Atlantic Records faces second lawsuit over its 1980s corporate culture following New York's Adult Survivors Act
Warner Music's Atlantic Records is facing a second lawsuit as a result of the Adult Survivors Act going into force in New York state. Former Atlantic employee Dorothy Carvello says that she was sexually harassed and assaulted by senior management at the label when she worked there from 1987 to 1990, including by the label's co-founder Ahmet Ertegun.

The new law in New York allows alleged victims of sexual assault whose claims were previously barred by the statute of limitations to file new legal proceedings at any point over the next year. Multiple lawsuits targeting key record industry figures and the companies they worked for are expected as a result of the new law.

Last week talent scout and artist manager Jan Roeg sued Atlantic and the Ertegun estate in relation to incidents that allegedly occurred when she worked for and with the Warner label in the 1980s.

Her lawsuit described how she was sexually harassed and assaulted by the Atlantic Records co-founder, and accused management at the label of deliberately turning a blind eye to his conduct while seeking to pay off and silence his victims.

In her lawsuit, Carvello says that during her stint working as an executive assistance and then A&R at Atlantic she was "subjected to persistent and pervasive nonconsensual and forcible sexual contact, degrading sexual innuendo and insults, and outrageous 'tasks' for the sexual gratification of executives at Atlantic Records".

"These injuries inflicted and abetted by defendants include several sexual assaults and batteries", the legal filing adds, "among other sexual misconduct, harassment, and discrimination, as well as intentional and negligent infliction of emotional distress".

As well as the Ertegun estate, Carvello's lawsuits also targets two other record industry veterans who worked at Atlantic in the late 1980s, including Doug Morris - who later went on to run both Universal Music and Sony Music. Jason Flom, meanwhile, is accused of tolerating and therefore facilitating Ertegun and Morris's bad conduct.

"Mr Ertegun and Mr Morris each horrifically sexually assaulted Ms Carvello", the lawsuit claims. "Mr Flom, Atlantic Records and Warner Music Group knowingly enabled Mr Ertegun's, Mr Morris' and others' outrageous workplace sexual assault".

"As such", it goes on, "in addition to the damage and suffering Ms Carvello endured from Mr Ertegun's and Mr Morris' sexual assault as detailed herein, all of the defendants enabled these executives' repeated sexual assault and by creating, maintaining, and perpetuating the toxic workplace culture in which such sexual assault was permitted, thereby inflicting extensive emotional distress as well".

The lawsuit describes in some detail the culture at Atlantic Records in the late 1980s, as well as outlining specific allegations of harassment and assault against Ertegun and Morris. It also claims that Morris fired Carvello when she finally made a formal complaint about the sexual harassment she was forced to endure.

The lawsuit continues: "Executives at Atlantic Records, including those at the top of the company's management like Messrs Ertegun and Morris, treated the company, its corporate headquarters, recording studios - and even its corporate helicopter - as places to indulge their sexual desires".

"Employees like Ms Carvello were the collateral damage of this toxic workplace culture", it adds. "And when Messrs Ertegun's and Morris' violence and sexual assault was reported, their victims were routinely paid settlements with corporate funds in exchange for signed non-disclosure agreements".

Carvello has actually been pretty candid about her experiences working in the record industry for sometime, describing those experiences in some detail in her book 'Anything For A Hit', which is now being adapted into a docuseries. Earlier this year she launched the Face The Music Now Foundation, an organisation that supports survivors of sexual harassment and abuse in the music industry.

She has also bought shares in all three major record companies, with a plan to rally other shareholders to pressure the music firms to cancel any NDAs currently in force over current or former employees that relate to harassment. And in September, as a shareholder in Warner Music, she asked it to share any records it has on sexual misconduct allegations - and other claims of bad practice - that have been made within the company.

In response to Carvello's lawsuit, Warner Music repeated its response to Roeg's litigation: that it takes these allegations seriously and is investigating, but the alleged incidents happened a long time ago, and it's corporate culture today is entirely different and much more respectful and safe.

While that may be true, if Roeg and Carvello's lawsuits make it to court - or even if just a number of other legal claims are filed under the new laws in New York - the spotlight will increasingly fall on how the record industry operated in previous decades.

And that will likely force a considerable re-evaluation of certain previously revered and honoured veterans of the business, while tarnishing some legacy label brands in the process.

Though for the victims of that toxic corporate culture of old, the main question is likely to be how it took so long for that re-evaluation to begin.

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Nevermind baby makes filing with US appeals court in ongoing artwork dispute
Last week Spencer Elden - who, as a baby, appeared nude on the famous cover of Nirvana's 'Nevermind' album - continued his legal battle in relation to that artwork, filing papers with the Ninth Circuit Appeals Court in the US.

Elden sued Nirvana, their label and other people involved in creating the 'Nevermind' cover in August 2021. Claiming that Elden's guardians did not know how the nude baby photo would be used when it was originally taken, the lawsuit said that the defendants "knowingly produced, possessed, and advertised commercial child pornography depicting Spencer, and they knowingly received value in exchange for doing so".

Various arguments were presented by the defendants countering those claims, though the key legal argument was that Elden had left it too late to sue. With the specific laws Nirvana et al are accused of violating, there is a ten year statute of limitations.

That doesn't mean that Elden would have had to sue within ten years of the photograph being taken, but - technically speaking - he should have gone legal within ten years of his eighteenth birthday. So the deadline for filing the lawsuit was 2019.

Elden's lawyers said that that statute of limitations should be ignored because Nirvana and their label continue to distribute 'Nevermind' with Elden's image on it, meaning that they continue to harm their client even today.

But earlier this year the judge overseeing the case said Team Elden was wrong about the statute of limitations and that it did apply. And as a result Elden's lawsuit was dismissed.

Following that ruling, the litigation has now moved onto the Ninth Circuit. In a new legal filing with that court, Elden's attorneys argue that the lower court's decision to dismiss their clients lawsuit on statute of limitation grounds was "erroneous for a host of reasons".

The new filing again hones in on the continued distribution of the 'Nevermind' artwork, while also stressing that the harm caused to Elden by the album cover, while initiated when he was a child, continues to this day. Therefore, the argument goes, the statute of limitations does not apply, because harm occurred in the last ten years.

And, Team Elden go on, US law - in particular what is known as Masha's Law - has been written to allow for action to be taken in circumstances and with timelines such as those in this case.

"A plethora of legislative history and case law support this reading of [current law]", the new filing states. "Those authorities uniformly speak of the need to allow claims for violations occurring during a victim's adulthood because (i) child pornography can be distributed indefinitely and (ii) each separate distribution (even in adulthood) necessarily infringes a victims' dignity interest".

With that in mind, Elden's team state: "The court should reverse the district court's erroneous dismissal and allow Spencer his day in court".

We await to see how the Nirvana side respond.

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DEAG buys Regular Music
German live music firm DEAG has further expanded its UK interests by acquiring a majority stake in Scottish promoter Regular Music.

The deal has been done through DEAG's UK subsidiary Kilimanjaro. Regular Music CEO Mark Mackie will retain a stake in the business and will also continue to manage the Edinburgh-based firm day-to-day. Though following the deal he'll have closer ties with the wider Kilimanjaro business and its CEO Stuart Galbraith, and especially the Kilimanjaro-owned Belladrum Tartan Heart Festival, which is staged each August near Inverness.

Confirming the deal, DEAG CEO Peter Schwenkow says: "We admire the achievements of Mark with Regular Music in Scotland and are excited about the opportunity to support the business in the future whilst creating synergies between all of our UK companies including Belladrum".

"DEAG's success is based on entrepreneurship and Mark will be a valued addition to our group of entrepreneurs", he goes on. "DEAG's presence in the UK and Ireland will be significantly strengthened through this new partnership and it fits extremely well with our strategy to further grow our business in our core markets".

Meanwhile Mackie himself adds: "Lots of my agent friends have been telling me for years I needed more of a global presence but until I met with DEAG I had never felt comfortable enough with anyone to form such a partnership. However, it's clear that DEAG care deeply about local identity and autonomy and with Stuart Galbraith and his team at Kili it has been proven to work so I'm delighted to be joining up with a like minded group of people moving forward".

"I have personally known Stuart for more than 35 years since we both started out in the business", he continues, "and am very much looking forward to working closely with him and the Kilimanjaro gang".

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SoundCloud partners with Third & Key
SoundCloud has partnered with Kei Henderson's Third & Hayden company to further expand its creator and artist services operations. It will provide development tools to new artists via the label arm of Henderson's business.

"We want artists to find success as independents to set the foundation for long-term careers and move through their careers with leverage and creative control", says Henderson. "What we were able to build with 21 Savage early and again with SinceThe80s is the blueprint for the way we're working with our artists and I'm so thankful to have been a part of both of these brands from the start".

"SoundCloud is typically one of the first touch points for indie artists and I feel a great part of my career has been brand building with artists from day zero", she goes on. "For this reason they're the best partner for what we're building. We're being intentional on ground up development".

SoundCloud's Global SVP Jessica Rivera adds: "Kei has a proven track record of finding and fostering the next generation of talent so partnering with Third & Hayden was simply the right fit. We're excited about developing this joint venture with such a respected industry leader and creative who shares SoundCloud's dedication to providing solutions and empowering artists as they take their careers to the next level on their own terms".

This latest SoundCloud deal follows the one it did a with Atlanta-based management firm Solid Foundation earlier this year.

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MVT announces first recipients of grants from Pipeline Investment Fund
The UK's Music Venue Trust has announced the first recipients of funding via its Pipeline Investment Fund.

The new funding scheme was formally launched at MVT's annual Venues Day event in October. Primarily funded by donations received via the recent Revive Live programme of shows, which was presented by MVT in partnership with The National Lottery, the Fund aims to support small scale projects that enhance grassroots venues.

That might include projects that improve the set-up within any one grassroots venue - including lights, sound, access and ventilation - or programmes that benefit employees, including training, diversity initiatives and activities that strengthen local community ties.

Eleven venues have been confirmed as recipients of funding via the new scheme, together receiving almost £40,000. They are...

Alexander's Live (Chester)
Venue38 (Ayr)
The Louisiana (Bristol)
The Grayston Unity (Halifax)
Retro (Manchester)
Chats Palace (London)
Backstage At The Green (Kinross)
Dorothy Pax (Sheffield)
Servant Jazz Quarters (London)
Snug (Atherton)
Three Wise Monkeys (Colchester)

MVT is now actively seeking further donations, particularly from within the music industry, to "maintain and expand the Pipeline Investment Fund and make it a permanent source of support for grassroots music venues".

Says MVT CEO Mark Dayvd: "The Pipeline Investment Fund is proof of what a huge difference relatively small amounts of money can make to local grassroots music venues. Music Venue Trust is investing this money directly into facilities for artists and for local music communities improving venues for everyone".

Discussing where future funding for the scheme might come from, he adds: "We'd like to see every stadium and arena show in the country making a small contribution to this fund. Every headline artist should be able to know with confidence that when they reach the top of our industry the impact of their success ripples back to directly support the venues and communities where the launched their career".

"MVT has created the mechanism to make that possible", he concludes, "we need the music industry to come together and make it happen".

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Stax Records founder Jim Stewart dies
Co-founder of influential soul label Stax Records, Jim Stewart, has died, aged 92.

"Today we lost an important piece of American music history", said Michele Smith, VP Estate & Legacy Brand Management at Stax Records and Craft Recordings on announcing the news.

"Mr Stewart's legacy will live on through the Stax Records label that he founded, and the artists, musicians and fans worldwide that love Stax music. I'm not sure if he ever realised the immense impact that he had on soul music across the globe, and he will be sorely missed. Our condolences go out to his friends and family, especially his children and grandchildren".

Born in 1930, Stewart originally set out on a career as a musician, but later decided that he was more suited to production, after recording music for a friend. In 1957, he co-founded Satellite Records with his sister Estelle Axton - originally as a country label, before moving more into R&B, soul and funk. Their first hit was 'Cause I Love You' by Rufus Thomas.

In 1960, they changed the name of the label to Stax Records - combining the first two letters of each of their surnames - to avoid confusion with another record company called Satellite.

In the early years of the label, Stewart worked on all aspects of the business, taking on the roles of producer, engineer, A&R, label boss, PR and more. All while working a full time job at a bank too. The graft paid off, and within a few years the label had grown into an influential force in the music industry, meaning Stewart was able to quit that job at the bank.

Unusually for the time - particularly in Memphis, where the company was based - Stax shunned racial segregation in America and hired artists and staff regardless of the colour of their skin.

Its roster included some of the first mixed race groups in the US, including house band Booker T And The MGs. In 1968, Stewart also made then Director Of Promotions Al Bell a co-owner of the company, his efforts to build the business later making it the second largest African-American owned company in the US.

The label hit hard times in 1968 with the death of key artist Otis Redding and also the end of a distribution deal with Atlantic Records, after it was acquired by Warner Bros. That change also saw the larger music company take ownership of the Stax catalogue - Stewart having failed to read a key clause in the Atlantic contract when he signed it.

The company was then acquired by Paramount Pictures, although Stewart and Bell stayed on to continue to run it. A dispute over Bell's vision to rebuild the label resulted in Axtone selling her shares in the business and leaving to launch new label Fretone Records.

Although they had some big successes in the following years - including Isaac Hayes' debut solo album 'Hot Buttered Soul' and the 'Shaft' soundtrack - Stewart and Bell felt stifled under Paramount and bought the company back, with financial help from Deutsche Grammophon, in 1970.

Despite efforts to grow the company, its future remained unstable, and Stewart sold his stake to Bell in 1972. Bell continued to push the company forward, but a disastrous distribution deal with CBS Records led to it falling into bankruptcy in 1976. Today, Stax is operated by Concord Music.

After leaving the label he founded, Stewart maintained a fairly low profile, although did continue to occasionally produce records for artists he had previously worked with at Stax. And in 2002 his contribution to the industry was formally recognised by the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame.

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DEALS

Bucks Music Group has signed a worldwide publishing deal with Balimaya Project founder Yahael Camara-Onono. Bucks' Director A&R Sarah Liversedge Platz says: "Yahael Camara-Onono is a really exciting musician and songwriter. He's incredibly talented and his star is rising with the work he's producing with Balimaya Project. We're really happy to welcome him to Bucks".

Concord Music Publishing's joint venture with producer Tofer Brown, Chromatic Music, has signed songwriter and producer Aaron Chafin in a deal covering his existing and future works. "Super excited to be joining Chromatic Music and Concord for my publishing", says Chafin. "The opportunities presented from the team were undeniable from the beginning, and I feel more than confident within their worldwide network of collaborations!"

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APPOINTMENTS

Sony Music has promoted Christel Kayibi to Director Of Repertoire Strategy For Africa. The move comes just months after her last promotion to Senior Legal And Business Affairs Manager in June.

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EDUCATION & EVENTS

Launchpad and the PRS Foundation have announced a joint Talent Development Conference, which will take place at Leeds Beckett University on 24 Feb - merging two separate previous events. "We're delighted to be partnering with Music:Leeds/Music Local's Launchpad to combine each of our conferences into one event in Leeds in 2023", says PRS Foundation's Joe Frankland. "Each year the Talent Development Conference is a fantastic opportunity for music creators and those on the front line of talent development to come together, network and discuss the big topics and challenges facing the industry".

Women's leadership programme the Music Leaders Network has opened up its 2023 applications process. It is open to company employees and self-employed people with between five and 25 years industry experience. "We're looking forward to welcoming a new Music Leaders Network cohort in May 2023", say founders Remi Harris and Tamara Gal-On. "The results our members have achieved to date have transformed their professional lives and allowed them to deliver even greater impact through their work". More info here.

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RELEASES

Caroline Polachek will release new album 'Desire, I Want To Turn Into You' on 14 Feb. Here's new single 'Welcome To My Island'. She has UK tour dates booked in February, including a show at Brixton Academy on the day of the album release.

Superorganism have released 'Woofin & Meowin', the theme song from the festive episodes of animated TV show 'HouseBroken'. "We all love the show, and considering some cartoon themes and soundtracks shaped our childhoods and ultimately our tastes, it was super inspiring to get involved", say the band. "We wrote 'Woofin & Meowin' immediately before we set off on our first tour since the pandemic, and I think you can feel that anxiety and excitement bubbling over".

The Levellers have released new single 'Down By The River O'. The track is taken from their new album, 'Together All The Way', which is out in March.

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GIGS & TOURS

The Red Hot Chili Peppers have announced that they will play two UK shows next summer - Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in London on 21 Jul and Hampden Park in Glasgow on 23 Jul. Tickets go on sale on Friday.

Check out our weekly Spotify playlist of new music featured in the CMU Daily - updated every Friday.

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BTS label Big Hit stresses again: don't try to visit Jin while he's in the army
BTS's label Big Hit Music have again told the group's fans that they must not try to visit the training centre where band member Jin will begin his stint in the South Korean military this month.

Under South Korean law, all able-bodied men must serve in the country's military at some point between the ages of eighteen and 28. There has been much discussion in recent years, of course, as to whether that rule should also apply to the members of BTS, given that doing so will require pausing a K-pop phenomenon that generates huge value for the country's economy.

A rule change did allow Jin - as the oldest BTS member, who turned 30 this weekend - to postpone his enlistment into the army, but ultimately it was decided that the K-pop stars would not be able to avoid military service altogether. Following that decision, it was announced last month that Jin had enlisted and would begin his military training this month.

That has led to fears that BTS fans will try to visit and access the training centre where Jin will be based. Last month the musician himself urged fans not to do so. Addressing his fanbase - generally referred to as 'the army', somewhat confusingly under the current circumstances - Jin stated: "Dear Army, please refrain from coming to the training centre. We don't want a huge crowd as it could get dangerous for my beautiful fans. I love you Army".

Earlier today, Big Hit again stressed that fans should stay away from the army facility where Jin will be based. According to NME, the label said in a statement issued via fan community app Weverse: "In order to prevent any issues that might occur from crowding, we ask fans to please refrain from visiting the site. Instead, we ask you to keep your words of support and farewell in your hearts".

Just in case anyone was thinking there might be some kind of ceremony they could watch when Jin formally moves into the training centre, there isn't. Well, there kind of is. But not for fans to watch. "Please note that we will not be holding any kind of official event on the day of his recruitment", the label added, stressing that while there is an entrance ceremony for new army recruits, that "is a time to be observed by military personnel and their families only".

Also, if you were thinking of setting up or booking a place on some kind of BTS branded tour that includes a visit to the army centre, please don't. "Our company will take necessary action against any attempts at commercial activity making unauthorised use of such intellectual property", Big Hit concluded.

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