Talent Is Timeless, the premier platform for songwriters over 50, is proud to announce its partnership with Universal Audio, a leading manufacturer of professional audio recording hardware and software. Universal Audio will sponsor the 2023 Talent Is Timeless songwriting competition with three of their Volt 2 Studio Packages, providing winningContinue Reading
Boomplay, Africa’s popular music streaming service, and Merlin expand their licencing deal to include 47 new African countries. Phil Choi from Boomplay said: “As our user base and service grows rapidly across the continent, it’s important that we have the right partners to continue on this journey with us, andContinue Reading
Since its founding in 1998, CD Baby, the music distributor owned by Downtown Music Holdings, has reportedly paid out more than $1 billion to musicians. Andrew Bergman from, Downtown said: “As business partners since 2014, we appreciated the depth of CD Baby’s organization and its incredibly loyal client base, twoContinue Reading
The purchase of music catalogues is becoming the equivalent of premier league clubs purchasing the world’s best footballers; the money spent is out of this planet! Furthermore, Sony Music Entertainment has purchased Bruce Springsteen’s music rights for a whopping 550 million dollars! Although we do not know the ins andContinue Reading
Warner Music Group recently purchased 300 Entertainment from Kevin Liles, and it has emerged that the record company paid $400 million in cash for the label. Kevin Liles founded 300 Entertainment in 2021, with former Warner Music staffer Lyor Cohen working alongside him.Continue Reading
In February, Apple employees, including those who work in Apple Music, will no longer be expected to return to the office. Tim Cook, Apple’s CEO, indicated that staff would be permitted to work from home ‘indefinitely,’ with a ‘yet-to-be-determined’ return date. Also, all of its corporate employees will receive $1,000Continue Reading
In 2021, TikTok was a breakthrough year for music, with over 430 songs surpassing 1 billion video views. TikTok’s Global Head of Music, Ole Obermann, said: “TikTok opens the door to new artists, new sounds, underground and DIY scenes as well as the classic hits, connecting them with a globalContinue Reading
The world’s most well-known record companies, such as Sony, Universal, and Warner, are joining independents in signing climate schemes that will allow for a more sustainable future by 2050. There are presently two schemes, the Science-Based Targets and the SME Climate Community, and large corporations are signing on to them.Continue Reading
With their latest announcement that they will develop ‘Virtual Identities,’ Universal is paving the road forward in the NFT space. The flagship label will team up with Genies, the avatar tech company, for their project, and they also state they will create NFTs for their artists. Celine Joshua from UniversalContinue Reading
According to recent reports, Ali Lieberman will join Symphonic Distribution as Vice President of Product. Speaking about the new appointment, Ali said: I’m thrilled to join the team at Symphonic and am very impressed with the high-quality services they offer creators. I can’t wait to build some really cool productsContinue Reading
Following Spotify’s growth into a slew of new nations, the streaming firm has added 16 more languages to its Spotify For Artists platform. Spotify said: “Until now, Spotify for Artists has only spoken one language.” However, this is now about to change.Continue Reading
The Beatles’ vintage audio interviews will head to auction this week as NFTs. The interviews, which are separate interviews with each member, have not seen the light of day in decades. Speaking about the revelation, Jonathan Firstenberg said: “The owners of VOCR acquired this remarkable archive from its creator, KathleenContinue Reading
The ‘Brennan Bill’, which would have likely removed income from labels, failed to pass through the UK Government. Kevin Brennan introduced the new law that allowed artists to receive direct payments from streaming sites, circumventing labels. Many labels were not pleased, even though many artists thought it was the properContinue Reading
Warner Recorded Music has appointed a new SVP of international, Phebe Hunnicutt. Speaking about the new position, Phebe said: “It’s an exciting time to join Warner Music as it works with partners to tap into opportunities in rapidly developing new markets, as well as to drive innovation and offer fansContinue Reading
2K, the game publisher behind the popular basketball game NBA 2K22, has teamed up with SoundCloud to search for new talent for their new soundtrack. On the 2K Beats: The Search website, artists can submit their original tunes for consideration.Continue Reading
With his proposal to pay royalties directly to performers instead of through the label, a British politician sends record labels into a frenzy. Although the proposed bill would allow artists to earn more from their music, many question its practical benefit. Furthermore, labels will have little motivation to break songs,Continue Reading
NetEase, the Chinese company, will list its music streaming service, NetEase Cloud Music, on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange on December 2nd. Sony Music has subscribed to a substantial number of shares for $100 million as part of the pre-IPO process.Continue Reading
Sony Music Publishing Nashville has got a new executive vice president of creative, Josh Van Valkenburg. Josh will report to Rusty Gaston, the CEO of Sony Music Publishing Nashville, who has extensive expertise in signing over number-one hit songwriters.Continue Reading
Spotify is expanding into six more countries: Iraq, Libya, Tajikistan, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Venezuela, and the Republic of the Congo. This announcement means that Spotify is now available in 184 markets, and it comes as part of the company’s global expansion strategy.Continue Reading
Distrokid, the online music distribution service, is expanding into the NFT industry. Furthermore, with so many music industry companies and musicians entering the NFT area, it only seems sensible that one of the world’s largest online distributors follows suit. Distrokid has teamed up with 10,000 independent artists to create one-of-a-kindContinue Reading
TuneCore, the online music distributor, has announced a new service that will allow musicians to release their music straight to social media sites like Instagram and TikTok. According to TuneCore’s recent statement, there will be no upfront price for the new service, but TuneCore will receive a “small” revenue share.Continue Reading
Spotify is expanding its audiobook offerings by acquiring Findaway, a leading audiobook distributor. Spotify and Findaway will accelerate the growth of audiobooks as a result of the new acquisition. According to Gustav from Spotify’s reach team: “It is Spotify’s ambition to be the destination for all things audio both forContinue Reading
EMPIRE, the distributor and publisher, is leading the music industry with cryptocurrency payments, having paid a $1 million advance in Bitcoin using Cash App. Money Man received the first advance of its kind, with the distributor utilising modern technologies.Continue Reading
Photo Credit: Frank Schwichtenberg | Licence After recently signing with Kobalt, Young Thug is now a member of the company’s publishing roster. According to the deal, Kobalt will handle all publishing administration, sync, and creative services for the rapper’s future songs. Kobalt’s VP, Jill Tschogl, said: “Young Thug’s track recordContinue Reading
Jasmine Hsiao is the new managing director of Warner Music Taiwan. Jasmine will report to Warner Music Asia co-presidents Chris Gobalakrishna and Jonathan Serbin. The new hire has over 20 years of expertise in the music industry and will begin working in the position immediately. Hsiao said: “I’m excited toContinue Reading
Fader, the indie label, has announced the formation of a new management branch called Fader Management. Jon Cohen, a co-founder of Fader, said: “FADER Management is a natural evolution of the artist development we offer through all of the services Cornerstone and FADER provide. Management enables us to use theContinue Reading
Deezer has formed a strategic partnership with RTL, a German broadcaster. The music streaming app will deliver music, audiobooks, and radio plays for RTL+, which will launch in 2022. Deezer’s CEO, Jeronimo Folgueira, stated: “RTL+ will offer users an integrated entertainment experience with all the content they love in oneContinue Reading
Lionel Richie is one of the best-selling musicians, with over 125 million albums sold worldwide. As a result, it’s no surprise that the hitmaker has struck an exclusive deal with Universal Music Publishing Group. UMPG will take care of his catalogue in the future as part of the exclusive contract.Continue Reading
Chris Gobalakrishna and Jonathan Serbin have been named co-presidents of Warner Music Asia. Both presidents will be based in Hong Kong and report directly to Simon Robson, Warner’s president of international recorded music. Chris Gobalakrishna said: “I’m honoured to be working with Jonathan to lead our Asian operations. Asia isContinue Reading
After deciding to extend its operations in China, UMP China has launched a new office in Shangai. Mo LiangJin spoke about the opening and said: “UMP’s new office opening is a strong support for Jing’an District to continuously promote the development of a multi-dimensional, high-level cultural and creative industry. Jing’anContinue Reading
