This website uses cookies so that we can provide you with the best user experience possible. Cookie information is stored in your browser and performs functions such as recognising you when you return to our website and helping our team to understand which sections of the website you find most interesting and useful.
Thursday 26 July 2018, 11:14 | By Chris Cooke
SESAC responds to criticism of its last minute Music Modernization Act lobbying
Business News Labels & Publishers Legal
US collecting society SESAC has responded to highly vocal criticism by certain American songwriter groups over its parent company’s last minute intervention regarding long-in-development music copyright reform that is still working its way through Congress.
The Music Modernization Act will change various aspects of music copyright law in the States. A key element is the creation of a new mechanical rights collecting society to overcome the mess that is song right licensing in the streaming domain in America.
There is no direct equivalent of the UK’s MCPS collecting society in the US. Instead labels and digital services exploiting the mechanical rights in songs hire agencies to make sure the right paperwork and payments are sent to the publishers and writers who control the songs they exploit. One such agency is the Harry Fox Agency, which is now a sister business to the performing rights organisation SESAC.
Seemingly concerned about the impact the new mechanical rights collecting society will have on HFA’s business, private equity firm Blackstone – which owns both HFA and SESAC – has been seeking to amend the MMA to its advantage as the copyright proposals work their way through US Senate.
Both Nashville Songwriters Association International and the Songwriters Of North America fear Blackstone’s proposals could scupper the entire act. An act, they add, which has been carefully negotiated by organisations representing artists, songwriters, labels, publishers and digital services, as well as the bigger American PROs BMI and ASCAP.
Hitting out at the late-in-the-day lobbying by Blackstone, SONA said earlier this week: “The performance rights organisation SESAC … is actively pushing an amendment in the US Senate that could effectively kill the Music Modernization Act”.
Blackstone and SESAC had already responded to that criticism, insisting that they weren’t seeking to kill the MMA. However, as NSAI and SONA called on songwriters who are allied with SESAC to take their collecting society and its owner to task over their recent manoeuvrings, the PRO put out a new statement yesterday.
It said: “SESAC is America’s second oldest PRO. We have a long history of advocating on behalf of songwriters and providing a premium value for their work unavailable at other PROs in the US since the 1940s. SESAC is a driver of competition that benefits all songwriters”.
“SESAC wholeheartedly supports the goals of the Music Modernization Act and wants those goals made law – just like you do”, it went on. “We are concerned that a lack of competition might damage not only our business, but songwriters too. We’ve suggested a simple amendment to improve competition so we can continue to ensure that all songwriter and publisher royalties continue to grow. Any assertion to the contrary is simply dishonest”.
NSAI and SONA insist that the most recent draft of Blackstone’s amendment will not be backed by other music industry groups, not to mention the streaming services that will fund the new collecting society. It remains to be seen if a last minute compromise can be reached that satisfies Blackstone without alienating the rest of the music community coalition.
READ MORE ABOUT: Blackstone Group | Harry Fox Agency | Music Modernization Act | SESAC
Thursday 26 July 2018, 11:13 | By Chris Cooke
Jane Dyball to depart the Music Publishers Association
Business News Industry People Labels & Publishers
The boss of the UK’s Music Publishers Association – Jane Dyball – yesterday announced that she will step down from the role at the start of next year.
She originally joined the organisation in 2014 to run the trade body’s licensing activities, which included mechanical rights collecting society MCPS, sheet music licensing body PMLL and digital licensing scheme IMPEL. She subsequently became CEO of the MPA itself, with the trade body and its business ventures being more closely aligned under the name of the MPA Group Of Companies. IMPEL was then spun off as a separate entity earlier this year.
Noting key developments at the wider MPA group that have occurred under Dyball’s leadership, the trade body yesterday listed: “Steering MCPS in its first few years as a standalone business which has paid down more than £16 million [in] debt, revamping the MPA service to its members and developing new licensing schemes at PMLL”.
Dyball also led a review of MCPS’s relationship with its former business partner PRS, which included a tender process whereby other entities were invited to pitch to manage and administrate the mechanical rights of the society’s members. Though in the end much of MCPS’s deal with PRS was renewed.
Confirming that she will leave the MPA next year, Dyball said: “It’s always hard to know when to leave because there is always more to do, and these companies have a really great future. However, I have either completed or set in motion everything on the ‘to do’ list that I wrote on my first day and it seemed the right time to move on”.
She added of her time with the association: “It has been challenging but rewarding and I have loved working with such a great team – both within the group but also among our members and partners. I’m really grateful to the boards and members who I have tried my best to represent for letting me have this opportunity”.
The organisation’s Chair, Universal Music Publishing’s Jackie Alway, added: “Jane has been a force for good at the MPA for the last four years, driving innovation and positive change. The MPA group of companies has been brought together and rendered streamlined and efficient. The MPA itself is now a dynamic organisation staffed by a talented and hardworking team achieving great things”.
“We are sharply focussed on defending publishers’ and creators’ rights at policy level, and beyond that Jane has been the architect of a great evolution in the services we provide to members”, Always continued. “We are so grateful to Jane for her energy, humour and vision. We wish her further success in her next ventures and we look forward to the challenge of finding a new leader for our organisation who can build on these well-laid foundations”.
READ MORE ABOUT: Jane Dyball | Music Publishers Association (MPA)
Thursday 26 July 2018, 11:11 | By Chris Cooke
London’s night czar responds to criticism following Hackney curfew decision
Business News Live Business
London’s Night Czar Amy Lamé has responded to criticism thrown in her direction in the wake of the news Hackney Council has decided to introduce a new 11pm curfew – midnight at the weekend – on pubs, clubs, bars and venues in the London borough.
The new rule means that night-time businesses wanting to trade beyond 11pm will need to demonstrate that they won’t have a negative impact on their local neighbourhood by doing so. The local authority’s new restrictions have been widely criticised by those operating bars and venues in the borough, which includes nightspot hubs like Shoreditch and Dalston.
Lamé was appointed by London mayor Sadiq Khan to be a champion and defender of the capital’s night-time economy. But her boss often doesn’t have direct powers over the key issues hindering night-time businesses, with licensing decisions being made by the local councils in London, rather than City Hall. Nevertheless, many felt Hackney’s curfew decision contradicted Lamé and Khan’s regular bigging up of the capital’s nightlife and wider cultural industries.
Following a particularly scathing opinion piece in NME – titled ‘Amy Lamé: what exactly is the point of you?’ – she penned a response. In it she runs through the various things she reckons have been achieved since the job of London Night Czar was created, before explaining the limitations of the role. However, she adds, the fact various things have been achieved despite those limitations means she is “optimistic about finding a way forward for Hackney’s night life”.
Lamé explains: “Licensing policy is, by law, a matter for local authorities. Neither I nor the mayor have the power to tell local authorities what to do or not to do on licensing issues. However, my role is to help get everyone to sit around the table, talking together, to represent the needs of the night-time economy in those conversations, and ultimately to find a solution that works for everyone. I’ve used this convening power on a number of different issues from Croydon to Waltham Forest, Newham to Kingston – and it really can work”.
“Shoreditch and Dalston’s night-time economy are the envy of the world”, she goes on. “I know both Hackney Council and its businesses and residents want to protect its vibrancy, while making sure it works for those who live in the area. I have been listening to and understand local people and businesses’ concerns about the new licensing policy. I share many of them. That’s why I have asked Hackney for an urgent meeting to see if it is possible to work out a solution that protects the local community whilst making sure London doesn’t go backwards in its progress towards becoming a truly 24 hour city. I’m sure there is a positive way forward”.
Concluding, she states: “I’m proud to be a Londoner and be the Night Czar for the most vibrant and diverse city in the world. I will carry on working – both night and day – to make sure ours is a city that thrives at night for everyone”.
READ MORE ABOUT: Amy Lamé
Thursday 26 July 2018, 11:09 | By Andy Malt
Yoko Ono revisits old work on new album
Artist News Releases
Yoko Ono has announced that she will release a new album, ‘Warzone’, later this year. The record sees her revisit thirteen songs from across her career on which she feels the lyrics still relate to the world in 2018.
“The world is so messed up”, says Ono. “Things are very difficult for everybody. It’s a warzone that we are living in. I like to create things in a new way. Every day things change”.
Featuring songs that originate from between 1970 and 2009, ‘Warzone’ will be released through Chimera Music, the label of Ono’s son Sean Lennon, on 5 Oct. A new track from the record will be released every Tuesday in the run up to the release at yokoonowarzone.com
Here’s the video for the title track. And here’s the full tracklist:
Warzone
Hell In Paradise
Now Or Never
Where Do We Go From Here
Woman Power
It’s Gonna Rain
Why
Children Power
I Love All of Me
Teddy Bear
I’m Alive
I Love You Earth
Imagine
READ MORE ABOUT: Yoko Ono
Thursday 26 July 2018, 11:08 | By Andy Malt
Jon Spencer sings the hits on debut solo album
Artist News Gigs & Festivals Releases
Jon Spencer (now without his Blues Explosion) has announced details of his debut solo album, ‘Spencer Sings The Hits!’ It’s set for release in November, following UK shows supporting Melvins.
Spencer worked with bassist Sam Coomes and drummer M Sord in Michigan late last year, before completing the recordings on his own this year. “I had to rush back East to be with family [after the initial sessions]”, he explains. “But we accomplished enough – got basics down for all songs. I went back to Michigan – solo – in January to overdub and mix”.
“In general, throughout the project, I tried not to overthink anything and instead just kept pushing forward, trusting in my instincts”, he goes on. “I figured that I had already spent months and years thinking about this record and these songs”.
While announcing the album, Spencer also released new single ‘Do The Trash Can’, which features some unusual percussion. “Nothing like digging the gas tank from an old Chevy out of a Michigan junkyard snow bank in January”, says Spencer. “The junkyard owner kept asking me if the metal was for a school project, but as a bluegrass player he could understand the possible use for a recording session”.
Watch the video for ‘Do The Trash Can’ here:
READ MORE ABOUT: Jon Spencer
Thursday 26 July 2018, 11:04 | By Andy Malt
One Liners: Boyzone, Blood Orange, Idles, more
Artist News Gigs & Festivals One Liners Releases
Other notable announcements and developments today…
• Boyzone have released new single ‘Because’. It’s co-written by Ed Sheeran. The band will release their final album, ‘Thank You And Goodnight’, on 16 Nov. Have a listen to the new track here and see if you can work out what song Sheeran has (allegedly) ripped off this time.
• Blood Orange has released new track ‘Charcoal Baby’. His new album ‘Negro Swan’ is out on 24 Aug.
• Idles have released new single ‘Samaritans’. “I truly believe that masculinity has gone from an evolution of cultural praxis to a disease”, says frontman Joe Talbot. “I wanted to encourage a conversation about gender roles by writing this song”.
• Tālā has released new single ‘Bedtime’. “When I wrote ‘Bedtime’ I was going through a lot of personal trauma in my life”, she says. “It was very in the moment and very real”.
• Pale Waves have announced that they will release their debut album, ‘My Mind Makes Noises’, on 14 Sep. They’re touring the UK and Ireland in September and October too. Here’s new single, ‘Eighteen’.
• Alexander Tucker has released new track ‘Visiting Again’. His new album, ‘Don’t Look Away’, is out on 24 Aug.
• Our Girl have released the video for recent single ‘In My Head’.
• HMS Morris have announced that they will return with their second album, ‘Inspirational Talks’, on 21 Sep. Here’s new single ‘Phenomenal Impossible’.
• Check out our weekly Spotify playlist of new music featured in the CMU Daily – updated every Friday.
READ MORE ABOUT: Alexander Tucker | Blood Orange | Boyzone | Ed Sheeran | HMS Morris | Idles | Our Girl | Pale Waves | Tālā
Thursday 26 July 2018, 10:57 | By Andy Malt
Robbie reckons Oasis should reunite, so that’s decided
And Finally Artist News Gigs & Festivals
Robbie Williams has said that Liam and Noel Gallagher will have to set aside their differences and reunite Oasis. They just aren’t successful enough in their solo careers – what with their recent number one albums – to avoid a bit of reliving the past, he reckons.
“I think there will be [an Oasis reunion]”, Williams tells The Sun. “Liam Gallagher has just come back and he’s done pretty well. He had a platinum record with his solo album and I think that’s what everybody was waiting for. I think the next time he releases an album it won’t do as well. Noel’s album didn’t do too good either. I think it sold like 70,000 copies or something, which for Noel isn’t great”.
He goes on: “If they’re anything like me, which I think they are, they will want to be doing the most successful thing they can do, and the most successful thing they can do is a reunion. I think they’ll both need to do it”.
Last week, Liam did once again hold out an olive branch of sorts to his brother, tweeting: “Earth to Noel: Listen up rkid, I hear you’re doing gigs where people can’t drink alcohol now, that’s the BeZarist thing you’ve done yet. I forgive you, now let’s get the BIG O back together and stop fucking about. The drinks are on me”.
However, Williams also conceded that he “can’t see them taking Rob’s advice”. Indeed, if anything, Williams prophesising an Oasis reunion probably makes it less likely that the Gallagher brothers would reunite, given their history of not liking Robbie Williams very much.
Still, back when Oasis were the biggest British rock band on the planet, no one was throwing fish at Liam. That’s all changed now. While performing at the Benicassim festival in Spain at the weekend, someone lobbed a “stinky, smelly fish” onto the stage as he was about to break into Oasis hit ‘Cigarettes And Alcohol’.
“So which dickhead threw the fish here then?” Gallagher asked the audience, stopping his band as they were about to start the song. “Fucking stinky, smelly fish, man. Now listen, right, it ain’t that fucking bad, right. Don’t be throwing fish on stage. I’ve seen a lot worse than this shit. Alright?”
It’s not entirely clear what “shit” he was referring too, whether he meant the festival at large or his own performance in particular. Anyway, he then halted proceedings a second time as the band once again attempted to start the song.
“I can’t be singing while there’s a fish there, mate”, he said. “That’s rank”.
A roadie then appeared and removed the offending creature, and the show was resumed without further incident.
READ MORE ABOUT: Benicassim | Liam Gallagher | Noel Gallagher | Oasis | Robbie Williams
Thursday 26 July 2018, 10:40 | By Andy Malt
Approved: Tunde Olaniran
CMU Approved
Tunde Olaniran is set to release his second album, ‘Stranger’, on 5 Oct. The follow-up to 2015’s ‘Transgressor’, his newer songs dial up the pop production and see him throw himself into his songwriting without a safety net. The results – heard on singles like ‘Symbol’ and the newly released ‘I’m Here’ – are outstanding.
Discussing the album, and growing up in city now mainly known for its contaminated water supply, he says: “‘Stranger’ is, in some ways, about anonymity. Being from Flint [in Michigan], you’re often anonymous; a curiosity at best and a ghost at worst”.
“The experience of becoming an artist in Flint was very disjointed and piecemeal”, he continues. “Few people understood what it meant to be an artist and nobody was there to give any real world advice. And this water crisis has engulfed everything in its wake, and it’s a challenge to exist as worthy of attention apart from the narrative of your tragedy. I want to stand on my art and performance, not rely on a backstory [like] ‘queer artist from Flint'”.
Finally, he says: “I’m not sure if I’ll ever shake the feeling of being a stranger, being stranger. Even in the burst of queer talent that floods Instagram feeds and streaming services, everyone is thin or slim or muscular and white or lighter or more impossibly beautiful. I made ‘Stranger’ to write and sing my way out of tragedy and also about being a stranger to everyone, including the people that love you. I’m not sure where I fit, but I know I do deserve to be here”.
Listen to new single, ‘I’m Here’, 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: Tunde Olaniran
Wednesday 25 July 2018, 12:12 | By Andy Malt
Approved: KYO & Jeuru
CMU Approved
For their latest album, ‘All The Same Dream’, Danish production duo KYO – aka Hannes Norrvide and Frederik Valentin – have enlisted US vocalist Jeuru for a captivating collaboration.
Over the producers’ dimly lit and intimate instrumentals, Jeuru casually delivers spoken word thoughts. Newly released track ‘Take Me Home’ features synths that float around like ghosts, with an entrancing drum beat that sounds like it’s coming through the wall. These wrap themselves around Jeuru as he ponders one night stands.
‘All The Same Dream’ is out on 31 Aug. Listen to ‘Take Me Home’ 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: KYO & Jeuru
Wednesday 25 July 2018, 12:05 | By Chris Cooke
Campaigners fear Music Modernization Act could falter because of HFA intervention
Business News Labels & Publishers Legal
Hopes that the safe harbour reforming European Copyright Directive would be passed by the European Parliament earlier this month were scuppered in no small part down to some last minute lobbying efforts led by Google. Now over in the US the music community fears major copyright reforms in Congress could also be scuppered by some last minute lobbying efforts, though this time by someone closer to home.
A number of the organisations involved in constructing American’s Music Modernization Act yesterday hit out at the owner of licensing firm the Harry Fox Agency and collecting society SESAC. Campaigners argue that very-late-in-the-day efforts by private equity outfit Blackstone to amend the copyright reforming legislation could result in the whole act falling down at the final hurdle, preventing much needed music licensing reforms.
There are various elements to the MMA – which actually brings together a number of different music-related copyright proposals – but at its core are efforts to fix the mechanical rights mess that has hindered the streaming music market Stateside.
Streams exploit both the performing rights and the mechanical rights of the song copyright. In most countries there are collecting societies (often a single society) that can provide streaming services with blanket licences covering both elements of the copyright. This means a service is fully licensed for all the songs streaming on its platform, even where it doesn’t have a direct deal with a music publisher.
In the US, there are four collecting societies that together represent performing rights – BMI, ASCAP, GMR and SESAC – but there is no society for mechanical rights and therefore no blanket licence available. Which means that services need to have relationships with each publisher and songwriter whose songs appear on their platform.
There is a compulsory licence covering mechanical rights in the US, so the process for licensing those rights and the rates services must pay is set in law. However, services still need to identify what songs they are using and who owns them, so they can provide the paperwork and payments required by the compulsory licence.
With no one-stop central database of music rights ownership information available, streaming services (and US record companies, who license mechanical rights on CDs and downloads) often rely on third party agencies to identify rights owners and do all the admin required to make sure they get paid. Agencies like the Harry Fox Agency, which used to be owned by the American music publishing sector, but which was acquired by SESAC in 2015, which in turn was bought by private equity types Blackstone last year.
It has to be said that HFA hasn’t done a great job in ensuring every music publisher and songwriter has been paid their mechanical royalties, resulting in multiple copyright infringement lawsuits against its streaming platform clients, most notably Spotify.
The MMA, if passed, will set up a new collecting society that will be empowered to grant a blanket licence to streaming services relying on the compulsory licence to cover song rights. It will work a lot like SoundExchange, the US collecting society that administers another compulsory licence, in that case for the exploitation of the digital performing rights that come with the sound recording copyright.
This new society and licence should go some way to sorting out the massive mess that is mechanical rights licensing in the US and bring the American system more in line with what happens elsewhere in the world. Though the creation of the new society and the new licence might mean a lot less work for companies like HFA. Although said new society will need suppliers and HFA – and its competitors – could compete for that work.
Either way, current HFA owner Blackstone has been busy trying to get last minute amendments made to the MMA, which was passed by the House Of Representatives in a super speedy fashion, but which is getting more scrutiny in Senate. Although its proposals are seemingly designed to mainly protect HFA’s interests, Blackstone is appealing to the innate suspicion most American politicians have for anything that looks like a monopoly.
Although negotiations continue, one of the organisations backing the MMA – Nashville Songwriters Association International – said in an email to its members yesterday that what Blackstone are currently proposing will likely cause the whole act to collapse.
It states: “The Music Modernization Act provides a simple answer to a very complex problem in music licensing. One of the main reasons the streaming companies have agreed to a fair rate standard that will likely result in a royalty hike for songwriters is efficiency; so they won’t have to go to a large number of multiple sources to obtain mechanical licenses. Instead they will get one blanket licence from the new Music Licensing Collective (MLC) run by songwriters and music publishers”.
Regarding the new amendments now being touted, it goes on: “Blackstone’s proposal would legally require each streaming service to hire another company to issue licenses, collect and distribute royalties in addition to the MLC. This added step would be costly to songwriters, who will pay nothing to the MLC and collect 100% of their royalties, because we’ve already negotiated with streaming companies to get them to pay the admin costs!”
It then adds: “This proposed amendment is an attempt to make sure the Harry Fox Agency keeps their current business by forcing the death of the MMA, or gets more business because their proposal forces streaming companies to hire an agency in addition to the MLC to issue and administrate mechanical licences”.
NSAI then confirms that the Digital Media Association, which represents the streaming companies, will not back Blackstone’s proposed amendments. “Neither will music publishers, record companies, NSAI or anyone else who worked for years to create a bill that Blackstone is trying to kill at the very last minute” it then adds.
Another campaigning group which has been working hard on the MMA – Songwriters Of North America – also wrote to their members and supporters yesterday about the Blackstone proposals. It states in no uncertain terms: “The performance rights organisation SESAC, along with some other very recent players, is actively pushing an amendment in the US Senate that could effectively kill the Music Modernization Act”.
Noting that HFA could pitch its services to the new society that the MMA will create, it goes on: “Nothing in the MMA precludes Harry Fox from competing to become a vendor of the MLC. Vendors will be required under the new law to curate data, match claims, locate rights-holders, etc. And if they can convince the board of songwriters and publishers that they can do the best job for us, then they will get the gig. But Blackstone doesn’t want to do that. They want to kill the MLC and have the playing field all to themselves”.
Referencing the recent intervention of a certain Senator Ted Cruz on all things MMA, SONA then adds: “Lucky for [Blackstone], they found a friend in one senator from Texas who loves the free market and hates government-created entities, particularly ones with the word ‘collective’ in them”.
“In their amendment proposal”, SONA continues, Blackstone “describe the MLC as ‘a single, European-style government regulated monopoly… antithetical to the free market'”. This, of course, ignores the parallels between the new society the MMA will create and the very American-style SoundExchange.
SONA then points out all the negotiating that has gone on at their end to ensure that self-publishing songwriters have representation on the board of the new society. “In the Blackstone amendment, an MLC governing board has little to govern”, it says. “It practically mandates that the Harry Fox Agency take the place of the MLC, and without any of the oversight and accountability that we all fought so hard for”.
Although Blackstone’s intervention is about protecting the interests of its HFA business, the fallout could have a negative impact on SESAC, which relies much more on its relationships with songwriters themselves. Most collecting societies are owned by their members, making SESAC’s ownership – by private equity – unusual. If Blackstone’s wheelings and dealings cause the MMA to fall, it could make songwriters allied to SESAC question whether the owners of their collecting society really have their best interests at heart.
And it’s the timing of that intervention that is proving most controversial among MMA supporters. While there may well be compromises that can be made to allay some of Blackstone’s concerns without destroying the MMA entirely, many are asking why SESAC and HFA didn’t raise these issues previously.
It has been much noted how lobbying efforts to push the MMA through has seen unprecedented collaboration between organisations representing artists, songwriters, labels, publishers and streaming services. There were therefore numerous opportunities, campaigners say, for Blackstone to join this conversation when the MMA was being drafted, so that HFA and SESAC could have been part of the music community consensus in Congress, rather than leading the charge against it.
This was a point emphasised by another of the collecting societies involved in this debate, BMI, which yesterday said it hoped these last minute issues could be resolved.
In a statement, the society stated: “The Music Modernization Act represents an historic opportunity to enact meaningful music licensing reform. The bill is the product of unprecedented collaboration among music stakeholders and passed unanimously through the House Judiciary Committee, the full House, and the Senate Judiciary Committee”.
It went on: “BMI is disappointed that at this late stage, the MMA is being endangered by last minute asks. During the long process of drafting this bill, BMI, like many others, had to compromise on certain provisions in order to achieve a final result that benefits the industry as a whole. We hope that the parties currently in disagreement can work together to resolve their issues, allowing this important piece of legislation to move forward”.
For its part, Blackstone told reporters yesterday that it “strongly supports music modernisation, and we are confident legislation will be signed into law this year as long as all parties continue working in the same cooperative spirit that has characterised the process so far”.
Meanwhile a spokesperson for SESAC said it was “committed to working towards a version of the Music Modernization Act that retains all of the benefits for writers, publishers and [streaming services] and which will move music licensing into the 21st Century while supporting a competitive market in music rights administration. We expect that as the Senate continues to work through these issues with input from concerned and well-meaning stakeholders, an appropriate resolution will be reached and the MMA will be passed before the end of the year”.
READ MORE ABOUT: Blackstone Group | BMI | Harry Fox Agency | Music Modernization Act | Nashville Songwriters Association International | SESAC | Songwriters Of North America (SONA)
Wednesday 25 July 2018, 12:03 | By Chris Cooke
Billy McFarland reaches deal with SEC over Fyre Festival fraud
Business News Legal
Occasional festival promoter and frequent fraudster Billy McFarland has settled a case being pursued against him by the US Securities And Exchange Commission in relation to various fraudulent activities that occurred in the run up to the failed Fyre Festival.
McFarland, of course, set up the Fyre Festival with his celebrity pal Ja Rule. The event, which promised to be a super luxury experience in the Bahamas, was linked to a talent booking app McFarland was trying to get off the ground. But the festival collapsed just as it was getting started when it emerged McFarland had failed to put in place the infrastructure for even a basic event, let alone the luxury set-up ticket-buyers had been promised.
A flood of litigation followed the collapse of the Fyre Festival and its associated businesses, with ticket-buyers, suppliers and investors among those to go legal. There were also criminal charges of fraud filed against McFarland and an SEC investigation.
The latter has now come to an end with the regulator reaching a deal with McFarland and two of his former business associates. McFarland himself will not have to hand over any money as part of that settlement, mainly because of monies already forfeited as part of the criminal case, which are in the region of $27.4 million. He has, however, agreed to never act as an officer or director in any publicly-traded company ever again.
According to Law360, the SEC has also settled with one Grant Margolin, who worked with McFarland in a marketing role, and Daniel Simon, who created fraudulent documents for the Fyre Festival chief without verifying the accuracy of the information. They will hand over $35,000 and $15,000 respectively.
Among the revelations unearthed by the SEC investigation are that McFarland told investors he had booked artists including Jennifer Lopez, the Foo Fighters and Selena Gomez, when in fact his company had no relationships with any of those acts. He also created fake statements that claimed he owned millions in Facebook stock which were used as collateral to guarantee investments being made by his financial backers.
In the separate criminal investigation into his business affairs, the Fyre man pleaded guilty to two charges of wire fraud back in March. He reached a plea deal with prosecutors and was due to be sentenced last month. But sentencing was postponed following new allegations of fraud relating to a business set up after the Fyre Festival’s collapse.
READ MORE ABOUT: Billy McFarland | Fyre Festival
Wednesday 25 July 2018, 12:01 | By Andy Malt
Fucked Up sign to Merge
Business News Deals Labels & Publishers
Merge Records announced earlier this week that it has signed Fucked Up to a new record deal. The band will release a new album, ‘Dose Your Dreams’, through the label on 5 Oct.
Frequent Fucked Up collaborator Owen Pallett, who composed string parts for the new album, says of the record: “I was sent an unfinished version of ‘Dose Your Dreams’ so that I might contribute string parts. I couldn’t stop listening to the rough mixes I received”.
He went on: “A friend asked me how the record was. I replied, ‘my god, Fucked Up have made their ‘Screamadelica”. And psych-rock-groove it is. The drums mixed wide, propensity for drones, for delay pedal, for repetition, groove. The politics and aesthetics of hardcore married to an ‘open format’ approach to genre. Elements of doo-wop, krautrock, groove, digital hardcore”.
The band are set to play the Visions festival in London on 3 Aug. They’ve also released a video for the new album’s first single, ‘Raise Your Voice Joyce’:
READ MORE ABOUT: Fucked Up
Wednesday 25 July 2018, 11:56 | By Chris Cooke
UK Music urges local councils to act as agent of change guidelines published
Business News Live Business
The boss of cross-sector trade body UK Music has written to the Chair of the Local Government Association about the good old ‘agent of change’ principle, which is now officially part of the UK government’s National Planning Policy Framework for England.
After a long campaign by the likes of the Music Venue Trust, Musicians’ Union and UK Music itself, the government announced earlier this year that agent of change would be added to its planning policy framework. This is the principle that puts the onus on property developers constructing new buildings next to existing music venues to ensure that there won’t be issues around noise that cause said venues licensing problems down the line.
The campaigning to get agent of change adopted resulted in Labour MP John Spellar proposing specific legislation in Parliament back in January. Shortly after that the Ministry Of Housing, Communities & Local Government said it would add the principle into planning guidelines anyway, without any new laws being passed. Those updated guidelines came into effect yesterday.
The key paragraph in the updated framework document reads: “Planning policies and decisions should ensure that new development can be integrated effectively with existing businesses and community facilities (such as places of worship, pubs, music venues and sports clubs). Existing businesses and facilities should not have unreasonable restrictions placed on them as a result of development permitted after they were established”.
It goes on: “Where the operation of an existing business or community facility could have a significant adverse effect on new development (including changes of use) in its vicinity, the applicant (or ‘agent of change’) should be required to provide suitable mitigation before the development has been completed”.
In his letter to the Local Government Association, UK Music CEO Michael Dugher notes the organisation’s support of Spellar’s proposals earlier this year. He then asks it to promote the new guidelines among its members, so that agent of change can be quickly adopted and implemented by those actually making property planning decisions around England.
Commenting on the new guidelines as they came into effect, Dugher also told reporters: “The introduction of agent of change in the NPPF marks a pivotal moment in the fight to protect under threat music venues. The government is to be congratulated for taking this decisive step. Too often music venues have been the victims of developers. This new law will help ensure music venues can continue to grow audiences and develop talent, contributing significantly to our £1 billion live music industry. This has been a long fought battle and it is vital that local authorities back it to save live music. There is now no excuse for local authorities for not stepping in to protect grassroots music venues”.
Meanwhile the aforementioned Spellar added: “I am delighted that the government has listened to concerns expressed by MPs and the music industry about the fate of music venues across the country, and has fulfilled its commitment to introduce the agent of change principle in the new National Planning Policy Framework by summer recess. This is great news for musicians and music lovers whose voice has been loud and has now been heard. Local authorities must now make use of these vital tools to support our world leading music creativity throughout our towns, cities and communities”.
READ MORE ABOUT: agent of change | Local Government Association | UK Music
Wednesday 25 July 2018, 11:53 | By Chris Cooke
Demi Lovato hospitalised by apparent drug overdose
Artist News
A spokesperson for Demi Lovato has said that the singer is “awake and with her family” after being hospitalised yesterday seemingly as the result of a drug overdose.
According to local media, emergency services in LA were called to Lavato’s home at 11.22am yesterday morning, with the singer being taken to Cedars-Sinai Medical Center. Various sources have said that a drug overdose was the cause of the emergency.
Responding to media reporting of the incident, a spokesperson said: “Demi is awake and with her family, who want to express thanks to everyone for the love, prayers and support. Some of the information being reported is incorrect and they respectfully ask for privacy and not speculation as her health and recovery is the most important thing right now”.
Lovato has been very upfront over the years about her struggles with addiction and bipolar disorder. In March she revealed that she was celebrating six years of sobriety, but the lyrics of her recent single ‘Sober’ suggested that she had recently suffered a relapse.
If you are experiencing issues affecting your mental wellbeing you can access support and resources from both Music Minds Matter and Music Support. The Mind website also offers information and support on a range of mental health and addiction issues.
READ MORE ABOUT: Demi Lovato
Wednesday 25 July 2018, 11:49 | By Andy Malt
Mark Lanegan and Duke Garwood release Scarlett Johansson-influenced new single
Artist News Releases
Mark Lanegan and Duke Garwood have released new song ‘Scarlett’. The pair are set to release their second album together, ‘With Animals’, next month.
“Duke gave me a piece of music he called ‘Scarlett’ and I was inspired to put down the words really quickly, to the haunting beauty and feeling of the music”, says Lanegan of the song. While Garwood adds: “‘Scarlett’ is a fever dream soundscape born from a banquet of Scarlett Johansson movies”.
Of the album as a whole, Garwood goes on: “Over the years, we’ve recorded together and apart. This time, I started this record alone, with many animals as company. It flowed, I set to work and out it came”. Of the duo’s creative process, he continues, “our music is instinct, there is not much talking about it, just creating”.
He then adds: “I think that if you are at peace with your work, and feeling it right, it flows, and can feel ‘easy’. Music isn’t meant to be hard. Though sometimes it can burn you to ashes. Making music for a singer, so they can inhabit it with a song, means hitting the right soul buttons. There is no hit without a miss. It is a healing record, for us the makers, and for the listeners. It grows natural. We are gardeners of sonic feelings”.
The duo are also set to tour the UK in October this year. Here are the dates:
1 Oct: Gateshead, Sage
2 Oct: Bath, Komedia
3 Oct: Brighton, The Old Market
5 Oct: London, Union Chapel
6 Oct: Leeds, City Varieties
7 Oct: Glasgow, St Luke’s
8 Oct: Manchester, RCNM
Watch the video for ‘Scarlett’ here:
READ MORE ABOUT: Duke Garwood | Mark Lanegan
Wednesday 25 July 2018, 11:45 | By Andy Malt
Henrik Schwarz announces Plunderphonia
Artist News Gigs & Festivals Releases
K7!’s experimental label 7K! has announced a new project from Henrik Schwarz called ‘Plunderphonia’. It will see the producer compose a new string piece using parts culled from existing works.
Schwarz chose the 70 works he now plans to adapt from over 700 possible pieces. His selections were then re-recorded by the Alma Quartet, ready for him to take the individual parts and rework them into his new composition. Among the composers he is plundering are Bach, Bartok, Brahms, Debussy, Dvorak, Ravel, Jonny Greenwood, Mozart, Schubert and Terry Riley.
Speaking about the project, Schwarz says: “I would hear hit records in the string quartet compositions. Suddenly you have four bars that are absolutely incredible, that are super modern even if they are 200 years old. By just extracting them and taking away everything else you put it into a new context and find ways of connecting different string quartets into something new”.
‘Plunderphonia’ has been commissioned by the Berlin festival Pop-Kultur, at which Schwarz and the Alma Quartet will debut a work in progress version of the piece on 15 Aug. After that, they are scheduled to play the finished, album-length piece at the Elbphilharmonie concert hall in Hamburg on 23 Mar 2019. A recording will also be released the same day.
Here’s a video to explain the project further:
READ MORE ABOUT: !K7 | Henrik Schwarz | Pop-Kultur
Wednesday 25 July 2018, 11:40 | By Chris Cooke
Nadine Coyle would reunite with her jealous former Girls Aloud bandmates, if you asked nicely
And Finally Artist News
Bored of idle speculation about a possible Spice Girls reunion? Well, let’s get going with some idle speculation about a Girls Aloud reunion then. Could that happen? There was, after all, some chatter earlier this year that they might reform for the eighteenth or 20th anniversary of their creation on that ‘Pop Stars: The Rivals’ telly show.
“It may happen”, says one-time Girl Aloud Nadine Coyle, even though she’s not aware of any active reunion plans at the moment. Speaking to the i newspaper she says that, whenever she is asked about her former group getting back together, “the answer is always the same: if everything comes together, then yes, I’m a huge supporter of Girls Aloud. I’d never say never to us coming back together”.
But didn’t Coyle once say that her bandmates were “jealous” of her because she got all the best singing bits? “I didn’t say that”, Coyle insists, “how pompous and arrogant would I have to be to say that?” I don’t know. Quite pompous and arrogant I guess.
“But a thing that did cause stress in the band”, she goes on, “was the fact that I was given more lines and the girls didn’t like [producer] Brian [Higgins from pop makers Xenomania] as a result of it. They didn’t like the label as a result of it, and they didn’t like me as a result of it. So it was just circumstances which were out of my control: I didn’t decide who sang what. But … I love my life and I just get on with it”.
How unpompously and unarrogantly put. But could those past tensions between band members – and, it was always assumed, between Coyle and Cheryl Tweedy in particular – stop this non-reunion were busy speculating about? Although she’s not really in touch with her former bandmates anymore, Coyle insisted that “there’s never been any issues with us working together … so I’m sure we’d get on absolutely fine”.
Good times. Now they just need to persuade Victoria Beckham to get on board. Oh no, sorry, wrong idly speculated reunion.
READ MORE ABOUT: Girls Aloud | Nadine Coyle
Tuesday 24 July 2018, 11:07 | By Andy Malt
Approved: Amy Shark
CMU Approved
Having knocked Drake off the number one spot on the latest ARIA album chart in Australia with her debut LP ‘Love Monster’, Amy Shark is now setting her sights on international success. Having gained some traction in the US last year, she’s now announced European tour dates for early 2019.
Speaking about the emotional album on theMusic.com.au’s ‘The Music Podcast’ earlier this year, she said: “I think I want to start explaining it like the first two seasons of a great series you’ve just found. It’s full of so much drama. There’s first loves, there’s rejection and lies and beautiful moments and nasty moments and there’s a death. It’s a great series”.
She’s set to play Institute 3 in Birmingham on 29 Jan, Heaven in London on 30 Jan and Gorilla in Manchester on 1 Feb.
Watch the video for recent single and stand out track from the album, ‘I Said Hi’, 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: Amy Shark
Tuesday 24 July 2018, 11:05 | By Chris Cooke
Eventbrite files paperwork for IPO
Business News Live Business Top Stories
In what is becoming a busy year for music-related initial public offerings, Eventbrite has reportedly filed paperwork in the US to set its IPO in motion. The ticketing company is joining Chinese streaming giant Tencent Music and wireless speaker marker Sonos is marching towards a stock exchange, following Spotify’s direct listing back in April.
According to the Wall Street Journal, self-service ticketing platform Eventbrite recently filed IPO paperwork with the US Securities And Exchange Commission. It was a confidential filing, but more information about the IPO plans will be made public in due course. The firm is expected to list later this year.
Eventbrite is one of the few start-ups to make real traction in the notoriously-hard-to-crack ticketing market. Although a plethora of start-ups have entered said market with superior technology, it’s hard to compete with legacy players which can offer event promoters access to large databases of past ticket-buyers and an assortment of financial kickbacks. And then there’s the fact that the biggest concert promoter Live Nation owns Ticketmaster.
But by offering more grass roots event organisers user-friendly tools to handle their ticketing, Eventbrite was able to build a large user-base without initially going head-to-head with the Ticketmasters of the world. It then gained scale by buying up rivals with a similar approach, like Ticketfly in the US, Ticketscript in the Netherlands and Ticketea in Spain.
As Eventbrite has gained scale through those acquisitions, it has started to sign up bigger event promoters, including in the music space, putting it more directly into competition with legacy players in the primary ticketing market. It now remains to be seen if Wall Street reckons that impressive growth makes this the ticketing business to buy into.
READ MORE ABOUT: Eventbrite
Tuesday 24 July 2018, 11:04 | By Andy Malt
CPS apologises to Girls Aloud’s Nicola Roberts over stalking case
Artist News Legal
The Crown Prosecution Service has apologised to Girls Aloud member Nicola Roberts for failing to prosecute an ex-boyfriend accused of stalking her despite a restraining order.
Carl Davies was initially convicted of stalking the singer in 2017. He had first started sending threatening messages via social media following the couple’s split back in 2008. The conviction came with a suspended sentence and a lifetime restraining order banning Davies from interacting with Roberts in anyway.
He was subsequently charged with breaching that restraining order by connecting with the singer anew via social media, but the CPS decided not to prosecute.
In an interview with The Sunday Times, Roberts said that Davies had followed her on Instagram to let her know that, despite the restraining order, “he was still watching” her. She said the experience had left her frightened to leave the house or keep her window open at night.
The new case against Davies was dropped because the CPS did not feel there was a decent prospect of getting a conviction. Instead, the breadth of the restraining order was extended.
But in a new statement, the CPS has now said: “We accept our decision not to prosecute the breach of the order was incorrect. We have written to Ms Roberts to apologise and have taken steps to ensure lessons are learned from the case”.
It went on: “We fully appreciate the impact stalking and harassment has on victims and we take prosecuting these cases extremely seriously. We regularly update our legal guidance to keep up with changes in technology, including social media platforms”.
READ MORE ABOUT: Crown Prosecution Service | Girls Aloud | Nicola Roberts
Tuesday 24 July 2018, 10:57 | By Andy Malt
Taylor Swift sued over Swift Life app
Business News Legal
Taylor Swift has been sued over the appy thing she launched last year, which is called The Swift Life. New York computer services company SwiftLife says that she and app maker Glu have infringed its trademark.
The company says that it has operated since the early 2000s and obtained its trademark in 2007. Among various services, it offers an online life management software called SwiftLife, through which it has received numerous pieces of communication from confused Taylor Swift fans. It also says that Swift’s app has pushed it down the Google search rankings for its own name, and as a result has caused a fall in its revenues.
“In filing this action, SwiftLife, whose business pales in comparison to that of Ms Swift and Glu, is standing up for itself”, says the legal filing. “And much like Ms Swift in her fights against the bullies she has encountered in her own life – seeks to enforce its rights in and to the SwiftLife trademark against Ms Swift and Glu, both of whom are financial giants”.
It also notes that Swift and Glu would be more than able to pay for a licence, but did not at any point contact SwiftLife to request one. The lawsuit then notes in some details the lengths to which Swift goes to in order to protect her own trademarks, making it unlikely that she would be unaware of the need to gain permission to use the name.
“There can be no doubt that Swift and Glu fully understand that marketing and selling another’s goods without securing a license or permission is not acceptable and cannot be allowed”, it says.
SwiftLife is seeking court confirmation that its trademark has been infringed and an injunction blocking Swift and her associates from using the name further. As part of that injunction, it also wants users of The Swift Life to be informed of the judgement. In terms of financial reparation, SwiftLife requests all profits from the pop star’s app, damages, and payment of its legal costs. The company is requesting a jury trial.
Swift and Glu have not yet responded to the legal action. However, she and two of her companies, plus two Glu companies, have been issued with a summons.
READ MORE ABOUT: SwiftLife | Taylor Swift
Tuesday 24 July 2018, 10:55 | By Chris Cooke
Miley Cyrus given time to seek dismissal of reggae lyric plagiarism case
Business News Legal
The judge overseeing a copyright dispute between Miley Cyrus and Jamaican dancehall artist Flourgon has put the discovery phase of the proceedings on hold while lawyers for the former have a good go at getting the whole case dismissed without a full hearing.
Flourgon, real name Michael May, sued Cyrus back in March claiming that her 2013 single ‘We Can’t Stop’ infringed his 1998 track ‘We Run Things’. The dispute centres on a single lyric, with May arguing that Cyrus and her songwriting pals lifted his line “we run things, things no run we” and tweaked it to go: “we run things, things don’t run we”.
The lawsuit noted the popularity of ‘We Run Things’ within reggae and dancehall circles. It then referenced an interview with songwriting duo Rock City – co-writers on the Cyrus song – in which they talked about how reggae culture had influenced ‘We Can’t Stop’. May’s legal filing then argued that Cyrus’s team had taken reggae influences – including his lyric – as part of a plan to reinvent the pop star’s image.
Lawyers for Cyrus, her songwriting partners and her label Sony Music – all defendants on the case – argue that the single line of May’s song isn’t substantial enough to enjoy copyright protection. And even if it is, the use of the lyric in the Cyrus song constitutes ‘fair use’ under US copyright law. And even if it doesn’t, May’s track ‘We Run Things’ isn’t in itself original, so he doesn’t have grounds to sue.
Team Cyrus are hoping that those three arguments are enough to have the whole case thrown out without proceeding to a full hearing. But judge Robert Lehrburger isn’t sure, reckoning that at least some of those arguments would probably need more scrutiny.
Nevertheless, he said he’d put the discovery phase of the dispute on hold so that Cyrus’s reps can submit their full motion to dismiss. According to Law360, Lehrburger stated: “At this point, I’m going to stay discovery and allow the motion to be filed”.
READ MORE ABOUT: Flourgon | Miley Cyrus
Tuesday 24 July 2018, 10:52 | By Andy Malt
R Kelly disputes accusations against him in nineteen minute song
Artist News
R Kelly has issued a statement on the many accusations of sexual abuse made against him, financial troubles, Spotify banning him from its playlists, and more, in the form of a new song. A nineteen minute long song called ‘I Admit’.
The singer has been accused of sexual abuse numerous times during his career, although the one time a case actually reached court he was acquitted. Recently allegations that he is operating a “sex cult” have emerged in articles published by Buzzfeed and Rolling Stone, as well as a BBC documentary.
In Kelly’s musical statement, he makes various references to the allegations against him. At one point he states that claims he is a paedophile are a matter of opinion. He also references the numerous legal cases he has settled out of court with people who claim to have been abused by the musician, saying that his lawyer advised him to do so in order to protect his career, despite the accusers’ claims being “bullshit”.
Addressing the sex cult claims directly, he sings: “Said I’m abusing these women, what the fuck that’s some absurd shit / They’re brainwashed, really? / Kidnapped, really? / Can’t eat, really? / Real talk, that shit sound silly”.
He admits that he has had sex with fans – “both older and young ladies” – but says: “I admit that that’s the shit that comes with being a celebrity / I ain’t chasing these ladies, no / These ladies are chasing me, yeah / Now I’m only saying all this shit, cos how they tryna play me”.
As well as all the ladies apparently throwing themselves at him, Kelly then claims that – in terms of younger fans – they are often offered to him by their parents. “Don’t push your daughter in my face, and tell me that it’s okay”, he sings. “Cos your agenda is to get paid, and get mad when it don’t go your way”.
Although referencing identifiable cases, Kelly doesn’t specifically name any of the women who have accused him of sexual abuse. However, when it comes to the journalist who has been at the forefront of reporting on these cases for more than two decades, Kelly had a direct message.
“To Jim DeRogatis, whatever your name is”, he sings. You been tryna destroy me for 25 whole years / Writin’ the same stories over and over against / Off my name, you done went and made yourself a career / But guess what? I pray for you and family, and all my other enemies”.
Elsewhere, he also sings about the sexual abuse he experienced as a child and claims that financial mismanagement by various associates over the years has meant that he is forced to continue touring in order to “pay the rent”.
Listen to the song in full here:
READ MORE ABOUT: R Kelly
Tuesday 24 July 2018, 10:50 | By Andy Malt
Chris Cornell statue to be erected in Seattle
Artist News
A statue of late Soundgarden frontman Chris Cornell is to be erected in his hometown of Seattle, it has been confirmed. Cornell’s wife Vicky commissioned sculptor Nick Marras to create the statue and has now donated it to the city’s Museum Of Pop Culture.
She said in a statement: “Even though Chris’s music touched the lives of millions around the world, there is no better place than Seattle to honour and celebrate both his contribution to music history, as well as Seattle’s unique place in popular music, with an enduring symbol of a beloved artist, father, and husband”.
He continued: “Our children and I are deeply moved by the continued outpouring of love, compassion, and support, and this is our gift to the Museum Of Pop Culture and to Seattle – our gift back to the tight-knit community that gave him his start”.
The museum’s Artistic Director Jasen Emmons added: “MoPOP is honoured to receive this gift from the Cornell family and pay tribute to one of the most powerful and important voices in popular music. MoPOP serves to celebrate the Seattle music scene and the luminaries who have emerged from the Northwest and Chris was a key figure who has made a lasting impact on generations worldwide”.
Cornell, of course, took his own life in May last year, shortly after performing a show with Soundgarden in Detroit.
The statue will be placed outside the museum and is set to be formally unveiled on 29 Aug.
READ MORE ABOUT: Chris Cornell | Museum Of Pop Culture
Tuesday 24 July 2018, 10:48 | By Andy Malt
One Liners: Arctic Monkeys, Raye, Pond, more
Artist News Gigs & Festivals One Liners Releases
Other notable announcements and developments today…
• Get a daily news summary, our latest job ads and more via our Messenger bot. Click here to get started.
• The band known as the Arctic Monkeys have released the title track from their latest album, ‘Tranquility Base Hotel & Casino’.
• Raye has released the video for new single ‘Friends’. She’ll also be heading out on her debut headline tour in October and November.
• Pond are back with new track ‘Burnt Out Star’.
• Oneohtrix Point Never has released videos for new tracks ‘The Station’ and ‘We’ll Take It’.
• Flowdan has released new track ‘Shell A Verse’. It’s been written with festival and carnival performances in mind, he says. “It’s definitely about movement. Movement is something that I notice and try to accommodate”.
• Jason Mraz will play the Royal Albert Hall in London on 6 Mar next year. His new album, ‘Know’, is out on 10 Aug.
• Check out our weekly Spotify playlist of new music featured in the CMU Daily – updated every Friday.
READ MORE ABOUT: Arctic Monkeys | Flowdan | Jason Mraz | Oneohtrix Point Never | Pond | Raye
Tuesday 24 July 2018, 10:45 | By Chris Cooke
Spice Girls reunion definitely still on, says Mel B
And Finally Artist News
So, that Spice Girls reunion you keep banging on about. You know, the one that has been in the pipeline ever since all five members of the one time pop phenomenon got together for a meeting earlier this year.
Will it be a tour? Will it be a record? Will it be a TV show? No one seems that certain, not least the Spice Girls themselves, who have been competing with each other to see who can deliver the most vague statement about what any new reunion might involve.
“We need the girl power message more now than ever”, mused Mel C. “We want to do something for our fans and all the new generation”, added Geri Horner. “I think a few shows would be good”, said Emma Bunton.
But least vague was Victoria Beckham, who seemed to think the meeting itself was the reunion. “There is no tour, no more music from the Spice Girls”, she told Grazia magazine in April. “But it was great getting together with them”.
Though just to be clear, the reunion is definitely on. “For sure, we are getting back together”, said Mel B on telly show ‘Loose Women’ yesterday, adding she was seeing Geri later that day. “We’re sisters at the end of the day and what we went through was quite an amazing, brilliant journey, so we’re together – we’re back together”. Back to the vague then.
Should we assume that the ongoing vagueness about what a Spice Girls reunion might involve is down to Beckham not really being up for it? “There’s one [member] that’s been a bit difficult”, Mel B conceded yesterday. “But she’s getting roped in”.
Hurrah, a big Spice Girls reunion where Beckham is “roped in”. What could possibly go wrong with that?
READ MORE ABOUT: The Spice Girls
Monday 23 July 2018, 10:58 | By Chris Cooke
MGM Resorts defends its lawsuit against victims of Route 91 Harvest shooting
Business News Legal Live Business Top Stories
The hotel company that owns the site where the Route 91 Harvest festival took place in Las Vegas has filed new legal papers seeking to consolidate various lawsuits in relation to the mass shooting that occurred at the event last year. It follows the same company’s filing of its own litigation asking for court confirmation that it can’t be held liable for the shooting.
58 people were killed during the attack at the Live Nation-promoted country music event last October. Gunman Stephen Paddock opened fire on the 22,000 strong audience during Jason Aldean’s headline set. MGM Resorts International owns the site where the festival took place and the nearby hotel from which Paddock committed his crime.
A number of lawsuits were filed by victims caught up in the shooting, with MGM Resorts, Live Nation and Paddock’s estate variously named as defendants.
On Thursday, MGM filed a new motion court requesting that all the litigation in relation to the shooting be transferred to a single federal district court. That includes four lawsuits filed by representatives of the victims, and the hotel and casino company’s own litigation.
According to Law360, MGM argues that each lawsuit in relation to the shooting “promises to be a mammoth undertaking” just in the so called discovery stage. And given that they all relate to a single incident – and ultimately ask pretty much the same factual questions – it makes sense to group all the various actions together.
The hotel firm’s filing stated: “Discovery into these areas will likely involve dozens, if not hundreds, of witnesses and require the production of voluminous documents and other data, including terabytes of video data. Litigation of this matter, if not centralised, will be hugely inefficient, with an extraordinary volume of duplicative discovery”.
MGM added that it expected a flurry of further lawsuits in relation to the shooting. Indeed, citing one plaintiff’s lawyer, it suggests that as many as 20,000 additional suits could ultimately be filed. That, it reckons, is another reason why everything should be centralised in one court.
Speaking to Law360, a spokesperson for MGM Resorts stated: “We believe that the co-ordination of all the legal actions in one court will promote the just and efficient conduct of this litigation. Years of drawn out litigation and hearings are not in the best interest of victims, communities and those still healing”.
Elsewhere the hotel chain has been defending its decision to file its own litigation in relation to the shooting, which basically means suing over a thousand of the festival-goers affected by the tragedy. Legal opinion may be divided over that move, but from a PR perspective it’s definitely not a good look to be seen to be suing people who have already suffered so much.
MGM’s lawyers reckon that under US federal law it cannot be held liable for the shooting because of the security measures it put in place. That included the hiring of security firm Contemporary Services Corp, which had been certified by the US Department Of Homeland Security. It wants federal court confirmation of that interpretation of American law.
Defending the company’s controversial legal action in USA Today on Friday, the firm’s SVP Global Corporate Communications, Debra DeShong, stated: “The recent filing for declaratory relief by MGM Resorts International was made under the Support Anti-terrorism By Fostering Effective Technologies Act of 2002”.
“This filing under the SAFETY Act will not deny any victim from their rights to a hearing in court and to a determinative outcome in their case”, she then claimed. “All we are doing, in effect, is asking that these issues be decided in federal court. The assertion that this action would deny victims their day in court is not only inaccurate, but may confuse victims of their rights under law”.
DeShong added: “MGM believes the SAFETY Act filing will ensure claims are properly resolved in federal court quickly, fairly and efficiently. In accordance with the SAFETY Act, we do not believe MGM can be found liable for the tragic and unforeseeable events of 1 Oct. In any event, Congress has made clear that litigation arising from an event at which such services were provided is a matter of national interest and should be resolved in the national court system”.
Again arguing that by hiring Contemporary Services Corporation there can’t be any direct liability on MGM’s part, the comms boss went on: “We believe the law permits liability in appropriate cases only as to Contemporary Services Corporation, our longtime security vendor that provided security for the concert, whose services have been certified by the Department of Homeland Security. CSC is required to carry – and does carry – liability insurance of $25 million, which would be used to pay successful third-party claims”.
She signed off: “MGM’s priority of bringing a resolution to the victims and their families has not changed, and we remain steadfast in reaching a conclusion”.
READ MORE ABOUT: MGM Resorts | Route 91 Harvest
Monday 23 July 2018, 10:54 | By Chris Cooke
Four men indicted over murder of XXXTentacion
Artist News Legal
A grand jury in Florida has officially indicted four men in relation to the murder of controversial rapper XXXTentacion – real name Jahseh Onfroy – who was shot dead last month.
Police believe the shooting occurred during a robbery gone wrong and as a result the four men face charges of first degree murder and armed robbery. The four accused are Michael Boatwright, Robert Allen, Trayvon Newsome and Dedrick Williams.
Investigators believe it was Boatwright who shot Onfroy. Williams drove the vehicle the four men used to flee the crime scene, though police say he claims he was not aware that the other three men were planning a robbery.
Court papers also revealed last week that Onfroy had $50,000 on his person at the time of the shooting. The money was in a Louis Vuitton bag seized by the robbers.
READ MORE ABOUT: XXXTentacion
Monday 23 July 2018, 10:52 | By Andy Malt
National Album Day to celebrate albums nationally on a day
Business News Labels & Publishers
Albums are getting their own day in the UK. The first National Album Day on 13 Oct this year will mark the 70th anniversary of the album format. Because, hey kids, however much your parents bang on about them, albums haven’t actually been around forever.
There will be various album-based celebrations on the day. And across the following week too, organisers apparently having misunderstood the meaning of the word ‘day’. BBC Music has committed to support the event through its programming, and there will be artist meet-and-greets, album playbacks, online listening parties and more.
Also, on the day itself, the big focus will be for everyone who has ever heard an album to announce on social media which one inspired them the most. This big tweeting session will happen at precisely 3.33pm. Because that almost sounds like 33rpm – aka the speed at which vinyl LPs are played. Keep up, granddad! Oh, granddad got it? Keep up, child.
Like all good Days, this one will have an ambassador. And that’s Paloma Faith, who says: “I vividly remember being excited by so many classic albums as I was growing up, like Marvin Gaye’s ‘What’s Going On’, Dylan’s ‘Freewheelin’, and Erykah Badu’s ‘Mama’s Gun’, although, if I had to pick one, the album that most inspired me was Tracy Chapman’s self-titled debut”.
“It featured the incredibly powerful ‘Why?'” Faith adds. “A song that has become a real anthem for me not least as it was the first to bring home the emotional power of lyrics. The way we engage with music may be changing, but for me the album remains the ultimate expression of the songwriter’s craft”.
You might think that all this is simply a clever ruse to try to get people buying and listening to albums once again. The streaming boom having officially killed of the format whose imminent death has been predicted ever since the iTunes store opening for business with its ‘every track sold separately’ pitch. But you would be wrong. Everyone still loves albums. Everyone.
Research from two of the National Album Day organisers – that’ll be the BPI and the Entertainment Retailers Association – shows that albums are dead popular. In 2017, 135 million albums, or equivalent, were purchased, downloaded or streamed, according to the BPI. Although I’m not sure saying “or equivalent” is really appropriate here. I mean, if you said you’d eaten several sausages “or equivalent” on National Sausage Day, questions would be asked.
Meanwhile, in a recent ERA questionnaire, 60% of respondents said that they’d listened to an album in full in the last month. And, actually, despite what you think, it was young people who were listening to more of them. In the week prior to being asked, 55% of those 25 or under said that they’d listened to an album in that time. Listening trails off the older people get.
ERA chief exec Kim Bayley comments: “Individual tracks may have stolen the limelight over the past few years, but British music fans love albums as much as ever. National Album Day is an opportunity to throw the spotlight back on to long-form listening and we are delighted that the Record Store Day team will play a key role in establishing this first-time event working alongside our friends and colleagues at the BBC, the BPI and the wider music community”.
Oh yes, the Record Store Day team at ERA will be involved in organising all this. Did we mention that? Makes sense, because the aim here – see – is, and I quote, “to establish National Album Day as an anticipated annual event in the music calendar that is inclusive and non-prescriptive and will grow over time, in a similar way to Record Store Day”. Lovely.
BPI boss Geoff Taylor also has things to say. He adds: “It is fitting that, in this 70th anniversary year, we should look to create a special moment that celebrates the UK’s love of the album and the huge role it plays at the heart of our popular culture. The album has underpinned the phenomenal success of recorded music the world over, providing artists with a compelling medium through which to express their creativity and fans the freedom to engage with all shades of music through the stories that it tells”.
He goes on: “Streaming may be broadening our ability to access and discover music, but the concept of the album as a body of work that expresses a narrative or an artist’s creative vision at a given moment, remains as relevant and inspiring as ever”.
So here’s to the album. The BPI reckons over five billion of the bastards have been sold in the UK since they arrived in 1948. Let’s see if we can sell five billion more on the first National Album Day this year. Any less and the whole venture will have officially failed.
READ MORE ABOUT: British Phonographic Industry (BPI) | Entertainment Retailers Association (ERA) | National Album Day
Monday 23 July 2018, 10:48 | By Andy Malt
TuneCore adds Facebook monetisation for DIY artists
Business News Digital Labels & Publishers
DIY music distribution firm TuneCore last week announced that artists using its platform worldwide can now get access to some of that new fangled Facebook monetisation. It will allow DIY artists to get paid when their music is used on both Facebook and Instagram.
“Between promoting streams, downloads, merch sales and tickets, Facebook has always given artists of any genre the opportunity to not only build a fanbase, but also make money with their music”, says TuneCore in a statement. “With Facebook Monetization, Facebook and Instagram users – your fans, in most cases – can search for and find your music through Audio Library features and use it to create and share personal moments on the Facebook and Instagram platforms”.
It continues: “We like to think of this as a look toward the future: As Facebook continues to explore new avenues and introduce awesome products and features, TuneCore Artists can consider themselves ‘ahead of the curve’ by granting permission for their music to be used, ensuring revenue collection will be cinch when all is said and done”.
TuneCore’s announcement follows various labels and publishers confirming their Facebook licensing deals earlier this year, allowing artists, songwriters and corporate rights owners to finally monetise their music when it is used in uploads on the social network.
READ MORE ABOUT: Facebook | TuneCore
