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This is partner content. Muni Long sits down for a game of Switching Gears, revealing all of her songwriting secrets and studio preferences — including whether she’s a sweet or salty treat girl. Muni Long: Hey, y’all, it’s Muni Long here, and I’m gonna spill my songwriting secrets in 60 seconds of This or That. […]
Tucked away along California’s Central Coast is a small yet growing music festival that managed to survive one of the most tumultuous periods in the music business thanks to a little ingenuity and a heaping helping of support from its fans.
Launched in Monterey, Calif., in 2010, the California Roots Music and Arts festival celebrates its 15th anniversary this summer with a packed lineup that includes Jamaican artist Buju Banton’s first performance in the United States in more than a decade. The Memorial Day festival, set for May 23-25, also includes headliners Rebelution, Slightly Stoopid and Dirty Heads with sets from Collie Buddz, Iration, T-Pain, The Elovaters, Protoje, Atmosphere, J Boog, The Movement, SOJA, Common Kings, Steel Pulse and Matisyahu.
“It’s kind of cool when you see fans out there that have been coming to California Roots for 10 years, and they met their future wife or husband here, or they were pregnant at California Roots,” says Dan Sheehan, who created the festival with his wife Amy through their Central Coast production company Good Vibez.
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California Roots was once considered the largest reggae festival in the U.S., but competition from events like Cali Vibes in Long Beach, coupled with rising costs for festival talent and production, has made it much more difficult to do business since the end of the pandemic.
“We’re ahead of last year and right now we’re about even with 2022, which was a hard year to beat because we were on sale three years” due to the pandemic, Sheehan says. Unlike his competitors, California Roots has a limited marketing budget and focuses primarily on artists who don’t get much airplay or media support.
Billboard sat down with Sheehan to break down the long-term success of California Roots and zero in on the four reasons he believes the festival is on track to have one of its best years ever.
Cali Roots festival
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Remember That Your History is Your Brand
When it comes to California Roots’ longevity in the festival space, Sheehan says part of its success stems from its longtime home at the Monterey County fairgrounds.
“This was the site of the 1967 Monterey Pop festival,” explains Sheehan, referring to the three-day concert series featuring Janis Joplin, Otis Redding, Jimi Hendrix and The Who that would inspire the creators of the Woodstock Festival to launch an East Coast counterpart to Monterey Pop in 1969.
“Knowing the history of this site and the energy here — it’s very special,” says Sheehan, adding, “I think there’s a lot of similarities between California Roots and Monterey Pops…each have their own approach to counterculture and going against the grain.”
Sheehan’s long history on the site has been critical for overcoming one of the festival’s biggest technical challenges: correctly mixing the audio for the site’s large metal seating bowl, where about half the headliner performances take place each year.
“There’s a science to mixing the bowl and angling the speakers” that dates back to Monterey Pop and has been refined over time by fairground staff, Sheehan says. “It’s technically pretty complicated because the shape of the bowl means if you don’t hit it right, the sound can bounce around.”
Invest Early and Invest Often in the Genre
Sheehan and his wife Amy have long been key supporters of the California Roots movement, celebrating the state’s contribution to the reggae genre while creating a music lane distinguished from the reggae’s foundational Jamaican roots.
Distinguishing a difference between traditional Jamaican reggae — which includes acts like Bob Marley, Peter Tosh, Barrington Levy and Toots and the Maytals — and stateside counterparts including Slightly Stoopid, the Dirty Heads, Iration and Sublime is largely about respect for reggae’s Caribbean origins and avoiding allegations of cultural appropriation. Creating a clear off-ramp for California-rooted reggae also means creating a unique identity for the genre that fans can actively support.
“There’s artists like Stick Figure who were playing on our small stage 10 years ago and are now headliners,” says Sheehan. “I think as festival producers, especially in a niche, it’s something that we have to do, continuing to develop these artists to sell tickets and stream their music. That message to support these acts really resonates with fans, who are looking to be part of a musical movement.
California Roots festival
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Build the Community
One of the biggest challenges facing Sheehan and other festival organizers is the increasing costs of staging large events, as everything from staging to insurance and backline equipment has increased significantly since the end of the pandemic.
“My biggest concern is that the fan says, ‘I can’t afford this anymore,’” Sheehan says. “We can’t operate at a loss — we have to stay affordable while also making sure we make money each year. We have to make money. But if money is the byproduct of putting on a great event and it’s not the primary focus of it, then I think there’s a little bit more soul to it.”
Sheehan says his focus is to continue to “develop artists to keep selling tickets and selling streaming music and all the stuff that kind of goes with it. That’s a big part of the development of California Roots.” He adds, “A few years ago, we decided not to do streaming, and we ended up bringing it back after we got so much heat for canceling it. There’s a lot of people who have made it part of their Memorial Day tradition, and maybe one year they can’t afford it. So instead they can stream it. So we brought it back that year and people responded positively to the news.”
Find Ways To Keep It Affordable
Payment plans have become an important tool for keeping prices down, Sheehan says, noting that 65 to 70 percent of fans use payment plans to pay for their tickets each year. Fans can pay as little as $29 to reserve tickets and then make monthly payments for the festival, which costs $158 for one day and $358 for three days.
“If you buy them on the loyalty on-sale, you have almost a year to pay off your ticket,” Sheehan says. “You pay once a month on an auto withdraw. It’s easier for people to afford and a lot of people utilize it.”
Sheehan has contingency plans in place for fans who default on their payments to help them bring their accounts current, though he adds the default rate is quite small.
“It’s a free, no-interest loan and a lot of people are thankful we offer it,” he says.
Billboard Women in Music 2025
Time to spice up your life with a good book! Billboard announced Wednesday (April 2) that it’s partnering with livestream and social commerce platform TalkShopLive to launch the Billboard Book Club Powered by TalkShopLive.
The book club will feature some of music’s biggest stars discussing and promoting their latest books via the livestream ecommerce platform. Kicking things off is Geri Halliwell-Horner, a.k.a. Ginger Spice from the Spice Girls, who will stream April 8 via TalkShopLive from Billboard’s New York City studio. She’ll be celebrating her newest book, Rosie Frost: Ice on Fire, the sequel to her New York Times bestseller Rosie Frost & the Falcon Queen.
Per the book’s official description, the story follows protagonist Rosie Frost, who, “on the brink of discovering who — or what — lies behind her mother’s death, begins a new adventure with a murder to solve, revenge on her mind, and more questions than she has answers.”
She’ll also promote signed copies of the novel, which fans can purchase live on April 8 at 6 p.m. ET or watch replays anytime via the link here.
“At Billboard, we’re always excited to celebrate and support artists beyond their music,” Hannah Karp, editor-in-chief of Billboard, said in a press statement. “Our Billboard Book Club highlights artists as true storytellers while helping fans engage with their favorite acts in new ways.”
Bryan Moore, CEO and co-founder of TalkShopLive, added, “Over the past five years, TalkShopLive has welcomed hundreds of authors to our platform to discuss their books and the inspiration behind them. These livestreams have resulted in thousands of sales for these authors. From Oprah to Dolly Parton to Martha Stewart to Jenna Bush Hager and Kelsea Ballerini, TalkShopLive has become the go-to live commerce destination to showcase books during the preorder window. Now, in partnership with Billboard, we are poised to help countless musicians, journalists, historians and authors succeed in launching books that achieve ‘best sellers’ chart success.”
Billboard Book Club interviews will be featured on Billboard.com, on Billboard’s TalkShopLive channel and be simulcast to Billboard’s Facebook and Instagram pages. Viewers watching on Facebook and Instagram can comment the word “shop” to receive a link in their direct messages to purchase.
All sales from Billboard and TalkShopLive via TalkShopLive’s book distribution partner, ReaderLink, count toward The New York Times Best Sellers list.
Billboard Women in Music 2025
The U.S. State Department has canceled the work and tourist visas of the members of Mexican corrido group Los Alegres del Barranco after they displayed images of the leader of the Jalisco New Generation Cartel (CJNG), Nemesio Oseguera Cervantes, also known as “El Mencho,” during a concert on Saturday (March 29) at an auditorium at the University of Guadalajara.
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The news was confirmed on Tuesday (April 1) by Christopher Landau, the Deputy Secretary of State, in a post on X.
I’m a firm believer in freedom of expression, but that doesn’t mean that expression should be free of consequences. A Mexican band, “Los Alegres del Barranco,” portrayed images glorifying drug kingpin “El Mencho” — head of the grotesquely violent CJNG cartel — at a recent concert… pic.twitter.com/neSIib7EC4— Deputy Secretary Christopher Landau (@DeputySecState) April 2, 2025
“I’m a firm believer in freedom of expression, but that doesn’t mean that expression should be free of consequences,” wrote Landau in his post. “A Mexican band, Los Alegres del Barranco, portrayed images glorifying drug kingpin “El Mencho” — head of the grotesquely violent CJNG cartel — at a recent concert in Mexico. I’m pleased to announce that the State Department has revoked the band members’ work and tourism visas. In the Trump Administration, we take seriously our responsibility over foreigners’ access to our country. The last thing we need is a welcome mat for people who extol criminals and terrorists.”
The State Department, through Secretary of State Marco Rubio, announced on Feb. 20 the designation of eight cartels and transnational organizations — including the Jalisco New Generation Cartel — as Foreign Terrorist Organizations (FTO) and Specially Designated Global Terrorists (SDGT).
Prior to Landau’s announcement, the concert had caused significant controversy and outrage in Mexico, which has long tried to curb the glorification of drug lords in popular Mexican music and narcocorridos.
The concert was condemned on Monday (March 31) by Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum. It prompted the Jalisco State Prosecutor’s Office to launch an investigation for “glorification of crime.”
📢 Tras la proyección de imágenes en un concierto en Zapopan, que presuntamente hacían alusión a un personaje vinculado a un grupo criminal, la Fiscalía del Estado inició una carpeta de investigación. (1-3) pic.twitter.com/OU4R8EYr6q— Fiscalía del Estado de Jalisco (@FiscaliaJal) March 31, 2025
On Tuesday (April 1), the governor of Jalisco, Pablo Lemus, wrote in a post on X that his government supports the measures adopted by the University of Guadalajara to prevent criminal acts from being glorified at concerts, as occurred over the weekend at the Telmex Auditorium. The local leader said he signed an executive order to ensure that no singer or group with a history of endorsing criminal activity will perform at events linked to his government.
“Next week, I will introduce an initiative to ensure that, in any legally sanctioned public event, producers and performers are held accountable for what happens during their shows, and no one can wash their hands of responsibility,” Lemus announced.
Los Alegres del Barranco were scheduled to play shows in several U.S. cities, where the band was announced as part of the lineup for the Bésame Mucho festival April 5 in Austin, Texas. In a TikTok livestream on Tuesday, Pavel Morales, a member of the Sinaloan group, stated that the majority of their audience supports them and referred to their critics as “confused.”
Billboard Español reached out for comment to the band’s reps, but hasn’t received a reply by press time. Meanwhile, authorities from the municipality of Pedro Escobedo, in the Mexican state of Querétaro, confirmed on Tuesday that the group’s scheduled performance for April 19 was canceled because “it does not meet the necessary municipal permits for its realization,” the local government said in a statement on Tuesday.
The projection of the controversial images took place during a concert titled “Los Señores del Corrido” at the Telmex Auditorium, where Los Alegres del Barranco performed the song “El Dueño del Palenque” (The Owner of the Palenque) and displayed on screen photos of the cartel leader, as well as other images created by AI.
The images appeared on multiple videos on social media. They include the moments in which fans burst into cheers when the images of the cartel leader were shown, adding to the controversy.
In a statement, Auditorio Telmex Adistanced itself from the events, arguing that the venue “has no influence on the selection of the repertoire, speeches, or audiovisual material that artists decide to share with their audiences.” However, it acknowledged that the images of the kingpin could be considered an “exultation of crime.”
The controversy over the alleged tribute to the drug trafficker arises after information has surfaced over how the cartel uses clandestine ranches to recruit people through deceptive job offers, according to federal authorities and media reports. This followed the recent discovery of Izaguirre Ranch in early March in the municipality of Teuchitlán, where acts of torture and murder were allegedly committed, according to the Guerreros Buscadores collective.
🚨#AlertaADN¡Se cancela! El municipio de Pedro Escobedo, Querétaro, suspendió la presentación de “Los Alegres del Barranco”, prevista para el 19 de abril, tras la controversia por un homenaje a “El Mencho” en un concierto en Jalisco pic.twitter.com/ChxD61VNps— adn40 (@adn40) April 2, 2025
Billboard Women in Music 2025
If you think wrestling is all fake, ask Cody Rhodes how he was feeling after last month’s bloody WWE Elimination Chamber match in Toronto where Travis Scott went wild during a beatdown of the undisputed WWE champ.
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After Wrestling Observer Radio revealed that Rhodes suffered a broken ear drum and a black eye after Scott slapped the hapless wrestler as he lay bloodied in the middle of the ring at the March 1 event, Rhodes told Complex this week that he kept the receipts and that payback is in the cards.
As he gears up for his third consecutive WrestleMania — where he will defend his world title against fellow great John Cena in the latter’s final WrestleMania match– Rhodes had a stern warning for La Flame. “That’s wrestling,” Rhodes said of the injuries he endured after the rapper teamed up with Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson and Cena for the beatdown. “I am not mad so much, but I am looking and my eyes are open for what we inevitably, what we’ll call a receipt.”
At press time it’s unknown if Scott will be on hand when WrestleMania 41 takes place in Las Vegas on April 19-20, but Rhodes didn’t pull punches about the Elimination Chamber incident. When Complex simply noted that Scott was a “major part” of the Elimination Chamber match, Rhodes cheekily responded, “Oh, he was?”
Asked how hard Scott hit him — and if he gave him the “hey man, just really let me have it” license to do so — Rhodes said, “Well, the next day after the incident, I told everyone, ‘He didn’t hit me.’ I didn’t realize there was a fan video circulating of him hitting me with the power of a thousand suns and the noise deafening. And then I had a Tommy Boy situation where the entire side of my face was black and blue and I kept saying, ‘Oh no, I’m good. I’m good.’”
He said he then had a “little flutter in the eardrum” because it was popped. “Again, I’m a weirdo, this is going to sound so strange, and I apologize to your viewers and your listeners, but man, that’s wrestling. You know what I’m saying? Beat me up. I’m going to beat you up. That’s wrestling… If Travis Scott ever makes his way back into the WWE fray, maybe there’s a receipt for Travis. Prior to this though, by the way, I was a Travis Scott fan.”
Rhodes noted that he went sneaker shopping with Complex last July and that he once owned a pair of Scott’s Air Jordan’s, but that after the match “let’s say they might’ve gone somewhere. The shoes are not there anymore.”
That said, when asked who hits harder, Scott or part-time wrestler/YouTuber Logan Paul, Rhodes gave the rapper his props, kind of. “Well, Travis Scott hits pretty hard, but that’s not the hardest I’ve ever been slapped,” Rhodes said, adding that the hardest he’s ever been slapped was by female Canadian wrestler Nattie Neidhart. “If Travis Scott hit me with the force of a thousand suns, Nattie Neidhart sent me to the phantom zone. Legit, I was lost in space for a second, so that was the hardest one I ever got.”
La Flame has been all over WWE this year. His “4×4” song served as the RAW theme song in January when the show jumped to Netflix and he escorted Jey Uso to the ring for his match on Jan. 6 in Los Angeles. In addition, in January, Triple H teased that fans can expect to see more of Scott in the future. “Everybody should expect to see more things from Travis Scott in a big way,” he said.
Scott recently teamed up with WWE for a “Wrestling Is Real” T-shirt, presumably in response to the online chatter about the smack heard ’round the world.
President Donald Trump will hold a Wednesday meeting with aides about possible investors who could buy a stake in TikTok, a deal that could potentially stop the social media site from being banned in the United States.
The details of the meeting were confirmed by a person familiar with the situation who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss internal deliberations.
There has been uncertainty about the popular video app after a law took effect on Jan. 19 requiring its China-based parent, ByteDance, to divest its ownership because of national security concerns. After taking office, Trump gave TikTok a 75-day reprieve by signing an executive order that delayed until April 5 the enforcement of the law requiring a sale or effectively imposing a ban.
Among the possible investors are the software company Oracle and the investment firm Blackstone.
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Likely to attend the Oval Office meeting with Trump on Wednesday are Vice President JD Vance, Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick, White House national security adviser Mike Waltz and Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard.
CBS News first reported on the meeting.
Talking to reporters Sunday while on Air Force Once, Trump said he would “like to see TikTok remain alive.” He previously indicated that he might consider reducing tariffs against China if the country approves the sale.
During his first term, Trump tried to ban TikTok on national security grounds, which was halted by the courts before his administration negotiated a sale of the platform that eventually failed to materialize. He changed his position on the popular app during last year’s presidential election and has credited the platform with helping him win more young voters.
“I won the young vote by 36 points. Republicans generally don’t do very well with the young vote,” he said Sunday. “I think a lot of it could have been TikTok.”
Trump has said that the deadline on a TikTok deal could be extended further if needed. He previously proposed terms in which the U.S. would have a 50% stake in a joint venture. The administration hasn’t provided details on what that type of deal would entail.
TikTok and ByteDance have not publicly commented on the talks. It’s also unclear if ByteDance has changed its position on selling TikTok, which it said early last year it does not plan to do.
What will happen on April 5?
If TikTok is not sold to an approved buyer by April 5, the original law that bans it nationwide would once again go into effect. However, the deadline for the executive order doesn’t appear to be set in stone and the president has reiterated it could be extended further if needed.
Trump’s order came a few days after the Supreme Court unanimously upheld a federal law that required ByteDance to divest or be banned in January. The day after the ruling, TikTok went dark for U.S. users and came back online after Trump vowed to stall the ban.
The decision to keep TikTok alive through an executive order has received some scrutiny, but it has not faced a legal challenge in court.
Who wants to buy TikTok?
Although it’s unclear if ByteDance plans to sell TikTok, several potential bidders have come forward in the past few months.
Aides for Vice President JD Vance, who was tapped to oversee a potential deal, have reached out to some parties, such as the artificial intelligence startup Perplexity AI, to get additional details about their bids, according to a person familiar with the matter. In January, Perplexity AI presented ByteDance with a merger proposal that would combine Perplexity’s business with TikTok’s U.S. operation.
Other potential bidders include a consortium organized by billionaire businessman Frank McCourt, which recently recruited Reddit co-founder Alexis Ohanian as a strategic adviser. Investors in the consortium say they’ve offered ByteDance $20 billion in cash for TikTok’s U.S. platform. And if successful, they plan to redesign the popular app with blockchain technology they say will provide users with more control over their online data.
Jesse Tinsley, the founder of the payroll firm Employer.com, says he too has organized a consortium, which includes the CEO of the video game platform Roblox, and is offering ByteDance more than $30 billion for TikTok.
Trump said in January that Microsoft was also eyeing the popular app. Other interested parties include Trump’s former Treasury secretary Steve Mnuchin and Rumble, the video site popular with some conservatives and far-right groups. In a post on X last March, Rumble said it was ready to join a consortium of parties interested in purchasing TikTok and serving as a tech partner for the company.
This article was originally published by The Associated Press.
Billboard Women in Music 2025
Olga Tañón, Anitta, and Chiquis will be honored at the third annual Billboard Latin Women in Music event, Billboard and Telemundo announced on Wednesday (April 2). The program will air live exclusively on Telemundo on April 24 at 9 p.m. ET.
Hosted by Ana Bárbara, the two-hour music special will celebrate the “groundbreaking women shaping the future of Latin music,” says the press release. It will also stream on the Telemundo app, Universo and Peacock.
According to the initial list of honorees, la Mujer del Fuego (the Women of Fire) Olga Tañón, as she is widely known, will receive the Lifetime Achievement Award for her nearly four decades of unparalleled influence in merengue and Latin pop. Throughout her career, which dates back to the mid-1980s, the Puerto Rican legend has not only stolen hearts, but has also shaped the tropical style, earning a special place in the history of Latin music, earning the No. 8 spot on Billboard‘s Best 50 Female Latin Pop Artists of All Time.
Twenty of her albums have charted on Billboard’s Top Latin Albums, including two No. 1s, Llévame Contigo (1997) and Te Acordarás de Mí (1998). Meanwhile, on Tropical Airplay, the merengue powerhouse holds the record as the female artist with the most Top 10 entries (29 in total). “Her musical versatility, passion, and ability to connect with diverse audiences have made her an enduring icon,” reads the statement.
Meanwhile, trilingual superstar Anitta will be honored the Vanguard Award for her groundbreaking contributions to Latin pop, becoming one of the few Brazilian artists to successfully break into the Spanish-speaking market.
Anitta’s breakthrough came in 2017 with the J Balvin collaboration “Downtown,” which peaked at No. 14 on Billboard’s Hot Latin Songs chart. Since then, through impactful collaborations and solo hits like “Envolver” — which reached No. 2 on Billboard’s Global 200 — she has established herself as an essential force in breaking “barriers, challenge norms, and inspire future generations,” the statement said.
Rounding out the honorees on this first announcement, Chiquis will be recognized with the Impact Award for her “extraordinary contributions to the music industry and society.” A three-time Latin Grammy winner, the Mexican-American artist carries forward the rich banda legacy of her renowned family.
Chiquis holds 12 entries on Regional Mexican Airplay, and two No. 1 albums on Regional Mexican Albums for Ahora (2015) and Entre Botellas (2018). As the founder of Busy Bee Productions, she launched two hit TV series, while her podcast Chiquis and Chill has ran for four successful seasons.
Billboard and Telemundo will announce additional Latin Women in Music honorees in 2025.
Recording Academy CEO Harvey Mason Jr. sent a letter via email to all Recording Academy members on Wednesday (April 2) sharing a report that the academy created and quietly posted on its website in January. In the report, the academy attempts to quantify its impact and summarize the changes it has made over the five years since Mason stepped into the top job at the organization (initially as interim CEO following the departure of Deborah Dugan).
“While many people know us as just an awards granting institution, we are actually a purpose-driven impact organization serving music makers and aspiring music makers around the world 365 days a year,” Mason wrote in his letter. … “This Grammy Impact 2024 report puts into one place all the ways the Recording Academy positively affected music people last year.”
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In an interview with Billboard, Mason shed further light on his aims with the report, which takes the form of a slick and visually appealing deck brimming with facts and figures. But Mason says the numbers aren’t the point. “To me, the bottom line is that they get a sense that the academy is making a real impact on the lives of music people beyond just giving trophies,” he says. “What I’m trying to do is hopefully build support for the academy, through seeing it maybe through a different lens, rather than just who got snubbed or who won or who didn’t win. That’s the objective of this report.”
Mason has long tried to get people to see the academy as more than just the dispenser of shiny gramophones. “When I took the role, one of my objectives and goals was to heighten the awareness of what happens the other 364 days of the year,” he says. “I did experience a lot of interaction with music people in studios as I was coming up where people just thought of the Grammys as a night to get an award, whereas I was always encouraging them to see the bigger picture; to see all the service work that’s being done; the advocacy, the education, the philanthropy, MusicCares; all the different parts of the academy.
“A lot of people know and love the awards ceremony,” he continues. “I’m thankful for that, but it is a challenge for us as an organization to tell the larger story as to why we exist. [This report is] a new way of positioning the academy. We needed to do a better job of explaining why the academy exists beyond to celebrate one night a year. So, this was an intentional effort for us over the last few years to make sure we’re telling that story in a new way.”
Perhaps the most eye-popping statistic in the deck presentation is one that was already reported in the academy’s 2024 membership report, which was released Oct. 3 and reported in Billboard that same day: That a whopping 66% of current academy voting members have joined since 2019.
“It’s great [in the] sense in that we are continuing to remain relevant,” Mason says, “to attract new music-makers, people who are at the height of their careers, or coming into their careers, and we are moving away from having people who have been members…” Mason pauses and starts anew. “We always want to keep our long-term members, but we want to make sure they’re continuing to qualify as voting members [by being able to show recent credits]. We don’t want people that have had music careers in the 1960s or ’70s still voting on music that maybe they’re not involved in making, so we’re making sure we’re refreshing the membership; making sure the membership’s relevant to professionals in the industry working today.”
The deck also includes the statistic, also first reported in the membership report, that people of color now constitute 38% of the voting membership. “I’m pleased with the progress,” Mason says. “We still feel like we have some room to go. You think about why are these numbers important: Why do you care about changing the make-up of our membership? It’s mostly because we want to make sure our membership reflects the industry.”
Mason says he has no set points in mind as to when the academy will have achieved its membership goals. “We’ll never be done, because these numbers are going to fluctuate,” he says. “They’re going to adjust based on what’s happening in our community, in music; changing based on genre popularity, so we’re going to be in a constant search to perfect our membership. We’re always going to continue to work and tinker with the numbers because we have to remain relevant. I don’t think we’re where we want to be yet. I’m not sure we’ll ever accomplish the perfect membership, but we will continue to [work on it].”
At this year’s Grammy Awards, artists and songwriters of color won three of the four highest-profile awards: album of the year (Beyoncé’s Cowboy Carter) and record and song of the year (Kendrick Lamar’s “Not Like Us”). Does Mason see that as a reflection of the academy’s overhaul of its membership?
“Not necessarily,” Mason says. “I see it as a reflection of the quality of their individual work. I like to think having a relevant membership — regardless of their race — is probably what gives us the best outcomes, but I think those people had amazing years creatively and our voters recognized that.”
The deck also repeats the stat that the Recording Academy has added more than 3,000 women voting members since 2019, surpassing its 2019 goal to add 2,500 women voting members by 2025. Women now make up 28% of the voting membership.
“We really needed to increase the number of women voters,” Mason says. “A great first step is adding 3,000 new members. We’re not [yet] where you want to be.”
The deck also speaks to the academy’s “bold global expansion, working with stakeholders in Africa and the Middle East to help foster the dynamic music markets there.” (The academy first released this information on June 9.)
Asked why that effort is a priority for the U.S.-based academy, Mason replies, “Obviously, a big focus is on our American members, and it will continue to be that. We are an organization that represents music all around the world. If we’re going to do that, we have to have people that represent those genres. It very much can be said in the same way about Latin music: Why do you care about Latin music? Why did you build a Latin Academy? It’s because the music is very popular. It’s a thriving music community and it continues to affect people as they listen to it and consume music, and the same can be said for other parts of the world.
“We are not living in a time when music only comes from American creators,” he continues. “Music is coming from creators all around the planet. As a group that serves music people and hopefully uplifts music people, we want to be able to do that for people regardless of where they’re from. As long as they’re making music, we want to have an impact on those music groups.”
Here’s Mason’s letter to the academy membership in full:
Academy members,
I am writing today to share an exciting report that we recently created. You frequently hear me say that music is a powerful force for good in the world, and that the people who make it deserve an organization dedicated to their well-being. I feel so incredibly privileged to work for the organization that exists to do that.
But our highest purpose isn’t merely to serve music creators, it’s to make a positive impact on their lives and careers. And that’s exactly what we work to do, every single day of the year, through the tireless and amazing effort of our board and our teams.
While many people know us as just an awards granting institution, we are actually a purpose-driven impact organization serving music makers and aspiring music makers around the world 365 days a year. Every piece of legislation we help pass has a tangible impact on the music people we serve. Every event hosted by a chapter or wing, every dollar distributed by MusiCares, every scholarship we provide, and every time we open the Grammy Museum doors to a child, it impacts our music community. And yes, every Grammy nomination and award alters the trajectory of someone’s life and career.
This Grammy Impact 2024 report puts into one place all the ways the Recording Academy positively affected music people last year. As we say in the report, it is the combined work of the more than 300 dedicated employees of the Recording Academy, the Latin Recording Academy, the Grammy Museum, MusiCares, and thousands of music creators who volunteered their time in service to their peers.
Please take a moment to read through the report, and reflect on the ways you and your colleagues personally contributed to these outcomes. I hope you feel a sense of pride and purpose in what was accomplished, and for the role you play every day in serving the music people who rely on us.
Of course, we’re now into 2025, and while we celebrate the achievements of last year, we are also looking ahead to the impact we will make this year and beyond. Grammys on the Hill is right around the corner, the Day that Music Cares is coming soon, and much more awaits us in the months ahead.
Thank you for your ongoing commitment to our work. It is making a lasting impact.Gratefully,Harvey Mason jr.
Non-profits Live Music Society and Salt Lick Incubator have teamed up with D-TOUR, a network of independent venues and promoters, to present a fresh approach to touring. The collaborative tour, called One Night Live, will feature three rising artists — Ellie Williams, Sofia Lafuente and Farayi Malek — on a three-week trek supported by the organizations.
Together, Live Music Society, D-TOUR and Salt Lick Incubator have envisioned a new model that enables rising young artists to break into new markets and build their fanbase while tapping into local scenes and meeting local bands and introducing venues to new talent. The tour, which kicks off on May 16 at Gramps in Miami, will have the financial backing of Live Music Society. The mission is to create a viable alternative for independent artists and venues that have been hit hardest by the growing cost of live events.
Live Music Society supports a large and growing network of small performance venues across the U.S. through multiple grant programs, through which it has issued 210 grants to 180 venues totaling more than $4 million. While working closely with these venues, several recipients requested funds to enable them to present emerging artists.
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“The venues in our community want to, and need to, present new artists and welcome touring acts and new customers into their spaces, but it is becoming financially harder and harder to go on tour, and harder to run a smaller venue,” said Live Music Society executive director Cat Henry in a statement. “Artists need places to play, places to stay, and people to listen, and with our partners in One Night Live, we can help make this happen and demonstrate a model that might increase the odds of success for all involved.”
The tour will run through locally owned venues across the East Coast, South and Midwest, with the billed artists performing alongside local and regional artists selected by each venue. Each act will perform their own set every night, with the two others — in an effort to create a more efficient touring model — serving as backing musicians.
Salt Lick Incubator has been working closely with the artists featured on the tour via writing camps, collaborations, gig opportunities and branding/marketing support to help set them up for success.
“It has become exceedingly difficult for an emerging artist to build their hard ticket history if they don’t land a coveted opening slot on a bigger tour and or have a viral moment,” added Salt Lick Incubator president Liza Levy. “The support that Live Music Society, D-TOUR, and these independent venues are providing in this non-traditional way is a formidable win for the developing artist community.”
D-TOUR worked with its affiliate venue members to book the tour, organize the routing, identify local support acts and market the shows. The dates will include stops at Tampa’s Crowbar, Altar (Masquerade) in Atlanta, the Smiling Moose in Pittsburgh and DRKMTTR Collective in Nashville.
“Now more than ever these pathways are needed to protect the relationship between independent venues and artists as well as to enhance the experience of the music fan who finds value and joy in discovering their next favorite artist in this intimate setting for one night live,” added D-TOUR COO Tom DeGeorge.
Tickets for One Night Live are available now via each venue’s website. The full list of tour dates is below.
One Night Live
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Billboard Women in Music 2025
Creed have added some dates to their upcoming Summer of ’99 reunion tour. The hard rockers who are gearing up to spend July and August on the road with 3 Doors Down, Daughtry, Big Wreck and Mammoth WVH, announced five new shows this week, including an August 23 stop in Mt. Pleasant, MI, as well as gigs in Cincinnati, OH (Aug. 24), Providence, R.I. (Aug. 27), Manchester, N.H. (Aug 28) and Halifax, NS (August 30).
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A Live Nation pre-sale for the new dates will kick off on Thursday (April 3) at 10 a.m. local time (code DANCE), followed by a general on-sale on Friday (April 4) here.
The upcoming run of North American shows is a follow-up to last summer’s smash reunion tour of the same name, with the party slated to kick-off with a pop-in at the Stagecoach Festival on April 26, followed by the proper tour launch on July 9 at Rupp Arena in Lexington, KY. In addition, the Scott Stapp-led group will join Nickelback in East Troy, WI, for this year’s edition of the Summer of ’99 and Beyond Festival at Alpine Valley Music Theatre on July 18 and 19.
The lineup for the second edition of the nostalgic festival will also include Live, Daughtry, Tonic, Our Lady Peace, Lit, 3 DoorsDown, Sevendust, Mammoth WVH, Hinder, Vertical Horizon and Fuel. The shows will be the first time Creed and Nickelback have shared a stage since 1999.
“Thirty years in, it’s been a blessing to pick up right where we left off with longtime fans and to meet the next generation for the first time,” Stapp said in a statement. “It’s been an incredible ride, and we aren’t done, so here’s to a ‘Summer’ that never ends. We’ll see you on the road.”
Check out the updated tour poster below.