DEALS
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Warner Chappell in the US has announced a new worldwide admin deal with the estate of Tom Petty which covers the “vast majority of songs written by Petty throughout his lifetime”. Confirming the new deal, the estate says in a statement, “We’re looking forward to this new partnership with the team at Warner Chappell, as we expand the reach of Tom’s iconic song catalogue. This partnership will open the door to new licensing opportunities and serve to introduce his music to a new generation across the globe”.
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Venue management company ASM Global has expanded into Portugal for the first time after securing a deal to oversee the operations of two live event spaces within the LX Factory complex in Lisbon. It’s the latest expansion of ASM Global’s business in Europe, it having entered the Finnish market and expanded its operations in Sweden, Italy and Germany over the last year. Says the company’s President for Europe, Chris Bray, “This growth is a credit to our fantastic team, which is the best at what they do, and our reputation as the world’s best in venue expertise and management. We have big plans across the UK and Europe, and this latest news marks an exciting next step in that journey”.
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Warner Chappell in France has signed new worldwide publishing deals with Orelsan and Skread, two artists, songwriters and producers who regularly collaborate. The new deals are with the two musicians’ respective companies, Strong Ninja and 7th Magnitude. Says the Warner publisher’s MD for France, Matthieu Tessier: “Orelsan and Skread are creative powerhouses whose songs have helped shape modern French culture and will still resonate decades from now”.
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Hedge fund Glazer Capital has filed a regulatory update showing that it has acquired another 5 million shares in Hipgnosis Songs Fund, taking its total stake to 8.67% and further increasing speculation around Blackstone’s deal to buy SONG.
APPOINTMENTS
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Indie label digital licensing agency Merlin has appointed a new General Counsel, Neil Miller, who joins from law firm Greenberg Traurig LLP having previously had legal roles at both Meta and SoundCloud. Merlin COO Charlie Lexton says, “Merlin is a dynamic organisation operating in a complex and ever changing legal and commercial environment. Neil’s wealth of experience across music and digital entertainment is exactly what we need to meet these challenges”.
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Believe has made two appointments in China. Charles Liu, previously with Sony Music China, becomes General Manager and Rebecca Dong is Managing Director Operations. Believe’s President for APAC, Sylvain Delange, says Greater China is an “exciting and challenging market” where “Believe’s unique approach” can significantly contribute to “a strong, diverse and thriving local music ecosystem”, adding that - with the latest hires - “we are in the best position to fuel Believe’s continued expansion in Greater China”.
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US ticketing company Tixr has announced it is opening a London office which will be headed up by Stephanie Rosa. It follows the company’s recent expansion into Canada. Says Rosa, “I couldn’t be more excited to lead our UK operations and European expansion from our new London office. There’s no modern platform more capable of servicing such a wide array of complex events, and the opportunities in the region are immense”.
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Warner Records in the US has promoted Robert Santini to the role of EVP Of Brand Partnerships & Ad Sync. Having joined the major as a VP in 2020, among other things he played a key role in securing the partnership between the label and Roblox and the NFL that resulted in a Virtual Super Bowl Halftime Performance in 2023. “Nobody understands the intersection between music, sports and video games quite like Robert does”, says EVP Brand Partnerships & Sync Claudia Butzky. “He recognises the value of cross-collaboration and always identifies the potential to break ground early on”.
RECORD LABELS
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UK record industry collecting society PPL last week distributed £103.7 million to its performer and label members, the first time it has paid out more than £100 million in a single quarterly distribution. Contributing to the growth, PPL says, is the new Specially Featured Entertainment licence covering DJ sets and discos, which was launched in January 2023 with a phased roll-out. This new licence “has driven a positive impact for performers and rightsholders with a year-on-year increase of 20%” in money distributed from it.
INDUSTRY EVENTS
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It’s been announced that Rachel Chinouriri will perform at the Ladies Who Rock lunch in aid of Teenage Cancer Trust next week. Hosted by Miss Rory and Sophie K, the event brings together “some of the most influential and inspirational people from across the creative industries” for “an afternoon of food, entertainment and networking in order to raise essential funds for young people with cancer and highlight the important mission of Teenage Cancer Trust”. It all happens at the M Restaurant in London on 9 Jul and some tickets are still available.
ARTIST NEWS
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New York entertainment law firm Grubman, Shire, Meiselas & Sack has confirmed it has dropped Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs as a client following the numerous allegations of sexual harassment and assault made against the musician over the last year. The lawyers issued a statement following a NewsNation report that said the decision to stop working with Diddy was motivated by demands made by another client, Lady Gaga. A spokesperson for the law firm denied that claim, telling PageSix, “The decision to part ways with Mr Combs was proactively made by the partners in the firm a number of months ago as they felt it was the right thing to do. The report that the decision was the result of client pressure just isn’t true”.
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Donald Glover has released the trailer for his new film ‘Bando Stone & The New World’, in which he serves as director, lead actor and composer under his musical alias Childish Gambino. The song featured in the trailer is his latest track ‘Lithonia’, which is set for release this week.
GIGS & TOURS
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Pearl Jam have cancelled two more dates on their European tour, due to take place in Berlin tonight and tomorrow, due to illness in the band. A London show was cancelled this weekend. An apologetic statement on social media says, “Despite everyone’s best efforts, the band has yet to make a full recovery”.
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Following her headline set at Glastonbury, Dua Lipa has announced she will play London’s Wembley Stadium next summer, on 25 Jun 2025. “There couldn’t be a better time to share this with you all”, she says. “I am still flying high from the magic of headlining the Pyramid Stage at Glastonbury this weekend and I am absolutely THRILLED to announce I’ll be playing Wembley Stadium this time next year”. Tickets go on sale on 12 Jul.
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Papa Roach have announced that they will play London's Wembley Arena on 7 Feb 2024, which will be their only UK appearance next year. They are also partnering with suicide prevention charity CALM as part of the show and there will be a £1 donation included on every ticket.
RELEASES
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Jessie Ware and Romy have collaborated on new single 'Lift You Up', released on Sunday after debuting during Ware’s Glastonbury set over the weekend.