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21 Feb 2023

LVRN Appoints Bryan Michael Cox to SVP of A&R and Exec Producer

LVRN continues to bolster the company by adding nine-time Grammy-winning producer and songwriter Bryan Michael Cox. Cox will serve as senior vp of A&R and executive producer for upcoming albums and artists for the label.

“A&R has become a lost art in this new generation of music because of the gap in relationship between A&R, the artist, and the label,” says Justice Baiden, LVRN co-founder. “Bryan-Michael Cox is a respected and accomplished producer and executive, and he’s the perfect addition to our team to help continue in bridging that gap. Bryan not only speaks the same language as the artist, but he also shares the same values as LVRN. We are on an unwavering mission to disrupt and redefine the rules of the music industry while also preserving the quality and integrity of the music. When I think of someone who handles music with care, I think of Bryan, and we’re excited to welcome him home to Atlanta and LVRN.”

“The time is right for this union because what LVRN has been able to do culturally is incredible,” adds Cox, who has worked with Usher, Mariah Carey and Justin Bieber throughout his career. “The commitment to the full picture of artist development is something that this business has been missing. From the single selections to album track listing to the rollouts, each artist has been launched uniquely with care. Justice pays attention to detail, and he has great understanding of what hit records should sound like without compromising the artists creativity and identity. I have a great track record of being able to bond with artists, get the best out of them, and, of course, being able to create or identify hit records. This is a perfect fit.”

Earlier this year, CEO and co-founder of MUSIC Matt Pincus joined the label’s board of directors and invested $25 million. The investment values LVRN at more than $100 million.

21 Feb 2023

Recording Academy CEO Harvey Mason Jr. Named Co-Chair of Harlem Festival of Culture’s Music Advisory Board

Recording Academy CEO Harvey Mason jr. has been appointed co-chair of the Music Advisory Board for the Harlem Festival of Culture (HFC). Launching the weekend of July 28-30, the inaugural HFC is a reimagining of 1969’s historic Harlem Cultural Festival, which inspired the Academy Award-winning concert documentary Summer of Soul (…Or When the Revolution Could Not Be Televised).

Mason will be working in tandem with fellow Music Advisory Board co-chair and Grammy Award-winning artist Wyclef Jean. HFC’s executive team also includes Jordan Brand chairman Larry Miller as strategic advisor and artist/business entrepreneur Michael L. Bivins as creative director. 

In the HFC press release announcing his appointment, Mason commented, “I am incredibly honored to join as co-chair of the Music Advisory Board. Not just a music festival, I see this as a movement and an opportunity for the music community to get behind an event that authentically celebrates Black music and that builds on the rich legacy of Black innovation and artistic brilliance. I look forward to working alongside Wyclef and the entire HFC team to help develop something extraordinary and impactful.” 

“We are thrilled to have Harvey on board as co-chair as he is an incredible asset and resource,” said HFC co-founder and technical & talent producer Yvonne McNair. “In addition to his role at the Recording Academy, he is an award-winning songwriter/producer and was literally rooted and grown in music. It’s at the core of his DNA. We couldn’t ask for a better thought partner for the festival and for such a respected figure in the entertainment industry who can also help us galvanize support for it. We are grateful to Harvey for committing his time to this labor of love and look forward to working with him as we move full speed ahead to the festival launch.”

Added Jean, “I’m really happy that Harvey is joining the board. With what we are trying to achieve with this festival, his perspective and expertise in this space are extremely valuable. His appointment really shows the genuine approach that HFC is taking to artist relations. I have never seen a festival seek to have this level of engagement with artists and to have them be such a big part of the journey. The main goal is to create a true partner relationship with artists that will help us to produce a more holistic festival experience for all.”

Mainstage events for the first annual Harlem Festival of Culture will take place on Randall’s Island in New York. Additional activations and events will be staged at the Apollo Theater and throughout Harlem. For more information, visit harlemfestivalofculture.com

21 Feb 2023

Miley Cyrus’ ‘Flowers’ Tops Hot 100 for Fifth Week, PinkPantheress & Ice Spice Surge to Top 10

Miley Cyrus‘ “Flowers” rules the Billboard Hot 100 for a fifth week, encompassing its entire run on the chart so far, dating to its debut at No. 1.

The song also becomes the most-heard hit on U.S. airwaves, marking Cyrus’ first No. 1 on the Radio Songs chart.

Plus, PinkPantheress and Ice Spice each make their first appearance in the Hot 100’s top 10 as “Boy’s a Liar, Pt. 2” bounds from No. 14 to No. 4.

The Hot 100 blends all-genre U.S. streaming (official audio and official video), radio airplay and sales data. All charts (dated Feb. 25, 2023) will update on Billboard.com tomorrow (Feb. 22, a day later than usual due to the Presidents’ Day holiday in the U.S. Feb 20). For all chart news, you can follow @billboard and @billboardcharts on both Twitter and Instagram.

“Flowers,” released on Smiley Miley/Columbia Records, drew 85.8 million radio airplay audience impressions (up 15%, good for the Hot 100’s top Airplay Gainer award for a third consecutive week) and 33.7 million streams (down 13%) and sold 22,000 (down 18%) Feb. 10-16, according to Luminate.

The single jumps 4-1 in its fifth week on Radio Songs, becoming Cyrus’ first leader on the list, among four top 10s. “Flowers” wraps the fastest flight to the top of the chart in nearly seven years, since Justin Timberlake’s “Can’t Stop the Feeling!” also needed just five frames to reign in June 2016. Since Radio Songs became an all-format survey in December 1998, only three other songs have hit No. 1 in five weeks or fewer: Adele’s “Hello” (four weeks, 2015), Destiny’s Child “Survivor” (five, 2001) and TLC’s “No Scrubs” (five, 1999).

“Flowers” rebounds for a fourth week at No. 1 on Digital Song Sales and dips to No. 2 after four weeks atop Streaming Songs.

As previously reported, “Flowers” also hits No. 1 on the Pop Airplay chart, becoming Cyrus’ third leader and, as on Radio Songs, completing the quickest coronation (five weeks) since “Can’t Stop the Feeling!” in 2016. As Cyrus first topped Pop Airplay with “Party in the U.S.A.” in 2009 and led again with “Wrecking Ball” in 2013, she joins Maroon 5 and Taylor Swift as the only acts with No. 1s on the chart in the 2000s, ’10s and ’20s.

SZA’s “Kill Bill” ranks at its No. 2 Hot 100 best for a sixth week. It returns for a fourth week atop Streaming Songs and leads Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs and Hot R&B Songs, which use the same methodology as the Hot 100, for a 10th week each.

Metro Boomin, The Weeknd and 21 Savage’s “Creepin’ ” rebounds to its No. 3 Hot 100 high, from No. 5.

PinkPantheress and Ice Spice each claim their first Hot 100 top 10 as “Boy’s a Liar, Pt. 2” roars 14-4. The team-up, released Feb. 3, drew 31.1 million streams (up 54%, as it takes top Streaming Gainer honors) and 2.1 million in airplay audience (up 258%) and sold 1,000 (up 58%) Feb. 10-16. The track is a remix of PinkPantheress’ original solo “Boy’s a Liar,” released in November. (All versions of the song are combined into one listing on Billboard’s charts.)

Notably, “Liar” leaps to the Hot 100’s top 10 in just its second week on the chart. It’s the first duet by two acts each making a first top 10 appearance since Nicky Youre and Dazy hit No. 4 with “Sunroof” last September. That song took 10 weeks to hit the top 10; “Liar” is the first song between two acts each scoring a first top 10 to reach the region in two weeks or fewer since Lil Tjay’s “Calling My Phone,” featuring 6LACK, debuted at its No. 3 peak in February 2021.

“Liar” deconstructed: PinkPantheress wrote and produced the 2-minute, 15-second track with Mura Masa (who also appears on the Hot 100 for the first time). Notes Hit Songs Deconstructed, which analyzes the compositional traits of Hot 100 top 10s, “In addition to the strategic pairing of PinkPantheress and Ice Spice, one of the song’s core strengths is how it pushes the boundaries of the Hot 100’s top 10 while at the same time staying in line with current trends. On one hand, it features a unique lo-fi ‘bedroom’ production, classic 8-bit video game-sounding synths and a Jersey club beat, which separate it from many of its mainstream contemporaries and immediately captures the listener’s ear. On the other hand, its super-catchy and repetitive hook structure and troubled-love lyrics impart a sense of familiarity and relatability, along with its under 3-minute runtime, vibrant tempo, omission of a pre-chorus and synth-heavy production, all of which are in line with rising top 10 trends.”

Morgan Wallen’s “Last Night” dips to No. 5 on the Hot 100 from its No. 3 best. It concurrently tops the multi-metric Hot Country Songs chart for a second week.

Elsewhere in the Hot 100’s top 10, Sam Smith and Kim Petras’ “Unholy” descends 4-6, after it ruled for a week in October; The Weeknd’s “Die for You” rebounds 8-7, after reaching No. 6; Taylor Swift’s “Anti-Hero” retreats 7-8, following a personal-best eight weeks at No. 1; Beyoncé’s “Cuff It” backtracks to No. 9 from its No. 6 high; and David Guetta and Bebe Rexha’s “I’m Good (Blue)” slips 9-10, after reaching No. 4, as it leads the multi-metric Hot Dance/Electronic Songs chart for a 22nd week.

Again, for all chart news, you can follow @billboard and @billboardcharts on both Twitter and Instagram and all charts (dated Feb. 25), including the Hot 100 in its entirety, will refresh on Billboard.com tomorrow (Feb. 22).

Luminate, the independent data provider to the Billboard charts, completes a thorough review of all data submissions used in compiling the weekly chart rankings. Luminate reviews and authenticates data. In partnership with Billboard, data deemed suspicious or unverifiable is removed, using established criteria, before final chart calculations are made and published.

21 Feb 2023

BB Gun Press and MixedMediaWorks Form 2B Entertainment

Los Angeles-based communications firms BB Gun Press, headed by Luke Burland, and MixedMediaWorks, helmed by Bobbie Gale, have joined forces to form 2B Entertainment.

Combined, their client roster includes Shania Twain, Josh Groban, Steve Earle, Danny Elfman, My Chemical Romance, Meghan Trainor and OK Go. 

“MixedMediaWorks was founded on the principle that we only work on projects we believe in,” said Gale in a statement. “It means we can remain completely dedicated to the select group of clients we take on. We’re excited to be working with Luke and her team as they share the same values: honesty, loyalty, hard work, open and constant communication and being the best partners to our clients.”

Burland added, “Our plan is simple: keep working with clients we love, deliver incredible results and have some fun along the way.” Burland and Gale will run the company together.

Other clients include Brian Tyler, Holly Humberstone, Julian Casablancas, Justin Tranter, Maggie Lindemann and Saleka Shyamalan. Corporate accounts include CITI, +1 Records, Laylo, Dad Grass, Muserk and Cosm.

The two veteran publicists have long known each other, first collaborating more than 20 years ago on Dave Navarro when Gale was at Capitol Records and Burland at Kathryn Schenker Associates. The two briefly worked together at a previous iteration of BB Gun, owned by Brian Bumbery, in 2016-2017. Burland joined BB Gun in 2016 after leaving Warner Records where she was senior vp of publicity. Gale worked at BB Gun from 2013 to early 2017 when she left to become vp of media & strategic development at Warner Records. In 2020, she launched MixedMediaWorks. Burland has led BB Gun since 2018 when Bumbery left for Apple Music.

21 Feb 2023

Lil Nas X Says ‘Montero’ Follow-Up Could Drop This Summer: ‘I Have to Go Bigger Than Before!’

If Lil Nas X has his way you could have the follow-up to 2021’s Montero by this summer. The “Industry Baby” rapper did a surprise Twitter Q&A with fans on Monday (Feb. 20) in which he answered a series of questions about his second studio album, including when he hopes to drop it.

“Most likely summer,” Lil Nas said about his timetable for the as-yet-untitled collection. He was cagier, however, when there was a question about whether the next collection will have any big features, responding, “ooooooh.” Montero had a number of major features, including tracks with Elton John, Miley Cyrus, Megan Thee Stallion, Jack Harlow and Doja Cat.

As for how many songs it might contain, the MC said he wasn’t sure yet. “idk i love so many songs plus i’m still in the studio making music so it’s gone be hard to pick,” he wrote.

There was some good news too if you are all about the upbeat bangers. When a different fan requested that Lil Nas make another sad song,” the rapper said, fortunately, he’s not in that head space at the moment. “I didn’t make many of those I been too happy lately,” he responded.

Expressing the feelings of many of his followers, when one commented, “take your time but also hurry the hell up,” Lil Nas had the perfect response, writing, “it’s mostly planning now. i could easily just release music but i have to build moments around this s–t. i have to go bigger than before!” And while he hasn’t officially teased any music from the next collection yet, the rapper hinted that the leaked track with Saucy Santana, “Down Souf Hoes,” is slated to be included on the album.

At press time a spokesperson for Lil Nas X could not be reached for additional information on his next album.

Check out Nas’ tweets below.

21 Feb 2023

Black Music Action Coalition and Academy of Country Music Launch Program for Black Artists and Professionals

As the country music community continues to grapple with ways to increase diversity and inclusion, the Black Music Action Coalition (BMAC) and Academy of Country Music have come together to launch OnRamp, a program set to empower the next generation of Black leaders. 

The OnRamp partnership will take 20 young, Black artists and music industry professionals in Nashville through a year-long program that includes access to top leaders, community mentorship and professional development. Vitally, the program comes with a guaranteed $1,000 monthly stipend for the 12 months.

Applications will be available starting in late Spring with the program kicking off in June during Black Music Month. Candidates can sign up for email notifications now at acmcountry.com/onramp to learn more. 

This inaugural program will be funded by BMAC, the Academy and industry partners, and aided by social impact agency BreatheWithMe. The hope is that Nashville companies will make financial contributions to fund future years. 

“The Academy has a rich history of fostering diversity and inclusion in the country music industry both on stage and behind-the-scenes, and we see this partnership as a particularly impactful way to continue our committed work to making the statement ‘Country Music is for Everyone’ a true reality,” said ACM CEO Damon Whiteside in a statement. “We’re excited to work with BMAC on this pivotal and transformative work for our Nashville community by increasing opportunities for young professionals from diverse backgrounds in our industry.”

The Academy relocated from its longtime home in Southern California to Nashville last year. 

The guaranteed income component was critical, BMAC co-founder/co-chair Willie “Prophet” Stiggers tells Billboard. He studied such initiatives including a program started by former Stockton, Calif., mayor Michael Tubbs a few years ago that guaranteed $500 a month to 125 residents for 18 months and has now spread to more than 50 cities.  

“All the data showed how people were lifting  themselves out of poverty and realizing their dreams, not just from the cash relief, but the mentorship and wrap-around programs,” Stiggers says. “I said to myself and the BMAC team, with the billions of dollars the entertainment industry generates, we can, without government support, have these programs happen across the country and really begin to close the wealth gap that is targeting Black and Brown people.”

OnRamp comes several months after BMAC released its Three Chords and the Actual Truth report last June. The report called for the country music community and the city of Nashville to commit to change and equity through partnering with BMAC. The Academy was among the first companies to come aboard. 

“They were really the first to raise their hand and says, ‘we’re prepared to stand with you and launch this program in Nashville and then call on the other companies up and down Music Row to partner with us.’  So this initiative can grow and become a sustainable part of the Nashville community,” Stiggers says. 

The Academy’s LEVel Up: Lift Every Voice program will help facilitate OnRamp. LEVel Up is a two-year professional development program, originally launched last year and fully funded by the Academy, for rising leaders in country music. The members of the current LEVel Up cohort will play a hands-on role in the application review process and drive the candidate selection work, proposing a recommended slate of candidates to the Academy and BMAC teams. 

Each of the 20 members of the inaugural OnRamp cohort will have a program designed specifically for them with their own facilitating team with the help of LEVel Up members and the Academy’s DEI task force. “For instance, if you’re a young person trying to become a manager, we’ll pair you with a manager who is killing it in that space and allow you to shadow them,” Stiggers says. 

“It’s my pleasure to stand alongside other industry leaders to support this important program,” said ACM DEI Task Force chair/ACM board member and BMI executive Shannon Sanders, in a statement. “The Academy continues to play a pivotal role in ushering in a new era in country music by truly supporting and lifting up those underrepresented in the industry.” 

Additionally, there will be money management and mental health components activated on a weekly or monthly basis. “The idea is to build the communities around each of these individuals that they need to help them realize their dreams,” Stiggers says. 

Ultimately, the idea is to transform the country music industry across the board. “Five years from now when you’re able to have a few hundred young people who have been provided access in the training, resources and connections they need in the country music space I think we see a more diverse pool of artists and executives,” Stiggers says. “I think we see more Black women faces showing up on the executive side and I think we’ve opened this up to allow the charts to be reflective of the community that enjoys the genre, which isn’t the cast today.”

Earlier this year, the Country Music Association launched a diversity and inclusion fellowship program to provide an immersive experience in the country music industry initially through the CMA’s communications team in conjunction with the 50th anniversary of CMA Fest this June.  Fellows will then work for six weeks with a country music  publicity firm. Set to launch this Spring, the program is open to all students from underrepresented communities through Plank Center for Leadership in Public Relations and the University of Alabama, with additional collegiate partners including the University of Tennessee, Knoxville and Nashville’s Belmont University.

Such programs, as well as The Hubb, a professional development summit started by CAA in 2018, have Stiggers feeling optimistic. “I am encouraged to see people actually moving past the hashtags and trying to implement sustainable programs that are really going to create a more level playing field.” 

21 Feb 2023

JoJo Siwa to Co-Star in ‘All My Friends Are Dead’ Horror Movie

JoJo Siwa is headed to the big screen. The 19-year-old Dance Moms veteran, singer and YouTube favorite is slated to co-star in the horror movie All My Friends Are Dead opposite Jade Pettyjohn (Little Fires Everywhere) according to Deadline.

Casting for the movie from Saw 3D co-writer Marcus Dunstan is reportedly still going on and filming is slated to begin in Canada in the spring, with Dunstan directing from a script by Josh Sims and Jessica Sarah Flaum. According to a description, the movie follows a group of close college friends who get a great deal on an awesome Airbnb for the biggest music festival of the year.

“A weekend of partying quickly takes a turn for the worst as members of the group are murdered one by one,” it continues. “They soon discover that each one of their deaths directly corresponds to one of the seven deadly sins.”

In a statement, Siwa said she was grateful for the chance to be in the film, adding, “This is a project that is so different from anything I’ve done previously; however, I absolutely love horror movies and I can’t wait to start production! I’m also excited to work with Jade again. We worked together when we were younger and can’t wait to create this movie together.”

Siwa made news in December when she opened up about her break up with Avery Cyrus, posting a lip-sync video in which she speculated on the reasons for the split. “But I love you Why are you breaking up with me??!!!” she wrote before offering up two different options in the clip using viral sound from “My Brother My Brother and Me” on her YouTube channel. “There’s someone else” and, uh, “You told one of my best friends that you were excited to be dating me bc you’re ‘growing your career and wanna get to the top’…”

At the end of the clip she made it clear that there was not a third party involved. “And when I said I just wanted to be friends so I didn’t lead you on after an unplanned hookup you wanted nothing to do with me because there was nothing to gain anymore,” she wrote.

21 Feb 2023

Oops… Travis Barker Breaks Finger Again Ahead of Blink-182 Reunion Tour

Travis Barker is legendary for hitting his kit with wild abandon. But with the Blink-182 reunion slated to kick off on March 11 in Tijuana, Mexico, the dynamic drummer may want to slow his roll and heal up after suffering yet another injury to his ring finger. Two weeks after revealing that he’d smashed his finger so hard during rehearsals that he dislocated it and tore some ligaments, Barker said he did it again.

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TMZ reported that Barker posted an Instagram Story on Sunday in which he showed off his clearly swollen, bruised ring finger, with what looked like a giant bump on his middle knuckle, captioning the image “again.”

Barker confirmed the news in his Story on Monday, posting two x-ray images of his left middle finger that clearly depicted a serious ding on the ring fing. At press time it was unclear if the injury would have any impact on the band’s touring plans in support of their as-yet-untitled reunion album with twice former singer/guitarist Tom DeLonge; a spokesperson for the group had not returned requests for additional comment at press time.

In January, DeLonge teased that the collection is “the best album we’ve ever made,” assuring fans that they need to “buckle up.” Amping up the excitement, DeLonge added, “I’m personally tripping and so proud of what we have created TOGETHER. As one unified force of fun, eternal youth, and most of all- close friends.”

DeLonge — who rejoined the band in 2022 after leaving for a second time in 2014 — tagged bandmates drummer Travis Barker and singer/bassist Mark Hoppus in the post about the eagerly awaited follow-up to the trio’s 2019 album Nine, their second, and final, studio effort featuring fill-in third member Matt Skiba (Alkaline Trio).

While a release date and title for the new album have not yet been announced, the collection’s first single, “EDGING,” has been a smash at alternative radio.

The reunited trio’s massive world tour is slated to kick off on March 11 in Tijuana, Mexico at the Imperial GNP festival and keep the band on the road in South America and Mexico through April 2 before shifting to North America on May 4 with a show at the Xcel Energy Center in St. Paul, Minnesota; those dates will run through a July 16 gig in Nashville at the Bridgestone Arena and then move on to Europe in September and Australia/New Zealand in early 2024.

21 Feb 2023

Chris Martin, Hugh Jackman Announced as Co-Chairs for Global Citizen NOW Summit

Chris Martin and Hugh Jackman are among the co-chairs set for this year’s Global Citizen NOW, a two-day leadership summit planned for April 27-28 in New York City.

Coldplay frontman Martin — curator of the annual Global Citizen music festival — and actor Jackman will join political, corporate and philanthropic leaders for the program that is “focused on turning ideas into impact and driving urgent action to end extreme poverty,” Global Citizen announced Tuesday morning (Feb. 21).

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Ursula von der Leyen, president of the European Commission; Mia Mottley, prime minister of Barbados; Nana Akufo-Addo, president of Ghana; and Erna Solberg, former prime minister of Norway make up the list of political leaders to co-chair the summit.

Hans Vestberg, chairman & CEO, Verizon; Nir Bar Dea, co-CEO, Bridgewater Associates; Fran Katsoudas, EVP and chief people, policy and purpose officer, Cisco; Marc Pritchard, chief brand officer, P&G; Diego Scotti, EVP, chief marketing officer, Verizon; Tshepo Mahloele, founder & group executive director, Harith General Partners; Edward Skyler, executive vice president, Citi; Dr. Rajiv Shah, president, Rockefeller Foundation; Mark Malloch Brown, president, Open Society Foundation; and Darren Walker, president, Ford Foundation join as co-chairs from the corporate and philanthropic sectors.

Also announced as participants at the event are C.D. Glin, president, The PepsiCo Foundation; Catherine McKenna, former minister of environment & climate change of Canada; climate activist Vanessa Nakate; Alok Sharma, president of COP26; and Yasmine Sherif, executive director, Education Cannot Wait.

“Convening the brightest minds and leading voices across all spheres of society, from world leaders to grassroots activists, Global Citizen NOW showcases the power of cross-sector collaboration to solve the most urgent issues facing humanity and our planet,” a press release from Global Citizen reads.

Additional details about the Global Citizen NOW summit will become available in the coming weeks.

21 Feb 2023

HYBE Grew 42% in 2022, Eyes New Markets in 2023 Through SM Entertainment Investment

Korean music company HYBE is more than getting by with its primary artist, BTS, on hiatus and its members pursuing solo projects and preparing for military duty. In 2022, HYBE’s revenue grew 41.6% to 1.78 trillion won ($1.41 billion at the Dec. 31, 2022 exchange rate), the company announced Tuesday (Feb. 21). 

Adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization rose 23.9% to 328.8 billion won ($260.5 million). Margins were thinner that in previous years, however. Last year’s operating margin (as a percent of revenue) fell to 13.4% from 15.1% in 2021 and 18.3% in 2020. Adjusted EBITDA margin dropped to 18.5% from 21.1% in 2021 and 20.2% in 2020. 

HYBE breaks revenue into two main categories: artist direct-involvement and artist indirect-involvement. Direct involvement revenues cover such things as recorded music, touring and management. Recorded music sales improved 47% to 553.9 billion won ($438.9 million) and was the largest single revenue source. Concert revenue jumped 470.1% to 258.2 billion won ($204.6 million) as artists returned to touring after scaling back performances during the pandemic. 

BTS may be taking a break but it’s still HYBE’s sales leader in album-loving Korea. Four HYBE artists were in the top 10 of Korea’s year-end album tally: BTS was No. 1 with 5.75 million units, Seventeen was No. 3 with 5.56 million units, Tomorrow X Together was No. 5 with 2.78 million units and ENHYPEN was No. 8 with 2.64 million units. Le Sserafim was the No. 15 artist with 1.29 million units. As a point of comparison, the top album in the U.S. last year, Taylor Swift’s Midnights, sold the equivalent of 1.8 million units. 

Artist indirect involvement revenue grew only 9.7% in the calendar year. Merchandising and licensing improved 24.8% to 395.6 billion won ($313.5 million) and fan club revenue grew 47.1% to 67.1 billion won ($53.2 million). 

In the fourth quarter, HYBE’s revenue grew 16.9% to 535.3 billion won ($424.2 million) in the fourth quarter of 2022. Recorded music revenue jumped 76.4% to 149.1 billion won ($118.2 million) and was the largest single source of revenue. 

BTS’s global success has allowed HYBE to diversify itself and rely less on the K-pop super group. In 2017, Korea accounted for 72% of HYBE’s revenues compared to 14% for Japan and 9% for North America. In 2022, HYBE had grown 19-fold from 2017 and had almost evenly balanced business between its three main markets: Korea (33% of revenue), North America (32%) and Japan (28%). The rest of the world contributed just 7% of HYBE’s 2022 revenue — but that could change if the company’s newest investment works as expected. 

HYBE’s recent acquisition of a leading stake in competing K-pop company SM Entertainment is an opportunity to develop in markets where it currently has little presence. CEO Park Jiwon explained during Tuesday’s earnings call that HYBE artists can benefit from SM Entertainment’s strong network and infrastructure in China and Southeast Asia. Likewise, HYBE believes it can help SM Entertainment in the North American market. 

HYBE latest acquisition didn’t impact 2022 results but will help expand its presence outside of Korea in 2023. On Feb. 8, HYBE purchased QC Media Holdings, the parent company of Atlanta-based hip-hop label Quality Control Music, the home of Migos and Lil Baby, for $300 million. Quality Control will sit under HYBE America and the leadership of CEO Scooter Braun, whose Ithaca Projects was acquired by HYBE in 2021.