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South Korean K-pop giant HYBE said its net profit basically evaporated in the third quarter and total revenue slipped 2% after after the company earned less from concerts and saw reduced music sales, according to results published on Tuesday (Nov. 5).
HYBE’s net profit for the third quarter was 1.444 billion won ($1.05 million), a figure 98.6% lower than the third quarter of 2023 when the company reported of 99,690 billion won ($72.3 million). Total revenue for the third quarter of 527.9 billion won ($382.6 million).
HYBE’s biggest release of the quarter was the debut album, SIS, from KATSEYE, a six-member girl group formed over the summer as part of The Debut: Dream Academy, which spent two weeks on the Billboard 200, the company said.
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HYBE’s direct revenue — which comes from its recorded music business, concerts, and things where artists are directly involved — fell by 15.5% to 323 billion won ($234 million). Revenue from its recorded music division declined by nearly 19% to 214.5 billion won ($155.5 million), while concert revenue fell nearly 15% to 74 billion won ($53.6 million). Revenue from ads and appearances rose by nearly 10% to 34.5 billion won ($25 million).
HYBE’s business lines that operate independently of their artists — like merchandising and sync licensing — performed much better, with revenue from artist-indirect involvement business lines rising by 32% to nearly 205 billion won ($148.5 million). Revenue from merchandise and licensing song rights rose by nearly 16% to 99 billion won ($71.9 million), contents revenue rose 64% to almost 80 billion won ($58 million) and fan club revenue rose by more than 23% to 26 billion won ($18.8 million).
The company’s operating profit margin saw significant improvement — up 4% — from the first quarter this year to 10.3% for the third quarter. Earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA), a measure of HYBE’s profit from its operations, fell by 16.4% to 81 billion won ($58.7 million).
HYBE has had an eventful few months. In July, the company appointed Jason Jaesang Lee as its new CEO and announced its “HYBE 2.0” growth strategy, which reorganizes the company, pushes a global expansion and focuses on tech-driven initiatives.
The company has also been embroiled in a dispute with Min Hee-jin, ex-CEO of the company’s label subsidiary ADOR — home to chart-topping girl group NewJeans — regarding HYBE’s claim that Min tried to take control of ADOR and NewJeans.
Ten-time ASCAP songwriter of the year Ashley Gorley is donating royalties from the Billboard Country Airplay chart-topping hit “I Am Not Okay,” written by Gorley with co-writers Taylor Phillips and Casey Brown, and recorded by Jelly Roll, to help aid mental health initiatives for those in the songwriting community.
Gorley, who is also known for writing No. 1 hits including the Morgan Wallen/Post Malone 16-week Hot 100 chart-topping “I Had Some Help” and other hits recorded by Carrie Underwood, Chris Stapleton, Kelsea Ballerini and more, is commemorating the success of “I Am Not Okay” by supporting the launch of a program by The Onsite Foundation, aimed at helping the creative community. The Creatives Support Network will provide free mentorship, education, resources and mental wellness support specifically created to help members of the songwriting community.
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“A song about struggling to get out of bed in the morning is No. 1 and that really speaks to where we are in the world,” Gorley said in a statement. “It was important for us to take this moment to say ‘you’re not the only one,’ and to support a creative network with programming that is tailored to songwriters at any stage of their journey.”
Songwriter-focused intensives are a key part of the program, including two-day immersive, individual or group coaching and therapy sessions designed for creatives. The program also includes mentorship, social impact initiatives and online curriculum and conversation resources complimentary to the creative community, thanks to Gorley giving 80 grants for 80 individuals, in addition to program infrastructure support.
“This song in particular, along with the Jelly Roll Era, is creating a movement and timely conversation regarding the need to equip creatives with necessary tools to optimize their personal and professional pursuits,” Onsite’s Miles Adcox said in a statement. “I’ve been at the intersection of Music and Mental Wellness for the better part of my career and have experienced firsthand the challenges and opportunities facing today’s creatives. Music is medicine, and the comfort, relief, support, and overall impact it provides globally to humanity is immeasurable. Our storytellers are a national treasure we should pour into and protect at all costs. We’re grateful to Ashley, Jelly Roll, and the Tape Room writers for starting this conversation in the songwriting community and for lending their expertise and resources.”
The Jelly Roll hit “I Am Not Okay” offers an honest portrayal of the struggles many face with mental health issues. The song is from Jelly Roll’s recent Billboard 200-topping album Beautifully Broken.
Among Gorley’s recent accolades are ACM songwriter and song of the year for the Cole Swindell hit “She Had Me at Heads Carolina,” and ASCAP’s country song of the year with Wallen’s “You Proof.” Gorley was also honored as NSAI’s Songwriter of the Decade for 2010-2019.
In 2011, Gorley, a Belmont University graduate, also formed his own publishing company, Tape Room Music, with a roster that includes his “I Am Not Okay” co-writers Brown and Phillips.
The Recording Academy has let its members know, via email, of some changes, one of which will likely be unwelcome news to many: It will no longer provide complimentary tickets to its official Grammy afterparty to all current year nominees. This year’s Grammy Celebration, the afterparty’s official name, will be hosted by the Grammy Museum […]
Greg Phillinganes, a keyboardist from Detroit, was in Stevie Wonder‘s Wonderlove band in the early ’70s when prolific producer and composer Quincy Jones invited him to play on a session with jazzman Billy Eckstine. The collaboration led to a nearly 50-year relationship, in which Phillinganes appeared on “Q”-produced classics such as Michael Jackson‘s Off the Wall and Thriller, plus albums by Patti Austin, George Benson, James Ingram and Jones himself. By phone from New York, where he is working with Pink Floyd‘s David Gilmour on his Luck and Strange tour, Phillinganes remembers Jones, his friend and mentor, who died Sunday at 91.
The first time I met him, I was still in high school. I was 18, living in Detroit. Quincy was in town for a signing of his new album You’ve Got It Bad Girl [in 1973]. I left school early and I went downtown to Hudson’s [department store] to meet him. I bought an album and stood in line. I remember shaking hands with him, we talked for a couple minutes and I told him I was a musician. I remember him asking me what I play, and I said keyboards, and he asked me if I had a Fender Rhodes. I told him, “No, but I get to use one in the band I play in.” He was supportive and wonderful and encouraging.
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It led to another meeting, which happened after I joined Stevie’s band. He had me come down to A&M Studios to play on a little ditty that he was producing on Herb Alpert. The name of the song was “The Best Thing,” which was a single for this little artist named Billy Eckstine [the great jazz singer]. Not too long after that, I ended up on most everything [Jones] did. The thing about Quincy is, if he invites you in, it’s assumed you are worthy of being there.
He has a gentle way. If he’s sweating, he never lets you see it. He’s always able to bring out not only the best in you, but qualities in you that you didn’t even know you had. It’s only after the fact that you realize you’re a better musician than before you went in.
That was a wonderful surprise, to be called to participate in Michael Jackson’s first solo record [Off the Wall]. [Jones] asked me to arrange the song “I Can’t Help It” that was written by Stevie. We got the demo, we’re in the studio, we heard it. It was an up-tempo Latin feeling. Quincy gave me the responsibility of handling it. I thought, “Great, I’m going to do the same kind of thing Stevie did, and really amp it up and make it jazzy.” I did a demo. I had Sheila E. playing on it and Michael sang on it. I played it for Quincy and he said, “No.” Quincy said, “No, we have to slow it down and make it sexy.” Quincy was trying to establish Michael as an adult. When I understood that assignment, I jumped all over it and put a beautiful Rhodes on it and sexy synth bass and these gorgeous lush synths and overdubs. That is the version that’s on the record.
I had a nickname that was not from Quincy. It originated from junior high school in Detroit. This guy started doling out nicknames to people, and I happened to be there. He got to me and said, “We’re going to call you Mouse.” From that day on, everybody called me that. When I got older, it got less cute to me. “Hang on, I’m an adult, and I’m already small in stature, I don’t need to be reminded of it.” I grew in popularity quite heavily in Detroit, and I was playing in bands around town, everybody knew me by that name and it just stuck. I moved to L.A. in June ’75 and I felt this sense of freedom: “I’m starting a new life and nobody knows who I am — and more importantly, no one knows me by that dreaded nickname.” But guess what? There was a buddy of mine, another musician who also played keyboards, who started working with Quincy before I did. He told Quincy about me, but he told him that name. So the second time I met Quincy, the first thing he said to me was, “How you doin’, Mouse?” I went, “AAAAIEEEE! AAAAAGGGGHH!” Not just him. He would introduce me to friends of his, like Arthur Ashe, Colin Powell — he would say the nickname. It’s like, really, Quincy? Really?
When he developed the talk show Vibe [in 1997], he called me in his office and said, “I want you to be the musical director of this show.” I said, “This is incredible, I’ve always wanted to have a band on a TV talk show.” He paused and said, “There’s this one thing. I want you to use that name.” I said, “Aw, come on, man, you’ve got to give me a break on that. People are going to spot me in the mall and go, “Hey, that’s Mouse.” He looked at me and said, “That’s the idea.” Well, you couldn’t fight that. It got to the point where I accepted it from him, because his tone of voice, the way he called me that, it was just so endearing.
The last time I saw him was June 17. It took months of planning. I’d been desperately trying to contact him and it was so tough because the family were really keeping things tightly monitored, and understandably so. It was finally arranged and we talked and reminisced. He said things like, “Life is amazing, isn’t it, Mouse?” He was sitting in a chair and I stood behind him and he held my hand and kissed it. Just so beautiful and intimate, and I will never forget it.
It goes back to the directive that his mentor [French composition and orchestration teacher] Nadia Boulanger told him, and he has since told me, and I have since told every kid I meet: “You are never more of a musician than you are a human being.” Quincy was one rare, loving, passionate, soulful, funny and generous human being.
— As told to Steve Knopper
Billboard’s peer-voted Power 100 Players’ Choice Award is back for 2025 and asking music industry members from all sectors to honor the executive they believe had the most impact across the music industry in the past year. Voting is open to all Billboard Pro members, both existing and new, with one vote per member per […]
Billboard’s peer-voted Power 100 Players’ Choice Award is back for 2025 and asking music industry members from all sectors to honor the executive they believe had the most impact across the music industry in the past year. Voting is open to all Billboard Pro members, both existing and new, with one vote per member per […]
Tributes from industry luminaries and executives are pouring in for legendary producer, arranger and composer Quincy Jones, who died Sunday (Nov. 3) at the age of 91. A jazz sideman who evolved into a bandleader, label executive, film composer, TV and movie producer and, of course, popular music savant as studio maestro to Michael Jackson, Jones’ considerable artistic wingspan during his seven-decade career — his picture should be in the dictionary under “multi-hyphenate” — will rightly be lauded by every nook of the entertainment world.
“Through his music and his boundless love, Quincy Jones’ heart will beat for eternity,” his family said following his passing.
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Here is a list of reactions, which we’ll update as they come in:
Guy Moot and Carianne Marshall (CEO and COO, Warner Chappell Music): “We join billions of music fans around the world, as we mourn the loss of the great Quincy Jones, and celebrate his immeasurable contributions to culture. Words like titan, genius, GOAT, will be used today and he deserves it all. Quincy was a producer, artist, composer, and activist, but above all, he was a songwriter. He leaves behind an extraordinarily powerful, diverse body of work that will light the way for future generations. Our deepest condolences go out to his family and friends.”
Rock & Roll Hall of Fame (he was inducted in 2013): “Quincy Jones excelled at every role he took on. Producer, arranger, trumpeter, executive, and more, Jones won 28 Grammy Awards and guided historic sessions with such giants as Frank Sinatra, Miles Davis, and Michael Jackson in addition to his groundbreaking work in film and television. Jones established the standard for innovation; accomplished and successful in every facet of the music industry, he set the model for the modern music mogul.”
Michael Huppe (president and CEO, SoundExchange): “Huge loss yesterday to the music world. A seminal force. From Michael Jackson to Count Basie to Frank Sinatra.”
Nile Rodgers (guitarist, producer and co-founder of Hipgnosis Songs Fund):
TIDAL (the streaming service): “Rest in peace to Quincy Jones, who, as a producer, film scorer and solo artist, quite simply did it all. He has been sampled by Mobb Deep and the Pharcyde; composed the music for ‘The Color Purple’; and produced both “We Are the World” and Michael Jackson’s ‘Thriller,’ the latter being the best-selling album of all time.”
Danyel Smith (former editor of VIBE, which Jones co-founded): “In addition to being one of the best producers in the history of American music, [Quincy Jones] is the founder of VIBE magazine. [He] launched VIBE because it was the change he wanted to see. He wanted glorious and rigorous storytelling. He wanted depth of design and imagery. He wanted hip hop and the history of American Blackness that informed it to receive the credit it is due. Always surrounded by genius teams, and predecessors, and successors, I was music editor, cover story warrior, and the first Black person and first woman to serve as VIBE’s editor-in-chief — so I am blessed to have known Quincy Jones. As an artist yes, but also as a negotiator, a conversationalist, a charmer. Quincy Jones is a person I often reported to, a person who encouraged me (without sentiment). He was a networker, a knower of his worth, and a valiant enforcer of the true value of Black music and culture. I’m lost this morning. And at a loss. Rest in everlasting peace, Quincy Jones — from me and your grateful VIBE family.” (Smith’s full post on X can be found here.)
YG Entertainment shares gained 4.3% this week as “APT” by ROSÉ and Bruno Mars continued its hot streak. A week after YG’s stock gained 6.1% following the track’s blockbuster start on streaming services, the track topped both the Billboard Global 200 and Billboard Global Excl. U.S. charts. ROSÉ, a member of YG recording artist BLACKPINK, released “APT” through Atlantic Records in partnership with THEBLACKLABEL, a YG sub-label co-founded in 2015 by BLACKPINK producer Teddy Park. While YG continues to manage BLACKPINK, ROSÉ signed with THEBLACKLABEL for the management of her solo career.
Universal Music Group (UMG) shares fell 0.7% over the week but gained 1.6% to 23.45 euros ($25.52) on Friday (Nov. 1) following the company’s third-quarter earnings the prior day. Morgan Stanley raised its price target to 35 euros ($38) from 33 euros ($35.90). “Our conviction on UMG is as high as it’s ever been,” Morgan Stanley analysts wrote in an investor note. Guggenheim called UMG’s third-quarter results “encouraging” and maintained a 25.50 euros ($27.74) price target and its “neutral” rating on UMG shares.
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SiriusXM gained 4.7% to $27.65 after the company’s third-quarter earnings release on Thursday (Oct. 31) showed a net gain of 14,000 self-pay subscribers in the quarter. Despite the uptick, average revenue per user fell due to a “higher proportion of subscribers on self-pay promotional and streaming-only plans,” the company said.
Deezer shares gained 2.1% to 1.43 euros ($1.56) after the company’s third-quarter earnings showed 11% revenue growth and a 9% uptick in subscribers. New CEO Alexis Lanternier sounded upbeat about partnerships with MeLi+ and Mercado Libre, which has converted free trials at a rate “higher than our expectations,” in his words. Still, Deezer’s share price is down 32.9% year to date.
Reservoir Media fell 3.5% to $8.25 following its earnings release on Wednesday (Oct. 30) which showed solid 6% revenue growth. The stock did not get a bump from Reservoir’s slightly upgraded full-year guidance nor B. Riley’s increase of its price target to $12.50 from $11.50.
The 20-company Billboard Global Music Index (BGMI) was essentially flat for the week, rising 0.3% to 1,995.67 despite having just seven gainers as opposed to 13 stocks that lost ground. The small increase brought the index’s year-to-date gain to 30.1% and reversed the BGMI to the win category after it dropped 0.6% the prior week, breaking a streak of six consecutive weeks of gains.
Even a small gain outperformed many major stock indexes. In the United States, the Nasdaq composite fell 1.5% to 18,329.92 and the S&P 500 fell 1.4% to 5,728.80. Both indexes rose on Friday, however, as investors paid little attention to a weak jobs report and both Amazon and Intel jumped after reporting quarterly earnings. On Thursday (Oct. 31), Meta and Microsoft shares fell following their respective earnings reports, with Meta dropping 3% and Microsoft falling more than 5%.
Music streamer LiveOne was the greatest gainer of the week after jumping 32.8% to $0.77. The company announced on Thursday that it has engaged MZ Group to increase the visibility of PodcastOne in the investment community. LiveOne spun off PodcastOne in 2023 and retained an 81% stake. Investors may have taken note of MZ Group’s Chris Donovan’s statement that PodcastOne “owns intellectual property that can be sold for a significant return on investment.”
Outside of YG Entertainment, the other four K-pop stocks lost ground. HYBE fell 3.1% and increased its year-to-date loss to 20.0%. JYP Entertainment fell 4.2%. SM Entertainment slipped 0.7%. Collectively, the four K-pop companies’ share prices are down 28.6% in 2024.
iHeartMedia jumped 16.1% to $2.09 a week before the company reports third-quarter earnings on Thursday (Nov. 7). Another radio company, Cumulus Media, dropped 19.0% to $0.94 following its release of third-quarter earnings on Friday. The company’s revenue fell 1.8% to $204 million and it saw a net loss of $10.3 million, down from a net profit of $2.7 million in the prior-year period. “Looking forward, the advertising environment remains uncertain,” warned Cumulus CEO Mary Berner.
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When Lee Greenwood released “God Bless The USA” in the spring of 1984, “it was not a massive hit,” the 82-year-old country music icon tells Billboard.
The song peaked at No. 7 in July 1984 on Billboard’s Hot Country Songs chart, but it has returned to the charts several times over the decades, including over Fourth of July weekend 2020, the first year of the pandemic — when it hit No. 1 on the Digital Song Sales chart.
The anthem’s enduring appeal has led to it being played in the wake of the Sept. 11th terrorist attacks and the assassination attempt on former President Donald Trump. It has been covered by Beyoncé, Dolly Parton, and on Friday (Nov. 1), Drew Jacobs released a rock version. And, of course, it is consistently played at political events, including every Republican National Convention since 1988 — Greenwood sang it live at the last one in July — and now as the walk-on music for former President Trump.
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“To be honest, having President Trump use ‘USA’ as the song he walks out to every single place he goes is a dream come true for any artist,” says Greenwood, who adds he wrote the song for all Americans. “Millions of people hear my song on a weekly basis all because President Trump uses it.”
So what is that worth? Billboard spoke with Greenwood and ran the numbers to estimate how much he stands to gain from the Trump bump.
STREAMING
Greenwood says he owns the writer’s and publishing rights to “God Bless The USA,” and that peermusic administers the publishing and synch licensing for it and other songs in his catalog.
Greenwood says he has never charged for the use ‘USA’ at rallies by the former president, whom he knows from his wife Kim Greenwood’s work with the Miss Universe Organization. He says that he did charge the Ronald Reagan campaign $1 to use the song in 1988, but “just because they wanted to have ‘paper on the deal.’
“I don’t look at money as the driver for my music,” he adds.
That said, “God Bless The USA” has earned Greenwood a nice bit of coin this year. The song enjoyed a noticeable increase in consumption, especially in the immediate weeks following Greenwood’s performance at the Republican National Convention.
In the 16 weeks since the RNC, “USA” has averaged over 4,100 song equivalents in the United States, according to Luminate. That’s an increase over the roughly 3,000 U.S. song equivalents it averaged in the 27 weeks of 2024 that preceded the convention.
That post-convention total includes an average of 568,000 U.S. primarily on-demand audio streams compared to 468,000 in the weeks leading up to the convention.
Compared to Greenwood’s “USA”, Sam & Dave’s “Hold On I’m Coming” has seen a smaller average bump. That song is currently the subject of a copyright infringement lawsuit filed in August by the estate of Isaac Hayes, who co-wrote the song. The complaint alleges that the song has been used multiple times during rallies without authorization.
“Hold On I’m Coming” averaged over 5,200 song equivalents in the U.S. since the RNC, just a smidge over the 5,000 U.S. song equivalents it averaged in the 27 weeks before the convention.
Looking at U.S. streaming and download revenue for the songs, the master recording rights for “Hold On” generated more revenue overall than “USA” after the convention — an average of $4,613.81 per week, compared to an equivalent $3,337.24.
However, the bump the songs’ master recording rights netted was bigger for “USA” than “Hold On.” Greenwood’s signature song’s master recording rights generated $744 more per week on average since the convention, compared to $148 for “Hold On.”
That adds up to an estimated Trump bump of an additional nearly $12,000 from the song’s master recordings over the past 16 weeks. These calculations are for label revenue, and Greenwood’s share of that figure would depend on his contract, details of which are not known.
On the publishing side, Greenwood song’s earned an average of about $675 a week from U.S. streams and downloads in the 27 weeks leading up to the convention and $845 a week after. That means the song produced an average of $3,267 a week — master recordings and publishing combined — leading up to the convention and $4,182 a week after the convention.
Billboard estimates Greenwood’s U.S. master recording catalog revenues, not including publishing, brought in $219,000 for his label so far this year compared to almost $184,000 in 2023 — a Trump bump of approximately $35,000 year to date.
THE TRUMP… SLUMP?
Not all songs used at Trump events enjoyed the same post-rally glow. The Foo Fighters‘ “My Hero” was played to introduce Robert Kennedy Jr. at an August rally for the former president in Arizona without permission, according to the band. At the time, a spokesperson for the Foo Fighters said any royalties gained from post-rally plays of the song would be donated to Trump’s challenger, Vice President Kamala Harris’ campaign. (A spokesperson for the band did not respond to a request for comment for this story.)
Since “My Hero” was played at the rally, it has declined in popularity, according to data from Luminate. Prior to the convention, the song’s U.S. streams and downloads averaged almost $10,100 in master recording revenue a week. But after the band denounced the song’s use by the Trump campaign, the audio stream counts average weekly plays fell by almost 200,000 from 1.668 million to 1.488 million. Consequently, revenue that had averaged nearly $10,100 a week fell to just below $9,200 a week, a weekly decline of approximately $900.
Strategy, communications, integrated marketing and social impact consulting firm The Lede Company has launched a music division in Nashville, the company tells Billboard. It also has offices in New York, Los Angeles, London and Paris.
Cara Hutchison has been named head of Lede’s music division, which represents artists including Sabrina Carpenter, Post Malone, Rihanna, Pharrell Williams, Rosalía, Shakira and A$AP Rocky. Joining the division is veteran music publicist Jess Anderson, who will report to Hutchison and company co-founder/co-CEO Amanda Silverman.
Most recently, Anderson served as senior director of media at Big Loud Records, founding and building the label’s in-house publicity department and working with artists including Morgan Wallen, HARDY, ERNEST, Charles Wesley Godwin, Stephen Wilson Jr., Ashley Cooke, Dylan Gossett and Kashus Culpepper. Anderson’s prior career stops include Sweet Talk Publicity, The Press House and Big Machine Label Group. She also serves on public relations task forces for the Academy of Country Music and the Country Music Association.
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“With Nashville at the heart of the music industry, we are incredibly excited to be launching this division,” Hutchison said in a statement. “We’re thrilled to have Jess, a savvy music publicist with deep roots in Nashville, join us for this next chapter. We look forward to leveraging Lede’s relationships, storytelling, and communications expertise to help amplify the careers of such outstanding artists in this community.”
“Nashville has earned its place at the center of the conversation across entertainment because of the quality of talent and authentic sense of community that’s rooted here,” Anderson added. “The opportunity to help introduce a powerhouse agency like Lede to our town is a true thrill. Storytelling is the heartbeat of Nashville, and Lede crafts campaigns that elevate and highlight artistry in all of its forms. There’s no limit to what we’ll be able to accomplish with this partnership, and I’m honored to step into this role.”