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Neil Young is bringing his music back to Spotify more than two years after requesting its removal from the platform, the singer-songwriter announced Tuesday (March 12).
In January 2022, Young published an open letter asking Spotify to pull down his catalog, citing what he called the spread of vaccine misinformation on the wildly popular Joe Rogan Experience podcast, which was then hosted exclusively on the streaming platform. Several other artists, including Joni Mitchell, Indie.Arie and Young’s Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young bandmates David Crosby, Stephen Stills and Graham Nash, subsequently followed suit, though CSN/CSN&Y and Arie’s music have since been restored to the service; Mitchell’s catalog remains absent.
In a new post on his Neil Young Archives website, the legendary artist said the end of Spotify’s exclusive deal with Rogan led to his decision to restore his music to the service. “My decision comes as music services Apple and Amazon have started serving the same disinformation podcast features I had opposed at Spotify,” the post reads – a clear reference to the Joe Rogan Experience, though Young never mentions it by name.
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“I cannot just leave Apple and Amazon, like I did Spotify, because my music would have very little streaming outlet to music lovers at all, so I have returned to Spotify, in sincere hopes that Spotify sound quality will improve and people will be able to hear and feel all the music as we made it,” Young continued, before shouting out Qobuz and Tidal, where his catalog also lives, as “High res” streaming options.
Young concludes his post by stating his hope that Spotify “will turn to Hi Res as the answer and serve all the music to everyone. Spotify, you can do it! Really be #1 in all ways. You have the music and listeners!!!! Start with a limited Hi res tier and build from there!”
Spotify announced plans to roll out a HiFi tier in February 2021, though those plans have yet to come to fruition. In June 2023, Bloomberg reported the streaming giant would finally launch the product later in the year, but the company declined comment when reached by Billboard – and the calendar rolled over without the tier materializing.
Young has long been an advocate of high-resolution audio, even launching his own (now-defunct) high-res audio download platform, Pono, in 2015 before shuttering it two years later.
In September, Billboard estimated that the absence of Young’s catalog on Spotify had cost him roughly $300,000 in lost recorded music and publishing royalties to that point.
At press time, Young’s music catalog had yet to be restored to Spotify, which did not immediately respond to Billboard‘s request for comment.
Music monitoring company MonitorLATINO has expanded its services to Spain, giving the music community in the country “access to a platform with advice, data and accurate song playback information on radio and digital platforms,” according to a press release. Founded more than 20 years ago in the United States, the reputable music industry firm — […]
Drake is pushing to be dismissed from the sprawling litigation over the 2021 disaster at Travis Scott‘s Astroworld festival, arguing that he had nothing to do with planning the deadly event and can’t be sued for simply showing up for a brief guest appearance.
More than 2,500 people have sued over the 2021 Astroworld event during which a crowd of fans rushed toward the stage during Scott’s Nov. 5 performance, leaving 10 dead and hundreds injured. Though the lawsuits mainly target Scott, Live Nation and other organizers, Drake was also named as a defendant in some cases because he appeared on stage during Scott’s deadly performance.
But in a motion filed Friday (Mar. 8) in Houston court, attorneys for Drake (real name Aubrey Drake Graham) argued that the star should not be involved in the case at all. They said he had no involvement in Astroworld beyond being asked to take the stage — and that festival organizers had “confirmed under oath that Mr. Graham was not involved in any planning.”
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They also say that Drake was unaware of any safety problems before he took the stage. “Mr. Graham did not receive any security briefings, was not informed of any crowd control issues, injuries or deaths in the crowd, or any stop show orders at any time either before or during his 14-minute performance.”
Instead, they say that Drake merely “arrived at the venue at approximately 7:30 PM and remained largely secluded backstage in a trailer until approximately 9:54 PM,” at which time he was “informed to take the stage.” The star then “immediately took the stage as requested, performed for approximately 14 minutes, and then exited the stage at 10:08 PM.”
The lawsuits over Astroworld claim that organizers were legally negligent in how they planned and conducted the event, including by failing to provide adequate security and emergency support. The cases, combined into one single large action in Houston, are seeking billions in potential damages. Much of the last two years has been spent in discovery, as the two sides exchange information and take depositions of key figures.
In Friday’s motion, Drake’s lawyers argued that the discovery process had resulted in “hundreds of hours” of depositions and “hundreds of thousands of pages of documents,” but that none of it had established that Drake could be held liable for negligence.
“Plaintiffs produce no evidence that Mr. Graham actually knew of any risk in the Festival site design and layout, competence or adequacy of Festival staffing and personnel, or emergency procedures such as show stop authority,” his lawyers wrote.
The alleged victims, represented by an array of plaintiffs law firms, will have a chance to respond to Drake’s motion in the weeks ahead.
A dozen years after Spotify launched in the United States and 18 years into the existence of YouTube, streaming music is so ingrained in Americans’ behavior that 91% of the U.S. internet population used a music streaming service in the last year, according to the 22nd edition of MusicWatch’s U.S. Annual Music Study.
According to the report, released Monday (Mar. 11), the number of U.S. subscribers to music services such as Spotify, Apple Music and Amazon Music Unlimited reached 109 million in 2023 — meaning over half of U.S. internet users aged 13 and over now pay for a music streaming service. That number increases to 136 million if SiriusXM and Amazon Prime Music are included. SiriusXM is predominantly a satellite radio service that also has an internet product. Amazon Prime provides music streaming to customers who sign up for Prime for free shipping and other perks.
In 2012, just 56% of Americans used any type of music streaming service. That number jumped to 69% in 2014 and surpassed the 80% mark in 2018. But 2023 was the first time music streamers surpassed 90% of the internet population. MusicWatch counts music streaming on ad-supported audio platforms such as Spotify and Pandora, paid services such as Apple Music, and video services such as YouTube. For the sake of this survey, short-form video platforms such as TikTok and Instagram Reels are not considered to be music streaming platforms.
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The number of people who stream music has grown even faster than the proportion of the population that does so. In 2012, the U.S. internet population stood at roughly 125 million. By 2023, it had grown by nearly 60 million to 193 million. The way people access the internet has changed over that period. In the early days of the internet, people mostly had a dial-up home internet connection, but over time, home internet access improved while mobile internet usage exploded.
The prevalence of mobile internet has played an important role in music streaming adoption. Not long ago, MusicWatch principal Russ Crupnick noticed a change in the reasons why people paid for subscription services. Early subscription adopters were heavy users who found value in features such as playlists, connecting to their social networks and recommendations. Then, about five years ago, Crupnick found new subscribers’ reasons for paying a monthly fee started to change.
More recent adopters of paid music streaming services care more about access, not features, says Crupnick. As more people had smart speakers, bluetooth headphones and in-dash entertainment systems in their cars, it was important for services to offer a seamless listening experience as they moved from place to place. “It just works,” he says of subscribers’ rationale for paying. “It works everywhere that I want and works on all of my devices.”
Per-capita spending on recorded music increased 7% from 2022 as music subscriptions, CDs and vinyl all saw double-digit gains. That improvement came from both organic growth and price inflation, says Crupnick. Music subscription services pushed through a string of price increases after keeping their prices mostly untouched for many years — Apple Music in Oct. 2022, Spotify in July, YouTube Music also in July and Amazon Music in August.
Dear Industry Leaders,
Last year, the Black Music Action Coalition and the Academy of Country Music joined together to launch OnRamp, a new initiative designed to create economic empowerment and access to the music industry for young Black creatives and industry executives, giving them a year of guaranteed income and a menu of mentorship services from music industry leaders.
Following the success of the OnRamp program, the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame has united with the BMAC to continue this important work and support both young female and Black creatives and industry professionals in search of careers as musicians, songwriters, producers and executives.The program assists young creatives with basic needs such as rent, utilities and food, as well as opens the door for previously challenging activities such as studio time, travel for shows or networking opportunities, marketing and even legal services. It also provides mentorship focused on improving inclusivity and equity within music and empowering the next generation of leaders in the early stages of their careers by granting access to professional development opportunities, mentorship and industry exposure. The BMAC will facilitate the program as well as document and track the artists’ and young professionals’ journeys as they share their stories of success and triumph from the year of empowerment.
After reviewing applications in 2023, the BMAC has selected 20 female and Black emerging creatives for the program. We are currently fundraising in order to begin the program during Black Music Month in June.
As we are all very aware of the incredible contributions female and Black creatives continue to make to the growth of our industry, we see the BMAC Music Maker Guaranteed Income and Mentorship Program as a valuable long-term partner that will provide a structured system that will open doors and train the next generation of creatives and executives in the music industry. We ask that you become an inaugural partner with us on this important initiative so that we can create the true scale needed to open the doors to the future creators and leaders in our industry.
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As part of Grammy Week 2024, BMAC co-founder and president/CEO Willie “Prophet” Stiggers hosted John Sykes, chairman of the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame Foundation; Michael Tubbs, founder of Mayors for a Guaranteed Income; Maura Cuffie-Peterson, director of strategic initiatives for guaranteed income for Creatives Rebuild New York; and Billboard editorial director Hannah Karp for an economic justice summit at UTA to galvanize the music industry to take action.
We now look to our industry and partners to donate to this initiative. We would be so grateful for your support.
WILLIE “PROPHET” STIGGERS, Co-founder and president/CEO Black Music Action Coalition
HANNAH KARP, Editorial director Billboard
JOHN SYKES, Chairman Rock & Roll Hall of Fame Foundation
IRVING AZOFF, Chairman/CEO The Azoff Company
ROB LIGHT, Managing partner/ head of worldwide music CAA
To support this program, please visit bmacoalition.org/halloffame.
This story originally appeared in the March 9, 2024, issue of Billboard.
Foxwoods Resort Casino in Mashantucket, Conn., has signed a new partnership with Danny Wimmer Presents (DWP) to book the property’s Premier Theater. “The team at DWP is second to none when it comes to understanding the nuances of booking entertainment for casinos, and we are very excited to work with this dedicated team,” said Christian […]
Spain‘s recorded music industry enjoyed revenue of nearly 520 million euros ($567 million) in 2023, marking the third consecutive year of double-digit growth. The industry witnessed a notable 12.33% increase from the previous year, with music sales contributing 465 million euros ($507 million), according to the latest report from PROMUSICAE, an association representing over 95% of the Spanish recording sector.
The growth is attributed to a robust digital market, which now accounts for 86% of music consumption in Spain, with streaming services leading the charge. Remarkably, nearly 99% of digital sales, amounting to 398.6 million euros ($435 million), came from streaming, with audio platforms generating 330 million euros ($360 million) and video accounting for the remainder. This trend underscores the continuing shift towards digital consumption, with physical sales also seeing an uptick, particularly in the vinyl segment, which experienced a 19% revenue increase and commanded over 56% of the physical market’s turnover.
The report highlights the increasing embrace of premium subscription models, with over 6 million Spaniards opting for such services in 2023, a 15% jump from the previous year. This reflects a growing willingness among consumers to pay for enhanced music experiences, although Spain still lags behind other markets in terms of premium subscriber shares.
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PROMUSICAE’s president, Antonio Guisasola, reflected positively on the industry’s achievements in 2023, underscoring the pivotal role of the streaming model in providing consumers access to a vast array of recorded music at a modest price. He credited this success to the collective talent of artists and the concerted efforts and investments of the recording industry. “We make a very positive assessment of the 2023 year’s closure, with big hopes in the reasonable advance of the streaming model that brings to the consumer at a modest price all recorded music created thanks to the sum of artists’ talent and the work, effort, and investment of all the recording industry of our country,” he said in a press release. However, he acknowledged the industry’s ongoing journey to recover and reach the pre-piracy-crisis levels of 2001 when revenue was 37% higher than it was last year.
Guisasola advocates for comprehensive support from the public sector and continued investment in artist development to reach and surpass the revenue levels seen before the piracy crisis, with the aim of Spanish music having a stronger presence on the international stage. “These aids, combined with the recording industry’s enormous commitment — investing over 30% of its benefits in marketing and developing its artists, and with worldwide investments exceeding 7.1 billion dollars as per IFPI details, spanning all facets of phonographic production and the commercialization and promotion of works — shall allow us to take the definite plunge and overcome,” said Guisasola. He claims this will allow the Spanish recording industry to surpass all-time revenue highs, as has been achieved in other countries.
Top 10 albums in Spain by revenue in 2023:
Quevedo, Donde Quiero Estar
Karol G, Mañana Será Bonito
Bad Bunny, Un Verano Sin Ti
Bad Bunny, Nadie Sabe Lo Que Va a Pasar Mañana
Aitana, Alpha
C. Tangana, El Madrileño
Rauw Alejandro, Saturno
Taylor Swift, 1989 (Taylor’s Version)
Feid, Feliz Cumpleaños Ferxxo Te Pirateamos el Álbum
Mora, Paraiso
Top 10 songs in Spain by revenue in 2023:
Bizarrap x Shakira, “Shakira: BZRP Music Sessions, Vol. 53”
Marshmello x Manuel Turizo, “El Merengue”
Vicco, “Nochenterai”
Manuel Turizo, “La Bachata”
Yandel x Feid, “Yandel 150”
Karol G x Shakira, “TQG”
Quevedo x Myke Towers, “Playa Del Inglés”
Quevedo, “Columbia”
Rosalía x Rauw Alejandro, “Beso”
Myke Towers, “Lala”
Larry Jackson‘s year-old media company gamma announced a global partnership with independent label Three Six Zero Recordings on Tuesday (March 12). Under this new agreement, gamma will handle the label’s music distribution, marketing and multimedia production needs. Explore Explore See latest videos, charts and news See latest videos, charts and news The companies also announced […]
This is The Legal Beat, a weekly newsletter about music law from Billboard Pro, offering you a one-stop cheat sheet of big new cases, important rulings and all the fun stuff in between.
This week: A stunning early end to the criminal trial over Eagles frontman Don Henley’s allegedly stolen notes; a copyright case filed by Bad Bunny against fan who posted concert footage to YouTube; Linkin Park hits back at a lawsuit filed by a man briefly in the band; and much more.
THE BIG STORY: The Curious Case of Don Henley’s Stolen Notes
Weeks into a blockbuster trial over accusations that three men conspired to sell stolen pages of notes created by Eagles frontman Don Henley while writing “Hotel California,” Manhattan prosecutors dropped a bombshell last week: Maybe the stolen notes had … never been stolen in the first place?
Of course, that had been the primary refrain of the defendants all along. Glenn Horowitz, a rare books dealer, Craig Inciardi, a former curator at the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, and Edward Kosinski, a memorabilia auctioneer, argued from the start that the notes had simply been given to a journalist in the 1970s as he was writing a book about the Eagles. At the start of the trial last month, one of their lawyers said prosecutors had “distorted the history” to charge three “innocent men” and would be “apologizing at the end of this case.”
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At a stunning hearing on Wednesday — midway through the trial, after Henley and longtime manager Irving Azoff had already testified — the district attorney’s office didn’t quite apologize, but did alert the judge that it would drop the charges against the three men. What sparked the sudden reversal? A trove of new evidence that Henley had previously withheld under attorney-client privilege, some of which dealt directly with the core question about whether the notes had been stolen.
The judge was none too pleased, saying that Henley and Azoff had chosen to “obfuscate and hide information that they believed would be damaging to their position that the lyric sheets were stolen.” He also chided prosecutors for having been “manipulated” into bringing the charges, though he praised them for “eating a slice of humble pie” once new evidence had come to light.
Following the stunning collapse of the case and the judge’s statements, Henley’s attorney responded on his behalf, saying the rock star been “victimized by this unjust outcome” and would “pursue all his rights in the civil courts.” A spokesman for Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg declined to comment.
For all the details, go read our full story — featuring the backstory of the case, all the key quotes from the judge, and what defense attorneys had to say about the sudden dismissal.
Other top stories this week…
TWITTER MUSIC CASE SURVIVES – A federal judge ruled that music publishers could move forward with a copyright lawsuit filed against X Corp. over allegations of widespread copyright infringement on the social media platform formerly known as Twitter. The judge dismissed major portions of the case, but allowed some of lawsuit’s core allegations — that X essentially enabled illegal behavior by its users by refusing to crack down on them — to move ahead.
SONY RESPONDS TO BIAS SUIT – Sony Music hit back hard at a lawsuit filed by a former assistant to Columbia Records chief executive Ron Perry over allegations that the company discriminated against white job applicants, arguing that the claims were “contradictory and false” and merely designed to “harass her former employer.” The new case came amid increased scrutiny of race-conscious corporate diversity practices in the wake of a U.S. Supreme Court ruling that outlawed so-called affirmative action in college admissions.
LIZZO CASE ON ICE FOR NOW – The bombshell sexual harassment lawsuit filed against Lizzo by three of her former backup dancers is going to be on pause for the immediate future, after a Los Angeles judge halted all proceedings while the star appeals a recent ruling. Lizzo is challenging a decision earlier this year that refused to dismiss the case under California’s anti-SLAPP law.
BAD BUNNY’S CONCERT CASE – The superstar Puerto Rican rapper filed a lawsuit against a concertgoer who posted videos from a recent show to YouTube, arguing that he was essentially forced to sue after the alleged bootlegger demanded that YouTube keep the clips online. The case highlights the takedown process under the Digital Millenium Copyright Act, which allows an accused infringer to get their content reposted if they so choose – but also exposes them to a lawsuit like the one Bad Bunny filed this week.
IS YOUTUBE ‘UNION-BUSTING’? – There’s a dispute brewing over the sudden dismissal earlier this month of more than three dozen YouTube Music contract workers, who had voted last year to unionize. The staffers, who oversaw content for the music-streaming service’s 80 million subscribers, have called the move “union-busting” and illegal retaliation against their right to collectively bargain. But Google and subcontractor Cognizant say that “nobody was laid off” and that simply the contract with YouTube had “expired at its natural end date.”
HAGAR’S CANTINA CLASH – Sammy Hagar won a preliminary injunction barring an allegedly unauthorized Hollywood location of his Cabo Wabo Cantina from continuing to use the chain’s name and branding while their dispute plays out in court. The judge barred the alleged rogue franchisee from “representing to the public, in any way, that the restaurant is an authorized Cabo Wabo Cantina restaurant.”
TIME IS A VALUABLE THING – Linkin Park asked a federal judge to end a lawsuit that accuses the band of refusing to pay royalties to an ex-bassist who briefly played with the band in the late 1990s, arguing that the lawsuit is “rife with defects.” Chief among them? That such allegations have been repudiated for “over two decades” and the statute of limitations on it has thus “long since passed.”
As the broader restructuring of the Universal Music Group’s label operations continues on the West Coast with the newly-formed Interscope Capitol Labels Group, the East Coast labels have now also begun to unveil their new structure under chairman/CEO Monte Lipman, with a new name of its own: Republic Corps.
The new structure and designation is set to be the umbrella “central operational hub” for each of the labels underneath it, with former Republic Records co-president Jim Roppo serving as president and COO of the new overarching group, reporting to Monte Lipman and Avery Lipman.
Each of the labels have individual leaders, many of whom remain in the same roles they had prior to the reorganization: Republic Records will now be led by president and chief creative officer Wendy Goldstein, formerly co-president of Republic alongside Roppo; Mercury Records will continue to be led by president Tyler Arnold and general manager Ben Adelson; Island Records will remain under the purview of co-CEOs Justin Eshak and Imran Majid; Def Jam Recordings will remain under chairman/CEO Tunji Balogun; and IMPERIAL Music/Casablanca Records will still be run by president Glenn Mendlinger. According to a release, each of the labels will maintain “full independence and autonomy” under the new structure.
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Roppo, leading the Republic Corps. teams, will work across each of the labels, with former Republic head of global commerce Kevin Lipson becoming his “chief lieutenant,” with an expanded role that will encompass revenue strategy at the group. They will lead a series of shared departments, led by executives from several different East Coast label teams.
Former Republic Records head of promotion Gary Spangler will take up the same title in the new Corps., with support from former Republic Records exec Lucas Romeo and former Island promotions head Ayelet Schiffman in support, and format leads that include former Def Jam exec Natina Nimene overseeing urban; and former Republic execs Gary Dumler overseeing pop, Davey Dee Ingenloff overseeing rhythm, Manny Simon overseeing adult and Amanda Dobbins overseeing rock.
Most recently general manager of Island Records, Mike Alexander is moving to a new role overseeing global marketing at Republic Corps, with a team consisting of Myra DeCastro (Def Jam), Steve Rowen (Island) and Zoe Briggs (Republic/Mercury). Additionally, former Republic head of media Joseph Carozza will lead media strategy for the Corps, with a team consisting of Beau Benton (Republic), Marisa Bianco (Mercury), Lauren Ceradini (Def Jam) and Lauren Schneider (Island).
On the legal side, two executives that previously worked for parent group Universal Music on behalf of all of the East Coast labels will retain their titles under the new Republic Corps. designation: Steve Gawley will remain as executive vp of business & legal affairs and business development, while Joe Schmidt retains the title of executive vp/CFO, both of whom will report directly to the Lipmans. Additionally, Republic Corps. will include teams led by Jenny Beal (Production), Brittney Ramsdell (creative synch), Meredith Oliver and Liza Corsey (A&R administration) and a data and analytics team, according to a release.
The new Republic Corps. structure comes amidst the broader reorganization of the Universal Music Group labels announced by UMG chairman/CEO Lucian Grainge on Feb. 1, which divided the labels into an East Coast-West Coast structure, with Republic Corps. comprising the East Coast division. The West Coast labels, under chairman/CEO John Janick, have been reformulated as the Interscope Capitol Labels Group, with that structure coming into focus over the past week. Both companies have been undergoing extensive layoffs as part of the reorganization, which included the combining of many labels’ promotions and publicity staffs into shared services divisions, among other moves.