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Monday 24 July 2017, 12:19 | By Andy Malt
BBC presenters call for closure of gender pay gap before 2020 target
Business News Media
More than 40 of the BBC’s most high profile female presenters have signed an open letter calling on the broadcaster to close its gender pay gap.
As previously reported, last week the BBC revealed the names and approximate salaries of on-air talent who are paid more than £150,000 a year. On the list, around two thirds were men, with female presenters being shown to earn less than their male counterparts for doing the same work.
A number of male presenters came forward and said that something should be done. Although at a time when the BBC is under pressure to cut costs, this may mean some of them taking a pay cut. Director General Tony Hall also said that the broadcaster was working to overcome this issue by 2020.
The new open letter says that setting a target for 2020 isn’t good enough, and a balance for pay between the genders should be reached sooner. Among those who have signed the letter are Clare Balding, Victoria Derbyshire, Emily Maitlis, Sue Barker, Fiona Bruce and Alex Jones.
“Compared to many women and men, we are very well compensated and fortunate”, says the letter. “However, this is an age of equality and the BBC is an organisation that prides itself on its values. You have said that you will ‘sort’ the gender pay gap by 2020, but the BBC has known about the pay disparity for years. We all want to go on the record to call upon you to act now”.
The letter also notes that this is not just an issue that affects those on-air, but that it also extends to behind the scenes staff throughout the organisation.
A BBC spokesperson said that significant progress had been made on the gender pay gap in recent years, but acknowledged that more “needs to be done”. They also noted that the average pay of male BBC employees is currently 10% higher than women, better than the national average of 18%.
“The BBC’s workforce has been hired over generations and this is complex and cannot be done overnight”, they said. “We are, however, confident that when these figures are published again next year they will show significant progress towards that goal”.
READ MORE ABOUT: BBC
Monday 24 July 2017, 12:18 | By Andy Malt
Ed Sheeran to perform for World Refugee Day
Artist News Gigs & Festivals
Ed Sheeran has announced that he will play a show in support of Amnesty International and Sofar Sounds’ Give A Home concert series for World Refugee Day in September.
As previously reported, various shows around the world will take place under the Give A Home banner on 20 Sep, with artists including Jessie Ware, Jack Garratt, Kate Tempest, Billy Bragg, Oh Wonder, The National, KT Tunstall, Lianne La Havas, Zero 7 and Wild Beasts already committed. The shows will also bring together refugees and local communities, and activists will speak alongside the musical performances.
In a statement, Sheeran said: “We all deserve a home, not just the memory of one. That’s why I’m proud to join Amnesty International and Sofar’s Give A Home campaign in raising awareness for the global refugee crisis and funds for Amnesty’s important work”.
Sheeran’s show will take place in Washington, DC. However, like all other performances as part of the initiative, the exact location will be kept a secret until the day. Performing alongside him will be Jean-Jean Bashengezi, aka Jaja, a musician who fled the Democratic Republic Of Congo on 1994.
You can apply for tickets for all of the shows in the Give A Home series at sofarsounds.com/giveahome
READ MORE ABOUT: Amnesty International | Ed Sheeran | Sofar Sounds
Monday 24 July 2017, 12:16 | By Andy Malt
One Liners: Roundhouse, Arcade Fire, The Cribs, more
Artist News Awards Business News Gigs & Festivals Industry People One Liners Releases
Other notable announcements and developments today…
• The Roundhouse in London has appointed Delia Barker as its new Programmes Director. She joins from the English National Ballet School. “We’re delighted to welcome Delia”, says chief exec Marcus Davey.
• The Cribs have announced that they will release new album ’24-7 Rockstar Shit’ on 11 Aug. Here’s new single ‘Rainbow Ridge’.
• Former Bellowhead frontman Jon Boden has announced that he’ll release a solo album, ‘Afterglow’, on 6 Oct. “‘Afterglow’ imagines a near-future world where the luxuries and comfort of 21st century life have become scarce, and a harder, simpler existence now prevails”, explains Boden. Here’s first single, ‘Moths In The Gas Light’.
• Prophets Of Rage have released the video for new single ‘Living On The 110’.
• DJ Shadow has released the video for ‘Corridors’ from his new ‘The Mountain Has Fallen’ EP.
• Kali Uchis has released a Spanish language version of new single ‘Tyrant’. Re-named ‘Tirano’, it features fellow Colombian singer Fuego.
• Arcade Fire have announced UK and Ireland tour dates for next April, including two nights at Wembley Arena. Tickets go on sale this Friday.
• Ride have announced new UK tour dates for November, kicking off with a show at The Forum in London on 7 Nov.
• The 2018 Ivor Novello Awards will take place on 31 May, a little later in the month than usual. Which means there won’t be a Great Escape/Ivors clash in 2018! Wooooooooooooooooooooooooooo!
• Check out our weekly Spotify playlist of new music featured in the CMU Daily – updated every Friday.
READ MORE ABOUT: Arcade Fire | Bellowhead | Delia Barker | DJ Shadow | Fuego | Ivor Novello Awards | Jon Boden | Kali Uchis | Prophets Of Rage | Ride | The Cribs | The Roundhouse
Monday 24 July 2017, 12:10 | By Andy Malt
China still hasn’t forgiven Justin Bieber’s past “bad behaviour”
And Finally Artist News Live Business
Justin Bieber created headlines on his UK tour last year by telling audiences off for what he perceived as bad behaviour. Now it’s his own bad behaviour making the news again. Despite all those attempts to turn his life around, it turns out China still doesn’t trust the popstar not to piss in all their buckets.
China’s Bureau Of Culture seemingly quietly adopted a ‘no Bieber’ policy some time ago, but it recently came to light after a fan asked why the singer had not been allowed to perform in the country for several years. He is due to tour in several Asian countries in September, but China is not on the schedule.
In response, the bureau noted in a statement that Bieber is a “talented singer”, but also a “controversial young foreign singer”. It explained that he had exhibited “bad behaviour” in both his private life and during live performances.
“In order to maintain order in the domestic market, and clean up the performance market environment, it is not appropriate to introduce badly behaved [foreign performers]”, the statement went on.
There is still hope for Bieber though. The statement added: “We hope that in the process of growing up Justin Bieber can continue to improve his words and deeds, and truly become a favourite singer of the public”.
Bieber previously offended the Chinese government when he posted a photograph of himself next to a Japanese war memorial on social media back in 2014. He later deleted the post and apologised, saying that he did not realise what the shrine represented.
The latest news from Planet Bieber is that he bought a drink while topless. No word on how this is viewed by the Chinese government.
READ MORE ABOUT: Justin Bieber
Monday 24 July 2017, 11:12 | By Andy Malt
Approved: George Glew
CMU Approved
George Glew isn’t messing about with his debut single ‘Bury Me’. First impressions matter after all, and with this song he makes one that lasts long after the final note rings out.
With just an electric guitar and his powerful voice, Glew cuts right down to the bones of his songwriting with ‘Bury Me’. It’s the kind of song that stops you in your tracks. Very raw and heartfelt, there’s no way you’re going anywhere after it stops without taking a few minutes to collect your thoughts.
If you’re in Bristol, where Glew hails from, you can catch the first show of three monthly appearances at The Gallimaufry tomorrow.
Watch the video for ‘Bury Me’ 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: George Glew
Monday 24 July 2017, 09:07 | By Chris Cooke
CMU Podcast: Spotify mechanicals, BBC pay, BBC music show
Business News Digital Legal Media Setlist
CMU’s Chris Cooke and guest presenter Becky Brook review key events in music and the music business from the last week, including the latest mechanical right lawsuits against Spotify in the US and what they reveal about the complexities of digital licensing, plus the BBC’s big pay reveal and its plan for a new prime-time music show. The CMU Podcast is sponsored by 7digital.
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Stories discussed this week:
• Spotify faces two new mega-bucks lawsuits over US mechanicals
• BBC reveals pay-packets of top talent, fuelling gender pay gap debate
• BBC planning new prime-time music show
In brief:
• Warner acquires Songkick gig discovery business, but not the ticketing platform
• Believe boss plays down Sony acquisition reports
• Proposed new law aims to fix America’s pre-1972 copyright quirk
• Statutory music rights database proposed in US Congress
READ MORE ABOUT: BBC | Spotify
Friday 21 July 2017, 11:35 | By Paul Vig
Vigsy’s Club Tip: Night Thing presents Gilles Peterson at Jazz Café
Club Tip CMU Approved
This Jazz Café after hours club night sees one of my old favourites – Gilles P – take over the proceedings after an earlier Rolling Stones-themed choral event, of all things.
Dom Servini is also on decks at this very fine looking night, plus there’s Skinny Pelembe doing a live set, a fresh talent well worth checking out who leans towards the nu soul/jazz movement.
Should be a cracker at this cool Camden venue.
Friday 21 Jul, The Jazz Cafe, 5 Parkway, Camden Town, London NW1 7PG, 10.30pm-3.00am, £15. More info here.
READ MORE ABOUT: Gilles Peterson
Friday 21 July 2017, 11:16 | By Chris Cooke
Warner Music leads tributes to Chester Bennington
Artist News Top Stories
The music industry last night paid tribute to Linkin Park frontman Chester Bennington who has died aged 41, seemingly by suicide. He died in LA at about 9am local time yesterday morning, local authorities have confirmed.
Bennington joined what became Linkin Park in 1999, the year before the release of the band’s debut album ‘Hybrid Theory’. He enjoyed a long career with the outfit – the band’s seventh album, ‘One More Light’, was released in May – and also had a two year stint fronting Stone Temple Pilots.
He had spoken candidly about his struggles with drink and drug addiction in various interviews over the years, and also about the abusive childhood he endured.
In 2011 he told The Guardian: “When I was young, getting beaten up and pretty much raped was no fun. No one wants that to happen to you and honestly, I don’t remember when it started … My God, no wonder I became a drug addict. No wonder I just went completely insane for a little while”.
Bandmate Mike Shinoda confirmed the news of Bennington’s passing on Twitter yesterday, writing “shocked and heartbroken, but it’s true”, before adding: “An official statement will come out as soon as we have one”.
Echoing the sentiments of the flood of artists and industry people paying tribute to Bennington on the social networks as news of his death broke, the boss of the band’s long-time label, Warner Bros’ Cameron Strang, said: “Chester Bennington was an artist of extraordinary talent and charisma, and a human being with a huge heart and a caring soul”.
He went on: “Our thoughts and prayers are with his beautiful family, his bandmates and his many friends. All of us at WBR join with millions of grieving fans around the world in saying: we love you Chester and you will be forever missed”.
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
Friday 21 July 2017, 11:14 | By Chris Cooke
Statutory music rights database proposed in US Congress
Business News Labels & Publishers
While the American music industry was busy welcoming proposed legislation to overcome the 1972 quirk in US copyright law earlier this week, the MIC Coalition – which lobbies on music rights issues for the radio, tech and hospitality sectors – has been bigging up another music-themed proposal in Washington.
The Transparency In Music Licensing & Ownership Act has been proposed by Republicans Jim Sensenbrenner, Blake Farenthold and Steve Chabot as well as Democrat Suzan DelBene, and would oblige the US Copyright Office to build a publicly accessible database of music rights ownership information, while limiting the remedies available to copyright owners if they fail to provide the required data for the new system.
The lack of a publically-accessible central database of music rights information – linking recordings to songs and listing who currently owns and/or controls those works – has been much debated within the music community for years now, of course. The lack of such a database has always been an issue, though it has become much more of a problem in the digital era, especially on the music publishing side.
Attempts by the music publishing sector to build a Global Repertoire Database failed, though various other initiatives continue in the music rights data domain, many involving the collecting societies who, generally, have the best data available, even if it is not fully comprehensive or publicly available. And, of course, there has been much chatter in the last couple of years about how the blockchain could help distribute music rights data.
One of the reasons for the lack of a decent music rights database is that in most countries copyright is an unregistered right, so there is no central registry where copyright owners log their works as they are created. Actually, in the US there is some copyright registration overseen by the Copyright Office, though that hasn’t helped much, confirmed by the total mess around the payment of mechanical royalties on songs Stateside that has resulted in multiple lawsuits involving songwriters and streaming services.
Under the Transparency In Music Licensing & Ownership Act, the US Copyright Office would be required “to establish and maintain a current informational database of musical works and sound recordings”, and to that end would have the power “to hire employees and contractors, promulgate regulations, and spend appropriated funds necessary and appropriate to carry out these functions”. The resulting database would have to be “publicly accessible … in its entirety and without charge, and in a format that reflects current technological practices, and that is updated on a real-time basis”.
In many ways, that sounds like just the sort of thing that everyone in the music community has been busy agreeing should be built. Though music rights owners won’t necessarily welcome the stick in the proposed legislation that forces them to participate and to ensure they provide all the data the Copyright Office would need.
The proposals would also “limit the remedies available to a copyright owner to bring an infringement action for violation of the exclusive right to perform publicly, reproduce or distribute a musical work or sound recording if that owner has failed to provide or maintain the minimum information required in the database”.
Commenting on the proposed transparency act, Sensenbrenner said: “When it comes to rules and regulations, simpler is always better. Streamlining the music licensing process into one, easily accessible database is a straightforward way to help our nation’s business owners while ensuring copyright owners are fairly compensated for their work”.
Backing the proposals, the MIC Coalition said: “All stakeholders in the music marketplace benefit when current and accurate information about copyright ownership and licensing is easily accessible. Despite explosive growth in access to information online, no comprehensive and actionable database of music copyright ownership and licensing exists today. Instead, there are a small number of proprietary databases that cover only some copyrighted works, like those maintained by the performing rights organisations that license song performances”.
Listing its issues with those proprietary databases, the Coalition went on: “Those databases are not only not comprehensive or interoperable, they explicitly state that users cannot rely on the information to make licensing decisions. As a result, businesses that offer music have no ability to make rational decisions about which licences best fit their music needs”.
Continuing, the MIC statement states: “The lack of an authoritative public database creates problems for venues and small businesses including restaurants, taverns, wineries, and hotels. For example, venues are declining to host live musicians rather than risk potential liability due to lack of up-to-date and actionable licensing information. The lack of a database is also a challenge for local broadcasters and digital music streaming services that rely on accurate copyright information to provide music to millions of consumers”.
Concluding, the MIC says it “believes that transparency is a necessary baseline in creating a more sustainable and equitable system” and that therefore “this legislation is an essential step to promoting a vibrant economy for music and greater fairness in the music marketplace overall”.
READ MORE ABOUT: US Congress
Friday 21 July 2017, 11:12 | By Chris Cooke
Two Olly Murs shows cancelled after promoter goes bust
Artist News Business News Gigs & Festivals Live Business
The promoter of two Olly Murs shows in Devon and Dorset has gone under meaning that at least some ticketholders will be relying on their banks and credit card providers for a refund. Others will seek their money back from ticket agents.
The shows at Exeter’s Powderham Castle and Kings Park in Bournemouth were being promoted by Stephen C Associates Limited, which has confirmed that it has ceased trading.
In a statement, the business said: “We deeply regret to inform you that the company Stephen C Associates Limited has ceased to trade. It is insolvent and is expected to go into liquidation shortly. As a result, the company is not in a position to offer you a refund”.
The statement goes on: “If you bought VIP packages with a credit card, you should contact your credit card company immediately and ask them to refund your money. If you have purchased your tickets through one of the nominated ticket agents you should contact them in the first instance”.
The firm’s collapse affects the two Murs shows – due to take place on 29 Jul and 5 Aug – and a BSO Last Night Of The Proms concert that was also due to occur at Powderham Castle. Local media report that the concert promoter had been having financial difficulties since at least January this year.
Commenting about the situation on Twitter earlier this week, Murs said: “I’m so gutted for my fans in Exeter and Bournemouth. Although it’s out of my control I’m still so sorry and hope I can get to see you all soon!”
READ MORE ABOUT: Olly Murs | Stephen C Associates
Friday 21 July 2017, 11:10 | By Chris Cooke
UTA hires David Zedeck to lead its music division
Business News Industry People Live Business
Booking agency United Talent has head hunted David Zedeck from live giant Live Nation to become its Global Head Of Music, as well as a partner and special advisor to the board. UTA says that Zedeck will be based out of its LA office and will “oversee the company’s rapidly expanding worldwide music business”.
Zedeck had been at Live Nation since 2012, but prior to that worked at another major talent agency, CAA. He will report into UTA CEO Jeremy Zimmer in his new job, and will also work alongside Neil Warnock, who was put in charge of UTA’s music division after it bought his company The Agency Group in 2015 and who, the company says, “continues in an important leadership role within the music division”.
Confirming the new hire, Zimmer said: “We are excited to have a professional of David’s standing lead our team of great agents and executives. His vision of full-service representation meshes exactly with where we have been taking the department. His track record of developing artists, his passion for music, and his understanding of how to use all the resources of an agency make David the perfect leader for our future”.
Zedeck himself added: “Joining UTA during a period when its music business is accelerating is an amazing opportunity. UTA has a commitment to developing artists and helping them create platforms to share their music with fans around the world. Throughout my career I have been dedicated to working with artists to grow their global audience, so I’m very excited to return to the agency business to lead UTA’s music group”.
READ MORE ABOUT: David Zedeck | UTA
Friday 21 July 2017, 11:07 | By Chris Cooke
BPI welcomes BBC’s new prime-time music show
Business News Media
Record industry trade group the BPI has welcomed the news that the BBC is launching a new prime-time music show, saying that it has long encouraged the Beeb to put a regular music-based programme back into its prime-time schedule.
As previously reported, the BBC is working with independent production firm Fulwell 73 on the new music show, which will initially air over a six week period. In addition to bands singing their songs, the new 30 minute programme will also feature celebrity co-hosts and comedy sketches, which don’t have to be awful. I mean, they sound awful in principle, but we’re an open-minded bunch here at CMU and are willing to wait and see what the new show is like. Even though it will probably be awful.
Confirming the various reports that a new pop music telly show had now been fully commissioned, BBC Music boss Bob Shennan said earlier this week: “The BBC is the biggest music broadcaster in the UK and we are always looking for new ways to bring music to our audiences. This series will be a fantastic opportunity to showcase the biggest and best UK and international bands and artists and we’re looking forward to working with one of the world’s most innovative and creative TV production companies”.
Meanwhile Gabe Turner over at Fulwell 73 said: “The BBC’s heritage in creating and broadcasting world class music TV is second to none – their classic music shows were a big part of our childhoods growing up as fans devouring everything pop culture. The range of genres and different styles that people are listening to now is more diverse than ever before, and it’s a great time to be making a show that gives a mainstream TV platform to the most exciting stuff out there”.
The record industry has been pushing for a regular prime-time music show on BBC One ever since the demise of ‘Top Of The Pops’, so labels will be hoping that this new format works and results in a more regular airing beyond the initial six weeks.
Welcoming the news, BPI boss Geoff Taylor said: “The BPI has been working hard to encourage the BBC to launch a new prime-time music series on TV, as part of its remit to showcase British culture and entertainment to the nation. It’s something we care deeply about, so we’re THRILLED that this new initiative can now be publicly announced. We wish the BBC and Fulwell 73 every success with the new programming, which will introduce many more fans to the fantastic new talent this country produces and will help sustain the success of British music at home and around the world”.
READ MORE ABOUT: BBC | British Phonographic Industry (BPI)
Friday 21 July 2017, 11:05 | By Chris Cooke
French singer Barbara Weldens dies during festival performance
Artist News
An up and coming French singer called Barbara Weldens – who won acclaim for debut album ‘Le Grand H De L’Homme’ earlier this year – died on Wednesday night after collapsing during a performance at a festival.
The cause of her death has not been confirmed, but it is thought she went into cardiac arrest during the show, and local media have reported that the incident may have been the result of electrocution.
Weldens was performing in a church in a village in south-west France as part of the Léo Ferré Festival. Police confirmed to L’Europe1 that they were investigating the circumstances behind Weldens’ death, including the theory that it was caused by some sort of electrical malfunction.
Among those paying tribute to the singer were the organisers of the Pic D’Or Prize, which Weldens won last year, and who said: “It was with great emotion that we learned this morning of the death of Barbara Weldens … she was a radiant woman, talented and full of energy, and of course we are thinking of all her family and her loved ones”.
READ MORE ABOUT: Barbara Weldens
Friday 21 July 2017, 10:54 | By Chris Cooke
Kanye West planning to diss Jay-Z back on his next record
Artist News
Fans of hip hop squabbles will be pleased to know that Kanye West is planning on responding to Jay-Z’s little digs on his new album ‘4:44’ via the long proven dispute-resolving medium of rap. Or at least that’s according to The Joe Budden Podcast.
As previously reported, Jay-Z’s lyrical disses of West came along just as reports circulated of legal letters being sent back and forth between the latter’s attorney and legal rep’s for the former’s Tidal business, seemingly in a dispute over monies West reckons he is owed for providing the streaming firm with an exclusive on the ‘Life Of Pablo’ album.
Discussing the beef, Joe Budden Podcast co-host Mal said: “I had a cool little conversation with Kanye in LA. He said he’s got a few words in response to what Jay had on ‘4:44’ when his next record comes out”.
Continuing, the podcast host added of his chit chat with West: “There’s some malice. He wasn’t smiling. He was smiling before that conversation started”.
So there you have it. The podcast is here:
READ MORE ABOUT: Jay-Z | Kanye West
Friday 21 July 2017, 10:51 | By Chris Cooke
Mary Epworth puts out surprising new single
Artist News Releases
Sunday Best has put out the second single from Mary Epworth’s new album, ‘Elytral’, which is due out in September. The new track is called ‘Surprise Yourself’ and was inspired by some good old fashioned writer’s block, or more how Epworth experimented her way out of the constraints of self-imposed expectations.
Don’t know what I mean? Well, here’s Epworth herself with an explanation. “The making of ‘Elytral’ started with what was probably writer’s block”, she says. “I felt stymied by my own expectations that what I had to write had to be important, life changing, or the greatest thing anyone would ever hear”.
She goes on: “I was stuck and felt powerless to create any new songs. Eventually I started to tinker with the bits of music that had been popping into my head, just treating it as play. I became out of my depth creatively, playing instruments I don’t usually play, relying less on other people to flesh things out and tell me that they made sense. I felt totally free as to where the song went. So this is a song about that process of freeing yourself from your own self-imposed limitations”.
‘Surprise Yourself’ here:
READ MORE ABOUT: Mary Epworth
Friday 21 July 2017, 10:45 | By Chris Cooke
KLF return with a three day situation in Liverpool
Artist News
The Justified Ancients Of Mu Mu promised they would return this summer, and now we have actual details of how that return will play out. Though don’t be expecting any music. You will, however, get both a book and a “situation”.
Faber & Faber will publish a novel from Bill Drummond and Jimmy Cauty, probably better known as The KLF, on 23 Aug, at the start of an event on Merseyside called ‘Liverpool: Welcome To The Dark Ages’.
Billed as a “three day situation”, each day of ‘Welcome To The Dark Ages’ has a title – day one is ‘Why Did The K Foundation Burn A Million Quid?’; day two is ‘2023 – What The Fuuk Is Going On?’; and day three is ‘The Rites Of MuMufication’.
The official announcement of these festivities adds that “there will only be 400 tickets available; there are no guest lists; there are no press passes”, before delivering a warning that “the Justified Ancients Of Mu Mu in any of their various past, present or future guises will not be performing music”. So consider yourself duly warned.
READ MORE ABOUT: The KLF
Friday 21 July 2017, 10:39 | By Chris Cooke
Beef Of The Week #364: The parliamentary representatives for Selby & Ainsty and Washington & Sunderland West v Viagogo’s security guard
And Finally Beef Of The Week Business News Live Business
So, Viagogo then. Via-fucking-gogo. You know Viagogo right? Wanna see a popstar perform their pop songs? Want to pay over the odds for the privilege? Like doing business with shady shits? Then Via-fucking-gogo is for you.
In the early days of secondary ticketing, Viagogo were well chatty. Whenever anything of note happened in the world of gigs and tours, there were Viagogo’s PR reps on the phone telling us that the ticket resale site’s founder Eric Baker was well opinionated on this issue, or topic, or development, and would be well up for chit chatting about it – hell, fuck doing an interview, that sounds like hard work, have a pre-prepared quote on us.
But then, as secondary ticketing went from being annoying to being controversial to being scandalous to being an enemy of the people, Viagogo stopped sending us a steady stream of PR emails and instead relocated to a cave in Switzerland where the company employed a new corporate communications strategy something along the lines of “la, la, la, la, la, la, la, la, la, la, la, la, la, la, la, la, la, we can’t hear you!”
We’ve tried our best to see if there are any hidden messages contained within the constant stream of ads that Viagogo posts onto Google – ads designed to make less web-savvy customers assume that the touted tickets the platform sells are somehow official – though we’ve not as yet been able to ascertain any substantial meaning from those blurbs. Except that we possibly disagree on the definition of the word ‘official’.
With ticket touting back on the political agenda in the UK, partly due to MP Sharon Hodgson refusing to let the issue lie, and partly as a result of the music community launching its FanFair campaign, Viagogo were invited to attend a select committee hearing on the secondary ticketing market back in March.
Now, when a parliamentary select committee invites you to attend one of their hearings what they really mean is “you better fucking show up you fuckers, or we’ll fucking kill you”. Though it would be considered somewhat unparliamentary to actually write that, and technically they don’t have the constitutional power to kill you.
Viagogo decided to interpret the invite as just that and politely declined the opportunity to face off MPs who had already given the company’s rivals quite the grilling in a previous session. At the time the chair of Parliament’s culture select committee, Damian Collins MP, said that he felt “considerable disappointment that Viagogo have decided not to send a representative despite the fact that they have a substantial office on Cannon Street”.
Committee member Nigel Huddleston MP was a little more forthright, remarking that Viagogo had shown “if not contempt for Parliament, a lack of respect to Parliament and by extension the British public”.
Then, of course, there was that silly General Election and Parliament wound itself down for the big vote. However, in a letter earlier this week, the aforementioned Hodgson, MP for Washington & Sunderland West, and her ally on this issue from the other benches, Nigel Adams, MP for Selby & Ainsty, confirmed to the powers that be at Viagogo that they and their parliamentary colleagues still had a bunch of questions they’d like answering.
They also noted that it had been discovered Viagogo was now operating from a new office in London on Fenchurch Street, but that the receptionist in the new building seemed to have been instructed to deny the firm’s presence. “We find this an odd practice for a company that contends it is behaving in an entirely above-board manner”, they wrote.
Assuming that the chances of getting a reply to their letter from the secretive top guard at Viagogo were pretty low, Hodgson and Adams yesterday decided to call on the secondary ticketing firm directly at their nice new London base, at least to hand over a hard copy of their missive in person.
They were joined by representatives from the aforementioned FanFair campaign, aggrieved former Viagogo customers and the promoter of Ed Sheeran’s 2018 stadium shows that – unlike its competitors – Viagogo has refused to block from resale, despite Team Sheeran’s pledge to cancel every touted ticket.
Perhaps unsurprisingly, Viagogo wasn’t especially welcoming to the visitors, sending out a security guard to get rid. Security told the MPs and campaigners that their employers “don’t want to see you”, before threatening to call the police if they didn’t fuck off.
Adams told The Guardian: “Viagogo told Parliament they couldn’t attend the [culture select committee] inquiry because they are registered in Switzerland and do not have adequate representation in the UK. But we have found that they have this secret office so we have come here to meet them in person”.
Hodgson added: “In my twelve years in Parliament I’ve never been turned away. We’re just trying to politely represent our constituents and Parliament. Normally if you go and see someone [as an MP] you get the most senior person to sit down and talk to you, but here we’ve been told if we don’t leave they will call the police”.
Adams concluded: “We’re both reasonable members of parliament and all we want is to drop off a letter. It’s extraordinary that we are being turned away. This is clearly a shifty, slippery and secretive company”.
So, Viagogo then. Via-fucking-gogo. Wanna overpriced ticket to an Ed Sheeran show that will almost certainly be cancelled before you get to the venue? Step right up. Want to discuss the ethics and practices of secondary ticketing? You know where you can go. Where you can Viagogo. Where you can Via-fucking-gogo.
READ MORE ABOUT: FanFair Alliance | Nigel Adams | Sharon Hodgson | Viagogo
Friday 21 July 2017, 05:09 | By Chris Cooke
CMU Digest 21.07.17: Viagogo, 1972, BBC, Spotify, Believe, Songkick
CMU Digest
The key stories from the last seven days in the music business…
More pressure piled onto the most controversial of the secondary ticketing sites, Viagogo. It came as Ed Sheeran’s promoters confirmed they had cancelled 10,000 tickets bought for his 2018 UK stadium shows which they believed had been purchased by touts. Sheeran’s team have been working particularly hard to try and stop tickets to his shows being touted – work that has been called “a step-change” by National Trading Standards. Recognising that, secondary sites StubHub, Seatwave and Get Me In all agreed to block the resale of Sheeran tickets on their platforms, but Viagogo did not. Meanwhile two British MPs were confronted by security when they showed up at the new London offices of Viagogo to ask why the company refused to attend a parliamentary select committee session on touting earlier this year, and it emerged the Irish advertising regulator was investigating the company’s use of the word ‘official’ in its Google ads. [READ MORE]
The music industry welcomed proposed legislation in US Congress to tackle the 1972 quirk in American copyright law. US-wide federal copyright law only protects sound recordings released since 1972, the rest being protected by state-level copyright. That has been a particular issue when it comes to the royalties paid by online and satellite radio stations. Such services are obliged to pay artists and labels under federal law, so many webcasters have argued no royalties are due on recordings that pre-date 1972. The new bill proposed by Darrell Issa and Jerrold Nadler would ensure royalties were paid on all recordings still in copyright. [READ MORE]
The BBC revealed what it paid to on-air talent who are on salaries over £150,000.The highest paid star was Radio 2 breakfast show host Chris Evans who gets more than £2.2 million a year. The Beeb didn’t want to reveal this information but was forced to by the UK government. The figures don’t include fees paid to stars by independent producers or the BBC’s own commercial division BBC Worldwide. The disclosure revealed that male stars at the BBC generally get paid more than female stars, instigating further debate about the gender pay gap. [READ MORE]
Two new lawsuits were filed against Spotify over the mechanicals issue. Many streaming services in the US have failed to pay all the mechanical royalties due on the songs they have streamed, mainly because of the lack of a mechanical rights collecting society Stateside and the fact there is no central database of music rights information. But under US copyright law it is the streaming service’s obligation to work out who to pay whenever a song is streamed. A previous class action on this issue was settled, and the National Music Publishers Association also reached a deal with Spotify over unpaid mechanicals. But lawyers for Bluewater Music Services and Bob Gaudio say the NMPA settlement was unsatisfactory and their clients are now suing for damages. [READ MORE]
The boss of distribution firm Believe played down reports that the company was about to be bought by Sony Music. The possible Sony acquisition was reported in Japanese business newspaper Nikkei, and seemed to be a sign the major was still keen to grow its music distribution and label services interests. But Believe boss Denis Ladegaillerie said that while his company was in talks with various potential new investors to fund the firm’s next phase of growth, any reports that “we have concluded a deal with Sony to sell Believe are absolutely not true”. [READ MORE]
Warner Music acquired the data and recommendations side of the Songkick business. The Songkick ticketing platform, which grew out of Crowdsurge, was not part of the deal. Warner owner Access Industries was already a backer of Songkick/Crowdsurge, so the deal wasn’t entirely surprising, though the fact it only bought the original Songkick recommendations platform was interesting. The ongoing legal battle with Live Nation, in which the live giant is accused of anti-competitive behaviour, will stay with the independent Songkick ticketing business. [READ MORE]
• The Cambridge and Newport folk festivals allied [INFO]
• BMG announced a partnership with Pro Tools [INFO]
• Chrysalis signed the Everything But The Girl catalogue [INFO]
• Sony/ATV signed Maluma [INFO]
READ MORE ABOUT: BBC | Believe | Bluewater Music Services | Bob Gaudio | Chris Evans | Darrell Issa | Jerrold Nadler | Songkick | Sony Music | Spotify | Viagogo | Warner Music
Thursday 20 July 2017, 13:26 | By Andy Malt
Approved: Bdy_Prts
CMU Approved
Bdy_Prts write great songs. Like, really great songs. Which makes it all the more frustrating that so few of them roam free in the wild. Three singles exist to date. ‘IDLU’came out in 2014, followed a year later by ‘Cold Shoulder’. Now, sauntering in without a care in the world, comes ‘Rooftops’. Three singles in four years. What sort of a work rate is that?
Oh, sure, the duo are busy with other things. Jill O’Sullivan leads Sparrow And The Workshop, while Jenny Reeve is a member of Strike The Colours and has collaborated with the likes of Snow Patrol, Idlewild, King Creosote and Malcolm Middleton.
The good news is, ‘Rooftops’ signals the arrival later this year of Bdy_Prts’ debut album. And some fine signalling it does too. With a carefully crafted song as their base, O’Sullivan and Reeve allow the track to morph and swell on its foundations, making for something that feels comfortable but leaves room for surprises.
Listen to ‘Rooftops’ here…
READ MORE ABOUT: Bdy_Prts
Thursday 20 July 2017, 13:24 | By Chris Cooke
Proposed new law aims to fix America’s pre-1972 copyright quirk
Business News Digital Labels & Publishers Legal
Two American politicians yesterday introduced bipartisan legislation into US Congress seeking to extend the digital performing right to all sound recordings still in copyright rather than just those released since 1972. This has been an American copyright quirk of much debate in recent years, of course.
US-wide federal copyright law is unusual in that it doesn’t provide a general performing right as part of the sound recording copyright, meaning that AM/FM radio stations – while paying royalties to songwriters and music publishers – don’t pay any royalties at all to artists and record companies for the music they play.
However, federal law does provide a digital performing right for recordings, meaning that online and satellite radio stations, and personalised radio services, do have to get a licence and pay royalties from and to the record industry. They can either do this via collecting society SoundExchange or via direct deals with the record labels.
However, for reasons of history federal copyright law only applies to sound recordings released since 1972 – earlier recordings are protected by state-level copyright laws, which don’t say anything about digital performing rights, most being written long before anyone talked about digital media. With that in mind, many of the services paying royalties to artists and labels for post-1972 recordings argued that they didn’t have to hand over any money whenever they played tracks that pre-dated that year.
Legacy artists and their labels weren’t very impressed with that get-out, resulting in a bunch of lawsuits where said artists and labels tried to find a way to force online and satellite radio services to pay royalties on pre as well as post 1972 catalogue.
In the main that involved arguing that, while state copyright laws might not talk about a digital performing right, there was – in fact – a general performing right for sound recordings in at least some states, which meant that online and satellite radio stations did need to pay royalties on pre-1972 recordings too. Though by that logic, so would AM/FM radio stations, and they never had.
Nevertheless, legal action led by musicians Flo & Eddie – formerly of 1960s outfit The Turtles – enjoyed some success in both California and New York.
A judge in the latter state specifically ruled that the fact AM/FM radio hadn’t paid any royalties on golden oldies all these years wasn’t any reason to say that a general performing right hadn’t been hiding in state copyright law all this time. Though on appeal other judges decided that actually it was.
On the back of Flo & Eddie’s initial success in court there were a number of settlements between artists and labels on the one side and online and satellite radio on the other, over the past and future playing of pre-1972 tracks. Though the matter is far from resolved at a state law level, given that aforementioned appeal ruling in New York and the fact the matter is still working its way through the appeal process in California.
A simpler fix for the music industry, certainly in terms of securing future royalties, would be to amend federal law to say that all recordings still in copyright, oblivious of release date, are covered by the US-wide copyright system, and therefore benefit from the digital performing right.
And that’s exactly what Republican Darrell Issa and Democrat Jerrold Nadler are hoping to do with their somewhat clumsily named Compensating Legacy Artists for their Songs, Service, & Important Contributions to Society Act. It’s the CLASSICS Act see. Though technically the proposed legislation is about compensating legacy artists for their recordings not their songs, where they are already compensated. The CLARSICS Act doesn’t work though I guess.
The proposed legislation has been unsurprisingly welcomed by various groups within the US music industry, though also Pandora, one of the companies sued for not paying royalties on pre-1972 catalogue. Which might seem odd, except that, from its perspective, having already done a deal with the majors on pre-1972 tracks, it would prefer a clear resolution on this issue so that it’s on a level playing field with competitors.
Pandora’s General Counsel Steve Bené said yesterday: “For decades, the artists that gave the world Motown, jazz, and rock n roll have been hampered by antiquated and arbitrary laws – until now. While many heritage artists are compensated through direct licensing deals, including by Pandora, it’s the independent musicians that this bill rightly protects. We commend Representatives Issa and Nadler for bringing pre-1972 recordings into the modern era, and ensuring that our most cherished artists are finally on equal footing with their modern peers and paid for their record streams”.
Meanwhile the boss of the aforementioned SoundExchange also welcomed the legislative proposals, while also name-checking the previously reported Fair Play Fair Pay Act which seeks to introduce a wider general performing right for recordings Stateside, meaning AM/FM stations would also have to start handing over some cash.
SoundExchange chief Mike Huppe said: “America’s music creators are short-changed on many fronts by our copyright policy. This legislation addresses one of those fronts, creating fair treatment for artists and creators of sound recordings made before 1972. It represents another step forward in our efforts to enact comprehensive copyright reform including the Fair Play Fair Pay Act”.
He went on: “Taken together, these efforts attempt to fix broken, antiquated policy and ensure that all creators are compensated fairly whenever their work is used on all radio services. We are grateful to Representatives Issa and Nadler for their ongoing support of America’s music creators across all platforms”.
While the music industry would like both this new CLASSICS Act and the Fair Play Fair Pay legislation to go through Congress, the latter is arguably much more contentious in Washington circles, with the powerful radio industry lobby campaigning against it. However, it is hoped the CLASSICS Act has more chance of being passed, so at least that one issue can be resolved sooner rather than later.
Anyway, here’s some more quotes, from the backers of the act and from US record industry representatives…
Congressman Jerrold Nadler: “For years, we have been working to ensure royalty payments for artists who recorded many of our great musical classics before 1972. The Fair Play Fair Pay Act set down a clear marker on the need to resolve the dispute over pre-72 music, as we worked toward a long-term solution that benefits multiple stakeholders. The bill we are introducing today updates this pre-72 provision, once and for all guaranteeing royalty payments for our great legacy artists while providing certainty for digital music services”.
Congressman Darrell Issa: “This an important and overdue fix to the law that will help settle years of litigation and restore some equity to this inexplicable gap in our copyright system. It makes no sense that some of the most iconic artists of our time are left without the same federal copyright protections afforded to their modern counterparts. This bill is the product of a great deal of work to build consensus across party lines and varying interests all-over the music and entertainment landscapes on how to best resolve this long-standing problem. I’m very proud of the work we’ve done here. It will go a long way helping bring music licensing laws into the twenty-first century”.
Recording Industry Association Of America CEO Cary Sherman: “This bipartisan legislation helps close, once and for all, the loophole in federal law that has short-changed legacy artists for decades. If enacted into law as we hope it will be, music’s founding generation of iconic performers and creators will finally share some of the value generated by the music that is the backbone of digital radio. It’s the right thing to do, and that’s why a growing chorus of voices throughout the music community support this effort. We commend Representatives Issa and Nadler for their leadership on this important issue and encourage its swift passage”.
musicFIRST Executive Director Chris Israel: “Recordings made before the arbitrary date of February 15, 1972, are among the most popular and valuable in the world. And yet, because of an anomaly in US copyright law, the creators of those sound recordings have had to endure years of litigation simply for the right to be paid, and the litigation continues to this day. It’s time for Congress to fix this injustice so legacy artists are paid when their music is used by digital radio. The musicFIRST coalition thanks the bipartisan co-sponsors of this legislation for their unwavering support for music creators whether they be ‘legacy’ artists, those performing today or those yet to be discovered”.
READ MORE ABOUT: CLASSICS Act | Darrell Issa | Jerrold Nadler | musicFirst | Recording Industry Association Of America | SoundExchange
Thursday 20 July 2017, 13:22 | By Chris Cooke
Madonna halts auction of her hair, pants and celebrity love letters
Business News Legal
A New York judge has halted the auction of some personal items that once belonged to Madonna, partly because the pop star thought at least some of the personal items for sale were actually still her belongings.
The courts ordered the Gotta Have Rock And Roll auctions site – recently in the news after a copy of mainly unreleased Michael Jackson tracks was withdrawn from sale – to take 22 items out of its latest auction, including a pair of Madonna’s pants, an old hairbrush containing some of the singer’s hair, and a letter she received from the late Tupac Shakur.
With regards that letter, according to the New York Daily News, Madonna told the court: “I became aware through media reports that there was a planned auction of extremely personal, private correspondence I received from a former boyfriend, the late recording artist and actor Tupac Shakur. I had no idea that the letter was no longer in my possession”.
As for the hair in the hair brush, the star reckoned it was “outrageous and grossly offensive” that her DNA could be up for auction. She added that she had been “shocked to learn” about the planned auction and that “former friend” Darlene Lutz was behind the sale.
Although Madonna secured the injunction halting the sale of the offending items, the auction site said it would appeal the ruling. A spokesperson told the Daily News: “Madonna and her legal army have taken what we believe to be a completely baseless and meritless action to temporarily halt the sale of Ms Lutz’s legal property. We believe that her intent is nothing more than to besmirch the good reputations of the auction house and Ms Lutz”.
READ MORE ABOUT: Madonna
Thursday 20 July 2017, 13:19 | By Chris Cooke
Sony/ATV signs Maluma
Business News Deals Labels & Publishers
Sony/ATV has signed one of those worldwide publishing deals you all keep talking about with Colombian artist Maluma, who is currently enjoying plenty of chart success with ‘Felices Los 4’ – the lead single off his third album – especially in Latin America.
Maluma is already signed to Sony on the recordings side, and the new publishing deal covers his catalogue to date, including ‘Felices Los 4’, plus future works.
Confirming the signing, Sony/ATV big cheese Marty Bandier said: “Latin music’s ever growing popularity has already transcended borders, cultures, and musical styles. Maluma is uniquely positioned to be its face for the world both for today and for the future. I couldn’t be more excited that we have signed this incredibly talented songwriter and artist”.
Meanwhile Maluma himself said: “I am very happy and honoured to be part of the Sony/ATV family. This is my first major publishing deal and I know that I couldn’t have chosen a better partner to take this step with, they are the very best in the business. I look forward to taking my career as a songwriter to the next level together with Sony/ATV”.
READ MORE ABOUT: Maluma | Sony Music Publishing
Thursday 20 July 2017, 13:07 | By Chris Cooke
PPL and PRS expand pilot using music recognition tech to improve club reporting
Business News Labels & Publishers
Collecting societies PPL and PRS For Music have confirmed that they are expanding a pilot project to test the use of music recognition technology in clubs, pubs, bars and hotels to monitor what music is being played in those spaces.
Any business playing music needs licences from the music industry covering both recordings (PPL) and songs (PRS). The royalties paid by such businesses are then, in theory, passed back to the artists, labels, songwriters and publishers whose music is played.
Though, of course, the tricky challenge has always been, how do the collecting societies know what tracks and songs have actually been used? Compromises have always had to be made, as tracking every single recording ever played in public would cost more than the monies being paid by public performance licensees. Though quite how any one collecting society decides to distribute this income has always been a little controversial.
In more recent years, pretty much ever since Shazam gained momentum, some have argued that there is now a technology fix to this reporting problem. And it is that possible solution which this pilot is testing, with PRS and PPL working with DJ Monitor to identify the music being played in some of these public spaces. The societies say the pilot began late last year and has now been rolled out to more venues.
The need for a more technical approach to monitoring what music gets publicly played has been particularly debated in the clubbing and dance music communities. Some dance acts have argued that clubs are key users of their music, but weaknesses in reporting in this domain mean that they are probably missing out on royalties. And some club promoters have questioned whether the royalties they pay into the collective licensing system are really reaching the artists and producers whose music they rely on.
A number of key club venues are involved in the PPL/PRS pilot, including Fabric, Ministry Of Sound and clubbing chain The Deltic Group.
The CEO of the latter, Peter Marks, has welcomed the pilot, saying: “Music is the very heartbeat of our business and it’s in our interest to see that talented artists are rewarded for their creations. With online streaming and other digital technology, it’s increasingly difficult for songwriters and musicians to make a living from their creations, so anything we can do to help and attract and support the latest local talent has to be a good thing”.
Meanwhile PPL’s Head Of Distribution, Russell Chant, says: “We are pleased with the progress being made with the ‘music recognition technology’ pilot, and working with established brands and premises on British high streets will give us greater insight into the music being played in bars and clubs around the country. The readiness of all participating venues to install the recognition devices is a positive move for the recording rightsholders and performers whose music is being played”.
And at PRS, Karen Buse adds: “We are delighted to have the support of venues across the UK participating in this pilot. We look forward to working with the clubs to gain insight into how technology could help ensure the right people are paid for the music that keeps clubbers coming in”.
READ MORE ABOUT: DJ Monitor | PPL | PRS For Music | The Deltic Group
Thursday 20 July 2017, 13:05 | By Chris Cooke
Ed Sheeran’s anti-tout activity constitutes a “step-change”, says National trading Standards
Business News Live Business
An exec at National Trading Standards has commented on the particularly proactive efforts by Ed Sheeran’s team to stop tickets being touted for his 2018 UK stadium shows, calling said efforts a “step change”.
As previously reported, promoters of the Sheeran shows confirmed earlier this week that they were closely monitoring the sale and resale of tickets to the musician’s shows next year and were committed to cancelling touted tickets. Three of the big four ticket resale sites have agreed to not allow tickets for the stadium shows to be resold on their platforms, but swamp-based shady-players Viagogo have not.
The promoters confirmed they “have been monitoring the sales transactions in close conjunction with the National Trading Standards Cyber Crime team and have identified many multiple purchases which are in contravention of the terms and conditions for the sale of the Ed Sheeran tickets, and as a result up to 10,000 tickets have now been cancelled and are being returned back into the market place for individual fans to purchase at face value”.
Commenting on that work in the Daily Record, Mike Andrews of National Trading Standards said: “We know fans desperate for tickets will often pay hugely inflated prices to get them from unofficial ticket sellers, and next year’s Ed Sheeran tour has proved to be no different. However, the steps being taken on this tour to clamp down on the practice of unofficial sellers buying tickets in bulk – before charging genuine fans much higher prices – do represent a step-change and we urge fans to be vigilant to avoid disappointment”.
He added: “We have seen reports of fans paying more than £1800 for tickets from unofficial websites. The promoters have been very clear that those purchasing tickets through unauthorised sellers will be denied entry to concerts, so we advise fans to avoid being tempted to purchase tickets through unofficial sites”.
Elsewhere in the world of ticket touting, MPs Sharon Hodgson and Nigel Adams have written to the aforementioned Viagogo having discovered that the company has a new base in London on Fenchurch Street. The resale firm – always chatty in the early days of secondary ticketing, but now constantly surrounded by a wall of silence – took the highly unusual option of declining to appear before a parliamentary select committee hearing on touting earlier this year, despite parliamentarians requesting that they attend.
Confirming that said parliamentarians are still interested in asking Viagogo some questions, Hodgson and Adams also note in their letter that the reception desk at the complex the firm is now using as a base seems to have been told to deny their presence in the building. The MPs write: “We find this an odd practice for a company that contends it is behaving in an entirely above-board manner”. As do we all.
READ MORE ABOUT: Ed Sheeran | National Trading Standards | Viagogo
Thursday 20 July 2017, 13:04 | By Chris Cooke
Cambridge and Newport folk festivals ally
Business News Deals Live Business
The Cambridge Folk Festival has announced a partnership with America’s Newport Folk Festival, the long-standing annual folk fest in Rhode Island that, among other claims to fame, was where the ‘electric Dylan controversy’ occurred in 1965. The informal alliance is being billed as a ‘twinning’, with organisers of the two events hoping to share ideas, knowledge and booking tips.
Confirming the tie-up between the two equally prestigious folk festivals, the MD of Cambridge Folk Festival, Steve Bagnall, said: “Cambridge Folk Festival has always tested the boundaries of folk with its programme and we are excited to be working with and learning from a festival that has the artistic heritage and ambition of Newport. Twinning with Newport will allow both festivals to explore unique and extraordinary artistic opportunities that will excite audiences on both sides of the Atlantic”.
Noting how the Newport Festival inspired the founding of his event in 1965, Bagnall added: “Since 1959, the Newport Folk Festival has held a unique place in America’s musical and cultural history. A hub for the civil rights movement in the 1960s and the site of Bob Dylan’s famous switch to electric guitar in 1965, the festival also hosted the first major appearances of Joan Baez, James Taylor, Joni Mitchell and Arlo Guthrie, and sparked the revival of gospel, Cajun and blues. Today the festival’s unique alchemy between past and present still serves fans who crave innovation but appreciate tradition”.
Newport Folk Festival Executive Producer Jay Sweet adds: “We are excited that from next year Newport Folk Festival will be twinning with Cambridge Folk Festival. This move will allow us to share ideas, experiences and some artists from two festivals that have grown up together and in their own way played a role in shaping the folk music landscape on both sides of the Atlantic. This partnership will allow us to bring a little bit of Newport to Cambridge and vice versa”.
READ MORE ABOUT: Cambridge Folk Festival | Newport Folk Festival
Thursday 20 July 2017, 13:00 | By Chris Cooke
BBC reveals pay-packets of top talent, fuelling gender pay gap debate
Business News Media
So there was much chatter yesterday about the monies paid to the BBC’s top on-air talent, after the Corporation was forced by the UK government to reveal what it paid to actors, presenters and journalists who are on a salary over £150,000.
The Corporation’s deals with on-air talent have previously been secret, but ministers insisted that the Beeb’s highly paid celebs should be subject to the same scrutiny as behind the scenes executives. The government’s aim, of course, was to ensure transparency for licence fee payers or to embarrass an institution that they and their media mogul mates despise, depending on your viewpoint.
Precise salaries weren’t revealed, rather actors, presenters and journalists were listed under a series of different pay brackets. The disclosure also doesn’t include any on-air names who appear in BBC programmes made by independent producers and who are therefore not directly paid by the Beeb.
Payments received for projects run by the BBC’s commercial wing BBC Worldwide were also not included. Which means some big names don’t appear at all, while those that do appear might actually be earning more once fees from independent producers and BBC Worldwide are taken into account.
Some BBC personalities are on pretty damn big salaries, with Chris Evans topping the list having been paid at least £2.2 million in the last financial year.
Though, Radio 4 presenter John Humphries made a decent point when asked about his salary of at least £600,000. He said that while – when compared to what people in some other professions are paid, like “a doctor who saves a child’s life, a nurse who comforts a dying person, or a fireman who rushes into Grenfell Tower” – his pay seems wildly excessive, in the context of the business he is in that’s a pretty standard fee.
And Evans, after all, hosts one of the biggest radio shows in the world. Meanwhile other celebs on the BBC payroll could probably increase their salaries if they took jobs in the commercial sector, and even more so if they could find an opening in the US. Meanwhile, with Amazon and Netflix now also seeking top talent for their original programming, fees on offer outside the Beeb are only going up.
Which doesn’t make it any less crazy that people get paid so much more money to pretend to save lives on shows like ‘Casualty’ and ‘Holby City’ than they would to actually save lives in a real hospital, but that’s not the fault of the BBC.
Though, actually, much of the backlash against the BBC’s big talent pay-packet reveal yesterday was less focused on how much the big names get, and more on the fact that the big name male personalities are generally earning much more than the big name female personalities. In some cases there are men on the list whose female colleagues – who do the same job – don’t even appear, meaning they are paid less than £150,000.
Gender inequality when it comes to pay isn’t a uniquely BBC problem by any means, though as a state-owned broadcaster it probably should be playing a proactive role in endeavouring to overcome this inequity. Most of the men who appeared on yesterday’s list called out their employer on this issue, though – given the BBC remains under pressure to save money – it’s not clear whether any of them would take a pay-cut to so that their female colleagues could get a concurrent pay-rise to ensure more equal pay overall.
BBC boss Tony Hall conceded that issues remain in the gender pay gap – and the lack of ethnic diversity amongst the highest paid personalities – though he argued that the Corporation is already working on shifting things in the right direction.
He said yesterday: “On gender and diversity, the BBC is more diverse than the broadcasting industry and the Civil Service. We have set the most stretching targets in the industry for on-air diversity and we’ve made progress, but we recognise there is more to do and we are pushing further and faster than any other broadcaster”.
He went on: “At the moment, of the talent earning over £150,000, two thirds are men and one third are women. We’ve set a clear target for 2020: we want all our lead and presenting roles to be equally divided between men and women. And it’s already having an impact. If you look at those on the list who we have hired or promoted in the last three years, 60% are women and nearly a fifth come from a [black, Asian or ethnic minority] background”.
Concluding, Hall said: “Meeting our goal on this is going to have a profound impact not just on the BBC, but the whole media industry. It’s going to change the market for talent in this country”.
READ MORE ABOUT: BBC | Chris Evans
Thursday 20 July 2017, 12:58 | By Chris Cooke
Blazin Squad reforming on back of ‘Love Island’ exposure
Artist News
The good old Blazin Squad are coming back! Yep, Kenzie, Strider, Flava, Bob, Mitch, The Dude, Whatsisname, Who-ja-ma-flip, MC Duffle Coat and Rocky B will be reforming to entertain the world once again.
Well some of them will be. Rocky B – aka Marcel Somerville – will definitely be there, I know that. Because he’s on this ‘Love Island’ thing you all keep talking about, and it’s that which has prompted the latest move to reunite the Squad.
We know all this because Squad member Ollie Georgiou – who performed as, I don’t know, maybe he was MC Duffle Coat – has confirmed the mooted reunion to Metro. He said: “It will be the original line up. Obviously there’s ten of us, I’m not sure if all ten of us will be doing it, but there will be a good chunk doing it”.
And who can ask for more than a “good chunk”? No one, that’s who. Georgiou adds: “It’s been a long while since a lot of us have been on stage and toured. Fingers crossed! We’ve had the offers from promoters so, hopefully, if it can come together then all good”.
The reformation is set to actually occur in August at a pop festival in Dagenham, but other dates and maybe even new music are being promised. “If we do do a tour and start getting it all together then there will be new music, we wouldn’t rely on old stuff”, Georgiou says, adding of the new sounds “a lot of it would be done by Marcel because he’s very creative”.
And famous, of course, let’s not forget he’s now famous.
READ MORE ABOUT: Blazin Squad
Thursday 20 July 2017, 12:52 | By Chris Cooke
The Lemon Twigs announce new EP
Artist News Gigs & Festivals Releases
With another UK tour now in the diary, 4AD-signed band The Lemon Twigs have confirmed they will follow up last year’s debut album ‘Do Hollywood’ with a new six track EP ‘Brothers Of Destruction’. It comes out on 22 Sep, but one of the tracks is already streaming on the YouTubes…
Say the brothers behind the band, Brian and Michael D’Addario: “In the beginning of 2015 we had songs left over from the ‘Do Hollywood’ sessions, so we decided to record them at home in New York on our 8-track. Many of you will recognise some of the songs from our live shows. They’ve changed a lot over the past year, but these are the original versions. We consider the EP the last chapter of the ‘Do Hollywood’ era of our group. So enjoy!”
Did I say UK tour. Yes, I said UK tour. Dates…
10 Nov: Manchester, Ritz
11 Nov: Sheffield, Leadmill
12 Nov: Glasgow, QMU
14 Nov: Birmingham, The Institute
15 Nov: London, The Forum Kentish
READ MORE ABOUT: The Lemon Twigs
Thursday 20 July 2017, 12:43 | By Chris Cooke
Universal says ‘désolé’ over French-free Canada tribute album
And Finally Business News Labels & Publishers
Universal Music Canada has conceded that when putting out a six disc compilation to celebrate the country’s 150th anniversary, it probably should have put at least a couple of tracks on there that are sung in French.
The lack of French words on the compilation was noted on its release, not least in the Canadian province of Quebec where the vast majority of people consider French to be their first language. Which isn’t to say there weren’t artists harking from Quebec on the record, there were, they were just singing in English.
Acknowledging the critics of its French-free ‘Canada 150: A Celebration Of Music’ release, the mega-major took to the tweets yesterday to declare: “Universal Music Canada acknowledges our errors of omission in the creation of the Canada 150 set”.
It went on: “While no compilation should claim to be comprehensive, the absence of French-language repertoire is an incomprehensible oversight, which is not reflective of our values, and we will take action to remedy the offence. Our company has true admiration for Francophone arts and culture and we remain committed to its continued support and development”.
So there you go. And yes, they did also tweet the apology in French.
READ MORE ABOUT: Universal Music
Wednesday 19 July 2017, 11:52 | By Andy Malt
Approved: Wy
CMU Approved
Swedish duo Wy return with their second single of the year, ‘What Would I Ever Do’. Certainly their strongest recording to date, the song elevates them from being a good band to being a real stand out act. In particular, vocalist and guitarist Ebba Ågren’s voice bristles with emotion that really gives the track an extra edge.
“It’s about letting go of trying to be something that you are not”, says Ågren of the song. “Realising that you’ve tried to be so many people in your past and none of them felt like yourself, so you just said ‘fuck it’ and stopped trying so hard”.
Watch the video for ‘What Would I Ever Do’ here…
READ MORE ABOUT: Wy
