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Thursday 27 July 2017, 10:21 | By Andy Malt
Trent Reznor doesn’t like that music you’re listening to. It’s just noise and you can’t even understand the words. Turn it off.
And Finally Artist News Digital
With a new EP, ‘Add Violence’, just out, Trent Reznor has given a long and insightful interview to Vulture. It covers topics from how Donald Trump’s election as president has affected parenting to why he thinks musicians shouldn’t give long interviews.
He also talks about his experience as Artistic Director at Apple Music, and how he sees it as something different to other celebrity side-jobs. “My experience with Beats Music and then at Apple largely was dismissed from outside, maybe justifiably, as here’s another celebrity moron holding up a phone and expecting some sort of credit”, he says. However: “I’ve learned a hell of a lot from working at Beats and Apple. I’ve seen a lot, and it’s interesting to be behind the scenes and meet really cool, smart people that I highly respect”.
“Being in that world has made me realise the true value of being an artist”, he goes on. “The economics of music aren’t what they should be, and the culture isn’t giving the arts its fair due, but humans are always going to respond to emotion and storytelling. I believe that as much as I ever did. More, even”.
To that end then, what does he think of some of today’s big popstars? How about fellow Apple Music affiliate Drake?
“I see what Drake’s been able to pull off in terms of being omnipresent and constantly engaging an audience that seems to enjoy the way he’s engaging them”, he says. “I’m just not part of that audience. I’m not as well-rounded as I used to be about pop culture. I’m not saying pop music isn’t well-crafted or the people who make it aren’t wonderful, but it’s not for me. I’ve asked people, ‘What is it that’s good about Drake?’ I’ve said to my friends at Apple: ‘Explain to me why’. As the old guy, I don’t see it”.
It’s a valid question. “I wasn’t even asking cynically”, he insists. “I was curious what it is that he’s touching on. The answers I got made me go, ‘That’s it?'”
He’s also not keen on that whole EDM thing: “I’ve had many agent types over the years say, ‘EDM is the future’. No, it’s not. It’s fucking not … I’m saying this judgmentally: EDM has certainly changed pop music and is an interesting flavour, but I don’t think anyone’s going to be listening to it in ten years and saying, ‘What a fucking great song that beat was'”.
And then there’s the visual imagery that accompanies some modern music. Reznor particularly singles out Nicki Minaj’s ‘Anaconda’ video, saying: “Is that supposed to be sexy? How about we just have full gynaecological probing in a video? There’s a vulgarity to it”.
You might fairly cry ‘hypocrisy’ there, given that Reznor has a pretty long history of skirting the borders of taste and decency with his art. His most famous lyric, after all, is “I wanna fuck you like an animal” in ‘Closer’. However, he’s no longer a wild rock star in his 20s, he’s a sober parent in his 50s.
“I’m not looking forward to the ‘Closer’ talk”, he says of his children’s interest in his music. “Which is probably going to happen quicker than I’d like. Just this morning, me and my two older boys were sitting in the hotel restaurant. Their mom has played the new EP for them a couple times. They’re like, “My favourite song is ‘Less Than'”. That’s sweet, but then I’m thinking, ‘don’t I say ‘fuck’ in that one?'”
Of how life changes your perceptions of your own art, he adds: “You’re not really thinking about how lyrics that seemed cool at the time are going to register with parents at your kid’s school 20 years later”.
Anyway, you should read the whole interview. Here it is.
READ MORE ABOUT: Trent Reznor
Thursday 27 July 2017, 10:03 | By Andy Malt
Approved: Zgto
CMU Approved
Producer Shigeto and rapper ZelooperZ – a member of Danny Brown’s Bruiser Brigade – are set to release their first album as Zgto, ‘A Piece Of Geto’, on 22 Aug.
It’s probably a slightly unlikely pairing, but that’s precisely what attracted them to the idea of collaborating. ZelooperZ tones down his usually aggressive approach, while Shigeto slides his usually fairly delicate sound across to meet him.
“It’s a representation of what two brothers from completely different environments can give each other”, says Shigeto of the album. “The music is freedom for us. It’s a chance to say that all of those rules that you thought existed, don’t exist”.
Zelooper adds: “It’s a piece from him and it’s a piece from me. It’s a piece from both of us. The whole process has been that. We are just putting in our pieces. It’s like a puzzle that was never supposed to fit together. It looks crazy but the vibe is fun”.
The pair released the first single from the album, ‘Off Dat’, last month. Now they follow it up with ‘Band Man’, which delves further into the collaboration. Listen here:
Stay up to date with all of the artists featured in the CMU Approved column by subscribing to our Spotify playlist.
READ MORE ABOUT: Shigeto | ZelooperZ | Zgto
Wednesday 26 July 2017, 11:50 | By Chris Cooke
Streaming fuels 11.2% growth in music retail
Business News Digital Retail
UK entertainment retail sales were up 6.4% in the first half of 2017 according to new stats published by the Entertainment Retailers Association yesterday, and music retail led the way with an 11.2% uplift year-on-year.
ERA figures include monies generated by the music, video and gaming sectors, taking in both digital and physical products, and sales and subscription revenues. Unlike stats put out by the record industry, ERA’s music numbers also include the retailer or streaming platforms’ cut of any revenue, plus monies paid over to songwriters and music publishers, which are not generally included when the record industry reports digital income.
Overall UK entertainment retail sales generated £2.9 billion in the first half of 2017, up 6.4% on the £2.8 billion that came in during the first half of 2016. Music sales were up 11.2% year-on-year, gaming 8.4% and video sales just 1.2%, even though video products account for many of the best selling individual releases so far this year.
Before all you music types get too smug, let’s not forget that overall, gaming accounts for just over 48% of the entertainment retail market, with DVDs and online video products responsible for about a third of revenues, and music just under 20%. But still, music retail is 11.2% up, woo!
Streaming subscriptions, of course, are fuelling that growth in music income, and digital products and services also now account for 75.4% of overall entertainment retail revenues. Though fans of the vinyl revival can sleep soundly tonight knowing that sales of old fashioned records continue to grow, up 35.7% in terms of units and 37.6% in terms or revenue so far this year.
Commenting on her organisation’s latest stats pack, ERA CEO Kim Bayley told reporters: “Entertainment has now seen over four years of continuous growth thanks to a combination of digital services pioneering new ways of consuming music, video and games, and physical retailers working hard to maximise sales of discs. To now deliver another £180m worth of sales in the first half of 2017 is really extraordinary”.
READ MORE ABOUT: Entertainment Retailers Association (ERA)
Wednesday 26 July 2017, 11:48 | By Chris Cooke
Sony/ATV signs Zak Abel
Artist News Business News Deals Labels & Publishers
Sony/ATV has signed rising British popstar Zak Abel to a worldwide publishing deal. He is already signed to Warner’s Atlantic label on the recordings side, which will put out his debut album ‘Only When We’re Naked’ later this year.
Abel has already released a number of singles and EPs, and guested on an assortment of other people’s tracks, having originally come to wider attention via his collaboration with Gorgon City on their 2014 hit ‘Unmissable’.
Confirming the publishing deal, Sony/ATV’s UK Head Of A&R David Ventura told reporters: “Zak’s music is incredible. He is truly an extraordinary talent. I can’t wait for the world to discover him, as he is without a doubt an international songwriter and artist”.
Abel himself added: “I feel truly humbled to be part of the Sony/ATV family. They are the home to so many amazing songwriters that I admire. I want to be up there with the best and I know Sony/ATV will help me get there”.
READ MORE ABOUT: Sony Music Publishing | Zak Abel
Wednesday 26 July 2017, 11:44 | By Chris Cooke
Universal Music signs Asia’s Got Talent judge Anggun
Artist News Business News Deals Labels & Publishers
Universal Music Asia has signed what it is calling a “one-of-a-kind pan-Asian” record deal with Indonesian singer-songwriter Anggun ahead of the release of her next English-language studio album.
Anggun re-located to France in the 1990s and has since enjoyed success in a number of European markets as well as her home country, releasing albums in both French and English. More recently she has judged on ‘X-Factor’ and ‘Got Talent’ shows in Indonesia, as well as on the multi-territory ‘Asia’s Got Talent’. She has worked with various labels over her career, but enjoyed a long alliance with Sony Music.
Confirming the new deal with Universal, the major’s President of Asia Pacific, George Ash, said: “Anggun is without doubt an incredibly talented artist. Throughout her career, she has been lauded not only in Asia but around the world, proven by the fact that she is the best-selling female Southeast Asian artist outside of Asia”.
He went on: “She has countless international accolades and her work on ‘Asia’s Got Talent’ will lay the foundations for future generations of artists. We are very proud to be working alongside her on her much-anticipated forthcoming English album and look forward to an exciting year ahead”.
Anggun herself added: “I am so proud to partner with Universal Music Asia on this new album. The team is truly amazing and dedicated to both music and artists. I have been working very hard on my new English album, writing songs while having short breaks during my extensive tour across France and Belgium over the past few months”.
She concluded: “I’m really excited to showcase several collaborations with some of the most talented songwriters and producers I have ever met and worked with. This is probably my best album so far and I can’t wait to share it with the world”.
READ MORE ABOUT: Anggun | Universal Music
Wednesday 26 July 2017, 11:38 | By Chris Cooke
Ed Sheeran tops overall entertainment retail chart for 2017 so far
Business News Retail
Whenever the Entertainment Retailers Association pumps out a stack of stats from across the UK entertainment retail sector – as it did yesterday – one of the fun by-products is the chart that puts music, video and gaming releases side-by-side and compares them based on relative performance in terms of units shifted.
When you do that for the first half of 2017, music comes out on top thanks to good old Eddie Sheeran, though video releases dominate overall. Gaming doesn’t perform so strongly, though that has more to do with the games industry stacking all the big releases in the final quarter of the calendar year than anything else.
So, here is ERA’s wider entertainment retail chart for the first half of the year, with total sales figures (adjusted to accommodate music streams) in brackets.
1. MUSIC: Ed Sheeran – Divide (Warner Music) (2,064,966)
2. VIDEO: Rogue One – A Star Wars Story (Walt Disney Studios) (1,180,496)
3. VIDEO: Fantastic Beasts And Where To Find Them (Warner Bros) (1,032,525)
4. VIDEO: Bridget Jones’s Baby (Universal Pictures) (936,064)
5. VIDEO: Moana (Walt Disney Studios) (714,698)
6. MUSIC: Rag N Bone Man – Human (Sony Music) (694,194)
7. VIDEO: Trolls (20th Century Fox) (657,760)
8. MUSIC: Various – Now That’s What I Call Music 96 (Sony/Universal) (530,290)
9. VIDEO: Doctor Strange (Walt Disney Studios) (510,711)
10. VIDEO: Sing (Universal Pictures) (489,672)
11. VIDEO: The Girl On The Train (20th Century Fox) (397,619)
12. VIDEO: Miss Peregrine’s Home For Peculiar (20th Century Fox) (352,199)
13. GAME: Grand Theft Auto V (Take 2) (334,280)
14. GAME: Tom Clancy’s Ghost Recon – Wildlands (Ubisoft) (311,792)
15. VIDEO: La La Land (Elevation) (294,456)
16. VIDEO: Arrival (20th Century Fox) (294,171)
17. GAME: Horizon Zero Dawn (Sony Comp Ent) (286,538)
18. VIDEO: Inferno (Sony Pictures) (271,388)
19. VIDEO: Jack Reacher – Never Go Back (Universal Pictures) (268,888)
20. VIDEO: T2 Trainspotting (Sony Pictures) (259,892)
21. VIDEO: The Magnificent Seven (Sony Pictures) (257,867)
22. VIDEO: Fifty Shades Darker (Universal Pictures) (249,590)
23. VIDEO: The Lego Batman Movie (Warner Bros) (245,739)
24. GAME: FIFA 17 (EA) (242,385)
25. VIDEO: Hacksaw Ridge (Elevation Sales) (237,735)
26. VIDEO: Sully – Miracle On The Hudson (Warner Bros) (236,486)
27. VIDEO: Passengers (Sony Pictures) (229,520)
28. MUSIC: Drake – More Life (Universal Music) (228,862)
29. MUSIC: Ed Sheeran – X (Warner Music) (224,267)
30. VIDEO: Deepwater Horizon (Elevation) (220,734)
31. VIDEO: Assassin’s Creed (20th Century Fox) (219,093)
32. VIDEO: Finding Dory (Walt Disney Studios) (218,625)
33. MUSIC: Little Mix – Glory Days (Sony Music) (215,638)
34. MUSIC: Take That – Wonderland (Universal Music) (212,037)
35. VIDEO: Suicide Squad (Warner Bros) (210,642)
36. GAME: Call Of Duty: Infinite Warfare (Activision Blizzard) (204,778)
37. VIDEO: Trainspotting (Spirit Entertainment) (203,000)
38. GAME: Resident Evil 7: Biohazard (Capcom) (190,545)
39. VIDEO: The Secret Life Of Pets (Universal Pictures) (190,509)
40. MUSIC: Stormzy – Gang Signs & Prayer (Merky) (188,240)
READ MORE ABOUT: Ed Sheeran | Entertainment Retailers Association (ERA)
Wednesday 26 July 2017, 11:36 | By Chris Cooke
Facebook buys rights management start-up Source3
Business News Deals Digital
Facebook has boosted its rights management capabilities by acquiring Source3, a start-up described as “the world’s first platform for end-to-end management of intellectual property in user-generated content”.
As video becomes ever more central to the Facebook proposition, and Facebook users upload ever increasing quantities of video to the platform, the social media firm has been busy trying to provide tools for copyright owners whose content is uploaded by third parties without licence.
Facebook needs to provide such tools, of course, so that it can claim protection under the often controversial copyright safe harbour, meaning it can’t be held liable for the copyright infringement of its users. But ultimately the social media firm wants to encourage rights owners to upload content – and to allow others to upload their content – by promising to share any ad income generated with said content makers.
Which, of course, is what YouTube’s Content ID was set up to do. Facebook has its own Content ID rival already, called Rights Manager, which was initially about rights owners blocking uncleared content, but now monetisation options are slowly emerging too.
It’s thought that the Source3 acquisition is about Facebook boosting its abilities in the rights management domain, so to woo rather than annoy content owners and content-generating brands who it wants to keep within the social network’s ecosystem.
Source3 confirmed the Facebook deal via its website, declaring that: “We’re excited to bring our IP, trademark and copyright expertise to the team at Facebook and serve their global community of two billion people, who consume content, music, videos and other IP every day. We feel great about this next step in our journey, and we thank everyone who helped us get to where we are today”.
Confirming the deal for Facebook, the firm’s Vanessa Chan told TechCrunch: “We’re excited to work with the Source3 team and learn from the expertise they’ve built in intellectual property, trademarks and copyright”.
The acquisition could help Facebook match the abilities of YouTube’s rights management technology, and maybe fuel a competition between the two tech giants as to whose platform offers the best content control tools. Which would be good for the music industry which reluctantly acknowledges that Content ID is a decent system, but which would like to see increasingly sophisticated tools developed to make it easier and less time consuming to manage content that has been uploaded to sites like YouTube and Facebook.
It’s sort of ironic that Source3 will likely help Facebook catch up with Google’s YouTube in terms of rights management abilities, given that the start-up’s founders – Patrick Sullivan and Benjamin Cockerham – sold their previous digital music rights management company Rightsflow to Google in 2011.
READ MORE ABOUT: Facebook | Source3
Wednesday 26 July 2017, 11:34 | By Chris Cooke
Commercial radio calls on OfCom to demand more distinct BBC services
Business News Media
The commercial radio sector has called on media regulator OfCom to increase the obligations put on the BBC with regards its radio output, with trade group RadioCentre criticising draft operating licences for the Beeb’s various radio services, partly because they contain less rather than more conditions than in the past.
Commercial broadcasters don’t like it when the BBC competes head on with commercial programmes and services, and therefore support obligations being put onto BBC channels and stations to broadcast more content that complements rather than competes with commercial radio and telly. After all, commercial media owners will tell you, the BBC gets all that licence fee payer money so to provide the kind of content you don’t find elsewhere.
The way the BBC is regulated has recently changed considerably, with OfCom – which also regulates commercial radio and TV – taking over many of the regulatory duties previously undertaken by the now defunct BBC Trust. The new system was outlined in the latest version of the BBC’s Royal Charter and a so called Framework Agreement, which were both passed and published last year, and OfCom is now translating all of that into operating licences for each BBC service.
According to RadioCentre: “The Charter and Framework Agreement contain specific references to both retaining existing conditions on [BBC] services, as well as considering areas where conditions could be increased, with the aim of supporting a broader range of choice for audiences and ensuring a healthy and diverse media industry. In radio the Charter and Framework Agreement also require Ofcom to examine the case for clearer age targets for mainstream radio services, support for UK talent, news, information, current affairs, social action and broader sports coverage”.
But, the trade body says, the new operating licences OfCom has developed for each BBC radio station actually have fewer conditions than the previous licences devised by the BBC Trust, with – says RadioCentre – “a 36% reduction in the number of regulatory conditions” and “no strengthening of target audience requirements”. Also, it reckons, “where current quotas have been increased, BBC services are already exceeding these new targets, so listeners will not notice a difference”.
So, basically, OfCom needs to be demanding of the BBC. Says Radiocentre CEO Siobhan Kenny: “The BBC provides some fantastic radio content, which it can do partly because of its scale and its guaranteed funding. As a result of these advantages, it is acknowledged that the BBC is regulated in a different way to other broadcasters, with obligations to deliver broader public service goals, with a distinctive flavour, in addition to mainstream output”.
“Listeners deserve the widest possible choice and it is not clear that the current proposals will deliver that”, She goes on. “Government and Parliament agreed in drawing up the new Royal Charter and Framework Agreement that the intention was to reinforce BBC accountability and strengthen regulation in order to produce distinctive BBC services, changes which were presumably not envisaged to result in fewer measures against which to hold the BBC to account”.
She concludes: “Stakeholders have submitted their thoughts on the draft operating licence and the BBC has published its Annual Plan. We hope that Ofcom will take the opportunity to strengthen its proposals in line with the requirements of the Royal Charter and the Framework Agreement”.
READ MORE ABOUT: BBC | OfCom | RadioCentre
Wednesday 26 July 2017, 11:32 | By Chris Cooke
Music education and grassroots venues must be better supported, or the music industry faces a “perfect storm”
Business News Education & Events
If you’re going to have a storm, it might as well be perfect I guess. So good news everybody, the music industry is facing a perfect storm!
Though the thing about perfect storms is that they make the world around them somewhat imperfect. And the imperfection this perfect storm is set to unleash is a British music industry without the platforms required to support and hone new talent.
These are not my words, by the way, but the words of Michael Dugher, the new boss of cross sector trade body UK Music, who gave a speech at a conference for members of the Musicians Union in Brighton yesterday. Among other things, he expressed concerns about music education in the UK, and the much discussed challenges facing grassroots venues.
He told his audience: “For the industry to continue to grow and flourish we need to ensure that there are enough opportunities for existing musicians and that we can develop new talent. But I believe our industry is now potentially facing a perfect storm that, if allowed to develop unchecked, poses an existential threat to our sector. This grim reality potentially puts in jeopardy the UK’s ability in the future to generate breakthrough artists that are one of the keys to sustaining Britain’s £4.1 billion music industry”.
Honing in on the education issue, Dugher discussed the impact that the slightly confusingly named English Baccalaureate (or EBacc) system – the way the academic performance of English schools has been assessed since 2010 – has had on the teaching of creative subjects, including music. He began by noting that “creative subjects such as music are excluded from the EBacc”, so that schools generally don’t get any glory for student achievements in creative disciplines.
Lining up some stats on the impact that has had on music education, he continued: “According to the latest research conducted by the University Of Sussex, 59.7% of state schools indicate the EBacc has had a negative impact on music provision and uptake. A fifth of schools did not offer GCSE music at the start of the 2016/17 academic year. Of those schools that do offer music GCSE, 11% are taught outside curriculum time”.
As a result, Dugher explained: “In June, Ofqual figures indicated that there had been an 8% year-on-year decline in students taking creative subjects at GCSE. Entries for music have fallen from 46,045 to 38,740 between 2010 and 2017 – a 16% decline”. And as it currently stands, there are no plans to add a compulsory creative subject to the EBacc system, the UK Music chief noted, despite the government’s own commitment that young people receive “an excellent well-rounded education”.
He concluded: “Music in schools is vital. The creative industries are a growing part of the UK economy, at which Britain is world-leading. And all the evidence is that kids who do well at music, as well as other supposedly non-core subjects like drama or sport, do better at their maths and English. So cutting music in schools is bad for the country and bad for the education system”.
In addition to the down-playing of music education in English schools, those young people who nevertheless choose to make music will likely find it increasingly difficult to locate a stage on which to perform it, given the challenges facing grassroots music venues.
Government has various roles to play here, Dugher reckoned. And that includes a further simplification of live music licensing laws, a proper adoption of the agent of change rule that limits the impact of new property developments on existing music venues, and an overhaul of way business rates are calculated. “How can it be fair that the Emirates Stadium has received a 7% cut in business rates, whereas the Lexington venue down the road gets hit with an increase of some 237%?” the UK Music chief asked.
Concluding, Dugher declared that: “It is vital that we all rise to this challenge and fight to keep music alive in our schools and battle to save all those music venues that are currently in danger”.
READ MORE ABOUT: UK Music
Wednesday 26 July 2017, 11:30 | By Andy Malt
Passion Pit’s Michael Angelakos not quitting music, but is going to focus more on mental health support for artists
Artist News
Passion Pit’s Michael Angelakos has responded to recent reports that he is quitting music, saying that this is not the case. He does, however, plan to spend time focussing fully on his Wishart Group mental health advocacy organisation, and to that end will take “time away from being a commercialised artist”.
Among a number of tweets discussing mental health awareness at the weekend, Angelakos wrote: “Until it is safer and healthier for us to be advocates, to be a writers, producers, and performers, I simply cannot continue making music”.
This led to numerous reports stating that Angelakos was putting Passion Pit on hiatus or quitting music altogether. But it’s not as simple as that, he says. He will continue to make new music, but you might not hear it for a while. Either way, there are plenty of Passion Pit releases in the schedule. However, right now, he feels he needs to focus fully on The Wishart Group, meaning promoting his music will have to wait.
“Contrary to the headlines, I am not really on hiatus”, he wrote in a statement to Pitchfork. “That might be a bit of a casual word to use in this scenario. I make music everyday, it’s part of my life. I just played a show and I am about to officially release an album. The proceeds from the album are going entirely to psychiatric scientific research at The Stanley Center / Broad Institute. I was an artist before I was signed and working within this industry, and (as confusing as it may be to many people, myself included) I am continuing to be an artist with or without the industry”.
He continued: “What I am actually doing – what I have said I am going to do – is all the work required in the development of The Wishart Group. It requires my full attention, which means taking time away from being a commercialised artist. It requires me to explain this because the idea that we can do several things at once and really create change, especially in the realm of mental health, is clearly not working. It’s just not enough, though I wish it were”.
“I cannot continue to operate in this space, this industry, due to the way that it functions and treats people that work for it or create within it”, he went on. “It does nothing to promote the health required in order to produce the work it sells. The risks associated with being a commercialised artist and embarking on a typical album release, like endless promotion and touring, have nearly killed me”.
As previously reported, Angelakos launched The Wishart Group earlier this year. The organisation aims to provide musicians with legal, educational and healthcare services and has already raised over $250 million of funding.
Of his commitment to the organisation, he said in the statement: “I only have a certain amount of attention, so it should be used carefully. I started The Wishart Group and will be focusing full time on its developments. I will be advising other industries, and doing any work that is required at this current juncture until I have achieved certain goals and helped build a new system. We need better systems, systems that can actually contain and tend to workers, like artists who want to and have been contractually signed into deals to make music for people”.
Read Angelakos’ full statement here.
READ MORE ABOUT: Passion Pit
Wednesday 26 July 2017, 11:28 | By Andy Malt
Fifth Harmony announce new album
Artist News Releases
Fifth Harmony have announced that they will release their new album, ‘Fifth Harmony’, on 28 Aug. The record is their first since the departure of Camila Cabello last year.
As previously reported, Cabello’s split from the group in December was fairly acrimonious, with a series of statements issued on both sides. Cabello later said that she was “not comfortable” with efforts to “sexualise” the group.
The first single from the album, ‘Down’, featuring Gucci Mane, was released last month.
Meanwhile, Cabello’s debut solo album, ‘The Hurting. The Healing. The Loving’, is set for release on 22 Sep.
READ MORE ABOUT: Fifth Harmony
Wednesday 26 July 2017, 11:22 | By Andy Malt
Alice Cooper finds Andy Warhol original rolled up in a tube
And Finally Artist News
Alice Cooper has found an Andy Warhol artwork that may be worth more than $10 million rolled up in a tube in a storage facility. The screen print of an electric chair was mistakenly placed in the musician’s touring archive and only recently rediscovered.
According to his long-time manager Shep Gordon, who spoke to BBC Radio 5 Live, Cooper was given the print as a gift in the early 70s by his then girlfriend Cindy Lang. At the time, a section of Cooper’s live show saw him staging an electrocution in an electric chair “very much” like the one in Warhol’s print.
The artwork was never placed on a frame and remained rolled up in a tube. At some point it was placed in a storage locker with the stage sets from that tour. More recently, Gordon mentioned the picture to an art dealer friend, who recommended he try to find it. It took several months, but eventually it was discovered. “We found a tube, like the type you keep posters in, and there it was”, he said. “Oops!”
Of how one might forget that they own a Warhol original, Gordon noted in an interview with The Guardian: “Andy Warhol was not ‘Andy Warhol’ back then. And it was all a swirl of drugs and drinking … It was a rock n roll time, none of us thought about anything”.
The most a print of Warhol’s ‘Little Electric Chair’ artwork has ever sold for is $11.6 million is 2015. It’s unclear what the exact valuation of Cooper’s copy might be, although it would apparently be less as it is unsigned. Still, Gordon hints that it has still been valued at a pretty substantial amount. When Cooper learned the figure, said Gordon, “his jaw dropped and he looked at me. ‘Are you serious? I own that!'”
READ MORE ABOUT: Alice Cooper | Andy Warhol
Wednesday 26 July 2017, 10:36 | By Andy Malt
Approved: Sephine Llo
CMU Approved
Sephine Llo – aka musician Josephine Lloyd-Wilson – released her debut EP, ‘Flame’, in 2014. Its intriguing mix of folk, electronic music and studio experimentation rightly drew attention from people hunting out exciting new music and she was quickly marked as ‘one to watch’. But since then there has been little heard from her.
Sadly, while she was working on her debut album, her husband, Autumn Chorus’s Robert Lloyd-Wilson, was diagnosed with cancer, leading her to put work on the record on hold. In December last year, he passed away, shortly after learning that Josephine was pregnant.
As she grieved, she began work on her album, which is now due for release on 27 Oct. The first single, ‘First To Tarnish’, is a powerful but delicate piece of music, filled with love and loss. From the opening buzz of a guitar amp – which gives way not to riffs, as your brain is probably conditioned to expect, but to gently looping harp – the song is a finely balanced construction.
Listen to ‘First To Tarnish’ here:
Stay up to date with all of the artists featured in the CMU Approved column by subscribing to our Spotify playlist.
READ MORE ABOUT: Sephine Llo
Tuesday 25 July 2017, 11:12 | By Chris Cooke
Spotify close to new deal with Warner, though key elements still to be agreed
Business News Deals Digital Labels & Publishers Top Stories
Spotify is close to agreeing a new multi-year licensing deal with Warner Music everybody! And we’re not just saying that based on one source familiar with the situation who has spoken to Reuters. Nor two sources familiar with the situation who have spoken to Reuters. Not even three sources familiar with the situation who have spoken to Reuters. No, four sources my friend, four sources!
The precise revenue share arrangement the mini-major will get and the cash advance Spotify will pay are still to be agreed, those sources say, which are kind of the core of the deal, but whatever. It is thought that the basic principle of the new arrangement – ie that Warner will take a slight cut in revenue share in return for data and marketing kickbacks, growth commitments and a little bit of windowing – are pretty much agreed.
That’s the general gist of all the new deals done between the labels and the streaming firm. Spotify, of course, is eager to list on Wall Street, and to do so needs both multi-year licensing agreements in place with the rights owners but also confirmation that its original business plan of keeping at least 30% of its income is still in pace, despite the music publishers, among others, having pushed for a bigger slice of the pie in recent years.
One of the sources told Reuters: “The negotiations are at a crossroads. There are still a number of key points that remain to be agreed. If we manage to come to terms on these points, then it could lead to a very quick transaction. If not, any deal would remain at bay”.
Spotify already has new deals in place with Universal Music and Sony Music, and indie-label repping Merlin, so the Warner deal – which should be signed by September, it’s said – is the last big one on the recordings side. Though deal making will continue with other distributors and the music publishing sector.
It’s thought that Warner is pushing for commitments on guaranteed advances that are not tied to subscriber growth, and that it might also be looking for a commitment that Spotify won’t fill its playlists with cheap library music, following all that recent chatter about the streaming firm putting tracks from production music outfit Epidemic onto certain chill out and ambient playlists.
As discussed in this recent CMU Podcast, it seems unlikely that Spotify is actually currently playlisting Epidemic tracks for commercial reasons. Even though music from the company will undoubtedly be cheaper to stream – not least because Epidemic is able to offer all the recording and publishing rights in one package, which is highly unusual, even for production music. But the tracks currently being selected do seem to fill a genuine editorial hole.
That said, the labels having established a streaming business model where some tracks are more expensive to deliver than others, commercial considerations may well ultimately become a factor in the playlist curation process on the streaming platforms. As it does in any other curation situation where variable pricing applies, like sync for example.
Though, by the next time the labels are negotiating multi-year deals with the market leading streaming company, a publicly-listed market-dominating profit-seeking Spotify will likely be looking for every new revenue stream it can get. Don’t be surprised if that means key playlist slots going to the highest bidder – a digital version of music retailers charging for prime shelf space – by which point getting all hot and bothered about a bit of library music appearing on a chill-out playlist will seem rather quaint.
READ MORE ABOUT: Spotify | Warner Music
Tuesday 25 July 2017, 11:09 | By Chris Cooke
GMR hating radio group seeks injunction over its Pennsylvanian problem
Business News Digital Labels & Publishers Media
The legal battle between Irving Azoff’s mini performing rights organisation Global Music Rights and America’s Radio Music License Committee is hotting up, and it was already emitting quite a lot of heat. The RMLC now wants an injunction forcing GMR to provide interim licences to radio stations in Pennsylvania.
As previously reported, the RMLC represents the US radio industry in the music licensing domain, while GMR is a boutique performing rights organisation representing the performing rights in the songs of a small group of songwriters who have opted out of the bigger US collecting societies like BMI and ASCAP.
Because BMI and ASCAP both represent such large catalogues of songs, they are regulated by the US Department Of Justice via the infamous consent decrees, which are designed to overcome competition law concerns. It means a rate court can intervene when licensees can’t agree royalty terms with either society. The other US PRO – SESAC – although not regulated by consent decree, also allows third party mediation on royalty disputes as a result of settlements in past legal battles with groups of licensees.
The American radio industry wants the much newer GMR to also accept such third party mediation, and began legal action against the organisation last year. The RMLC accuses GMR of exploiting a monopoly, something the rights organisations refutes on the basis it represents a modest catalogue of songs.
That litigation continues to go through the motions. Meanwhile, GMR has started doing licensing deals directly with individual radio stations, rather than via the RMLC.
The music rights group said in a statement earlier this year that it was the RMLC itself, via its legal action, who stated that “going forward, GMR must approach each radio station owner directly and individually to make deals”. The PRO added: “GMR did so and we’ve entered hundreds of licences with radio stations”.
However, there was a footnote to that statement. The RMLC’s lawsuit against GMR was filed with the Eastern District Court of Pennsylvania. What did that mean? Well, GMR said in its statement: “Due to pending litigation with the RMLC … we cannot negotiate or enter licences with stations owned by companies headquartered or based in Pennsylvania”.
That is a bit of a problem for said radio stations, because their existing licences to broadcast songs now controlled by GMR expire on 30 Sep. And without a licence from the PRO they wouldn’t be able to play songs written by the likes of Billy Idol, Bruce Springsteen, Bruno Mars, Bryan Adams, Cathy Dennis, Drake, Don Henley, Ira Gershwin, John Lennon, Prince, Ryan Tedder and Smokey Robinson.
The RMLC claims that GMR is penalising radio stations in Pennsylvania because they have supported its litigation, and also because the performing rights organisation would rather fight its lawsuit in the Californian courts. Hence it’s legal filing last week.
The committee said that GMR intended to maintain its position on the granting, or not, of licences to radio stations in Pennsylvania “unless these stations and the RMLC relinquish important legal rights against GMR”. The radio grouping added that: “To this end, the RMLC has asked the federal court in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania to enter a preliminary injunction order preventing GMR from engaging in these overtly coercive actions while the RMLC’s lawsuit proceeds”.
It went on: “Further, the RMLC’s motion requests that the court order GMR to continue to offer interim music performance licences, to those radio stations who elect to take one, on identical terms to those interim licences already in effect for the past several months. That relief would prevent GMR from further inordinate pressure on the radio industry while the federal court resolves the RMLC’s antitrust claims against GMR”.
Needless to say, GMR is not impressed with the RMLC’s latest legal attack. It said in response: “The RMLC’s latest motion is yet another waste of the court’s time and an attempt to bully songwriters into accepting below-market-rate payments for their music. GMR continues to freely offer interim licenses to radio stations; our attempt to offer licenses to stations based in Pennsylvania was rejected by the RMLC itself prior to the filing of this motion. We are confident the court will see through these baseless allegations”.
READ MORE ABOUT: Global Music Rights (GMR) | Radio Music License Committee (RMLC)
Tuesday 25 July 2017, 11:06 | By Chris Cooke
Olly Murs offers free tickets to those out of pocket from cancelled shows
Artist News Business News Gigs & Festivals Live Business
That fine gent Olly Murs is offering fans who lost out from the collapse of a concert promoter called Stephen C Associates Limited free tickets to his upcoming shows in Swansea and Portsmouth.
As previously reported, Stephen C Associates Limited was promoting Murs shows in Exeter and Bournemouth, but last week announced it had ceased trading and that the concerts would not now go ahead.
With the collapse of the company, ticket buyers would be reliant on their ticket agent or credit card provider to get a refund, Stephen C Associates Limited having no money left to pay for refunds itself.
Yesterday morning Murs announced via Twitter that any fans who had been unable to get a refund would be offered free tickets at the Swansea and Portsmouth shows. Those who had successfully got their money back on tickets for the cancelled gigs are also being offered tickets to the other concerts at a special rate.
Addressing his fans, Murs wrote: “After both of these shows were cancelled when the promoter went into liquidation, I know you were all upset and left out of pocket! We tried to find a way of still doing the shows or rescheduling them but ended up facing too many obstacles, and we couldn’t risk letting you down again”.
He went on: “So, together with my management, agent and promoters of my other summer shows, we have come up with the most viable solution so I can still hopefully see most of you! Anyone who hasn’t been offered a refund from their original ticketing company can get their ticket swapped with a replacement one [for the Swansea or Portsmouth shows]”.
After explaining the special offer option for those that did get their money back on the cancelled gigs, he concludes: “I know I’m asking you to travel to new locations, and it’s far from ideal, but we’ve really tried to make something work and I hope I can see loads of you at these other shows”.
READ MORE ABOUT: Olly Murs | Stephen C Associates
Tuesday 25 July 2017, 11:05 | By Chris Cooke
Echo Arena to also stage events in neighbouring exhibition centre
Business News Live Business
The operators of the Echo Arena in Liverpool have announced that they will start hosting events in the neighbouring Exhibition Centre Liverpool which is, erm, an exhibition centre in Liverpool, and part of the same complex as the arena venue.
Exhibition Centre Liverpool will continue to host exhibitions and conferences, but will also be used by the Echo Arena for concerts. Such events will operate under the new brand of Space By Echo Arena Liverpool. So now you know.
Ben Williams, Commercial Director of ACC Liverpool, which runs the Merseyside complex, that also includes a convention centre, said: “Space By Echo Arena Liverpool is the latest addition to our suite of live event layouts and complements Echo Arena, EchoTwo and The Auditorium Liverpool. Using the halls either separately or in combination will enable us to host many more visitors all on one level”.
READ MORE ABOUT: Liverpool Echo Arena
Tuesday 25 July 2017, 10:59 | By Chris Cooke
O2 renews deal to brand the Academy venues
Brands & Merch Business News Deals Live Business
O2, as everyone knows, is a shit company. A really shit company. I mean, if you’ve got the time, let me explain. If there was a list of the shittest companies in the world, starting with the moderately shit companies and working all the way to the shittiest of shitty shit companies, O2 wouldn’t be on that list. It would have its own list. At the top of that list it would simply say “SHIT”. So shit a company is O2 it’s not really a company, it’s just shit. So I was wrong. Apologies. O2 isn’t a shit company. It’s just a shit.
So yeah, Team O2 pissed me off big time a few years back when they kindly “upgraded” the internet at CMU HQ, by which I mean they utterly fucked it up, made me sit for several millennia on hold to an utterly useless helpline that, somewhat ironically for a telecommunications company, crackled like fuck, and then washed their hands of the whole debacle because, as I may have mentioned, O2 is a shit company. Sorry, I mean O2 is a shit.
Now, I’m not one to hold a grudge. I’m sure you can see that already. Let bygones be bygones, that’s my mantra. OK, yes, I pointlessly boycott any venue with O2 in its name to this day, which might sound a little like a grudge. But don’t worry, it’s a white middle class boycott where you steadfastly refuse to do business with a company and all and any of its partners until a band you really like is playing the O2 Shepherd’s Bush Empire and then you make a temporary exception for just one night.
I justify this partly on the basis that no one actually calls the O2 Shepherd’s Bush Empire the O2 Shepherd’s Bush Empire, because doing so would be insane. And partly because I commit to spend at least some of the evening seething about all the hours I wasted on the O2 no-help-at-all-line. And it turns out, if you seethe long enough the roof falls in.
Anyway, O2 has agreed a new ten year deal with Live Nation and its Academy Music Group business that will see the phone brand pointlessly slapped on the side of nineteen venues around the UK for another ten years, including the Shepherd’s Bush Empire of course, because that’s the sort of thing marketing directors like spending money on.
O2 also gets other goodies for its customers as part of the deal, of course, like priority access to tickets, fast-track entry and free cloakroom space. All the nonsense you have to offer your customers to keep them on board when your actual product is shit.
Says O2 CMO Nina Bibby: “We know our customers love live experiences, and O2 Academy venues are a huge part of the UK’s live music scene, which is why we’re extremely pleased to be continuing our longstanding relationship with both Live Nation and Academy Music Group”.
Lovely stuff! Let the boycott continue, I say. And I know what you’re all thinking – however shit O2 may be, at least this is better than when Carling sponsored the Academy venues meaning that you couldn’t get a decent lager at a gig. But you’re forgetting, I don’t drink. And I was on hold to that helpline for a very, very, very long time.
READ MORE ABOUT: Academy Music Group | O2
Tuesday 25 July 2017, 10:58 | By Chris Cooke
Linkin Park pay tribute to late frontman Chester Bennington
Artist News
Linkin Park have paid tribute to the band’s frontman Chester Bennington, who died last week by suicide. The rest of band made their tribute via a letter addressed to Bennington posted on the Linkin Park website.
It reads: “Our hearts are broken. The shockwaves of grief and denial are still sweeping through our family as we come to grips with what has happened. You touched so many lives, maybe even more than you realised”.
Referencing Bennington’s wife Talinda, it goes on: “In the past few days, we’ve seen an outpouring of love and support, both public and private, from around the world. Talinda and the family appreciate it, and want the world to know that you were the best husband, son, and father; the family will never be whole without you”.
The letter continues: “Talking with you about the years ahead together, your excitement was infectious. Your absence leaves a void that can never be filled – a boisterous, funny, ambitious, creative, kind, generous voice in the room is missing”.
“We’re trying to remind ourselves that the demons who took you away from us were always part of the deal. After all, it was the way you sang about those demons that made everyone fall in love with you in the first place. You fearlessly put them on display, and in doing so, brought us together and taught us to be more human. You had the biggest heart, and managed to wear it on your sleeve”.
Concluding, the band write: “Our love for making and performing music is inextinguishable. While we don’t know what path our future may take, we know that each of our lives was made better by you. Thank you for that gift. We love you, and miss you so much”.
If you are experiencing mental distress or other issues affecting your mental wellbeing, you can contact The Samaritans on 116 123 or music industry focussed helpline Music Support on 0800 030 6789 or at musicsupport.org. The Mind website also offers information and support on a range of mental health issues.
READ MORE ABOUT: Chester Bennington | Linkin Park
Tuesday 25 July 2017, 10:56 | By Andy Malt
Susanne Sundfør and John Grant collaborate on Mountaineers
Artist News Releases
I think we can all agree without any controversy whatsoever that Susanne Sundfør is one of the greatest artists of the last decade. Good, I’m glad you concur. And imagine if she collaborated with the also brilliant John Grant. Wouldn’t that be great! Yes, it would. Well, I have some great news for you: that is a thing that has happened.
The latest single from Sundfør’s upcoming ‘Music For People In Trouble’ album, due out on 25 Aug, is her collaboration with Grant, ‘Mountineers’.
“‘Mountaineers’ is a song I wrote after spending a week at a retreat with The Dark Mountain Project and Way Of Nature, and is inspired by a poem by the American poet Robinson Jeffers, called ‘Rearmament'”, says Sundfør. “It’s about the importance of seeing the beauty in things in order to find purpose and strength in life”.
Of Sundfør, Grant adds: “She blows my mind with her incredible voice”.
Here’s the song. Here it is:
READ MORE ABOUT: John Grant | Susanne Sundfør
Tuesday 25 July 2017, 10:54 | By Andy Malt
Justin Bieber cancels remaining tour dates
Artist News Gigs & Festivals
Justin Bieber has cancelled the last fourteen dates of his world tour, on account of some “unforeseen circumstances”.
As well as a handful of dates in the US and Canada – the first in Dallas this Saturday – this means scrapping the entire Asian leg of the tour. That may at least be some solace to Chinese fans, who recently learned that Bieber was banned from the country due to past “bad behaviour”, so that the Asian tour couldn’t include any shows in China.
A statement posted on Facebook reads: “Due to unforeseen circumstances, Justin Bieber will cancel the remainder of the Purpose World Tour concerts. Justin loves his fans and hates to disappoint them. He thanks his fans for the incredible experience of the Purpose World Tour over last eighteen months”.
It goes on: “He is grateful and honoured to have shared that experience with his cast and crew for over 150 successful shows across six continents during this run. However, after careful consideration he has decided he will not be performing any further dates”.
Asked by TMZ subsequently why he had pulled the tour, Bieber said: “I’m OK. I’ve been on tour for two years. Just resting, getting some relaxation. We’re gonna ride some bikes. I love [my fans], I think you guys are awesome. Sorry for anybody who feels disappointed or betrayed, it’s not in my heart or anything and have a blessed day”.
You heard the man. Have yourself a blessed day.
READ MORE ABOUT: Justin Bieber
Tuesday 25 July 2017, 10:52 | By Andy Malt
One Liners: Warner Bros, Purity Ring, Vessels, more
Artist News Business News Education & Events Industry People Labels & Publishers Live Business One Liners Releases
Other notable announcements and developments today…
• Dan McCarroll is leaving Warner Bros Records in the US, the record company has confirmed in an internal memo. He joined the mini-major as President of WBR in 2013.
• The 2017 Festival Congress from the Association Of Independent Festivals will take place in Cardiff on 30-31 Oct with a keynote from Artistic Director and CEO of the Manchester International Festival, John McGrath. Info here.
• Purity Ring have released new track ‘Asido’.
• Vessels have released the video for their collaboration with The Flaming Lips, ‘Deflect The Light’.
• Cold Specks has released new single, ‘Fool’s Paradise’. Her new album of the same name is out on 22 Sep.
• Skott has released the video for new single ‘Mermaid’. “It all started with ‘Mermaid”, says the musician. “It was actually one of the first songs I started writing, but it took this long for me to see it to where it is now. It feels incredibly special that I can finally release it into the world”.
• Check out our weekly Spotify playlist of new music featured in the CMU Daily – updated every Friday.
READ MORE ABOUT: Association Of Independent Festivals (AIF) | Cold Specks | Dan McCarroll | Festival Congress | Purity Ring | Skott | Vessels | Warner Bros Records | Warner Music
Tuesday 25 July 2017, 10:47 | By Andy Malt
Kid Rock takes early lead in (slightly dubious) election poll
And Finally Artist News
Everyone thinks Kid Rock is going to win when he runs for one of Michigan’s seats in the US Senate next year. Everyone. Well, some people. And all this still hangs on him actually running. But there’s been a poll and some quotes, so let’s continue gawping at this whole sorry charade.
As previously reported, the musician announced his intention to run for office earlier this month. Although he’s not officially a contender yet, he insists that this is all genuine and that he will take on Democrat Debbie Stabenow – who has held the position since 2001 – in November next year.
Yesterday, the musician tweeted a link to a poll showing him in the lead in the possible contest. It put him at 54% of the vote, against Stabenow’s 46%. Although these figures don’t include undecided voters who make up nearly half of those asked.
The poll of 668 Michigan residents by Delphia Analytica, conducted shortly after Kid Rock made his announcement, shows that 44% hadn’t decided who to vote for. 30% reckoned they’d go for the popstar, with Stabenow taking up the remaining 26%.
So, not quite as impressive as it initially seemed. And also, it has been widely questioned quite how reliable these numbers are, however you look at them. Delphia Analytica is not a well known polling organisation and seemingly only starting asking small numbers of people about their voting intentions this month.
It’s very early days in the campaign, of course. However, there are those who are already confident of the musician’s chances. One Republican consultant in Michigan, Dennis Lennox, told Politico: “Presuming Kid Rock doesn’t get caught in bed with a little boy, or beat up a woman, between now and August 2018, he’s going to win the nomination if he gets in. I think there’s no question about that. I think he’s the prohibitive favourite if he gets in”.
Setting the bar high there. Meanwhile, on the Democrat side, Pennsylvania representative Brendan Boyle told Howard Stern on SiriusXM that Kid Rock “would be a horrible senator”. So, real confidence on all sides.
READ MORE ABOUT: Kid Rock
Tuesday 25 July 2017, 09:54 | By Andy Malt
Approved: French For Rabbits
CMU Approved
New Zealand band French For Rabbits prepare the ground for their long-awaited second album with new single ‘It Will Be Okay’. Filled with an atmosphere of dreamy fragility, it’s a beautiful piece of writing, drawing you into a vivid world.
“‘It Will Be Okay’ is a personal reminder to keep your chin up because everything will be okay”, says vocalist Brooke Singer of the song. “It’s about determination, breaking bad habits, mental health and the healing nature of going outside – perhaps for a run, or if you’re me, for a trip to the seaside when it is very windy”.
She continues: “I find it quite satisfying when little things line up, like the way the video for this song was filmed in the same place as another video from our first album – it just fits nicely together in my head. It was partly filmed out on the spit at Aramoana, an isolated windswept place where one could go to be truly alone and let the wind sweep the cobwebs away. The video shows someone struggling with some personal demons, and perhaps building up a bit of courage to break some bad habits. The message in the song is what I would want a person to remember at those moments”.
The band will be touring the UK in October, so look out for that. And now, here’s that video mentioned above:
Stay up to date with all of the artists featured in the CMU Approved column by subscribing to our Spotify playlist.
READ MORE ABOUT: French For Rabbits
Monday 24 July 2017, 12:34 | By Chris Cooke
Help Musicians UK puts £100k into new mental health initiative
Business News Industry People Top Stories
On the back of the mental health research it began at the CMU Insights conference at The Great Escape back in 2016, music charity Help Musicians UK has committed £100,000 to a new mental health fund and launched a campaign called Music Minds Matter.
The charity says that its research identified a “mental health crisis” in the music industry, which it hopes to help tackle through various initiatives and, in particular, a new 24/7 helpline that will launch later this year.
There has, of course, been a much franker conversation about depression, addiction and mental health within the UK music community in the last couple of years, in no small part as a result of individual artists and music business practitioners coming forward to share their own personal stories.
A number of new initiatives are now underway to provide more bespoke support for artists and those who work behind the scenes in the music industry; initiatives that account for some of the peculiarities of working in and around music, and the impact those peculiarities can have on your mental health.
Alongside existing and new support channels from Help Musicians UK, there is the Music Support helpline and Safe Tent programme at music festivals, which are backed by the BRIT Trust and Festival Republic, plus the Music Managers Forum launched its mental health guide for artist managers at this year’s Great Escape.
The MMF has reported interest in its mental health work from other artist manager groups around the world, and Help Musicians also hopes to partner with organisations abroad to provide better support to the global music community.
The need for this kind of support worldwide was back in the spotlight last week, of course, following the very sad death of Linkin Park frontman Chester Bennington, who died by suicide. This weekend his band posted links to suicide prevention helplines and organisations around the world on their official website.
In addition to the £100,000 Help Musicians has already committed to funding the launch of a dedicated mental health service, it is seeking further funding from within the music industry, with an online donations link put live this morning. Doubling HMUK’s investment would, the charity says, “allow the mental health service to be sustainable beyond 2018”.
Confirming the new initiative, Help Musicians CEO Richard Robinson said: “For generations and generations, the music industry has lost some of its brightest talent and future stars due to the scourge of mental health and related issues. The situation is now urgent and we can no longer allow this to continue”.
He added: “The forthcoming specialist 24/7 mental health service will be a global first and go hand in hand with Help Musicians’ traditional health and welfare support, which offers advice and often financial support to people in the industry across a wide range of issues”.
In a call to action to the industry, Robinson added: “We have decided to make this landmark investment as a precursor to a dedicated service – but we cannot undertake this work in isolation. We need the music industry to step up, arm in arm with Help Musicians, and match our support pound for pound, so we are proud to launch the Music Minds Matter campaign”.
READ MORE ABOUT: Help Musicians
Monday 24 July 2017, 12:31 | By Chris Cooke
Quincy Jones takes to the stand in Michael Jackson royalties dispute
Business News Legal
Legendary music producer Quincy Jones finally took to the witness stand last week in his legal battle with the Michael Jackson estate over allegedly unpaid royalties.
As previously reported, Jones accuses Sony Music and MJJ Productions – one of Michael Jackson’s companies, now controlled by the Jackson estate – of screwing him out of $30 million in royalties. Mainly in relation to projects and deals done since the late king of pop’s death in 2009 which exploited the famous Jackson recordings that Jones produced.
MJJ counters that Jones is incorrectly interpreting contracts he signed with Jackson in 1978 and 1985, from which the royalty claims stem.
In a testimony on Thursday, Jones said that those contracts had been handled by his lawyers and that he didn’t really read legal agreements. However, according to Variety, he told the court that: “If we made the record, we deserve to get paid – it’s that simple”.
However, a legal rep for the Jackson estate, Howard Weitzman, insisted that it’s not quite that simple, and then tried to get the producer to admit that, while he is obviously due a cut of the income generated when records are sold, what happens with monies stemming from licensing deals is more complicated. “That’s a joke”, Jones answered.
Pressed further by Weitzman, Jones responded with an ethical rather than contractual argument, stating that: “I don’t care what the agreement says. If I put my heart and love into making a record, I want to get paid. I don’t care what the paper says”.
Of course, beyond any ethical debates, lawyers repping Jones argue that the producer is also contractually due royalties on various projects that exploited Jackson recordings he produced, including the ‘This Is It’ movie.
Weitzman later made things a little bit personal, declaring to Jones: “You understand the estate of Michael Jackson is comprised of his children, correct? His children are the beneficiaries”.
“I’m not suing Michael – I’m suing y’all”, the producer hit back, referring to the estate’s lawyers, later adding: “I’ve got children too”.
The case continues.
READ MORE ABOUT: Michael Jackson | Quincy Jones
Monday 24 July 2017, 12:29 | By Andy Malt
Sony/ATV renews admin deal with Michael Jackson’s Mijac Music
Business News Deals Labels & Publishers
The Michael Jackson estate may no longer be a shareholder in the Sony/ATV music publishing company, but the mega publisher will continue to administrate the rights of the late king of pop’s Mijac Music business. Mijac owns Jackson’s own song copyrights, plus some other works too, ownership of which were kept out of the merger of the popstar’s music publishing interests with those of Sony to create Sony/ATV in the 1990s.
Confirming Sony/ATV had secured a long-term extension of the deal that allows it to administrate the Mijac rights, the publishing giant’s boss man Marty Bandier said: “Michael Jackson’s Mijac catalogue is one of the most significant and valuable in music. Michael’s songwriting talents are respected and admired by everyone, but I also want to acknowledge his gifts as a smart businessman who put together an incredible catalogue of classic songs. His estate continues to further his vision and we are privileged to be the administrators of such an important collection of songs”.
Speaking for the estate, co-executors John Branca and John McClain said: “The incredible songs in the Mijac Music catalogue showcase Michael’s creative genius as a songwriter, and further, his acumen in understanding the creative and commercial value of these acclaimed third party songs. We trust in Martin Bandier’s leadership and in his team. The music of the greatest entertainer that ever lived, Michael Jackson, is in the hands of the number one publishing company in the world”.
READ MORE ABOUT: Michael Jackson | Mijac Music | Sony Music Publishing
Monday 24 July 2017, 12:27 | By Chris Cooke
BBC to fill 2018’s Glasto gap with its own music festival
Business News Gigs & Festivals Live Business Media
The BBC is using 2018 being a fallow year for Glastonbury as a big fat excuse to launch its own festival, The Biggest Weekend. It will be a bit like Radio 1’s existing Big Weekender, but it will take place in four locations over four days at the end of May and will be broadcast across the Corporation’s TV and radio networks.
Yes, at last the BBC has spotted the total lack of music festivals in the UK and has been brave enough to take the lead and put one on itself. Praise the Lord for BBC empire building. If only they’d do something about that one night of the year when the music industry doesn’t have an awards ceremony. Oh yes, they already did!
That said, BBC bosses assure us that The Biggest Weekend is a one-time thing and once the whole escapade is done and dusted the Corporation promises to get back to the business of making telly programmes and radio shows. You know, like it’s fucking meant to. So don’t worry, this is not another BBC Music Awards.
Says BBC Music’s Empire Builder In Chief Bob Shennan: “BBC Music has a strong history of bringing the nation together for some special moments, and this is the biggest single music event ever attempted by the BBC. We will be celebrating the diversity of music from four different corners of the country, bringing the best UK music to the world and the best global music to the UK”.
READ MORE ABOUT: BBC | BBC Biggest Weekend
Monday 24 July 2017, 12:24 | By Chris Cooke
UK Live Music Group endorses access charity’s best practice charter
Business News Live Business
The UK Live Music Group has given its official backing to access charity Attitude Is Everything’s Charter Of Best Practice, declaring it as the “industry standard” for assessing how accessible festivals and venues are to disabled and deaf music fans.
The UK Live Music Group is, of course, the trade body of trade bodies that sits within that other trade body of trade bodies, UK Music.
It brings together reps from the Agents’ Association, the Association For Electronic Music, the Association Of Festival Organisers, the Association Of Independent Festivals, the Concert Promoters Association, the National Arenas Association, the Production Services Association, the Music Venue Trust and live industry conference ILMC.
Through the Live Music Group, those parties feed into UK Music, which also involves industry organisations repping artists, songwriters, managers, labels and publishers, plus collecting societies PPL and PRS.
It is hoped that, by officially endorsing Attitude is Everything’s charter, the Live Music Group will help ensure those standards are more widely adopted by the British live music industry, making events and venues more ever accessible to disabled and deaf music fans.
Commenting on the development, Attitude Is Everything CEO Suzanne Bull said: “I am delighted that the UK Live Music Group is backing Attitude Is Everything’s Charter of Best Practice. The Charter is a result of seventeen years development; working with our music industry partners and disabled people to create a set of standards in access for the live music industry. The UK Live Music Group represents all quarters of this industry. Their endorsement is important in driving the message home that every live music event can be accessible and inclusive in some way, and that live music can be opened up to all disabled audiences, artists, volunteers and employees”.
Meanwhile Live Nation’s Paul Latham, in his role as Chair of the UK Live Music Group, said: “The UK Live Music Group is committed to ensuring that live music is accessible to all. Attitude Is Everything has done great work over the years to improve the experience of music fans. I am delighted that the UK Live Music Group is taking a lead and has endorsed the Charter Of Best Practice. I would encourage other parts of the industry to do all they can to make sure live music is accessible to all”.
READ MORE ABOUT: Attitude Is Everything | UK Live Music Group | UK Music
Monday 24 July 2017, 12:21 | By Chris Cooke
Vice to close Thump site as focus shifts even more to video
Business News Media
Vice Media announced a restructuring late last week which will see at least 60 employees -about 2% of its worldwide workforce – leave the business.
From a music industry perspective, the biggest change is the shutting down of dance music focused site Thump, with the editorial remit of that service subsumed by the main Vice.com site.
The rejig sees Vice focus even more on its video-based operations, with all the jobs axed being non-video roles. Vice’s Creators website will also seemingly be folded into the main Vice.com platform, while there will also be cuts at Vice Sports, though that is expected to remain as a standalone brand.
According to Variety, Vice will continue to hire new staff despite the cuts, with the focus on video content roles and new international offices in India and the Middle East.
READ MORE ABOUT: Thump | Vice
