s conduct, Krause stated that her decision was made to preserve public confidence in the judicial system. The ruling is expected to further delay the trial, which has already been ongoing for over a year. Young Thug’s lawyer, Brian Steel, welcomed the decision, maintaining his client’s innocence and calling for a fair trial.
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The UK’s new Labour government is expected to introduce an artificial intelligence bill this week, fulfilling a manifesto pledge to create binding rules for advanced AI development. The bill, likely to be part of the King’s Speech, will focus on enhancing legal safeguards for cutting-edge AI technologies, particularly large language models. This marks a departure from former PM Rishi Sunak’s approach, which favoured voluntary agreements over legislation. Keir Starmer’s move aligns more closely with the EU’s stricter regulatory stance. The new Secretary Of State For Science, Innovation And Technology, Peter Kyle, previously indicated that he favoured plans for a “statutory code” requiring companies to release test data and disclose testing procedures.
DIGITAL
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Deezer has launched a beta test of a new AI-powered feature, Playlist with AI, which it is rolling out to 5% of its paying subscribers globally. The feature allows users to create playlists based on text prompts describing moods, genres, decades or activities. Alexandra Leloup, VP Product at Deezer, states: “Whether you need the perfect soundtrack for a workout, a romantic evening, or a nostalgic trip down memory lane, our Playlist with AI feature will curate a new musical experience within a matter of seconds, and offers endless possibilities to easily discover new music”. This new tool joins Deezer’s existing AI-enhanced features like Flow and SongCatcher, and mirrors recent similar AI playlist tools from Spotify and Amazon Music.
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Spotify is cutting 40 jobs globally as it restructures its ad sales division, merging account and campaign management roles, with the cuts affecting 2.7% of the ad sales team. The streaming platform aims to focus on self-serve programmatic advertising and smaller business clients. Pete Finnecy will lead the new ‘customer success team”, with Accenture providing support. Spotify’s ad-supported tier generated £420 million in Q1 2024, up 18% year-on-year.
MEDIA
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Bauer Media has announced that its classical music station Scala Radio will be rebranded as Magic Classical from September, becoming part of Bauer’s ‘Magic’ network of stations. Scala was originally launched in 2019 and focuses on “familiar masters alongside contemporary classical music”. The rebranded station will continue to be programmed by Scala’s existing Content Director Nick Pitts. Gary Stein, Bauer’s Director Of Audio, says the change aims to introduce Scala's talent “to a whole new family of listeners”. At the same time, “throwbacks” station Magic Chilled will be rebranded to Hits Radio Chilled.
INDUSTRY
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The Country Music Association has announced the third class of its Women’s Leadership Academy, a twelve week professional development programme for sixteen high-potential female leaders in the country music industry. Kicking off on 5 Aug, the Amazon-sponsored initiative will include educational sessions and group coaching led by executive coaches Lisa Gamble and Nicole Provonchee. Tiffany Kerns, CMA’s SVP Of Industry Relations & Philanthropy, says “We are THRILLED to be welcoming this group of women to our WLA class. Now in our third year, I am continuously amazed and inspired by the women that we are able to engage with through this programme”. This year’s cohort includes executives from various sectors of the industry, including major labels, streaming platforms and talent agencies.
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First Artists Management has launched its second UK Composer Assistant and Mentor Programme, or ‘CAMP’, for 2024-25, aimed at empowering aspiring film and TV composers, particularly from underrepresented groups. Hannah Peel serves as the programme ambassador, with mentors including Alex Baranowski, Natalie Holt and Ré Olunuga. The programme offers education and mentoring to ten selected applicants, followed by a full-time paid assistant placement. Hamish Duff, head of FAM’s European office, states: "CAMP was created to both demystify the music for screen industry and to offer practical tips, mentoring and, most importantly, real-life working experience to help new voices to break into the industry”. Applications close on 30 Aug, with the programme commencing in late September 2024.
ARTIST NEWS
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Billie Eilish is set to read Oliver Jeffers’ ‘This Moose Belongs To Me’ for the BBC’s ‘CBeebies Bedtime Stories’. Choosing a book that aligns with her environmental advocacy, Eilish says, “We need to look after beautiful, wild creatures like Marcel, but we also need to let them do their own thing”. Marcel is the name of the moose in the story. The singer also reflected on her own childhood, saying, “My favourite thing in the world as a child was a bedtime story and I would be upset if I didn't get one. I had a lot and I loved them all”. Author Jeffers expressed enthusiasm about Eilish’s selection, noting “This book is about our relationship with nature in some ways and Billie is a champion of that”. The episode will air on CBeebies and BBC iPlayer on 19 Jul.
RELEASES
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JPEG MAFIA has released his new single ‘SIN MIEDO’.
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The Beaches have released their new single ‘Takes One To Know One’.
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Ganavya has collaborated with Nils Frahm on two new singles ‘draw something beautiful’ and ‘ami pana so’dras’.
GIGS & TOURS
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London label Sonic Cathedral celebrates its 20th anniversary with a series of one-off live shows featuring headliners Slowdive and Ride. A Place To Bury Strangers and new generation shoegazers Whitelands, deary, bdrmm and more also feature. Founder Nathaniel Cramp says, “Never in my wildest dreams would I have expected to still be doing this in 2024, or that Ride and Slowdive would be back together and playing as part of the celebrations”. Tickets are available here.
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Jamie Webster has announced a UK and Ireland headline tour, including the O2 Forum Kentish Town on 27 Nov. Tickets go on general sale at 10am this Friday here.
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LØLØ has announced a UK and European headline tour, kicking off at Leeds’ Key Club on 22 Oct. Tickets go on general sale at 10am this Thursday here.