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14 Jun 2023

Jack Harlow Drops Poignant Video for ‘Gang Gang Gang’: Watch

On Wednesday (June 14), Jack Harlow surprised fans with a poignant video to accompany the reflective Jackman. deep cut “Gang Gang Gang.”

The track tells a story familiar to those who released themselves from the grips of small hometowns, only to return to something unchanged on the surface but deeply different. Seated at a table in his hometown of Louisville, the 25-year-old rapper looks on with disbelief as a friend shares updates about loved ones and their horrific choices.

“My friend pulled me to the side like, ‘Did you hear about Marcus?’” he raps, “‘A bunch of girls say he raped ’em in the back of some Target.’”

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The chorus captures the naïveté of “unconditional love” professed between friends during childhood, with no regard for what the future may bring. Each verse’s story is depicted visually in the Eliel Ford-directed video, which, like the visual for “They Don’t Love It,” was filmed entirely in Harlow’s hometown.

The track initially arrived on Harlow’s Jackman., which marked Harlow’s first No. 1 on Top Rap Albums (chart dated May 13).

Harlow was recently honored with a “Hometown Heroes” banner in Louisville. Last month, he launched The Jack Harlow Foundation, which will “serve as the Louisville, KY native’s primary philanthropic vehicle to reinvest, uplift and support organizations aiming to make the city that raised him a better place,” according to a statement.

Watch the “Gang Gang Gang” video below.

14 Jun 2023

Tracy Chapman Tops a Billboard Chart for the First Time Since 2000, Driven by Luke Combs’ ‘Fast Car’

Tracy Chapman rises from No. 3 to No. 1 on Billboard’s Country Songwriters chart (dated June 17), leading for the first time, thanks to Luke Combs’ cover of her classic hit “Fast Car.”

Combs’ version of the song, on which Chapman is the sole credited writer, holds at its No. 2 high on the Hot Country Songs chart and jumps 8-4 on the Billboard Hot 100 – out-peaking Chapman’s original recording, which reached No. 6 on the Hot 100 in 1988.

Combs’ cover hits new heights with 34.2 million radio airplay audience impressions (up 30%), as it surges at country, pop and adult formats; 20.2 million U.S. streams (up 1%); and 9,000 downloads sold (up 4%) June 2-8, according to Luminate.

Chapman has tallied five entries on the Hot 100 as a billed recording artist: “Fast Car” (No. 6 peak in 1988), “Talkin’ Bout a Revolution” (No. 75, 1988), “Baby Can I Hold You” (No. 48, 1988), “Crossroads” (No. 90, 1989) and “Give Me One Reason” (No. 3, 1996).

Combs’ “Fast Car” is the third version of Chapman’s breakthrough song to chart on the Hot 100. It follows Chapman’s original and Jonas Blue’s dance cover, featuring Dakota (No. 98 peak, 2016).

Notably, as Chapman crowns Country Songwriters, she earns her first No. 1 placement on a Billboard chart since 2000, when her single “Telling Stories (There Is Fiction in the Space Between)” topped the Adult Alternative Airplay chart for eight weeks. Before that, she ruled the Billboard 200 with her debut self-titled album in August 1988, as well as Adult Pop Airplay for eight weeks in 1996 with “Give Me One Reason.”

Chapman’s eponymous debut album marked her first chart appearance when it entered the Billboard 200 chart dated April 30, 1988. “Fast Car” followed on Adult Contemporary and Mainstream Rock Airplay that May, and then the Hot 100 that June. She has won four Grammy Awards, including best female pop vocal performance for “Fast Car” and best rock song for “Give Me One Reason.”

Billboard launched the Hot 100 Songwriters and Hot 100 Producers charts, as well as genre-specific rankings for country, rock & alternative, R&B/hip-hop, R&B, rap, Latin, Christian, gospel and dance/electronic, in June 2019, while alternative and hard rock joined in 2020, along with seasonal holiday rankings in 2022. The charts are based on total points accrued by a songwriter and producer, respectively, for each attributed song that appears on the Hot 100. The genre-based songwriter and producer charts follow the same methodology based on corresponding “Hot”-named genre charts. As with Billboard’s yearly recaps, multiple writers or producers split points for each song equally (and the dividing of points will lead to occasional ties on rankings).

The full Hot 100 Songwriters and Hot 100 Producers charts and genre-specific rankings can be found on Billboard.com.

14 Jun 2023

Lady Gaga Debuts Chromatica Ball Tour Footage in New Ad for Migraine Drug

Lady Gaga has partnered with Pfizer for a new commercial in an effort to raise migraine awareness, the pharmaceutical company announced this week.

Their partnership is in recognition of this year’s “Educate Yourself, Educate Others” theme of June’s Migraine and Headache Awareness Month. Often misunderstood as an especially intense headache, migraine is a debilitating and recurrent neurological disease that, according to one study, is also considered the second-most disabling condition in the world.

A 13-time Grammy-winner, Gaga was first diagnosed with migraines when she was just 14-years-old.

“My experience with migraines was debilitating. I would be in bed for days with tremendous pain in my head, behind my eyes, and all throughout my face,” the pop star told Pfizer. “I couldn’t read or have any lights on, and I needed to be alone in a quiet room for hours that could lead to days until the pain subsided.”

No stranger to being vulnerable with her fans, Gaga has regularly been transparent about her various health issues. In 2013, she opened up about the hip injury that cut her Born This Way Ball tour short.

In a new ad in support of the Pfizer collaboration, the singer/actress unveils some of the first professional footage of her Chromatica Ball tour, which wrapped in September. “I know what it’s like to perform through pain,” Gaga sympathized in a voice-over before launching into promotion for Pfizer’s Nurtec ODT medication.

Last year, Gaga packed out stadiums across Europe, Asia, and North America as she toured in support of Chromatica, her sixth studio album which spawned hit singles like “Stupid Love” and the Grammy-winning Hot 100 No. 1 smash “Rain On Me” (with Ariana Grande).

Lady Gaga has earned five No. 1 singles on the Hot 100 from 17 top ten entries. On the Billboard 200, the Golden Globe-winning actress has notched six chart-toppers dating back to 2011’s Born This Way.

14 Jun 2023

State Champ Radio Mix ep. 168

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DJ Frosty’s State Champ Radio Mix 168




6 minutes ago

#hip-hop, #r&b, #rap, #rnb

14 Jun 2023

Boosie Arrested By The Feds After A Court Hearing

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Lil Boosie on set

Source: (Photo by Prince Williams/Wireimage) / (Photo by Prince Williams/Wireimage)

Boosie Badazz is having a bad day. The Baton Rouge rapper was in court for a hearing—where charges were dropped—but shortly after that case wrapped in his favor, he was arrested by the Feds.

TMZ first reported that Boosie was in court on Wednesday (June 14) for an ongoing gun case. Apparently, said case was dismissed. However, soon after Boosie was pinched for another pending, as of yet unknown, legal issue.

According to the San Diego County District Attorney’s office, federal agents took the opinionate rapper into custody when he was just outside the courtroom.

Reportedly, the gun case involved a traffic stop last month, when cop founds two handguns in the rapper’s car. We’re guess said firearms were legal and registered since said charges were dropped.

This story is developing. 

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14 Jun 2023

Bud Light Dethroned as America’s Top-Selling Beer After Backlash to Trans-Inclusive Campaign

After more than two decades as America’s best-selling beer, Bud Light has slipped into second place.

Modelo Especial, a Mexican lager, overtook Bud Light in U.S. retail dollar sales in the month ending June 3, according to Nielsen data analyzed by Bump Williams Consulting. Modelo controlled 8.4% of U.S. grocery, convenience and liquor store sales; Bud Light fell to 7.3%.

It’s a milestone in the monthslong sales decline Bud Light has experienced since early April, when critics — including musicians Kid Rock, Travis Tritt and John Rich — vowed to boycott the brand after it sent a commemorative can to Dylan Mulvaney, a transgender influencer. Bud Light has also faced backlash from Mulvaney’s fans, who think the brand didn’t do enough to support her.

Dave William, Bump Williams’ vice president of analytics and insights, said Bud Light has been the top-selling U.S. beer since 2001, and it could still retain that crown this year. He noted that Bud Light’s year-to-date market share of 9% is still outpacing Modelo’s, at 8%. And Bud Light’s sales volumes are higher.

But Modelo appears to have the advantage, with its dollar sales increasing by double-digit percentages every week. The launch of a new light beer, Modelo Oro, in May is also boosting awareness of the brand.

Sales in bars and restaurants, which are harder to track, aren’t included in the retail numbers, and Bud Light far outpaced Modelo in those venues prior to April. But David Steinman, the vice president and executive editor of Beer Marketer’s Insights, said Modelo’s bar and restaurant sales have been growing quickly, and it’s believed that Bud Light took an even steeper sales hit in bars and restaurants than in groceries.

Bud Light’s U.S. retail sales were down 24% the week ending June 3, while Modelo Especial sales were up 12%, according to Dave Williams.

Scott Scanlon, an executive vice president at the consulting firm Circana who follows the alcohol market, said Mexican imports like Modelo and Corona have been the biggest bright spots in the otherwise stagnant U.S. beer market for years.

When Modelo first went on sale in the U.S. in the 1990s, it was primarily marketed to Hispanic drinkers, Scanlon said. It launched English-language ads in 2015 and has broadened its consumer base significantly since then. It’s especially popular among younger drinkers, who like its fuller flavor, Scanlon said.

Scanlon said Modelo is already the top seller in markets like Los Angeles and Chicago, but it could still see a lot of growth ahead on the East Coast.

“Modelo was going to become the No. 1 beer brand. It was destiny because the growth numbers we are seeing and have been seeing are astonishing,” Scanlon said. “The only question was time.”

Scanlon said the pandemic accelerated Modelo’s U.S. sales, since it sees more of its sales from retail stores than from bars and restaurants. And Bud Light’s missteps further accelerated its rise.

Grupo Modelo, the Mexican brewer, is owned by Anheuser-Busch InBev, the same parent company of Bud Light. Constellation Brands, a Rochester, New York-based company, has been licensed to sell Modelo in the U.S. since 2013 as part of an agreement with antitrust regulators after InBev bought Grupo Modelo.

Constellation said Wednesday it has nearly doubled its marketing spending on Modelo over the past five years and continues to see a “runway for growth” in the U.S. But Bud Light will try to counter that.

Last month, InBev said it will triple its marketing spending in the U.S. this summer, with a focus on sports and music festivals. Bud Light also continues to be a high-profile sponsor of LGBTQ+ Pride events.

Messages seeking comment were left Wednesday with Anheuser-Busch.

14 Jun 2023

Twitter Facing $250M Copyright Infringement Lawsuit From Music Publishers

The National Music Publishers’ Association says its members are suing Twitter over allegations of widespread copyright infringement and seeking hundreds of millions in damages, telling the Elon Musk-owned site it can no longer “refuse to pay songwriters and music publishers.”

In the lawsuit, which the group plans to announce during its annual meeting Wednesday (June 14), dozens of music publishers allege that Twitter had infringed more than 1,700 different songs — a claim that, if proven, could put the social media giant on the hook for as much as $255 million in damages.

“Twitter profits handsomely from its infringement of publishers’ repertoires of musical compositions,” the music companies write in their complaint, which was obtained by Billboard. “Twitter’s unlawful conduct has caused and continues to cause substantial and irreparable harm to Publishers, their songwriter clients, and the entire music ecosystem.”

Twitter did not respond to immediate request for comment.

The plaintiffs named in the lawsuit, set to be filed in Tennessee federal court, include Concord, UMPG, peermusic, ABKCO Music, Anthem Entertainment, Big Machine Music, BMG Rights Management, Hipgnosis Songs Group, Kobalt Music Publishing America, Mayimba Music, Reservoir Media Management, Sony Music Publishing, Spirit Music Group, The Royalty Network, Ultra Music Publishing, Warner Chappell Music, and Wixen Music Publishing.

The announcement that the NMPA would be pursuing legal action against Twitter shouldn’t come as a total surprise. In a February speech at the Association of Independent Music Publishers (AIMP) summit, NMPA president and CEO David Israelite called Twitter his “top legal focus” this year. He warned that the company was “hiding behind” the Digital Millenium Copyright Act – the federal law that limits how websites like Twitter can be sued over copyright infringement by their users.

In a statement on Wednesday, Israelite echoed that threat, saying that Twitter could no longer “hide behind the DMCA and refuse to pay songwriters and music publishers.”

“Twitter stands alone as the largest social media platform that has completely refused to license the millions of songs on its service,” Israelite said in a statement. “Twitter knows full well that music is leaked, launched, and streamed by billions of people every day on its platform.”

The DMCA provides websites like Twitter with a legal immunity — a “safe harbor” — against copyright lawsuits over material uploaded by their users, so long as they promptly remove infringing content and ban repeated violators from the platform. But in their new lawsuit, the publishers allege that Twitter failed to do either, meaning the site has legally forfeited the DMCA’s protections.

“Twitter routinely ignores known repeat infringers and known infringements, refusing to take simple steps that are available to Twitter to stop these specific instances of infringement of which it is aware,” the publishers wrote.

The NMPA annual meeting each year is known to feature at least one bombshell announcement from Israelite. Last year, the NMPA launched a legal action against over a hundred different apps that skim music from digital services without obtaining licenses, sent cease and desist notices to Apple and Google app stores, and filed a copyright infringement lawsuit against music video-making app Vinkle. In 2021, Israelite announced $200 million copyright infringement lawsuit against Roblox for hosting thousands of unlicensed songs within the game’s library.

The NMPA’s public grievances with Twitter date back to at least April 2021, when a Billboard published a guest column, co-penned by Israelite and RIAA chief Mitch Glazier. In it, the two leaders called for social media platform to license music and noted that in the last year music creators had sent more than 2 million notices to Twitter of unlicensed and infringing appearances of copyrighted music on the platform, more than 200,000 of which were of unreleased songs. “The company’s response to date has been totally inadequate,” the article lamented. It went on to suggest three ways for Twitter to address the grievances the music business has had with its operations: “licensing music and pay music creators like others do,” “better content protection tools,” and “stop demanding exorbitant payments from creators for content protection.”

Since Jack Dorsey stepped down from Twitter in November 2021, the stability of the company has been in constant flux. By the time Musk bought the company and assumed the role of CEO in October 2022, Twitter’s future seemed even more uncertain amid Musk’s controversial leadership, widespread cost cutting measures, and restructuring of the company. Since Dorsey’s departure, Israelite has taken to the platform to express his hope that subsequent chiefs like Parag Agrawal, Musk and now Linda Yaccarino would “finally” “take a new approach” with licensing music.

But in Wednesday’s lawsuit, the publishers said things had only gotten worse: “Twitter’s change in ownership in October 2022 has not led to improvements in how it acts with respect to copyright. On the contrary, Twitter’s internal affairs regarding matters pertinent to this case are in disarray.”

Licensing for games, social media, and other applications is quickly becoming a major component of music publishers’ income. At last year’s annual meeting, NMPA announced that licensing from new revenue streams — like Twitch, Roblox, Peloton and others — now account for 29.11% of music publishers’ income, something that is expected to only rise over time. This has come with the success of the NMPA’s aggressive legal agenda in recent years, and has helped publishers diversify their income from streaming, which is strictly regulated in the U.S. by the Copyright Royalty Board.

In the lawsuit against Twitter, the publishers noted that TikTok, Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, and Snapchat had all entered into such broader licensing deals, enabling their users to use copyrighted music while still compensating songwriters. Twitter, they wrote, cannot not continue to be the exception.

“Twitter is seizing for itself an artificial competitive advantage against companies that are not violating copyright law, undercutting existing markets, cheapening the value of music, and undermining Publishers’ well-established business models,” lawyers for the publishers wrote.

14 Jun 2023

Billboard Explains: Music Copyright Lawsuits

In this episode of Billboard Explains, we take a look at the rise of copyright lawsuits and the significance behind Ed Sheeran‘s case and his win over his track “Thinking Out Loud.”

Producer:
Copyright lawsuits are on the rise. Ed Sheeran recently won a copyright lawsuit claim against his Billboard Hot 100 hit “Thinking Out Loud.” While the pop star successfully defended his hit song, it’s actually one of many copyright lawsuits that are bringing music’s most well-known stars into the court.

From Robin Thicke and Pharrell to Katy Perry, why is there a rise in copyright infringement cases? And how does Ed Sheeran’s victory impact the music industry? This is Billboard Explains: Music Copyright Lawsuits.

Let’s first dive into what Sheeran’s copyright case was all about: Sheeran’s “Thinking Out Loud” versus Marvin Gaye’s “Let’s Get It On.” The family of “Let’s Get It On” co-writer Ed Townsend accused Sheeran of copying the chord structure of Gaye’s 1973 hit. The jury ultimately ruled in favor of Sheeran, saying that he didn’t copy any of the elements of the song and created it independently.

This isn’t the first time Marvin Gaye has been involved in a copyright case. In 2013, Gaye’s family claimed Robin Thicke and Pharrell’s song “Blurred Lines” copied Gaye’s 1977 hit song “Got to Give It Up.” Thicke actually told Billboard that Gaye inspired the song, saying in part, “I told him, ‘Pharrell, I wanted to do something kind of like Marvin Gaye’s ‘Got to Give It Up’ that kind of feel because it’s one of my favorite songs of all time.’”

The jury found Robin Thicke and Pharrell Williams guilty of copyright infringement, and awarded Marvin Gaye’s estate over $5 million and 50% of future royalties on the song. The verdict of the “Blurred Lines” case jump-started a wave of copyright lawsuits targeting some of music’s biggest hits, from opening guitar riffs to similar melodies, to similar lyrics. So why does this particular case matter? According to Billboard‘s Senior Legal Correspondent Bill Donahue, the “Blurred Lines” lawsuit created confusion and fear among songwriters and artists at the time. So this case shows that the pendulum is swinging the other way. Basically, Sheeran winning this case helps other songwriters in the future. He says it best:

Ed Sheeran:
“These codes are common building blocks, which were used to create music long before ‘Let’s Get It On’ was written, and will be used to make music long after we’re all gone.”

Producer:
So what’s the impact on the music industry as a whole? Things are starting to change when it comes to copyright cases. Many artists are choosing to go to court and fight for their work as opposed to settling out of court. They want to prove they’re innocent of the claims and not become a target for a cash grab. And the music industry as a whole is learning more about what makes a legitimate copyright case, actual stolen music and lyrics versus common musical elements.

Ed Sheeran:
“If the jury had decided this matter the other way, we might as well say goodbye to the creative freedom of songwriters. We need to be able to write our original music and engage in independent creation without worrying at every step of the way that such creativity will be wrongly called into question.”

Producer:
All in all, while Sheeran’s win won’t necessarily stop future lawsuits from happening, the win still marks a significant moment in music history.

14 Jun 2023

Billboard Explains: Music Copyright Lawsuits

Ed Sheeran‘s copyright case for “Thinking Out Loud” is far from the first of its kind, but it sets a new precedent for all cases regarding musical integrity going forward. How does Sheeran’s case impact the music industry, and what has prompted the recent rise in copyright cases?

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The latest episode of Billboard Explains dives in to music copyright lawsuits of the past and present, starting with Sheeran’s “Thinking Out Loud” versus Marvin Gaye‘s 1973 hit “Let’s Get It On” and touching on cases with Robin Thicke and more.

Gaye’s family and “Let’s Get It On” co-writer Ed Townsend accused Sheeran of copying Gaye’s hit, but the court ruled that the British singer did not copy elements of the song. Thicke and Pharrell Williams, who worked together on “Blurred Lines,” came under fire from the Gaye family as well, when they were accused of copying Gaye’s 1977 song “Got to Give It Up.” In Thicke’s case, he admitted that he was directly inspired by the track and named it as one of his favorite songs ever; the court ruled that Thicke and Williams were guilty and were ordered to pay Gaye’s family $5 million in addition to 50 percent of the track’s royalties.

While Thicke’s case swung the pendulum and made artists more fearful about potential lawsuits, Sheeran’s case proves that artists have a chance to successfully defend their work and are willing to fight instead of settling outside of court.

After the video, catch up on more Billboard Explains videos and learn about how Beyoncé arrived at Renaissance, the evolution of girl groups, BBMAs, NFTs, SXSW, the magic of boy bands, American Music Awards, the Billboard Latin Music Awards, the Hot 100 chart, how R&B/hip-hop became the biggest genre in the U.S., how festivals book their lineups, Billie Eilish’s formula for success, the history of rap battles, nonbinary awareness in music, the Billboard Music Awards, the Free Britney movement, rise of K-pop in the U.S., why Taylor Swift is re-recording her first six albums, the boom of hit all-female collaborations, how Grammy nominees and winners are chosen, why songwriters are selling their publishing catalogs, how the Super Bowl halftime show is booked and why Olivia Rodrigo’s “Drivers License” was able to shoot to No. 1 on the Hot 100.

14 Jun 2023

European Parliament Takes First Step Toward Regulating AI With Vote For Trailblazing Legislation

LONDON — Amid increasing concern among artists, songwriters, record labels and publishers over the impact of artificial intelligence (AI) on the music industry, European regulators are finalizing sweeping new laws that will help determine what AI companies can and cannot do with copyrighted music works.  

On Wednesday (June 14), Members of the European Parliament (MEPs) voted overwhelmingly in favor of the Artificial Intelligence (AI) Act with 499 votes for, 28 against and 93 abstentions. The draft legislation, which was first proposed in April 2021 and covers a wide range of AI applications, including its use in the music industry, will now go before the European Parliament, European Commission and the European Council for review and possible amendments ahead of its planned adoption by the end of the year.  

For music rightsholders, the European Union’s (EU) AI Act is the world’s first legal framework for regulating AI technology in the record business and comes as other countries, including the United States, China and the United Kingdom, explore their own paths to policing the rapidly evolving AI sector.  

The EU proposals state that generative AI systems will be forced to disclose any content that they produce which is AI-generated — helping distinguish deep-fake content from the real thing — and provide detailed publicly available summaries of any copyright-protected music or data that they have used for training purposes.    

“The AI Act will set the tone worldwide in the development and governance of artificial intelligence,” MEP and co-rapporteur Dragos Tudorache said following Wednesday’s vote. The EU legislation would ensure that AI technology “evolves and is used in accordance with the European values of democracy, fundamental rights, and the rule of law,” he added.

The EU’s AI Act arrives as the music business is urgently trying to respond to recent advances in the technology. The issue came to a head in April with the release of “Heart on My Sleeve,” the now-infamous song uploaded to TikTok that is said to have been created using AI to imitate vocals from Drake and The Weeknd. The song was quickly pulled from streaming services following a request from Universal Music Group, which represents both artists, but not before it had racked up hundreds of thousands of streams.

A few days before “Heart on My Sleeve” become a short-lived viral hit, UMG wrote to streaming services, including Spotify and Apple Music, asking them to stop AI companies from accessing the label’s copyrighted songs “without obtaining the required consents” to “train” their machines. The Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) has also warned against AI companies violating copyrights by using existing music to generate new tunes. 

If the EU’s AI Act passes in its present draft form, it will strengthen supplementary protections against the unlawful use of music in training AI systems. Existing European laws dealing with text and data-mining copyright exceptions mean that rightsholders will still technically need to opt out of those exceptions if they want to ensure their music is not used by AI companies that are either operating or accessible in the European Union.

The AI Act would not undo or change any of the copyright protections currently provided under EU law, including the Copyright Directive, which came into force in 2019 and effectively ended safe harbor provisions for digital platforms in Europe.  

That means that if an AI company were to use copyright-protected songs for training purposes — and publicly declare the material it had used as required by the AI Act — it would still be subject to infringement claims for any AI-generated content it then tried to commercially release, including infringement of the copyright, legal, personality and data rights of artists and rightsholders.   

“What cannot, is not, and will not be tolerated anywhere is infringement of songwriters’ and composers’ rights,” said John Phelan, director general of international music publishing trade association ICMP, in a statement. The AI Act, he says, will ensure “special attention for intellectual property rights” but further improvements to the legislation “are there to be won.”