Business News
Page: 121
BMG has promoted JoJamie Hahr to executive vp of recorded music, Nashville.
Hahr will oversee day-to-day operations of BMG Recorded Music in Nashville, including BBR Label Group and its roster and imprints Broken Bow Records, Stoney Creek Records and Wheelhouse Records. She will continue reporting to Jon Loba, president of BMG Nashville.
Hahr was promoted to senior vp of BBR Music Group in 2020, where she oversaw all artist strategy, brand partnerships, strategic marketing and digital/creative efforts for BBR Music Group imprints Broken Bow Records, Stoney Creek Records and Wheelhouse Records. She has been with BBR Music Group for eight years. Prior to joining BBR, Hahr served as national director of field promotion for The Valory Music Co., after being promoted from director of Southeast promotion and marketing. Her two decades of music industry experience have also included stints at Universal Music Group, Nashville radio station WSIX and Orlando radio station WWKA.
“I’ve had the good fortune to work with JoJamie for a significant part of her professional life. Whenever she has been given a new opportunity for growth, she has not only met, but exceeded my high expectations,” said Loba in a statement. “She is one of the very best music executives in the industry and this promotion recognizes her many contributions, while at the same time giving her the opportunity to help further grow BMG Nashville, where I have no doubt, she will once again exceed our expectations.”
“It’s a privilege and a blessing to work with our extraordinary artists and our BMG family every day,” added Hahr. “Jon Loba has always encouraged my passion and my growth and I’m thankful for his belief in me. BMG truly puts artists and their music first, and I’m extremely proud of what we all continue to build together in Nashville and beyond.“
Over the past year, BBR Music Group has seen two red-hot artist breakthroughs. In March, Lainey Wilson won new female artist of the year and song of the year at the 2022 ACM Awards, followed by wins for female vocalist of the year and new artist of the year at the 2022 CMA Awards in November. Meanwhile, Jelly Roll just earned his first No. 1 single on Billboard‘s Country Airplay chart with “Son of a Sinner” after previously earning his first No. 1 single on Billboard‘s Mainstream Rock Airplay chart with “Dead Man Walking.” The singer has also a total of spent 22 weeks atop Billboard‘s Emerging Artists chart. Elsewhere, three-time ACM entertainer of the year winner Jason Aldean earned his 25th No. 1 Country Airplay hit in May.
Tracy McKnight is joining BMI as vp of creative, film, TV & visual media. In the role, McKnight will lead the day-to-day functions of the department while identifying and signing new affiliates to BMI and cultivating relationships with the company’s roster of film, TV and visual media composers. Additionally, she will help develop programs and events that support career development while providing opportunities to highlight the work of BMI’s composers. She is based out of BMI’s Los Angeles office and will report to BMI executive vp of creative & licensing Mike Steinberg; she assumes the role on Jan. 23. McKnight most recently oversaw the film score acquisition department at Wise Publishing.
Riccardo Loda was promoted to head of A&R at Warner Chappell Music (WCM) Italy; he was previously A&R manager. Based in Milan, he’ll report to WCM president of Southern Europe Santiago Menéndez-Pidal.
Anton Powers joined Sony Music Entertainment’s Ministry of Sound Records as head of A&R. Powers joins the label following three years at Warner Records. He reports to Columbia Records UK president Dipesh Parmar.
Sam Jackson was named controller at BBC Radio 3, succeeding Alan Davey, who will step down from the position in March after eight years. In the role, Jackson will drive creative and managerial responsibility for running Radio 3 while delivering on the annual classical music festival BBC Proms. He was most recently executive vp of global classics & jazz at Universal Music Group. Jackson begins his new role in April, reporting to BBC director of music Lorna Clarke.
Tracklib hired Michael Cassidy as chief product and technology officer and tapped Andreas Liffgarden (Soundtrack Your Brand) to serve as an advisor on the company’s board. Cassidy formerly served as chief innovation officer at FUGA and was a consultant on strategy and technology for Downtown Music Holdings.
Adrian Karvinen was appointed vp of music business & partnerships at Web3 entertainment company Hume, which creates virtual artists. Karvinen will be tasked with building partnerships with brands and artists for the company’s so-called “metastars.” He was most recently director of North America and head of crypto-integration and catalog acquisitions for AI music company Snafu Records.
Nicholas Brema was promoted to business manager at Leftbrain. He can be reached at nbrema@useleftbrain.com.
Lily Collins was named account manager at Milestone Publicity in Nashville; she was formerly associate publicist. She can be reached at LCollins@MilestonePublicity.com.
Tenasie Courtright joined Jody Williams Songs as creative coordinator. Based in Nashville, she previously worked as a brand ambassador for Simple Logistics Solutions. She can be reached at tenasie@jodywilliamssongs.co.
Subscribers to Amazon Music Unlimited in the U.S. and U.K. will have to pay a higher price for the on-demand streaming service starting in February. According to Amazon’s customer service pages in both countries, subscribers to both individual and student plans will begin paying more starting Feb. 21.
In the U.S., Amazon Music Unlimited will increase from $9.99 to $10.99 for individual subscribers and climb from $4.99 to $5.99 for subscribers to the student plan. Likewise, U.K. prices will increase from 9.99 pounds to 10.99 pounds for individual subscribers and from 4.99 pounds to 5.99 pounds for student subscribers.
The e-commerce giant’s decision follows Apple’s move in October to charge higher prices for Apple Music as well as other cloud-based entertainment platforms and services. Apple Music also raised individual subscriptions from $9.99 to $10.99 per month in the U.S. It also increased the price of family plans, which offers up to six accounts under a single subscription, from $14.99 to $16.99 per month. Deezer, a small player in the U.S., raised the price of individual plans to $10.99 per month in 2022.
In May 2022, Amazon raised the price of Amazon Music Unlimited for Prime subscribers from $7.99 to $8.99 per month, and from $79 to $89 annually.
Spotify, the largest music subscription service, could soon follow suit. On the heels of Apple’s announcement, CEO Daniel Ek said during the company’s Oct. 25 earnings call that a U.S. price increase “is one of the things we would like to do.” Spotify has not raised its standard price from $9.99 since launching in the U.S. in 2011.
Emmy Lovell was named global head of music at SoundCloud, the company announced Thursday (Jan. 19).
In the role, Lovell will lead SoundCloud’s global music strategy and oversee its artist and label relations as well as its commercial label partnerships teams. She joins SoundCloud from Napster, where she most recently led the Napster app relaunch as interim CEO; prior to that, she was the company’s chief strategy officer. Based in London, she’ll report to SoundCloud chief content and marketing officer Lauren Wirtzer-Seawood.
“Emmy is the consummate music executive,” said Wirtzer-Seawood in a statement. “Her passion for the business and deep expertise in partnering with artists at all stages of their careers is critical as we continue to pioneer the future of fandom and unlock the full potential of the artist and fan relationship on SoundCloud.”
Lovell’s hire comes amid a company revamp that has seen SoundCloud working to reinvent itself as a distribution and artist and label services operation. Last year, the company struck a joint venture with Quality Control’s Solid Foundation, launched SoundCloud for Artists and signed direct partnerships with artists including Lil Pump, Tekno and Kelow LaTesha while also beefing up its artist partnerships team with the hires of Jessica Rivera and Maurice Slade. But it also experienced setbacks; in August, the company announced it would be cutting 20% of its workforce, with a rep stating the layoffs were “due to a significant company transformation and the challenging economic and financial environment.”
Elsewhere, SoundCloud partnered with the music collaboration and data management tool Session, acquired music AI company Musiio and signed a global licensing deal with Warner Music Group that adopted the user-centric “fan powered royalties” model — a switch from the pro-rata model traditionally utilized by streamers.
In addition to Napster, Lovell previously served as executive vp of WEA, part of Warner Music Group’s artist and label services arm, and also had stints at EMI Music, Bauer Media and the BBC.
“SoundCloud’s influence in pop culture is felt globally and their fast-paced and progressive approach to challenging the status quo in the music industry is refreshing,” said Lovell. “I look forward to working with Lauren and the team to continue the brilliant and innovative work SoundCloud has already done to create connection between their vibrant artist and fan communities.”
Graham Rothenberg was named partner at entertainment marketing agency The Syndicate, with his title elevated to president & general manager. Rothenberg, who has been with the company for 18 years, has served as general manager since 2018. He will now lead the agency alongside partners Jon Landman, Tracey Zucatti and Chris Elles. During his tenure, he has been a key force in campaigns including the Interpol “Big Shot City” exhibit and Panic! At The Disco’s crop circle tour announcement.
“I’ve known Graham for over 20 years and have watched him grow from College Radio Music Director (WICB) to College Radio Promoter at The Syndicate to becoming our General Manager and now being elevated as our President and a Partner of the company,” said managing partner/CEO Jon Landman in a statement. “Graham’s leadership and creativity have been instrumental in advancing our organization to new levels while staying true to the grassroots connection to music and artists on which we founded the company. As we enter our 25th year of The Syndicate, we can’t wait for what’s on the horizon.”
Rothenberg added, “It’s an immense honor to be named Partner at The Syndicate, a company I’ve been privileged to grow with over the past 18 years. Starting as a college radio promoter back in 2004, I’ve been able to watch The Syndicate evolve into the unique agency it’s become today. I’m extremely excited to work even more closely with Jon, Tracey, and Chris while continuing to lead our incredible staff in moving culture forward and helping our clients achieve their most creative goals.”
Jackie Augustus joined Spotify‘s artist partnerships team to lead country and folk artist partnerships for the streamer. Augustus, who was named to Billboard‘s Country Power Players list in 2022, most recently served as strategic partner manager of music at Instagram.
Chris Schuler was named vp of promotion at Capitol Records Nashville where he will lead the promotion team previously headed up by Bobby Young. He most recently served as vp of promotion at Arista Nashville. Schuler can be reached at chris.schuler@umusic.com.
Sherry Lansing was designated chairman of the board on Universal Music Group‘s board of directors, effective Jan. 10. Lansing, a retired film studio executive who previously served as CEO at Paramount Pictures and president of production at 20th Century Fox, succeeds Judy Craymer, who retired from the position to focus on her film and theater production projects.
Jitze de Raaff was appointed president of CTM Entertainment, effective Jan. 1. He was previously managing director of CTM Publishing and Music in the Benelux region. De Raaff, also co-shareholder of the company, will now be responsible for all other CTM activities in addition to music. He will additionally play a bigger role in the company’s international expansion alongside CTM CEO André de Raaff. He can be reached at Jitze.deRaaff@ctm.nl.
BMG appointed Stefan Lehmkuhl programmer for Berlin’s historic 1,700-seat Theater des Westens, which the company announced it had leased for two years last September. Lemkuhl has curated and produced music events including Melt Festival and Lollapalooza Berlin for two decades. He will be joined by event producer Parker “Pansy” Tilghman.
Randy Reyes was promoted to senior director of rhythmic promotion at Atlantic Records. Reyes has worked in rhythmic and pop mix show promotion at the label for the past nine years.
Tvg hospitality, founded by Ben Lovett of Mumford & Sons, named Jayne Davis COO and Katie Millar gm of the Orion Amphitheater. The New York-based Davis arrives from OTG Management where she served as senior vp of operations development, while Millar previously served as manager at Paramount Fine Foods Centre & Living Arts Centre in Mississauga, Ontario, Canada.
James Ainscough was appointed to the role of CEO at the Royal Albert Hall, where he will lead the execution of the venue’s post-pandemic business plan; he previously worked at the Hall from 2008 to 2017 as director of finance and administration and then as COO. He joins in late spring 2023 from the charity Help Musicians, where he currently serves as CEO. Ainscough replaces Craig Hassall, who stepped down from the CEO role last month. COO Dan Freeman will continue serving as interim CEO until Ainscough officially joins.
Mandy McCormack was named executive vp/marketing & partner strategy for Trisha Yearwood, Inc. In her enhanced role as part of Yearwood’s management team, McCormack will manage brand partnerships, oversee marketing plans, seek out new business ventures and provide strategic consultation in all aspects of the country star’s business. McCormack most recently served as senior vp of radio promotion & marketing/artist strategy at Garth Brooks’ Pearl Records and Team TY (Trisha Yearwood). McCormack can be reached at mandy@trishayearwoodinc.com.
Tristra Newyear Yeager was named chief strategy officer at music/tech PR firm Rock Paper Scissors (RPS), while Travis Feaster was named new business manager at the company. Newyear Yeager, who has been with RPS for 17 years, was previously director of strategy and will now oversee PR and client services and guide strategic planning at the firm. Feaster was most recently national sales manager at Boutique Amps Distribution.
Jayne Hamblin was named manager of management and records at Creative Nation, where she will oversee the day-to-day responsibilities for Creative Nation’s artist clients while serving as a liaison between them and outside partners. Hamblin can be reached at jayne@creativenationmusic.com.
Warner Bros. Discovery is exploring a sale of its music assets that could be worth upwards of $1 billion, according to a source familiar with the matter. The catalog is being shopped by famed entertainment attorney Allen Grubman.
While the potential sale — which was first reported by The Financial Times — is still in the very early stages, some of Warner Bros. Discovery’s current music partners could be potential buyers.
Universal Music Group (UMG) already administers the publishing assets, which are likely the largest part of the deal, and Warner Music Group (WMG) distributes WaterTower Music, Warner Bros. Discovery’s in-house record label.
The assets being shopped, including music and production music from the company’s television and film projects, are not the kinds of music rights that have made headlines over the past couple of years as investors have flocked to the music business. Unlike most publishing rights or royalty streams, the Warner Bros. Discovery assets are not tied to the steady growth trend affecting traditional streaming. That’s because relatively few people head to Spotify to stream the soundtracks for Game of Thrones, The White Lotus or Batman, for example, even if the television and film projects are smash successes. As such, these type of assets have historically trade lower than popular music rights — typically in the single-digit multiples.
The asset valuations will likely be tied to broadcast trends, which are growing slower for film and television than for music. But due to the depth of the catalog, which dates back decades, the package will likely be seen as an attractive and stable investment for any major music company or private equity fund.
Warner Bros. Discovery formed last year through the merger of AT&T’s WarnerMedia unit and Discovery Inc.
Warner Bros. Discovery, UMG and Grubman did not respond to requests for comment at the time of publishing. WMG declined to comment for this story.
ASM Global acquired talent buying agency Madison Entertainment, which works with both small-capacity venues and larger concert series/multi-day festivals. “We are committed to add resources to our promoter and live content division in order to ensure that all of our managed venues continue to be leaders in live-event performances,” said ASM Global president/CEO Ron Benison in a statement. “Under Roger’s leadership, the addition of Madison Entertainment will further grow live music content for our clients, particularly within our industry-leading nationwide theater network.”
DJ Pee .Wee, the “vinyl-spinning alter ego” of rapper Anderson .Paak, signed with the Las Vegas-based MAC Agency for representation. DJ Pee .Wee has several headlining dates on the schedule, including appearances at the Sundance Film Festival and a slot at the Bud Light Super Bowl Music Fest in February. Previous appearances included Spotify Beach with Kendrick Lamar in Cannes, the Ami After Party at Paris Fashion Week and Dave Chappelle‘s set at the Netflix Is a Joke festival at the Hollywood Bowl, among other engagements.
TikTok signed a licensing deal with Saudi Arabia-based Rotana Music Group, whose portfolio includes artists across the Arab world and Gulf region such as Mohamad Abdo and Amr Diab, among many others. “We at Rotana are very thrilled with this licensing agreement, which will facilitate Arab Music reach into the MENA music industry and young communities,” said Rotana Music Group CEO Salem Al Hendi in a statement. “The creative culture in MENA is so vibrant and diverse, and this agreement will enhance the exchange of music content, while promoting and supporting local artists on a proven leading platform for short-form videos.”
Vevo partnered with TikTok to create and program Trending on TiKTok, a new weekly Vevo show that will round up the music videos for the top trending songs on the TikTok platform, alongside clips of creators using the songs in their content. The show will be available across the Vevo networks in the U.S., Canada, Mexico and Brazil and will be a staple TV premiere on Vevo’s FAST (free ad-supported streaming TV) channels, with consecutive airing during peak viewing hours throughout the week.
Warner Music Group (WMG) partnered with digital fashion retailer DRESSX to provide WMG artists with a new revenue stream. Under the agreement, select WMG artists will collaborate directly with DRESSX to design and launch 3D and AR virtual clothing that fans can collect on Instagram, Snapchat and other platforms.
Independent singer-songwriter Cody Jinks’ Late August Records signed a partnership with The Orchard, under which the latter company will provide Late August artists “with the tools and support to build, sustain and elevate their global reach.” The first artist signed to Late August (other than Jinks, who previously started the label as a home for his own music) is singer, songwriter and guitarist Erin Viancourt, who will release her debut album in May 2023. Late August Records will continue to be led by Jinks and his longtime manager Arthur Penhallow, Jr., while Stephanie Hudacek will lead the label’s new Nashville office.
Event technology company Events.com secured a capital commitment of $100 million in the form of a share subscription facility (SSF) from Gem Global Yield (GGY). The investment will accelerate the company’s growth strategy through acquisitions, partnerships and other initiatives. Under the deal, Events.com will be able to draw down up to $100 million following an equity exchange listing. The company — which previously acquired an AI event discovery company, an event sponsorship technology company and a ticketing company — is set to announce a new acquisition soon.
Mastercard will use the Polygon blockchain to host its newly-announced Mastercard Artist Accelerator, which will connect five artists from across the globe with mentors and a “dynamic fanbase as they learn and create in Web3,” according to a press release. Slated to launch this spring, the program will give selected artists exclusive access to special events, music releases and more while teaching them how to build their brand via Web3 experiences including minting NFTs. Music fans will also be invited to purchase a limited-edition “Mastercard Music Pass” NFT that will give them access to the new platform. The Mastercard Artist Accelerator will culminate in a livestreamed artist showcase later this year.
Music marketing firm Feature.fm partnered with YouTube in a deal that will allow Feature.fm users to enjoy access to conversion and attribution data reporting to track streams in YouTube and YouTube Music that came from a Feature.fm smart link. Under the partnership, artists, managers and labels will be enabled to automatically connect YouTube and YouTube Music to their smart links, allowing them to better understand how to effectively market their music on the YouTube platform.
Music and influencer management firm Innovo Management invested in content aggregation platform JamFeed, marking them as the first investor in JamFeed’s second round of financing. JamFeed manages over a dozen TikTok creators/artists — enabling them to build their businesses and connect with fans — and also boasts a brand marketing division. As part of the investment, Innovo co-founder Sam Saideman has been added to JamFeed’s board of advisors to assist in the next phase of the company’s expansion.
Rapper Asian Doll signed a distribution partnership with music tech company Vydia, which will provide her with a suite of services, including video and audio supply chain, global distribution, analytics, rights management, payments and detailed revenue reporting in support of her forthcoming EP slated to drop on Jan. 31. The first new music released under the deal is the single “Sky Falling.”
Country singer Bryan Martin signed with WME for global representation. Martin has a national tour and a new album in the works, with a single, “Wolves Cry,” slate for release on Jan. 27 via Average Joes Entertainment.
Talking Stick Resort is the new name-in-title sponsor of Live Nation‘s 20,000-capacity outdoor Phoenix venue the Ak-Chin Pavilion. The venue is now known as the Talking Stick Resort Amphitheatre.
The National Independent Venue Association (NIVA) partnered with r.Cup, a sustainable platform that provides reusable cups to replace single-use plastic cups. Under the deal, NIVA members in r.Cup operating cities Denver and Seattle will be able to reduce their environmental imprint by using r.Cup’s reusable cup system, with $.01 of every cup used by a NIVA member donated to NIVA’s National Independent Venue Foundation (NIVF). NIVA members in Los Angeles and Milwaukee will also soon have the option to utilize the platform.
Griffen Palmer, winner of a 2020 episode of NBC’s Songland, signed with Big Loud Records, which will release his solo debut single “Second Guessing” — originally crafted during his appearance on Songland — on Friday (Dec. 13). Palmer’s debut album is slated to drop later this year. He previously signed a publishing deal with Big Loud Publishing in 2019.
Get Physical Music added the master and publishing catalog of house-music imprint Definitive Records (Jetstream, Dance Fever, Robot Man) to its portfolio of labels. Definitive co-founder John Acquaviva will remain with the label and continue to be active on the A&R front while working with the Get Physical team.
Canadian lifestyle brand October’s Very Own (OVO) partnered with FaZe Holdings, parent company of gaming and lifestyle brand FaZe Clan, on a collection that will include FaZe Clan and OVO co-branded gaming controllers, mouse pads, hoodies, varsity jackets and more. The collection was made available starting Dec. 21 at OVO’s online store and OVO retail locations. Further initiatives under the partnership are expected later this year.
Nick Jonas, Blxst and Wu-Tang Clan’s RZA are among the music stars set to speak at this year’s South By Southwest, organizers announced today (Jan. 10). The pop and hip-hop artists are among the third batch of speakers for SXSW, which takes place March 10 – 19, 2023 in Austin, Texas.
Jonas, a solo artist and member of the chart-topping sibling act Jonas Brothers, will speak on the health-focused panel, Crushing: The Burden of Diabetes on Patients; Blxst will tackle a session entitled, How Music, Entrepreneurship & Independence Intersect, facilitated by Billboard’s R&B/Hip-Hop reporter Heran Mamo; while RZA, the producer, director, screenwriter, rapper and composer, will take the mic as a featured speaker.
Also on board as featured speakers are Eric André, Josh D’Amaro, Tommy Dorfman, Ashley Flowers, Gottmik, Martin Luther King III, Damon Lindelof, Eva Longoria, Alexis Ohanian, Maya Penn, Austin Russell, Dan Schulman, Simran Jeet Singh, Cheryl Strayed, Jen Wong, and others.
This year’s lineup will include a special keynote session, Unfold The Universe: NASA’s Webb Space Telescope, which promises a deep-dive into outer space.
SXSW has unveiled several waves of performers for its 37th edition, including The Zombies, Lemon Twigs, Ambré and Osees, and, in an earlier round, the likes of Armani White, Algiers and Balming Tiger, alongside speakers including Warner Chappell Music co-chair and CEO Guy Moot, Signal And Cipher chief Ian Beacraft and authors Douglas Rushkoff and Joost Van Druenen.
The live music showcase is a buzzing part of a much larger festival, which was founded in 1987 and is dedicated to celebrating entertainment and culture.
Among SXSW’s partners for the 2023 edition are Anniversary Group, Atomic Music Group, Athens in Austin, British Music Embassy, Don Giovanni Records, Fire Records, FOCUS Wales, Gorilla vs Bear, Jazz re:freshed Outernational, Pop Montreal, M for Montreal, Music From Ireland, New West Records, Space Agency, and Wide Days Scotland.
As previously reported, SXSW will expand to Sydney, Australia for seven days and nights from Oct. 15-22, 2023, marking the event’s first foray outside the United States.
SXSW signed a “lifeline” deal with P-MRC, a joint venture between Penske Media Corporation and MRC, the companies announced in April 2021, making P-MRC a stakeholder and long-term partner with the Austin festival. P-MRC is the parent company of Billboard.
Madrid is hosting the first UMusic Hotel, a venture that aims to become an entertainment hub in the heart of the capital of Spain. Co-created by Universal Music Group and Dakia Entertainment Hospitality Group, the hotel is located inside the historic Albéniz Theater building, just a few steps from downtown tourist sites such as Puerta del Sol and Plaza Mayor.
The hotel opened on Nov. 14, 2022 at a 60% capacity and is now fully operating, with Antonio Banderas‘ take on the musical Company showing at the theater until Feb. 14. Next, Spanish singer-songwriter David Bisbal will take the stage for 20 days between March and April as part of the celebrations of his 20th music career anniversary.
The Albéniz Theater was inaugurated in 1945 and was in operation for more than 60 years until it closed its doors in 2009, when its owners wanted to demolish it and build a luxury residential building in its place. A group of citizens came together to create the Albéniz Theater Aid Platform and asked for it to be declared an Asset of Cultural Interest to prevent its demolition, which was finally granted in 2016. This allowed the 898-seat venue to be rehabilitated, and negotiations began for what is now the UMusic Hotel Madrid.
UMusic Hotels is a new international brand that offers first-class accommodations and entertainment. The goal is to create a unique experience for both guests and artists staying at their hotels, and to offer a wide range of music-related services and activities.
Music is in every corner of UMusic Hotel Madrid. Details such as the “Pasillo de la Música” (Hall of Music) — which connects the two buildings that make up the venue, and where you can see works of musicians such as Freddie Mercury, Lady Gaga, Alejandro Sanz and Katy Perry created by the Mexican artist and athlete Hubertus de Hohenlohe — is magical. Upon entering the access foyer located on Carretas Street, visitors are greeted by a neon sign that says, “Vente Pa’ Madrid” (Come to Madrid,) like the famous Ketama song, a cheerful welcoming. On one wall is a verse from Bob Dylan’s classic “Mr. Tambourine Man.”
The hotel has 130 rooms divided into four categories: classic, deluxe, premium and ultimate, all equipped with Nespresso coffee machines and Marshall speakers. There’s also the Artist’s Suite, an exclusive two-floor room with a private solarium terrace, living room and guest bathroom.
Guests can enjoy a vinyl library, gym, bar, amphitheater, outdoor pool, three meeting rooms, a two-level solarium, events spaces, a gastronomic experience at El Albéniz restaurant, 24-hour room service, and the Nota Alta (High Note) bar, located on the rooftop with a lovely city view.
Universal Music Spain has said it will keep working with the hotel to continue attracting top international stars to Madrid. UMusic Hotel confirmed that it is already working on the development of a second hotel, this time in South America, in Barranquilla, Colombia.
The Ledger is a weekly newsletter that covers the financial and economic side of the music business. An abridged version appears at Billboard Pro. Pro subscribers automatically receive The Ledger. Sign up here to receive the newsletter without a Pro subscription.
Music companies across the board grew revenues in 2022, fueled by global streaming growth and the return of live music. Their stock prices went in a different direction, though.
The Billboard Global Music Index, a group of 20 music-focused companies listed in five countries, declined 36.4% in 2022.
The index aggregates the market capitalizations of 20 music companies spanning record labels, music publishing, live music, streaming and broadcasting. Each company’s float — the outstanding shares — has been adjusted to remove corporate owners, executives, directors and other long-term shareholders.
Music companies weren’t the only stock losers of 2022. Markets were down across the board as interest rates rose, inflation soared and investors placed greater value on profits than growth potential. The index’s deficit was slightly bigger than that of the tech-heavy Nasdaq composite and almost double the 19.4% decline of the S&P 500. The Dow Jones Industrial Average, a collection of 30 blue-chip companies such as Johnson & Johnson and Home Depot, fell just 8.8%.
The two largest companies in the index, Universal Music Group and Warner Music Group, fared relatively well. UMG’s share price fell 9.2% and WMG’s declined 18.9%. Another label group, South Korea’s SM Entertainment, improved 3.4% — one of only two companies in the index whose share prices rose in 2022. As a group, however, record labels and publishers’ adjusted float declined 23.1%. The largest deficit of the group was 50.3% by South Korea’s HYBE, whose main artist, BTS, sent the stock spiraling by announcing a hiatus in June.
The six streaming companies’ index value declined 54.9%, the worst of the index’s four sectors. Spotify’s share price dropped 66.3% and the company dropped to the fourth-largest contributor to index value, after finishing as the top contributor at the end of 2021. The dramatic downturn wasn’t surprising given what was happening in the broader marketplace. Streaming stocks generally benefited from the early days of the pandemic as consumers listened to and viewed more content online and subscriptions spiked. But investors fled many pandemic darlings in 2022: Netflix shares fell 51.1% and Disney shares dropped 43.9%.
With a 20.9% gain in 2022, Tencent Music Entertainment was the rare company in positive territory — not that it isn’t well below its all-time high. While Spotify and other stocks started to drop in mid-December 2021 after the Federal Reserve announced it would raise interest rates in 2022, Tencent Music’s share price had nowhere to go but up. In March 2021, after Chinese regulators cracked down on Tencent Music’s exclusive licensing contracts — many other Chinese companies also came under fire for various reasons — the share price fell 58.5% over three days and another 70.9% through Dec. 20, 2021.
The smaller streaming companies, on average, fared worse than their larger competitors. Abu Dhabi-based Anghami declined 84.3% and French streamer Deezer dropped 51.4%. Both companies went public in 2022 via reverse mergers with publicly traded blank check companies (SPACs), so their annual performance is calculated using the Dec. 31, 2021, share price of the public companies they merged with. Shares of LiveOne fell 49.7%.
Streaming companies’ declines mirrored the losses of some high-profile tech stocks. Amazon, another high-flying pandemic stock, fell 49.6%. Meta sank 64.2% as the company put billions of dollars into building a metaverse that few people seemingly want to visit. Tesla fared even worse by slipping 65% as investors appeared worried that CEO Elon Musk was spending too much time mismanaging his latest acquisition, Twitter, and hurting the brand’s value amongst liberal consumers.
The index value of live music companies — Live Nation, CTS Eventim and MSG Entertainment — declined 35.9%. Even though Live Nation posted record revenues in the second and third quarters as the touring business recovered from pandemic-era lows, the company’s index value dropped 41.7% in 2022. Live Nation’s shares stumbled 10.9% over two days in November after the problematic pre-sale for Taylor Swift’s Eras Tour enraged consumers and brought the possibility of regulatory action (about half of that loss was recovered by the end of December). MSG Entertainment shares fell 36.6% while German promoter CTS Eventim fell just 7.4%.
Broadcasters’ index value declined 33.3%. Even though shares of satellite radio company SiriusXM, the largest broadcaster by market capitalization, declined just 8.0%, the two terrestrial broadcasters in the index fared much worse. IHeartMedia shares fell 70.9% and Cumulus Media dropped 44.8%.
The relatively good performance of labels and publishers — especially the larger ones — brought those eight companies’ share of the index’s value to 49.2%, up from 40.7% at the end of 2021. The six streaming companies’ share of the index value declined to 22.1% from 31.1%.
U.S.-listed companies improved their share of the index to 58.9%, up from 49.9% at the end of 2021. Some of the change can be attributed to the growth in the dollar, which reduces the value of foreign-listed companies when adjusted market capitalizations are converted to U.S. dollars. Compared to the dollar, the euro was down 5.5%, the pound sterling was down 10.4%, the Korean won was down 5.8% and the Hong Kong dollar was down 0.2% in 2022.