Business News
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Revolt announced on Tuesday (June 4) that its employees will become the company’s largest group of shareholders.
The announcement follows a report in March that Sean “Diddy” Combs, who founded the company in 2013, sold his shares to an anonymous buyer. Combs is facing multiple sexual abuse lawsuits, with two more complaints filed against him in May; he has denied any wrongdoing.
In a statement on Tuesday, Revolt CEO Detavio Samuels said “we succeed because we have a dedicated team who has been committed to advancing our purpose, our community, and our culture every single day.”
“Without question, they deserve participation in our growth,” he added, “and I could not be more honored to continue on this journey with them, leveraging our collective strength, pushing boundaries, and achieving new heights together.”
Speaking to The New York Times, Samuels also noted that “One-hundred percent of Sean Combs’s shares have been redeemed and retired” and “we have completely separated and dissociated from each other.”
Combs stepped down as the chairman of the Revolt board in November, not long after he was accused of sexual and physical abuse by his former girlfriend, Cassie Ventura, who performs as Cassie. (The suit was settled a day later.) Earlier this year, Combs’ Miami and Los Angeles homes were raided by federal agents, part of what Homeland Security described as “an ongoing investigation.”
Samuels told The Hollywood Reporter that Revolt has been unaffected by the allegations against its founder. “Since [his departure], there’s been no interaction or anything in terms of leading or driving the brand,” he said in March. “We lost no clients, we lost no employees, we didn’t lose a dollar. Q4 was the largest quarter in the history of Revolt, and 2023 was the best advertising year we’ve had in the history of Revolt. In all ways it was record-breaking, even in the middle of a crisis.”
It’s become more common for new media companies to offer employees a stake in their success. Publications like Defector, Hell Gate, and 404 Media are worker-owned. The start-up Puck also offers employees “a small ownership stake in the company,” according to The New York Times.
Legendary music attorney John Branca has made a $5 million gift to Los Angeles’ Occidental College that will establish the John Branca Institute for Music at the school, it was announced Tuesday (June 4).
David Kasunic, associate professor of music at Occidental, will serve as inaugural director at the institute, a music teaching and learning facility based at the university. The donation will allow Occidental to expand its music department, with a larger focus on contemporary music and enhancement of the school’s music business curriculum, as well as the addition of cutting-edge technology and sound production facilities. Peter Grueneisen of nonzero architecture has been hired to renovate the music department’s facilities.
The institute will also work with community colleges, particularly Los Angeles City College, to establish a direct pathway to increase transfer opportunities for students from diverse backgrounds who are interested in studying music at Occidental. It will additionally develop special programming and joint research activities in conjunction with the Harvard Negotiation Project based at Harvard Law School and directed by Harvard Business School professor Jim Sebenius.
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Occidental is a four-time honoree on Billboard‘s annual list of the top music business schools in the United States.
“Occidental College has a diverse student body and provides the most personalized undergraduate education in Los Angeles,” said Branca, who graduated from the College cum laude and with honors as a political science major in 1972, in a statement. “As a trustee and alumnus, I am proud of the College’s mission and academic excellence.”
Other notable Occidental alumni include President Barack Obama (1983) and former Warner Music Group CEO Stephen Cooper (1968).
“John is a giant in the music business and he is a true believer in the kind of personalized teaching and learning that can only happen at a small liberal arts college,” Occidental College president Harry Elam added in a statement. “John’s gift, coupled with the state-of-the-art music production facilities we already have in place, will make Occidental a truly exceptional place to study music. We are so grateful to John for his generosity and vision in supporting the John Branca Institute for Music Education.”
Over a decades-long career, Branca’s clients have included Aerosmith, The Beach Boys, the Beatles catalog, Dr. Dre, Fleetwood Mac and Berry Gordy; he currently co-manages the Michael Jackson estate. He has been an Occidental trustee since 2003 and is a founding member of the Barack Obama Scholars Program Advisory Council at the school. In 1998, a gift from Branca that went toward the renovation and expansion of Occidental’s Johnson Student Center led to the naming of the Branca Family Patio in honor of Branca’s parents. Additional educational donations made by Branca have led to the creation of the Branca Family Field at UCLA’s Jackie Robinson Stadium, the Branca Baseball Facility at NYU and the Branca Recruiting Patio for UCLA Basketball.
As Canadian Music Week kicks off its 42nd anniversary, the festival and conference is undergoing a big change.
The major music event, which brings artists and industry to Toronto every year for a week of performances and panels, is changing hands. Festival founder and president Neill Dixon announced his retirement today (June 3) at the welcoming address for the CMW conference, with Toronto mayor Olivia Chow in attendance.
The festival has been acquired by Toronto-based Loft Entertainment and American hospitality and sports company Oak View Group, who plan to expand its offerings while maintaining Dixon’s vision.
Recently named one of Billboard Canada’s Power Players, Dixon was on hand at the June 2 inaugural Power Players event, presenting Gary Slaight with the Power Players Impact Award as his final public appearance before announcing retirement.
Under his leadership, CMW has grown into a major hub for industry events, hosting the Live Music Industry Awards, The Indies awards, Jim Beam National Talent Search, Radiodays North America and more.
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“It has been an incredible journey to see Canadian Music Week grow from a small gathering of music lovers to one of the most influential music festivals and conferences in the world,” Dixon says.
Loft Entertainment and Oak View Group (OVG) will keep the event’s headquarters in Toronto, as they look ahead to its future. Loft is a new venture from industry titan Randy Lennox, former Universal Music Canada CEO and Bell Media President, launched in 2023.
The creative services company’s partnership with OVG on the acquisition boosts the latter’s expansion into Canada. OVG already has partnerships with Canadian sports organizations Canada Basketball and Great Canadian Gaming, and is currently leading a major renovation of Hamilton’s FirstOntario Centre. (It was also recently entangled in the U.S. Department of Justice’s antitrust complaint against Live Nation).
With an American partner on board, it seems likely Canadian Music Week will look to grow its international footprint, while remaining a home for Canadian music activity. Details for the 2025 edition, the first under the new ownership, are coming soon.
CMW is on now, until June 8. Find festival and conference programming on the event website.
This article was originally published by Billboard Canada.
MNRK Music Group president/CEO Chris Taylor is resigning from his post effective June 28, the company announced Monday (June 3). Taylor, who will be succeeded by COO Sean Stevenson, is taking the company’s artist management division with him.
Based in New York, Stevenson will begin leading MNRK on July 1. He was promoted to COO in July 2022 after previously serving as executive vp/GM.
“We wish Chris the best in his future endeavors,” said Stevenson in a statement. “He’s been a great leader and partner over the years, and I look forward to continuing the growth of MNRK with the whole team.”
MNRK’s artist management roster currently includes Powfu, Lights, The Afghan Whigs, Diana Gordon Arkells, Delilah Montagu, Daniel Lanois, Alice Ivy, Robert Finley, The Wild Feathers and Great Good Fine Ok, among other acts.
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Taylor joined MNRK, at the time called Entertainment One (eOne), in 2016 to run the music division. As part of the eOne team, he was involved in overall strategy and the company’s sale to Hasbro in 2020 for $4 billion. In 2021, Hasbro sold the music division to Blackstone for a reported $385 million and eOne Music was renamed MNRK Music Group.
Taylor has been named to Billboard‘s Indie Power Players list multiple times.
MNRK’s artist roster includes High on Fire, Underoath, Ace Frehley, Kash Doll, Fox Lake and Pop Evil; it also distributes the Dualtone Music Group and Last Gang imprints. On the publishing side, it boasts deals with such songwriters as Lauren Faith, Destiny Rogers and 9am. According to a press release, the company’s publishing catalog includes 54,000 music tracks.
Global investment giant Blackstone said on Monday it would pay a penny more to take over Hipgnosis Songs Fund (HSF), the London-listed company that owns Red Hot Chili Peppers’ catalog, because in a revised takeover plan disclosed Monday it is paying less in advisory fees. In a joint announcement, Blackstone and HSF’s board of directors said they approved the offer […]
Live Nation’s share price has proven to be resilient following the U.S. Department of Justice’s lawsuit and effort to break up the company’s concert promotion and ticketing operations. Eight days into what is likely to be a multi-year journey through the court system, shares of Live Nation dropped 2.3% to $93.74 and have held steady after an initial drop the day of the DOJ’s announcement.
Live Nation shares closed at $101.40 on May 22, the day before the DOJ announced its lawsuit, and dropped 7.8% to $93.48 when the news broke the following day. Since the announcement, however, Live Nation shares are up 0.3%. Still, amidst the uncertainty surrounding the outcome of the lawsuit, Live Nation’s year-to-date gain has been pared to just 0.1%, while its 52-week gain has been reduced to 13.2%.
Regardless of the outcome, the mere existence of a protracted legal battle is enough to exert a drag on the stock. In lowering their price target for Live Nation to $116 from $126 this week, J.P. Morgan analysts said in a Wednesday (May 29) note to investors they doubt the DOJ will succeed in breaking up the company and its Ticketmaster ticketing arm, but noted the effect of a “sentiment overhang.” J.P. Morgan maintains its “overweight” rating on Live Nation and analysts “believe that continued execution on [adjusted operating income] growth should drive shares higher, with significant valuation upside should developments in the lawsuit break positive.”
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Music stocks were broadly down this week as the biggest companies in the Billboard Global Music Index lost ground. The index fell 2.3% to 1,799.07 as Spotify fell 3.8% to $296.53, Universal Music Group dropped 0.9% to 28.58 euros ($31.03), Warner Music Group sank 2.2% to $29.78 and HYBE dipped 0.2% to 200,000 won ($144.60). Ten of the 20 companies in the index were losers this week, nine gained ground and one was unchanged.
The index has gained 17.9% year-to-date on the strength of music streaming companies. Tencent Music Entertainment and Spotify lead all stocks with gains of 60.4% and 57.8%, respectively, through the end of May. Elsewhere, Hipgnosis Songs Fund has gained 39.7% due to the company’s pending sale to Blackstone, German concert promoter CTS Eventim is up 26.8% and Chinese music streamer Cloud Music has gained 22.7%.
Radio company iHeartMedia has the distinction of being the top-performing music stock of the week while carrying the worst year-to-date performance. Shares of the radio giant rose 6.4% to $0.926, marking a respite from a month-long free fall during which the stock has traded below $1.00 per share over the last seven trading days. Even after this week’s gain, iHeartMedia finished the month of May down 56% and has lost 65.3% year to date.
Reservoir Media shares gained 2.4% to $8.04 this week following the company’s fiscal fourth-quarter earnings release on Thursday (May 30). The company beat guidance for both revenue and adjusted EBITDA and its share price rose as much as 15.5% in the wake of the news. Following the earnings results, B Riley raised its price target for Reservoir to $11.50.
Music streaming company LiveOne fell 6.3% to $1.65 this week after fiscal year results on Thursday showed the company’s revenue grew 19% to $118.4 million. LiveOne shares are up 17.9% year to date.
Overall stocks were broadly down this week but performed better than the Billboard Global Music Index. In the United States, the S&P 500 dropped 0.5% to 5,277.51 and the Nasdaq composite fell 1.1% to 16,735.02. In the United Kingdom, the FTSE 100 fell 0.5% to 8,275.38. South Korea’s KOSPI composite index sank 1.9% to 2,636.52. China’s Shanghai Composite Index declined just 0.1% to 3,086.81.
When it comes to music, Canada punches above its weight. Artists like Drake, The Weeknd, Justin Bieber and Alanis Morissette have spent the last few decades among the biggest in the world – a feat for a country that pales in population to its neighbour down south. In boardrooms, too, Canadians are well represented in positions of influence.
That’s evident in Billboard Canada’s 2024 Power Players list, the first expansion of the Power Players and Power 100 to Canada. The list features music executives who are working on the world’s biggest tours, managing the industry’s most valuable song catalogues, and breaking artists from all over the world.
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One of the country’s biggest strengths when it comes to music is cultural fluency and a seemingly innate ability to globalize. As Punjabi music, K-pop, Latin music, Afrobeats and more global genres become ever more popular, Canadians are ready to both export talent across borders and capitalize on trends others might not even know about yet.
This year’s set of submissions and nominations were extremely competitive. The Power Players list recognizes achievements across the board but highly prizes impact in Canada and breakthroughs by Canadians on the international and world stage, especially those that can be clearly measured and substantiated.
The Leaderboard features executives from Live Nation, Warner Music Canada, Reservoir Media and more. Find the whole list here.
Canada’s No. 1 Power Player: Arthur Fogel
The industry icon behind many of the biggest world tours of the last year started out at a punk venue in Toronto.
Beyoncé’s Renaissance Tour topped Billboard’s 2023 Boxscore list as the highest-grossing tour of the year and one of the biggest of all time. U2’s opening residency at The Sphere in Las Vegas redefined big-stage sound-and-vision spectacle and became the fastest-grossing residency in Boxscore history. And Madonna culminated her career-spanning Celebration Tour with a massive, record-setting concert on Copacabana Beach in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, attended by more than 1.6 million people.
Arthur Fogel was instrumental in all of them.
Fogel is the Chairman of Global Music & President of Global Touring CEO of Global Touring at Live Nation. He’s stationed at the company’s Los Angeles headquarters, but he’s one of several high-powered Canadian executives in their boardroom. Michael Rapino, Live Nation’s President and CEO, is also from Canada.
And, Fogel notices, like they are on big stages, Canadians are overrepresented in some of the most important positions in the music industry.
“I don’t think the Canadian industry gets enough credit on any number of levels. If you look at the artists that have come out of Canada over a number of years and generations, it’s pretty incredible how much talent that has come out of a country this size,” Fogel says. “The same holds true for the business side.”
Read a wide-ranging Q&A with Fogel in Billboard Canada’s latest digital cover story.
Shortlist Announced for the Billboard Canada Non-Performing Songwriter Award
Five impressive songwriters have been shortlisted for the inaugural Billboard Canada Non-Performing Songwriter Award, presented by SOCAN.
These songwriters each had a banner year in 2023, penning memorable songs with indelible melodies that garnered Grammy nominations, top chart placements, and millions of streams.
They are recognized for their work as songwriters for other artists, making an impact from behind the scenes – a first for an award of this kind in Canada.
Here are the nominees, with the winner being announced at Billboard Canada’s Power Players event on June 2 at the CN Tower:
Elizabeth Lowell Boland
Lowell is a singer, songwriter and producer known for her collaborations with Madison Beer, Charli XCX, Tate McRae, Charlie Puth, Lennon Stella, Hailee Steinfeld, bülow, Lu Kala and many more. With two songs on Beyoncé’s critically acclaimed new album – the international smash “Texas Hold’em” and upcoming single “Bodyguard” – Lowell has become a trusted collaborator for the legendary artist. She also wrote “Blame Brett,” the breakout hit for Toronto band The Beaches.
Aaron Paris
Aaron Paris is a songwriter, record producer and composer from Toronto. Having worked with artists including Ariana Grande, Kanye West, Drake, DJ Khaled, Russ, PARTYNEXTDOOR, Kali Uchis, NAV, Charlotte Cardin and more, Aaron has built a strong international reputation as a musical composer and collaborator. In 2023, Aaron co-wrote over 70 major artist releases and received five Juno nominations and 2 Grammy nominations for songs he co-wrote.
Tobias Jesso Jr.
Tobias Jesso Jr. is a North Vancouver-born, L.A.-based songwriter and two-time Grammy-winner. In 2023, he earned the first-ever Grammy Award for Songwriter of The Year for his work on releases by Harry Styles, Adele, FKA Twigs, Orville Peck, King Princess, Diplo and Omar Apollo in addition to taking home Album of The Year for his contributions to Harry Styles’ Harry’s House. He was also a major contributor on Dua Lipa’s most recent album Radical Optimism co-writing on multiple tracks including the big single, “Houdini.”
Jeremy Fedryk
Jeremy Fedryk – a.k.a. Sarcastic Sounds – spent much of 2023 immersing himself in the budding folk-pop scene. The year was highlighted by his writing contribution to David Kushner’s international smash “Daylight,” which accumulated over 1 billion Spotify streams and reached multi-platinum status in every major market. His success continued with the release of Chance Pena’s “I am not who I was,” which has amassed over 170 million Spotify streams and reached the top 20 of Billboard’s alternative chart.
Ali Willa Milner
Fresh off a Grammy nomination for her work with The Knocks and Dragonette, Ali Willa Milner found herself part of six Juno nominations for her work in 2023. Her writing led to nominations with Rêve, Katie Tupper, and multiple nominations for Aysanabee who won two, including Songwriter Of The Year.
It’s time to drop the needle on another Executive Turntable, Billboard’s comprehensive(ish) compendium of promotions, hirings, exits and firings — and all things in between — across music. We also have an interview series spotlighting a single executive each week and a regularly updated gallery honoring many of the industry figures we’ve lost throughout the year.
Denise Stevens joined Pierson Ferdinand (aka PierFerd) as partner and co-chair of the firm’s global media, entertainment and sports practice. Based in Nashville and Los Angeles, Stevens’ expertise is in talent, creative and tech across music, publishing, touring and other fields. She was previously a partner at Loeb & Loeb and this year made Billboard‘s list of top music lawyers. Earlier this century, she authored the bill that ultimately became the Songwriters Capital Gains Tax Equity Act, which was signed into law in 2006, and she regularly offers counsel and assistance to songwriters and their heirs on copyright recapture issues. “I have known Denise essentially my entire career, having been on the opposite side of deals from her from time-to-time for more than two decades,” said Steven S. Sidman, co-chair of PierFerd’s Global Media, Entertainment & Sports practice. “I much prefer being on the same team as her, and I am delighted to finally work alongside Denise as one of the co-leaders of our group.”
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Alex Machurov joined the American Association of Independent Music (A2IM) as head of business development, effectively immediately. At his new job, Machurov oversees the indie label trade body’s strategic partnerships and develops sponsorship opportunities for the org’s tentpole events such as the Indie Week Conference and the Libera Awards. The live events veteran arrives from Tandem, a digital charity fundraising platform he co-founded in 2020. He was previously chief revenue officer at Revolution Marketing and a vp of national event partnerships at iHeartMedia, but he spent the bulk of the last couple decades at Superfly, where he clocked 10 years overseeing brand partnerships and activations at Bonnaroo, Outside Lands and other festivals. “Alex’s expertise and his passion for the independent music community will enrich our current activities and steer A2IM to more expansive opportunities,” said Richard James Burgess, CEO of A2IM. “We welcome his vast network of connections and the knowledge he brings to the independent sector.” Feel free to contact Alex@a2im.org.
Warner Chappell Music UK promoted Andrew Howell to vice president of sync at the publisher, effective June 1. He’ll continue reporting to Rich Robinson, evp and global head of sync, and Shani Gonzales, managing director of WCM UK and head of international A&R. Howell joined Warner Music in 2016 following career stops at both Universal Music and Sony Music. While at WCM UK, his team has landed several branding campaigns and connected multiple placements in games, films and television, including The Crown, Space Ape and Saltburn. Howell and company also run a monthly sync writing sessions in Warner Chappell’s London studios. “Andrew’s collaborative spirit has helped him build relationships with the songwriters and clients who place their trust in him,” said Gonzales. “He has an encyclopaedic knowledge of our songbook and an unrivalled instinct as to what placements will work. He’s also an amazing mentor to his team, so this is A very well-deserved promotion.”
Anthony Martini and Rich Barner teamed up to launch the Nashville-based label and management firm Gravel Road. The venture’s roster includes Compton Cowboys, Randy Savvy, Justbrandon, and producer Scattered Brains (Jelly Roll, Struggle Jennings). Over the years, Martini has worked with clients including TYGA, Jelly Roll, Killer Mike, and Lil Dicky. Under Martini’s previous label, Commission Records, Lil Dicky’s album Professional Rapper debuted at No. 1 on Billboard’s rap albums chart. Most recently, Martini served as CEO of Royalty Exchange. Serial entrepreneur Barner’s film company Global Pictures Media has worked with actors including Robert DeNiro, while his fragrance company was recently honored by the New You Awards for ASH by Ashley Benson. –Jessica Nicholson
Venue management giant ASM Global welcomed Andy Gorchov as the new general manager of Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas. Gorchov will be tasked with overseeing day-to-day operations, management and promotion at the 65,000-capacity venue, the climate-controlled home of the NFL’s Las Vegas Raiders. Gorchov’s decades of ginormous stadium experience includes time as general manager of Empower Field at Mile High, home of the Denver Broncos, and he also led State Farm Stadium in Arizona, home of the Cardinals. “ASM Global has been a trusted partner of the Raiders for years, and we are confident under Andy’s care that Allegiant Stadium will remain one of the greatest sports and entertainment venues in the country,” said Sandra Douglass Morgan, president of the Raiders.
Romeo Entertainment Group, which books talent at fairs and festivals across 35 states, promoted three of its staffers and hired six more at the 70-year-old Nashville family business. Promotions at REG include Adriana “Dri” Valadez, Taylor Williamson and Carly Dibble — all upped to talent buyer/event producer. New hires at the firm include Scott Kernahan as a tb/ep, Briannon “Bree” Griffin as executive assistant to company leaders R.J. and Michelle Romeo, and Chloe Dubrovay, Ali J. Stinehour, Alexandra “Alex” Hargiss and Grayce Keefer as event coordinators. “These promotions and new hires reflect our ongoing commitment to growth and excellence,” said R.J. Romeo, president. “As we celebrate these achievements, we are reminded of the legacy of innovation and leadership instilled by my grandfather, Don Romeo, and we continue to build on this foundation with a forward-thinking approach.”
Nashville-based worship label Integrity Music and its parent organization, David C. Cook, have named Blaine Barcus as president of the imprint, taking the helm from Jonathan Brown, who will become chief global officer. Barcus most recently served as senior vp of A&R at Provident Entertainment, and has held leadership roles at Word Entertainment/Warner Music Group and Creative Trust. Along the way, he’s worked with artists including Zach Williams, Third Day, Steven Curtis Chapman, Matthew West and recent breakout artists Ben Fuller and Seph Schlueter. –JN
ICYMI:
Patch Culbertson
A Seoul court barred K-pop company HYBE from dismissing Min Hee-jin as CEO of its ADOR subsidiary label … Big Loud Records elevated Patch Culbertson to executive vp and general manager … Amy Homma, Jennifer Davidson, Jenny Galante and Matt Severson were promoted at the Motion Picture Academy … and run-don’t-walk to our annual 40 Under 40 list of the music business’ top young leaders.
Last Week’s Turntable: LOCASH Label Staffs Up
As we come to the end of Mental Health Awareness Month, the music community would be remiss to not critically examine the mental health of the most vulnerable among us — specifically, the child and youth labor that represents a significant portion of our market share, revenues, and slots on the new artist charts. The state of our entertainment union, one that venerates youth above seemingly all else, ironically puts a low value on artist’s holistic wellbeing, putting them in myriad situations that are age-inappropriate, and that are dangerous mentally, emotionally and physically.
The discussion of youth safety in the workplace is hardly new and as the recent documentary about abuses at Nickelodeon, Quiet on the Set: The Dark Side of Kids TV, showed, we’ve seen embarrassing and tragic cases of industry putting commerce before conscience. Having only minimal guard rails in place, such practices in the entertainment industry have resulted in mental health damages that oddly run counter to the fiscal goals of the industry itself, but more importantly, cause mental scars on young artists that are carried long into adult life.
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A study published by JAMA Psychiatry last month echoed what so many other studies have shown: over 40% of adult mental illness — anxiety, depression, substance use and suicidal ideation — is directly linked to traumatic events sustained in childhood and adolescence. The study strongly advocates for policy-driven prevention measures to reduce the rates of youth mistreatment, thereby reducing the rates of serious mental illness in adulthood.
The entertainment industry, and specifically the music industry, needs to enact deep systemic, policy-driven changes, ones that introduce the presence of mental health therapists in virtually all situations and venues encountered by new artists. Shadows, if you will, that protect the artist, thereby indirectly protecting the asset the label has so dearly invested in: the artist themselves.
What would this look like? Just as we require on-set academic tutoring and child labor OSHA protections, the music industry should lead the way and have 24/7 mental health support people shadowing each and every new label signing, helping the artists navigate their new reality of constant adoration, free-flowing money, highly-sexualized environments, the prevalence of drugs and alcohol, and long, unsupervised hours in studios and on the road where rampant sexual/gender-based harassment and assault can and does occur. Labels and publishers would present standardized curricula related to mental health on-boarding upon signing, mental health de-boarding upon termination (ie, when an artist is dropped), gender-based assault/harassment safety best practices, recording studio safety, balanced and healthy touring, and general psychotherapy, among other things.
Some forward-thinking industry players are already part of that change. Nettwerk Music Group builds “wellness budgets” into their artist deals. Limited Edition Music Publishing, a new independent publisher, is doing the same. There are also non-profits including MusiCares, Sweet Relief and Backline that offer valuable assistance. But the list of agencies, labels, and publishers giving only lip service during Mental Health Awareness Month is pathetically long.
For more than 15 years, I was a senior level A&R guy. Over those years, I signed a number of young songwriters and bands (Disturbed, Michelle Branch, Hoobastank, BRMC, Remy Zero, among others). The industry thrives on the young. Michelle Branch was 14 when I signed her. The stories many young women tell of being harassed, including Phoebe Bridgers and Billie Eilish, very likely could have been minimized or outright avoided with the presence of therapist shadows (and zero tolerance for the men doing the harassing). But as it stands now, mental health initiatives in the music industry are mostly just performative talking points.
Artists are our livelihood. Artists are our passion. We as an industry need to do better, proactively protectingthem at all costs from predatory, dehumanizing behavior that relegates them the status of a disposable widget (and not someone’s daughter or son). To be sure: artists will be dropped, singles won’t be worked, and albums will be shelved — that’s business — but how the artist is treated when these events occur can make all the difference in their lives going forward.
And what’s the payoff? How about fewer artists with devastating identity issues, severe depression, debilitating anxiety, substance use disorders, suicidal ideation and more? How about artists that don’t flame and burn out? How about artists whose creativity is boundless and ever evolving? And how about cultivating a whole generation of young artists who are emotionally, mentally, spiritually and physically at the top of their game — thriving and creating — and not traumatized by the very industry meant to nurture them. Now there’s a legacy we could all be proud of.
David Andreone is the founder of ArtistServices Therapy, a psychotherapy and coaching practice tailored to artists, creatives and creative executives. Andreone has held senior level A&R positions at Warner/Chappell Music Publishing, and Columbia Records, and continues to manage artists and produce TV content.
Los Angeles-based electronic producer Jauz partnered with global distribution company OneRPM to relaunch his six-year-old label, Bite This. Together, the two teams are planning label takeovers, pop-up events and compilations as they bring genre-spanning sounds by rising artists to the release calendar. The partnership with OneRPM — whose client list also includes artists like Chance Peña, Yelawolf, A$AP Twelvyy and Alejo — will provide projects from emerging Bite This acts like Albert Breaker and Edison Cole with label services that would normally be rare to have at an artist-run imprint. – Katie Bain
U.K.-based ATC Management, whose clients include Bring Me the Horizon and Bullet for My Valentine, signed a new cooperation agreement with Chinese independent music company Modern Sky. Through the deal, the two companies will leverage their resources across management, live representation, merchandising, marketing and digital to drive artists’ careers in their respective markets.
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AWAL partnered with L.A.-based networking and mentoring program Creative Futures Collective to launch the AWAL Futures program, which will focus on launching the careers of artists and supporting creatives from underrepresented communities. The artists selected into the program will receive an EP release from AWAL (including an EP release event at Soho Warehouse in July) as well as mentorship from AWAL executives. Creatives from the Creative Futures Collective community will assist with marketing assets including music videos, photos and other artwork. Selected artists for the inaugural program are Brooklyn-based project BITTERS featuring British frontwoman Claudia Mills; Columbus, Ohio-based Ghanian-American singer-songwriter NanaBCool; and Chicago rapper/producer Jay Wood.
Two French collecting societies, the SCPP (for sound recording producers) and ADAMI (for music and audiovisual artists), signed a partnership agreement to pool their respective databases and distribution tools for private copying remuneration and equitable remuneration. A study is currently underway to draw up the operational implementation of the pact, which includes a clause under which the two companies may decide to merge within a joint subsidiary being created under the deal. The creation of the subsidiary will be submitted for approval at each company’s upcoming general shareholders meetings. “Both companies jointly acknowledged that the situation in France creates inefficiencies that are detrimental to all rights holders and weakens their ability to negotiate their rights,” according to a press release. “This is because there are 7 related rights collective management organizations in France, whereas in most European countries there is only one.”
U.K. physical distributor Proper Distribution signed a deal with U.S.-based Firebird Music Holdings to service Firebird’s partner labels, artist management agencies and other creative businesses. Proper will spearhead physical sales and distribution for Firebird’s frontline and catalog releases across the United Kingdom, Republic of Ireland and Europe (via Proper’s partner Bertus) for select signed and self-releasing artists on Firebird’s partner rosters. Firebird partners will be granted access to Proper’s facilities and resources, specialist knowledge of local record retailers and marketing and sales teams in agreed-upon territories. Self-releasing artists under Firebird will enjoy a streamlined process to release music on physical formats. The deal will encompass releases by Slash, Chase Rice, The WAEVE, Moonchild Sanelly, Whiskey Myers, Danielle Bradbery and Rainbow Kitten Surprise, among others.
Keywords Studios, an international provider of technology-enabled solutions to the gaming and entertainment industries, partnered with Reactional Music, a music personalization engine that allows music and audio to be generated live in video games. Under the deal, Keywords will offer help facilitate the integration of Reactional into game development projects on behalf of its clients. “Collaborating with [Keywords’] teams and studios provides an incredible opportunity to scale Reactional,” said Reactional Music president David Knox in a statement. “We believe that Keywords’ implementation teams can also enable Reactional to extend its generative music and creator tools in innovative ways beyond the core gaming space.”
Producer Eli Brown (Drake, Giveon, PARTYNEXTDOOR, Chris Brown) signed an exclusive deal with Warner Music Canada through which he will develop and sign Canadian artists to the label via his imprint, Loophole Records.
Code.org, a nonprofit dedicated to expanding access to computer science in schools, particularly for students from underrepresented groups, partnered with Amazon to launch Music Lab, a platform through which K-12 students can learn to code through interactive music composition featuring hit songs by artists including Tinashe, The Chainsmokers, Rosa Linn and Aloe Blacc. Through an educational partnership with Amazon, each artist contributed tracks and samples for use in the platform. Over the past six months, Code.org has tested Music Lab with thousands of students and teachers.
The European Music Managers Alliance (EMMA) announced a new partnership with AI-driven msuic funding platform beatBread, which uses billions of data points to forecast an artist’s earnings potential in order to offer advances on existing catalog as well as new and unreleased music. Artists then repay their advances as a percentage of their revenue over a period of time that artists can set. The partnership will kick off with an exclusive online workshop for EMMA members on July 2 that will focus on funding and business building.
.MUSIC, a top-level domain name designed for the global music community, partnered with global identity verification provider Shutfi Pro. Through the deal, Shufti Pro will authenticate the digital identity of the music community to create a “trusted ecosystem of verified artists, creators, industry professionals, organizations, businesses, and brands” under the .MUSIC domain.
Mastercard Midnight Theatre, a 150-seat venue in Manhattan, selected Oak View Group (OVG) to manage its operations. OVG plans to debut a new restaurant concept at the venue, an investment of Dolphin Entertainment, this spring.
U.K. taxi app FREENOW announced a third year of financial support for Music Venue Trust (MVT). Under the arrangement, FREENOW customers can opt in via the company’s app to round up the cost of their fares and donate to MVT, which supports grassroots music venues across the United Kingdom. Donations will be collected for every trip completed and sent to MVT, which will use the funds to operate its emergency response service — one MVT claims has saved “hundreds” of venues from closure since being established in 2017.