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South Korean music company HYBE, home of K-pop giants BTS and Seventeen, has made its first entry into the Latin music sector with the acquisition of Exile Music, the music division of Spanish-language studio Exile Content. HYBE said HYBE Latin America will incorporate K-pop business methods and focus on artist management and talent discovery across […]
Over the past few years, we have been living in a music business in which, it’s often said, hits can come from anywhere around the world. Often, however, the hits we’re talking about have musical and production elements of pop, hip-hop and R&B — only with a twist or in another language. This is great. Unless you want the world to sound a little weirder, in which case it’s still great but you might wonder what else is out there.
As it happens, there’s a country that often seems to specialize in arty, off-kilter music — Iceland. Ever since the Sugarcubes emerged as what we used to call “college rock” darlings in the late 1980s, the Nordic country has exported more than its share of adventurous music: Björk, who emerged from the Sugarcubes as a solo act; Sigur Rós; Gus Gus, and more recently Laufey and Daði Freyr. (I originally heard this as “Daddy Feyr,” which says something about how our musical world is shrinking — but it’s actually his given name.)
The challenges of exporting acts from Iceland are significant: Few international music companies have offices there, the language isn’t spoken much outside the island, and there isn’t exactly much of a touring market in a country of 372,000 — far fewer people than saw Taylor Swift in Los Angeles this year. One of the important investors in the music business there is actually the government.
Last week, at the Iceland Airwaves festival and conference in Reykjavík, I got some sense of how that works and saw some a handful of Icelandic acts that could build solid global careers. (The festival flew me to Reykjavík to moderate a panel, with no expectation that I would cover the event, and I didn’t plan to do so.) None of them sound like they’re chasing the next streaming hit, which I found refreshing.
Since 2006, in fact, former Sugarcubes drummer Sigtryggur Baldursson has played a significant role in the international marketing of Icelandic music — first as part of Iceland Music Export, then since 2012 as managing director for its successor organization, Iceland Music. The organization coordinates grants and provides support for acts “to help people market music from here on their own terms,” Baldursson says. “We help labels and independent artists market their music better, but also to create better support for it.”
The direct results have been encouraging. But music has also helped brand Iceland, drawing tourists to a country with a vital culture as well as beautiful landscapes and hot springs. Björk is the most famous person in the country — by a kilometer.
Starting in January, Iceland is amping up its efforts. During the pandemic lockdown, the music business created a coalition to lobby the government for support, which eventually resulted in the creation of a new office that will fold two smaller organizations into the existing Iceland Music. As part of that change, Baldursson will step down as CEO in favor of María Rut Reynisdóttir. “The establishment of the new office,” Reynisdóttir says, “is a major milestone for the Icelandic music scene.”
All of the Nordic countries have “music export” organizations, and the ones in Finland and Norway are bigger because there’re less private investment in music than in Denmark and Sweden. “Formally opening the music center is an important milestone for music and musicians in this country,” says Lilja Dögg Alfreðsdóttir, Minister of Culture and Business Affairs. (Iceland, uniquely as far as I can tell, has one combined ministry for both business and culture.) “The music center can become one of the cornerstones of music life and industry.”
It’s hard to imagine this kind of government investment in music in the U.S., where it would quickly become a political clusterf—, with the disciples of Kid Rock facing off against those of Maren Morris. European countries are also more accustomed to public funding of the arts, including television and high culture institutions like opera. This isn’t necessarily the best solution overall — the U.S. still drives pop culture. But it works for them. One reason the U.S. drives pop culture is that it’s a big enough, rich enough country that private investment can pay off.
That’s one reason smaller countries subsidize their culture businesses — so they don’t get overwhelmed. France, famously, protects its film business, and many countries have radio airplay regulations that reserve a certain amount of time for local artists. Iceland even funds its book business to prevent local-language literature from being swamped by English authors.
That kind of thinking puts Iceland in an interesting situation. On one hand, most of the country’s pop music isn’t in Icelandic — it limits the potential audience. But much of it still has a certain spare kind of artiness — what’s Icelandic for je ne sais quoi? It’s often pop but not poppy, arty but not inaccessible. It’s too diverse to be considered a definable style but much of it has a certain aesthetic.
Iceland Airwaves is also a music festival, so I was able to check out some artists as well. Along with some acts from elsewhere, I enjoyed the off-kilter pop of local star Briet, the haunting electronic soundscapes of Kónguló, and, especially, the furiously arty punk of Gróa, which reminded me of the Raincoats.
Realistically, their combined potential to go viral seems pretty low, but that’s fine — Baldursson points out that most Icelandic acts depend more on playing live, anyway. These kinds of acts, Baldursson says, “they shoot from here out into the stratosphere.”
iHeartMedia shares dropped 19.6% to $2.01 this week as the company warned investors of continued softness in radio advertising dollars. Fourth quarter results “will be weaker than we originally anticipated,” said CEO Bob Pittman during Thursday’s earnings call. In October, consolidated revenue was down 8% from the prior-year period. For the fourth quarter, iHeartMedia expects consolidated revenue excluding political ad revenue to decline in the low single digits.
Still, iHeartMedia’s third-quarter results were in line with previous guidance. Revenue of $953 million was down 3.6% from the prior-year period, a bit better than the guidance of a low single-digit decrease. Adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization of $204 million was within the guidance of $195 million to $205 million.
The week’s sharp decline brought iHeartMedia’s year-to-date loss to 67.2%, far deeper than the declines of broadcast radio company Cumulus Media (-21.9%) and satellite radio company SiriusXM (-20.7%). Not only has broadcast radio suffered from weak national advertising, it lacks the high growth rates of music streaming and podcasting. PwC’s latest forecasts call for U.S. radio advertising revenues to rise just 4% from 2023 to 2027 while U.S. podcast advertising — where iHeartMedia has a large footprint — will grow 41% to $2 billion.
Next year’s elections should provide a shot in the arm, though. “As we look forward to 2024, we expect to generate significantly better free cash flow driven in part by an improving macro environment, as well as the impact of political dollars,” said CFO Rich Bressler. In 2020, the company generated $167 million in political revenues, he noted.
The Billboard Global Music Index mostly held steady this week, dropping just 0.3% to 1,390.68. Of the index’s 20 stocks, seven gained this while while 13 finished in negative territory. Most stocks had low-single-digit gains or losses and iHeartMedia was the only stock with a double-digit move in either direction.
French company Believe was the index’s greatest gainer of the week after improving 7.4% to 9.93 euros ($10.64). German concert promoter CTS Eventim, which will release third-quarter earnings on Nov. 21, gained 5.5% to 62.75 euros ($67.24). Music streaming company LiveOne gained 4.7% to $1.12. Chinese music streamer Cloud Music, which has not yet announced the date of its third-quarter earnings release, gained 3.3% to 99.50 HKD ($12.74).
Shares of Sphere Entertainment Co. dropped 1.5% to $35.95 after a roller-coaster week. Following the company’s Nov. 3 announcement that CFO Gautum Ranji had left the company, Sphere Entertainment shares dropped 9.6% to $32.97 on Monday. The share price fell an additional 4.5% to $31.87 on Wednesday following the quarterly earnings release. But Sphere Entertainment picked up momentum in the latter half of the week, gaining 12.8% over Thursday and Friday to close at $35.95.
U.S. stocks were broadly up this week despite news that consumer sentiment declined in November and expectations for future inflation reached their highest level since 2011. The Nasdaq composite rose 2.4% while the S&P 500 improved 1.3%. Many major U.S. tech stocks posted big gains. Microsoft hit an all-time high of $370.09 on Friday and finished the week at $369.67, up 4.8%. Apple rose 5.5% to $186.40. Amazon improved 3.6% to $143.56. Meta jumped 4.5% to $32.8.77. In the United Kingdom, the FTSE 100 fell 0.8%. South Korea’s KOSPI composite index gained 1.7%.
Music companies’ third-quarter earnings reports have so far been full of good news and positive trends. Subscription and streaming growth continue to drive revenues for record labels and publishers. Live entertainment continues its post-pandemic expansion. Margins are healthy. Overall, these have been solid report cards for the state of the music business.
Among the companies to report thus far are Universal Music Group, Sony Music, Spotify, Believe, Sphere Entertainment Co., MSG Entertainment, HYBE and SiriusXM. Next week’s earnings reports will come from Warner Music Group (Nov. 16) and Tencent Music Entertainment (Nov. 14). German concert promoter CTS Eventim will report on Nov. 21.
Here are seven items from the earnings releases to date that stood out and deserve more attention.
Universal Music Group struck out against “merchants of garbage.” During Universal Music Group’s Oct. 26 earnings call, chairman and CEO Lucian Grainge got a lot of attention when he bemoaned the “merchants of garbage” — creators of low-value functional music such as generic mood music and nature sounds — that want to be on equal royalty terms at streaming platforms as such UMG artists as Taylor Swift, The Beatles and The Rolling Stones. Grainge’s memorable turn of phrase came in defense of UMG’s artist-centric royalty scheme crafted in partnership with French music streaming service Deezer. “Sorry, I can’t really think of another word for content that no one really actually wants to listen to,” Grainge said.
Spotify’s price increase gave a much-needed uplift to subscription revenues. The price for an individual Spotify subscription in the U.S. was $9.99 from 2011 to July 2023. The price hike to $10.99 in roughly 50 markets may have arrived later than its competitors, but it came just when Spotify needed a boost. Spotify’s premium average revenue per user dropped 6% year over year (1% at constant currency) mainly because the company had a larger share of family plans compared to the prior-year, CFO Paul Vogel said during the July 25 earnings call. Early returns from the price increase in the U.S., U.K. and dozens of other markets helped offset those losses. Because Spotify’s number of subscribers increased 16% year over year to 226 million, subscription revenue grew 10% year over year (16% at constant currency) to 2.9 billion euros ($3.1 billion). With three full months of a price increase in the fourth quarter and considering the price increase covered about 75% of Spotify’s revenue base, the company expects the price increase to provide “a positive, mid-single digit” benefit (excluding foreign exchange) in the fourth quarter, said Vogel.
No company lowered guidance, and some have raised guidance. Sony Music raised guidance for revenue and adjusted operating income before depreciation and amortization by 5% and 4%, respectively. Reservoir Media raised guidance for fiscal 2024 revenue and adjusted EBITDA by 10% each. It’s one thing for a company to meet expectations it had previously laid out to investors. But raising previously released expectations is something else altogether — a sign the future will be better than expected. It’s usually a benefit to the stock price, too. The share price is the present value of future cash flows. When an estimate for future cash flows takes a sudden jump, that changes the financial model used to calculate the share price.
Consumers aren’t slowing their spending on live music. In August, concerns arose that a resumption of student loan payments, paused to help people struggling during the pandemic, would take a bite out of pocketbooks and cause music fans to pull back on the record amounts they were spending on live entertainment. Three months later, there is no indication that consumers are slowing down, according to Live Nation. “We’re seeing no sign of weaknesses,” said president and CFO Joe Berchtold, noting that Ticketmaster’s October sales in North American were up double-digits year over year. “We’re not seeing any pullback in any way from a club to a stadium tour from Milan to Argentina right now,” added president and CEO Michael Rapino.
SM Entertainment has big plans for its new publishing subsidiary, Kreation Music Rights. The K-pop stalwart has been “aggressively recruiting global writers” and plans to have 80 of them under contract this year, CEO Jang Cheol Hyuk said during the Nov. 8 earnings call. SM Entertainment is pursuing collaborations with both domestic and international publishers and plans to recruit foreign writers “who wish to advance into K-pop by establishing overseas subsidiaries,” Jiang said.
Radio advertising continues to struggle — but the clouds may be starting to part. iHeartMedia’s October revenues were down 8% and the company expects its fourth-quarter revenue excluding political revenue to be down in the mid-single digit percent year over year. The fourth quarter will be iHeartMedia’s strongest quarter of the year “but will be weaker than we originally anticipated due to some dampening of advertising demand which coincided with the uncertainty caused by the recent geopolitical events,” CEO Bob Pittman said during Thursday’s earnings call. That said, iHeartMedia’s digital business “is sort of in recovery mode,” said Pittman, and the company is “seeing the pieces falling into place” for radio’s recovery as most advertisers expect to be “back in growth mode…and spending to support that” in 2024.
The market for catalog acquisitions isn’t slowing down. Reservoir Media CEO Golnar Khosrowshahi said catalog prices aren’t contracting despite higher interest rates. “We’re still seeing a lot of demand for assets and continued infusion of new capital within the competitive set,” she said during Tuesday’s earnings call. “And that is certainly fueling the demand. The pipeline is robust. And it ranges in size from large to a lot of smaller deals.” Reservoir Media hasn’t been suffering from sticker shock, though. Acquisitions in the Middle East-North Africa market — such as some catalog of Saudi Arabian label Mashrex in June — provide the company with good value, Khosrowshahi added. “If we’re looking at a market here that is somewhat saturated with a lot of capital in the marketplace, and we’re able to execute [deals in MENA] at these lower multiples, that makes it just that much more attractive to us.”
No matter how you Style it, Taylor Swift‘s 1989 (Taylor’s Version) is a juggernaut. The re-recorded set debuted with 1.653 million equivalent album units (EAUs) in the United States in the week ending Nov. 2, according to Luminate, making it far and away the biggest debut for an album so far in 2023. To give a sense of just how phenomenal its performance is, we’ve stacked it up against every other No. 1 album on the Billboard 200 so far this year — a list comprising 15 additional titles in all.
It bears reiterating that first-week EAUs for 1989 (Taylor’s Version) dwarfed those of all other No. 1 albums released this year, topping every other debut week by more than double. That includes her own Speak Now (Taylor’s Version), which had the second biggest debut week of the year with 716,000 EAUs in July, as well as the third-place finisher, Morgan Wallen‘s One Thing at a Time, which racked up 501,000 EAUs in its first week. Swift’s top-two placement on the list is a remarkable feat, underlining the fact that in some ways, the megastar’s only real competition these days is herself.
Case in point: In its first week, 1989 (Taylor’s Version)‘s 1.359 million in traditional album sales — a metric that encompasses physical sales (vinyl, CD, cassette) and digital downloads — quickly surpassed 2023’s previous best-seller, Swift’s own Midnights, which dropped in October 2022 and had racked up 791,000 in sales so far this year. Swift also has the third most-sold album of the year with Speak Now (Taylor’s Version), which has racked up sales of 755,000 since its July release. All three got to those numbers due to Swift’s strategy of offering multiple collectible physical formats; in the case of 1989 (Taylor Version), that includes five color vinyl variants, eight CD editions and two cassette editions — not to mention two digital download editions (standard and deluxe).
The strategy of offering multiple physical variants is one that’s also successfully employed by many of today’s top K-pop acts, including three who enjoyed No. 1 albums on the Billboard 200 this year: TOMORROW X TOGETHER, Stray Kids and NewJeans. As a result, like Swift, the majority of those acts’ first-week EAUs consist of traditional album sales. The first-week sales of 1989 (Taylor’s Version) comprise a whopping 82.2% of total EAUs — more than any other No. 1 debut album this year aside from TOMORROW X TOGETHER’s The Name Chapter: Temptation EP (94.41%) and Stray Kids’ 5-Star (94.38%). NewJeans’ Get Up EP had nearly as high of a sales percentage at 80.6%. The only other non-K-pop act to boast a similar first-week sales-to-streams ratio was blink-182‘s One More Time…, whose first-week sales made up 81% of total EAUs thanks to the band’s offering of 11 vinyl variants, as well as a CD, cassette and deluxe boxed set.
In fact, the first-week sales of 1989 (Taylor’s Version) were larger than the next five biggest first-week sales tallies of 2023 combined: Speak Now (Taylor’s Version) (507,000), Travis Scott’s Utopia (252,000), Stray Kids’ 5-Star (235,000), TOMORROW X TOGETHER’s The Name Chapter: Temptation EP (152,000) and Olivia Rodrigo’s Guts (150,000).
Unlike these top-selling K-pop acts, whose first-week streaming units tend to hover in the low-five-digit range, Swift’s streaming game stacks up well against the heaviest hitters on that metric. 1989 (Taylor’s Version) racked up 294,000 streaming units in its first week, third only to Drake’s For All the Dogs and Wallen’s One Thing at a Time, which drew 392,000 and 390,000 streaming units, respectively.
It’s Friday, we’re in love with Executive Turntable, Billboard’s comprehensive(ish) compendium of promotions, hirings, exits and firings — and all things in between — across the music industry.
There’s no place like home for Tim Braüner, the longtime Atlantic Records A&R exec who’s set to return to his native Denmark early next year for an elevated role within WMG. Starting Feb. 1 in Copenhagen, Braüner will be director of international A&R for Warner Music Nordics and Warner Music Denmark. He’ll report to the incoming head of Warner Music Denmark and will also work closely with Mark Fry, president of Warner Music Nordics, as well as the territory heads of Finland, Norway and Sweden. He launched his music career at WMD back in 2016 before being recruited by Atlantic two years later to join the team in NYC. Currently vp of A&R, Braüner has signed and worked with Atlantic roster artists including CKay, Major League DJz, Studio Killers and Surf Curse. “It’s great to have Tim back in the Nordics,” said Fry. “We were so proud when he was tapped by Atlantic for an A&R job in New York and now he’s back with five years’ experience and a wealth of connections that’ll help him super serve our artists.”
Warner Music Group appointed Alexandra Condon as vice president of public policy and government affairs, making her the point-person between the label and policymakers across the EU and the UK. She’ll also stay in close contact with key trade orgs and other stakeholders and be an all-around public advocate for the company. The London-based Condon joins WMG after more than a decade at PRS for Music, where she crested as head of policy and public affairs, and played an important role in the UK collecting society’s campaigns for copyright legislation. She reports to Mark Baker, svp of PPaGA. “This is a pivotal time for the music industry, with many exciting challenges and opportunities in front of us,” Condon said. “It’s never been more important to ensure policymakers understand our business and the need for a legal framework that enables us to keep investing in artists and songwriters.”
Mike Chuthakieo was named the first chief revenue officer at 88rising, reporting to CEO and founder Sean Miyashiro out of Los Angeles. Chuthakieo leads brand partnership strategy develops new commercial partnerships at the music and media company, which aims to elevate Asian talent. Chuthakieo comes to 88rising from Pinterest, where as an industry lead he launched the entertainment and restaurant industry sales teams. Prior to Pinterest, he held roles at Pandora, FOX, Myspace and Wasserman Media Group, among others. “88rising’s explosive growth over the past years has been phenomenal to watch,” said the new CRO. “I’m humbled and excited by the opportunity to join the team and apply my expertise to continue broadening the reach of this cultural powerhouse.”
Music distribution and payments platform Stem hired Nick Terzo to help extend its reach with labels and other rights owners. As the company’s new head of label and catalog partnerships, Terzo will scout opportunities for pairings with indie labels, music IP funds and catalogs, as well as work on ways to boost Stem’s artist development efforts. The East Coaster arrives from his own catalog consultancy company Radical Songs, and before that held roles at Royalty Exchange, Columbia/Sony and Maverick. Since joining Stem, Terzo has already stacked up at least a couple wins: he facilitated or guided pacts with both Immortal Records and Brooklyn Music Distribution. He reports directly to Kristin Graziani, president of Stem Distribution. “Nick is a fantastic addition to our growing team,” Graziani glowed. “He brings an infinite wealth of experience, knowledge, and relationships that will undoubtedly expand our presence and amplify our capabilities.”
Dylan Berthier is Kobalt‘s new chief people & culture officer, based in London and reporting to CEO Laurent Hubert. Berthier has 20-plus years experience in leading HR teams, and recently navigated the impossible-sounding task of leading Activision Blizzard’s P&C team during Microsoft’s just-closed $69 million acquisition of the gaming giant. Hubert hailed Berthier as being adept at leading teams “of all shapes and sizes through times of change and expansion, facilitating innovation and ensuring organizations have a culture of excellence and ways of working to enable these transformations.”
ICYMI: Hipgnosis hired a new CFO and general counsel … Amazon Music shed jobs … Delia Orjuela and Ruben Abraham were picked to lead WMG’s Mexican music division … Island hired Jay Schumer away from Columbia … Sony Music Mexico aligned with Manuel Cuevas … Maria Inés Sánchez was appointed Sony Music Latin’s new vp of West Coast operations … and CAAers in Nashville will have new digs in 2025.
Spotify named Tim Foisset as head of label partnerships in Nashville. He will manage Nashville’s label partnerships team, including Gemma McInturff, Miller Guth and Meagan Bennington. Foisset previously spent 13 years at Warner Music Nashville, most recently serving as senior vp of commercial partnerships. Prior to WMN, Foisset was director of digital marketing at Razor & Tie out of New York City. –Jessica Nicholson
Independent live producer and promoter Danny Wimmer Presents increased its headcount by five as it looks to capitalize on recent growth. DWP’s newest team members: Lisa Brende, evp of intelligence, will lead a team using data and research to help DWP stay on task in making sure “the voice of the fan is at the heart of everything they do.” She previously held senior roles at TikTok and Sony Music. Steve Donovan, project manager, will oversee teams working on production, artist relations and hospitality. He arrives from Google, where he was a senior project manager. Dan Lerner, senior designer, responsible for crafting visually compelling projects for DWP. His past work as an illustrator and graphic designer includes many a poster and album cover. Ryan Brady, accounting manager, is tasked with streamlining the finance team at DWP. He has over seven years of experience, including at Live Nation. Tanvi Varma, staff accountant in DWP’s accounts receivable/payable desk. She arrives from Wasserman Media Group, where she worked in the sports division.
Secret City Records, the Montreal-based label home of Patrick Watson and The Barr Brothers, among others, elevated Magali Ould to the newly created role of general manager. Ould is tasked with managing the indie label’s day-to-day operations, reporting directly to company president and CEO Justin West. She has been a key member of the label for 12-plus years in communications and project management roles, including director of marketing. Ould has also been key in pushing Secret City’s expansion into Francophone music, working with Daniel Bélanger, Antoine Corriveau and others. “Secret City’s tremendous growth, as well as the accelerated pace of the changing market, both bring new challenges and opportunities, and drive the need for additional management infrastructure to ensure the relevant parts of the organization continue to function at the highest level,” said West.
Music financing company beatBread hired Spencer LeBoff to spearhead a new division that offers an expanded offering of highly customizable publishing advances for songwriters. His title at beatBread, which offers advances as little as $1,000 up to $3 million, is general manager of publishing. LeBoff arrives from BMG Music Publishing and previously spent time in A&R at Warner Music, where he worked with artists including Dua Lipa and Adam Lambert. “We’ve seen significant success building partnerships on the artist side since we launched in 2020, and it’s already clear that there is real demand from songwriters for our offering,” said founder and CEO Peter Sinclair. “Spencer is an outstanding leader, and we’re excited about where this business will go, and there is much more to come.”
Musicians On Call announced four new hires at the non profit, which brings live music to hospitals: Jenny Methling as senior director of strategic partnerships; Cindy Gonzalez and Simba Woodard as program coordinators; and Lia Okenkova as a grants coordinator. “This is an exciting time for Musicians On Call as we welcome new team members whose creativity and passion will help take our mission to new heights.” said Musicians On Call president & CEO Pete Griffin.
Talent agency Wasserman Music welcomed four new executives to its ranks. They are: Brad Goodman, LA-based senior vice president. He brings decades of experience and several clients — Melissa Etheridge, “Weird Al” and Ziggy Marley — from his time at WME. Sam Bartlett, vp of casinos and performing arts centers. The CAA and ICM veteran oversees the company’s roster when booking for casinos and other venues in the U.S and Canada. Taryn Haight, LA-based vp of strategy, electronic music. This new role looks for brand-building and non-touring opportunities for WM’s roster of dance artists. Guy Mason, London-based legal counsel. Joining from VCCP Group, Mason will support Wasserman’s European business affairs team. “Since the launch of Wasserman Music in 2021, we have always put a premium on our culture and on super-serving the artists we have the honor to represent around the world,” said Wasserman Music evp & managing executive Lee Anderson.
The Chamber Group promoted Shannon Atran to director of public relations at the boutique firm. In her new role, Atran will oversee PR campaigns and overall messaging — including in crisis situations — for a wide swath of TCG’s music clients, including Lil Wayne, Mass Appeal and Big Sean, among others. Atran joined TCG in 2019 following a four year stint at MWWPR. She is New York based and reports directly to Chris Chambers, TCG’s principal and founder. “Her work and attention to detail has earned her spot as a senior member of the team at the company and I look forward to seeing the direction her career takes from here,” says Chambers.
Outback Presents promoted Taylor Freeman to senior booking manager at the independent live events promoter. The Nashville-based Freeman joined Outback Presents four years ago and has zeroed in on comedy tours, primarily, including Taylor Tomlinson, Leanne Morgan and Dusty Slay. He began his career with a four-year tenure at WME, where h honed his craft in the music department. You can hit up Freeman at taylor.freeman@outbackpresents.com.
Nashville Notes: Republic Live hired Anne Stirk as director of marketing and brand strategy, where her duties include the Boots and Hearts Music Festival. She arrives from Spotify, where she was an artist and label marketing specialist … Bob Squance joined music publisher Lady Luck Songs as creative director. He arrives from Round Hill Music, where he served as senior director of A&R … PLA Media added senior social media and marketing consultant Pip Wynans, who was most recently a Crowd Surf digital marketing manager … The Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum hired Caroline Mullins as director of marketing. Prior to joining the museum, Mullins held positions at Lipscomb University and the Tennessee Performing Arts Center.
Last Week’s Turntable: Guitar Center CEO Axed?
Hipgnosis Song Management (HSM) has announced that Daniel Pounder will become the company’s next chief financial officer, replacing Chris Helm by the end of this year. HSM has also created a new position of general counsel, tapping Jonathan Baker for the job. Both join from BMG.
The news arrives after a number of personnel changes to the company in recent weeks, including Hipgnosis Songs Fund board chair, Andrew Sutch, and two other board members who either resigned or failed to win re-election to their seats.
Hipgnosis — which owns rights to songs by Journey, Bruno Mars, Justin Bieber, Rihanna, and many more — is comprised of three branches: Hipgnosis Song Management, Hipgnosis Songs Capital and Hipgnosis Songs Fund. The latter of the three has been mired in controversy in recent weeks after it was announced that the London-listed trust would not pay its investors a dividend because of new, lower projections for revenue.
During a shareholder continuation vote on Oct. 26, where investors were asked to vote on whether they wanted to keep the investment trust going or liquidate the fund, selling $440 million worth of catalogs to the private side of the company — Hipgnosis Songs Capital — which is backed by Blackstone, more than 80% of investors voted in favor of the board drawing up “proposals for the reconstruction, reorganization or winding-up of the company to shareholders for their approval within six months,” the board said in a regulatory filing. “These proposals may or may not involve … liquidating all or part of the company’s existing portfolio of investments.”
In his role as CFO, Pounder will oversee the finances and investment functions of all three. He has over two decades of experience in music finance and accounting, including senior roles at BMG, Viacom, Famous Music and Sony Music Publishing. He completed his accountancy training with Deloitte and was admitted into the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales in 2003. By 2013, he was admitted as a fellow.
Current CFO, Chris Helm, will pass the responsibilities to Pounder over the next month and a half. According to a press release, the two will be “working closely” together to do a complete hand over until then. Helm will then be leaving to “launch a new business of his own early next year.”
Baker will oversee the legal affairs of the company’s catalog acquisition and day-to-day legal and business affairs for Hipgnosis. He will coordinate with the company’s outside counsel, including Bill Leibowitz, and will hold the responsibility for governance and compliance matters for the company and the fund’s clients.
Previous to this, Baker has 20 years of legal experience. He joins from BMG, where he has been general counsel in the U.K. and evp legal and business affairs international since 2012. Prior to that role, he worked at Simkins, a media and entertainment law firm.
Merck Mercuriadis, CEO and founder of Hipgnosis Song Management, says of the appointments: “It is always a priority for me to continually strengthen our executive leadership team to ensure we have the best institutional investment, finance and music capabilities and experience to deliver the next stage of development for Hipgnosis and our funds. This was the case starting with the appointment of Ben Katovsky as president and Chief Operating Officer one year ago and we’re delighted to welcome Dan and Jon to round out this process, particularly as this group of leaders have a proven successful chemistry of working together.
He adds, “Dan’s extensive experience and expertise in global music finance, ability to leverage data and technology and proven track record in supporting and enabling growing businesses will be of significant value to HSM and our fund clients as we work to further institutionalize the reporting and rigor of the song asset class. Likewise, Jon’s experience and expertise in global music legal affairs will support our funds while allowing us to prioritize responsible governane and compliance for Hipgnosis.”
Releases by Travis Scott, SZA, Harry Styles and Luke Combs, along with continued paid subscription growth, helped Sony Music Entertainment revenues hit a record 408 billion yen ($2.83 billion at the quarter’s average exchange rate) in its fiscal second quarter ended Sept. 30, up 13.7% from the prior-year period, parent company Sony Corp. announced Thursday.
The company’s previous high for quarterly revenue was 363.7 billion yen ($2.57 billion) in the third quarter of fiscal 2022 (the quarter ended Dec. 31, 2022).
Adjusted operating income grew 10.9% to 97 billion ($672 million). Adjusted OI excludes the impact of a $41.2 million one-time benefit recognized in the prior-year quarter related to settlements of copyright infringement lawsuits. The appreciation of the yen contributed some of the revenue growth in the quarter. Of the 49.4 billion yen ($342 million) revenue increase, foreign exchange accounted for a 12.7 billion yen ($88 million) gain — about a quarter of the improvement.
Recorded music revenues grew 13.3% to 253.8 billion yen ($1.76 billion) on the strength of subscription streaming services such as Spotify, Apple Music and YouTube Music. Streaming revenue grew 14.4% to 173.9 billion yen ($1.2 billion), accounting for 69% of recorded music revenues. Other revenues, which encompass merchandise, licensing and live performances, jumped 51.6% to 50.9 billion yen ($352 million). Physical revenues dropped 14.4% to 20.8 billion yen and download sales fell 42.2% to 8.2 billion yen ($57 million), although the two categories combined accounted for only 11.4% of recorded music sales.
Miley Cyrus’s Endless Summer Vacation, Beyoncé’s Renaissance, Lil Durk’s Almost Healed, Doja Cat’s Scarlet and Luke Comb’s This One’s For You were also among Sony Music’s top ten recorded music releases ranked by revenue. In Japan, Sony Music Entertainment’s top title was Social Path, a Japanese-language EP by K-pop group Stray Kids released with JYP Entertainment. Social Path hit No. 1 on the Billboard Japan Hot Albums chart for two weeks in September.
In the music publishing division, a 14.8% increase in streaming revenue helped total publishing revenue increase 12.6% to 82.7 billion yen ($573 million). Other publishing revenue, which includes mechanical, performance royalties and synch licensing, grew 9.6% to 34.3 billion yen ($237 million).
The visual media and platform division rose 5.7% to 62.9 billion yen ($436 million) and accounted for 15.7% of Sony Music’s total revenue. The division includes mobile games, software for PCs and game consoles, and sales related to software development contracts.
Sony Music increased its full-year guidance for revenue by 5%, or 70 billion yen ($485 million), and adjusted operating income before depreciation and amortization by 4%, or 15 billion yen ($104 million). The upward revisions were due to the impact of foreign exchange, increased streaming revenues in the music publishing division and higher mobile game sales in the visual media and platform division.
Financial metrics for Sony Music’s second fiscal quarter ended Sept. 30, 2023:
Revenue of 408.7 billion yen ($2.83 billion), up 13.7% year over year.
Adjusted operating income of 97 billion yen ($672 million), up 10.9% year over year.
Recorded music revenue of 253.7 billion yen ($1.76 billion), up 13.3% year over year.
Music publishing revenues of 82.7 billion yen ($573 million), up 12.6% year over year.
Visual media and platform revenue of 62.9 billion yen ($436 million), up 5.7% year over year.
Oscar- and Grammy-winning composer-producer-musician A.R. Rahman has signed with WME, the agency tells Billboard.
Rahman’s work spans more than 160 film soundtracks and albums in more than half a dozen languages. His music has been featured in movies including Slumdog Millionaire, 127 Hours, Roja, Bombay, Dil Se, Taal, Lagaan, Vandemataram, Jodhaa Akbar and Ponniyin Selvan (I & II). Over the course of his career, he has collaborated with artists including U2, Mick Jagger, Coldplay, Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan, Michael Jackson, Michael Bolton, M.I.A., Vanessa Mae, the Pussycat Dolls, Sarah Brightman, Dido, Hossam Ramzy, Hans Zimmer and Akon. His band also recently enjoyed two sold-out tours: one in the United States in 2022, and the other in Europe this year.
For Slumdog Millionaire alone, Rahman won two Oscars, two Grammys, a Golden Globe and a BAFTA, among other awards.
Rahman’s orchestral compositions have been performed by the London Philharmonic Orchestra, the Los Angeles Philharmonic Orchestra, the Babelsberg Film Orchestra and the Birmingham Symphony Orchestra. In 2017, he was commissioned by the Seattle Symphony to create “The Flying Lotus,” his first composition solely for orchestra.
In addition to music, last year, Rahman directed India’s first-ever virtual reality movie, Le Music, and co-wrote and produced the 2019 film 99 Songs, which premiered at the Busan International Film Festival.
Rahman also works to inspire and nurture new talent via initiatives including the all-women Firdaus Orchestra — supported by United Arab Emirates Excellency Reem Al Hashimy — and the A. R. Rahman Foundation, which is dedicated to providing underprivileged children with music education. The foundation currently funds the KM Music Conservatory and its youth symphony, Sunshine Orchestra.
MGMT signed with Mom + Pop Music, the duo’s new label after a long run with Columbia Records. Mom + Pop will release the band’s fifth studio album, Loss of Life, on Feb. 23. The album is preceded by first single, “Mother Nature,” which is out now. Loss of Life will also include the track “Dancing in Babylon” featuring Christine and the Queens, marking the first-ever feature on an MGMT album. The new LP, the duo’s first since 2018’s Little Dark Age, was produced by Patrick Wimberly and mixed by Dave Fridmann.
New Zealand-Australian singer-songwriter-producer Jordan Rakei signed a long-term global record deal with Decca and Verve Forecast, which just released his latest single, “Flowers.” The Grammy-nominated artist has released a total of four studio albums; he was previously signed to Ninja Tune.
Texas rapper BigXthaPlug signed with Solid Foundation Management, making him the first artist outside of Quality Control Music to join the firm’s roster. Solid Foundation partner Brandon Farmer will co-manage the rapper alongside his current manager, Kyle Wilson. “Solid Foundation is open for business,” said Farmer in a statement on the signing. “There was a previous perception that Solid Foundation Management was exclusive to QC artists, but that’s no longer the case. We are here to work with anyone who is a good fit and is interested in our services.”
Chinese pop star Eason Chan renewed his contract with Universal Music Greater China. The announcement followed the release of Chan’s first studio album in five years, CHIN UP!, on Oct. 27. He has been with Universal Music Group for more than 19 years, first signing to Universal Music Hong Kong’s CinePoly label; he has since released a total of 22 albums and EPs. Chan is managed by Lisa Kan.
K-pop group KARD signed with UTA for representation in North America, South America, the United Kingdom and Europe. The group released its debut project in 2016. Its first mini-album, Hola Hola, hit the music charts in 32 countries only three hours after its release, according to a press release.
Austin Williams, known for his breakthrough song “Wanna Be Saved,” partnered with CAA for booking representation. The Nashville native signed to Missi Gallimore and Jim Wilkes’ T.R.U.T.H. Management Projects/Promotion and indie label Truth or Dare Records earlier this year. He also issued his debut EP, Wanna Be Saved, in September. – Jessica Nicholson
UMG Nashville signed Fort Worth, Texas native and singer-songwriter Louie Thesinger. “Having witnessed Louie’s magnetic charisma translate on stages across this country and watch the rabid fan base he is building, I know that Louie is going to widen the country music audience,” UMG Nashville chair/CEO Cindy Mabe said in a statement. “I am so inspired by Louie’s energy, purpose, and intention to expand the sound of country music through his own personal story and his songs. I am so proud to bring Louie into the Universal Music Group Nashville family!”
L.A.-based indie-pop artist Kacy Hill signed with Nettwerk, which released her new single, “No One,” on Friday (Nov. 3). Hill is managed by Michael Kadziulis of YMU Group; her booking agent is Spencer Pinson at Arrival Artists.
Increasing competition from other international markets is placing the United Kingdom’s long-held success as one of the world’s biggest exporters of music under threat, warns a new report from umbrella trade organization UK Music.
In 2022, music exports contributed 4 billion pounds ($4.9 billion) to Britain’s economy, according to the organization’s annual This Is Music study, which measures the economic impact of the U.K. music industry across live, record sales, publishing, merch and public performance revenue.
That figure is a 60% rise on 2021’s export total of 2.5 billion pounds ($3 billion at today’s currency rates) by Billboard’s calculations, although UK Music says that changes in the way that it collates data means that direct comparisons with previous years are not an accurate measure of growth.
Overall, the U.K. music industry contributed 6.7 billion pounds ($8.2 billion) to the country’s economy in 2022, up from 4 billion pounds in 2021, based upon the gross value estimates of money generated through music sales, concerts, recording studios, touring and music tourism — roughly equivalent to pre-tax profits and salaries.
According to figures released earlier this year by U.K. labels trade body BPI, the global success of Harry Styles, Glass Animals and Ed Sheeran helped British music exports climb to a record high of 709 million pounds ($910 million) in 2022 — the highest annual total since BPI began analyzing labels’ overseas income in 2000.
Whereas BPI’s numbers are based purely upon label trade revenue, UK Music’s export figures comprise all income generated overseas by British music companies and creators, including recorded music, publishing, international touring by homegrown artists and foreign visitors attending U.K. gigs and festivals (so-called music tourism).
UK Music reports that over 37 million people attended live concerts and festivals in the country in 2022, while the total number of people working in the British music industry last year rose to 210,000, up from 145,000 in 2021 when the coronavirus pandemic was still affecting the sector. In 2019, there were 197,000 people employed across the U.K. music business, states the This Is Music report.
Meanwhile, nontraditional revenue generated by audio-visual projects, such as concert films and biopics, as well as income from music-related TV productions and deals with hardware manufacturers, were up 96% year on year, reports UK Music, which declined to provide financial figures, but said it was an example of a small-but-growing income stream as the industry diversifies.
UK Music interim chief executive Tom Kiehl says the sector’s return to growth after the downturn brought on by the pandemic is welcome news, but cautioned that more support is needed from government if the United Kingdom is to maintain its longstanding status as the world’s second-biggest exporter of music, behind the United States.
“The U.K.’s competitors are increasingly well funded and can often count on far more support from their governments,” says Kiehl. He identified South Korea, Australia and Canada as three rival markets where national governments have invested heavily in music and cultural export offices to help grow their overseas markets.
In response, UK Music is calling upon British policymakers to implement a number of measures to boost growth, including tax credits for music businesses and securing a post-Brexit cultural touring agreement with the European Union.
“Otherwise,” warns Kiehl, “we risk the U.K. being left behind in the global music race.”
The United Kingdom is the world’s third-biggest recorded-music market behind the United States and Japan, with sales of just over $1.8 billion in trade value, according to IFPI’s 2022 Global Music Report.