DEALS
🎸
Primary Wave Music has acquired the recordings and songs catalogue of Extreme guitarist Nuno Bettencourt. The deal covers all of his solo work and the entire Extreme catalogue, excluding the band’s 2023 album ‘Six’. “After getting to know the team at Primary Wave and seeing their passion, work ethic and creative ideas in action, I am happy now to have a bigger partnership with them”, he says. “I look forward to continuing to building my song catalogue into new realms of activity”.
APPOINTMENTS
🌍
Coldplay, Warner Music and the Massachusetts Institute Of Technology have announced that they have formed an advisory committee for their study into live music’s impact on climate change in the UK and US. Among the members are Ellie Goulding, Live Nation CEO Michael Rapino and Warner CEO Robert Kyncl. “With the participation of the advisory committee and contributions of data from various sources, we are well on our way to producing a significant contribution to knowledge that can support meaningful actions to address climate change”, says Professor John E Fernandez, director of the MIT Environmental Solutions Initiative.
💒
Universal’s Capitol Christian Music Group in the US has announced two appointments to roles covering Motown Gospel and TAMLA Records. Walter Thomas has been promoted to VP Artist Development, while Alexandria Dollar has been hired as Senior Director Of A&R. "These iconic labels have a legacy of inspiring and uplifting music, and I am committed to continuing this tradition by developing the next generation of extraordinary artists”, says Thomas. “I am equally THRILLED to welcome Alexandria Dollar as our new Senior Director of A&R”.
LEGAL
🚨
LA prosecutors have chosen not to pursue a criminal case against Killer Mike, following his arrest for assault backstage at this year’s Grammy Awards in February. According to TMZ, the rapper has agreed to do community service and will have to avoid any further arrests for a year, or the case may be reopened.
🛫
Lawyers for Live Nation yesterday called for the lawsuit filed against the live giant by the US Department Of Justice to be moved from a New York court to a court in Washington DC. They argued that the DC court has jurisdiction over the consent decree that was agreed with the DoJ in 2010 when Live Nation and Ticketmaster merged. The DoJ countered that its current claim of anticompetitive conduct against Live Nation goes beyond a disagreement over the consent decree. According to Law360, the judge hearing the case in New York didn’t seem convinced by Live Nation's arguments, but said the company could submit a motion setting out those arguments in more detail.
🪖
Three employees of subsidiaries of K-pop agency HYBE have been charged with insider trading. All three are accused of using insider knowledge to sell off shares in the company shortly before BTS announced that they were going on hiatus to undertake mandatory military service, causing a dip in the company’s share price.
LABELS & PUBLISHERS
🚀
Downtown Music has launched Curve Royalty Services, offering labels, publishers and distributors the option to outsource their royalty accounting. “It has always been our goal to make royalties better and easier”, says Curve MD Richard Leach. “Now our royalty services team can take on those parts of the process clients would like to outsource”.
DIGITAL
🤖
Sample library Splice has announced a new AI-powered tool that will find samples to match an original loop, aiming to save hours of trawling through catalogues of sounds. “Splice AI delivers human-made sounds that are compatible with the creator's original idea, which remains at the centre of the creative process”, says CEO Kakul Srivastava. “With this tool creators can start with their own sound, select a genre, and Splice’s AI will surface sounds that fit perfectly in seconds. This sets the stage for the next generation of technology advances at Splice, putting powerful tools directly into our users’ existing workflow”.
GIGS & TOURS
❌
Neil Young And Crazy Horse have cancelled the remaining dates on their North American tour due to illness. Last performing in May, the group were due to play more shows in Canada this month, plus three US performances in September. “A couple” of members of the band have been unwell and have “still not fully recovered”, Young explained in a post on his website. He added that they “will try to play some of the dates we miss” in the future.
RELEASES
👮🏾
Lil Nas X has released new single ‘Here We Go’. The track is taken from the new ‘Beverly Hills Cop’ sequel absolutely no one wanted ‘Axel F’, which is set to arrive on Netflix next week.
🚗
Mustard has released new single ‘Parking Lot’ featuring Travis Scott. The producer’s new album ‘Faith Of A Mustard Seed’ is out on 26 Jul.
💅
The Kid Laroi has released new single ‘Girls’.
💘
Cat Burns has released new single ‘Met Someone’.
💣
Dizzee Rascal and producer Efan have paired up for new track ‘Filthy Bassline’.
🔥
Sasha Keable has released new single ‘Auction’ featuring Destin Conrad.
🌇
Clairo has released new single ‘Nomad’. Her new album ‘Charm’ is out on 12 Jul.
🦈
Amy Shark has released new single ‘Two Friends’. Her third album ‘Sunday Sadness’ is out on 16 Aug.
💎
Sevdaliza has released new single ‘Alibi’ featuring Yseult and Pabllo Vittar.
💉
Desire have released new single ‘Dangerous Drug’. Their new album ‘Games People Play’ is out on 2 Oct.
🌞
Suuns have released new single ‘Doreen’. Their new album ‘The Breaks’ is out on 6 Sep.
