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When Morgan Hayduk and Andrew Batey founded Beatdapp — a company which helps streaming services, labels, and distributors detect streaming fraud — at the end of 2018, they faced a major obstacle: The music industry was reluctant to acknowledge that streaming fraud was a problem.
“It used to be verboten to speak publicly about [it],” Hayduk told Billboard last year. “It was all behind closed doors. But I don’t think you can fix a problem until you accept its existence.”
The climate has changed dramatically recently. Last year, Universal Music Group began calling for changes to the streaming model, arguing that fraud and things like white noise and rain sounds were scooping up royalty income that should be going to actual artists. And Beatdapp announced on Friday (Jan. 19) that it’s entering into a strategic collaboration with UMG as well as partnering with SoundExchange (which collects performance royalties from digital radio stations and broadcast companies like SiriusXM) and the streaming service Napster.
“We’re at a point now where there’s a consensus that we have to address the problem” of streaming fraud, says Michael Nash, chief digital officer and executive vice president for Universal Music Group. “Beatdapp have really focused on understanding the problem and working with a number of different platforms to provide a very clear perspective about the scope of the problem. Providing that kind of leadership, driven by data analysis, has been really important.”
Hayduk defines streaming fraud as the leveraging of “bots, stolen accounts or manipulated platform features” to steal streaming income. The practice “hurts everyone who makes a living in the music industry and, left unchecked, creates this promotional race to the bottom where everyone believes they have to cheat to succeed,” he told Billboard last year.
“In an industry where it’s already hard to make something and then promote something and then get paid,” Batey added, “you should at least get paid correctly.”
As Beatdapp widens its network of partners, it gets access to more streaming data — the company was analyzing 2.2 trillion streams in 2023, up from hundreds of billions in 2022 — which in turn allows the company to improve its understanding of how fraudsters manipulate the streaming ecosystem and get better at identifying suspicious listening patterns.
“Napster provides Beatdapp with a daily feed of all usage on Napster’s services, and Beatdapp then uses its detection filters to identify likely stream manipulation activity based on certain (high) confidence levels,” explains Matthew Eccles, the streamer’s svp and general counsel. “Napster will then ensure that the streams identified by Beatdapp are removed from royalty reports for all licensors so that the market share calculations for all labels are not affected.”
Napster’s view is that it is helpful to engage a third party to detect stream manipulation because “it eliminates potential questions of bias when the results come back,” Eccles continues. “Third parties can help achieve consistency across the industry in relation to what is and what is not considered to be streaming fraud.”
Beatdapp also announced on Friday that it had raised an additional $17 million, money that will go towards hiring new data scientists and senior leadership and expanding into Europe and Asia.
“With the volume [of music on streaming services] jumping the shark over value — more than 150 million tracks and more than 100,000 uploaded every day — this has created a lot of issues,” Nash notes. “That level of volume has created a context for a lot of bad actor activity.”
Tackling these issues is complicated, but cracking down on fraud is “the least controversial item on the agenda,” Nash adds. “There aren’t a lot of advocates for fraud.”
Notorious B.I.G.’s estate has reached a settlement with the widow of late hip hop photographer Chi Modu, resolving long-running litigation over other merch bearing Modu’s famed image of the late rapper standing in front of the World Trade Center.
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Biggie’s estate sued in 2019, claiming Modu had illegally authorized the use of his 1996 photograph of the rapper (real name Christopher Wallace) on commercial products like skateboards and shower curtains. In 2022, a judge ruled that such merch likely violated the rapper’s likeness rights.
Terms of the settlement, first disclosed in a court filing on Thursday, were not made public. But the estate’s attorney, Staci Jennifer Trager of the law firm Nixon Peabody, said she and her client were “satisfied to bring this high-profile matter to an end.”
“Pictures of Christopher cannot be commercially exploited without a license from our client,” Trager said. “The settlement agreement is a testament to the dedication of our client as well as our team members in staying the course over several years.”
An attorney for Modu’s widow (the photographer himself passed away in 2021) did not immediately return a request for comment.
A longtime photographer for The Source, Modu captured images of some of hip-hop’s biggest names, including Tupac Shakur, Mary J. Blige, Mobb Deep and LL Cool J. In a 1996 cover shoot for the magazine, he snapped several images of Biggie standing in front of the Twin Towers – a year before the rapper was shot and killed, and five years before the towers were destroyed on Sept. 11, 2001.
In a 2011 interview, Modu said the shoot was partly inspired by the lyric in Biggie’s “Juicy,” in which he references the 1993 bombing of the World Trade Center with the line “‘blow up like the World Trade.’”
“When the idea came to me to represent Notorious B.I.G as the King of New York, I thought what better setting than to have two of the quintessential New York City buildings in the background,” Modu said at the time. “This image remains fresh and can help to further immortalize these icons in the hearts and minds of a generation.”
But in 2019, Biggie’s estate took Modu to court over the image. In their complaint, they argued that he had moved beyond merely selling his image – and that he was instead trying to profit by exploiting the rapper’s likeness “in complete disregard for BIG’s rights.” The estate claimed that Modu had improperly licensed the image for use on snowboards, skateboards, shower curtains, NFTs and other goods.
“Unfortunately, when an artist’s work has touched people so significantly, there are often usurpers that want to capitalize on that connection,” the rapper’s lawyers wrote. “A strong brand attracts parasites that attempt to create profits through no work of their own.”
In June 2022, the federal judge overseeing the case granted a preliminary injunction to the estate. The judge was careful to rule that the photographer’s estate could continue to sell physical and digital reprints of his image, but that other merchandise likely violated Biggie’s likeness rights.
“Plaintiff’s use of Wallace’s image to promote and sell such merchandise constitutes an exploitation of his likeness on an unrelated product for that purpose, which extends beyond control of the artistic work itself,” the judge wrote at the time.
Since that ruling, the estate’s case against Modu’s estate and others had been moving toward a trial, with proceedings set to kick off next month.
Global Music Rights, the boutique performance rights organization that represents Bruce Springsteen, Bruno Mars, Prince, Drake, Pharrell Williams, John Lennon, Eagles and others, has filed a copyright lawsuit against a Vermont-based group of radio stations that has allegedly played songs for years without a license.
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The lawsuit targeted Vermont Broadcast Associates, which operates seven radio stations serving local communities in Northern Vermont, New Hampshire and Quebec. The complaint, filed in Vermont federal court Thursday, also names Bruce James names as the owner of the company and a defendant.
GMR claims that VBA’s stations have been playing 66 songs in the GMR catalog since 2017 without a license, amounting to 1,600 violations of copyright law, even though the PRO has submitted 10 separate written licenses during that time period.
“Defendants’ infringements were neither incidental nor accidental,” the group’s lawyers write in the complaint.
After being founded by longtime music exec Irving Azoff in 2013, GMR spent years in court litigating over licensing terms with the Radio Music Licensing Committee, the group that negotiates music licensing deals for more than 10,000 member stations. The case finally settled in 2022 with a long-term licensing agreement.
In Thursday’s complaint, GMR claims that VBA is a member of the RMLC but nevertheless ignored “GMR’s communications and chose not to enter into GMR licenses, but continued playing GMR songs on its stations.”
“While we only turn to litigation as a last resort, it is long established U.S. law that GMR’s clients’ copyrighted works cannot be publicly performed without a license,” GMR’s general counsel Emio Zizza said in a statement. “All the radio stations that have entered into a GMR license and are paying their fees deserve the benefit of that license. Station groups who don’t want to pay for a GMR license are not entitled to play GMR’s immensely popular catalog of songs, depriving creators of their due.”
The GMR complaint, filed by the law firms of Lynn Lynn Blackman & Manitsky, P.C.; and O’Melveny & Myers LLP — claims that “GMR is entitled to maximum statutory damages of $150,000” if willful infringement is proven for each song played without a GMR license.
In response to a request for comment, Vermont Broadcast Associates owner Bruce James said by e-mail: “I have been working with Zachary Dekel representing GMR and believe we are licensed.” He added he has contacted Mr. Dekel on Friday morning (Jan. 19) to “resolve any issues.” According to the O’Melveny & Meyers website, Dekel is a litigation counsel with the firm.
In response to James’ comment, GMR representatives say that Dekel reached out to the VBA owner many times but a GMR license was never taken, which is why the lawsuit was filed.
The case is not the first time GMR has gone after radio stations that allegedly failed to pay. In October 2022, the group filed three similar copyright cases against radio stations in California, Connecticut, Florida, claiming each had made the “strategic decision” to simply not pay performance royalties to the group and “hoped to get away with it.”
“Defendants did not get away with it,” GMR’s attorneys wrote at the time. “Its stations have been caught red-handed violating the law.”
The Michael Jackson estate is embroiled in a lawsuit with a Las Vegas tribute act called MJ Live, which claims that the King of Pop’s attorneys have unfairly begun threatening to sue over a show that’s been performed nightly on the Strip for more than a decade.
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In a complaint filed Wednesday in Nevada federal court, the organizers of MJ Live asked a judge to rule that they could continue to stage their concerts featuring a Jackson impersonator, which are held six nights per week at the Tropicana in addition to other venues around the country.
Despite the fact that the show has allegedly been performed more than 3,600 times since 2012, MJ Live says the Jackson estate has only recently begun threatening to sue – including sending cease-and-desist letters to other venues demanding that they cancel upcoming tour dates.
A rep for the Jackson estate did not immediately return a request for comment.
Wednesday’s lawsuit is primarily what’s known as a “declaratory judgment action” – a type of case aimed at proving that you’ve done nothing wrong. In their complaint, MJ Live’s lawyers argue that the group has not infringed any trademarks held by the estate, nor has it violated his likeness rights by impersonating him.
Notably, Nevada’s state likeness laws have an unusual carveout the allows for the legal use of a celebrity’s likeness by “impersonators in live performances” – likely a nod to the long-standing and beloved tradition of Elvis Presley look-alikes in Las Vegas. Citing that statute, as well as the First Amendment’s protections for free speech, MJ Live says it has a clear legal right “to impersonate Michael Jackson” in its shows.
But the group also goes further, boldly arguing that it’s actually the Jackson estate that’s infringing intellectual property. By using the “MJ Live” name for more than a decade, MJ Live’s lawyers say the group has developed its own trademark rights to that particular name – and that the estate’s recent use of “MJ The Musical” on a Broadway show is infringing of those rights.
“Over the past eleven and one-half years … plaintiff has spent millions of dollars advertising and promoting its MJ Live show,” MJ Live’s lawyers write. “Plaintiff estimates that over 2,500,000 audience members, clapping and singing in their seats, jumping to their feet, and dancing in the aisles, have experienced the joy, excitement, and thrill of MJ Live.”
The complaint also argues that the estate’s decision to send cease-and-desist letters to block future tour dates represents “intentional and wrongful interference” in MJ Live’s business. MJ Live says the letters, allegedly sent to six different venues in total, in California, Florida, Illinois, Ohio and Wisconsin, were “intended to harm Plaintiff.”
This isn’t the first time the estate of a famed artist has tried to crack down on Vegas impersonators. Back in 2022, Authentic Brands Group – the company that owns the rights to Elvis’ likeness – sent letters to a number of Las Vegas chapels where Presley impersonators officiate weddings, demanding that they obtain licenses. At the time, ABG said it was not seeking to shut down the impersonators, but partner with them to “safeguard his legacy.”
Nuria Andreu has joined GTS and is appointed manager of Spanish singer-songwriter Aitana, Billboard can report. In her new role, as part of the GTS (Global Talent Services) team in Spain, she will be exclusively dedicated to the growth and further development of Aitana’s career, which was previously managed by Olga Palma at GTS.
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Based in Madrid, Andreu will report directly to Narcís Rebollo, president, Universal Music Iberian Peninsula.
After beginning her career in the pharmaceutical sector with experience in other fields, such as communications and strategy, Andreu founded her own marketing and production agency in 2018. In 2020, she joined Sony Music Spain as head of communications and PR and, in 2023, was appointed communication director of Rosalía’s company, Motomami S.L. Before joining Universal, she was Rosalía’s personal manager.
“I’m grateful for the opportunity to join a company like GTS and the project of an artist with Aitana’s talent and strength,” Andreu said in a statement. “Wishing to contribute and continue adding success hand in hand with the magnificent team that She already has.”
Aitana, who signed with GTS in 2018, added, “looking forward and excited to start a new stage in my career and my artistic development [and] continue growing little by little and learning about music together.”
With more than 11 million monthly listeners on Spotify, the 24-year-old artist wrapped her Alpha Tour in 2023 with a sold-out show at the Santiago Bernabeu Stadium in Madrid, which sold all tickets in a record-breaking 72 hours, becoming the first Spanish artist to do so.
“I am certain that with her experience and skills, Nuria’s incorporation to GTS will be key to Aitana’s continued success, boosting her unstoppable career development and consolidating the GTS strategy of growth and service to our artists, as a leading company in the sector,” expressed Rebollo.
Kakao Entertainment nominated two executives to serve as co-CEOs on Friday (Jan. 19): Kisu Kweon, who is currently chief operations officer, and Joseph Chang, global strategy officer.
The South Korean tech conglomerate Kakao is influential in the music industry. Its subsidiary, Kakao Entertainment, merged with Melon, the country’s top streaming platform, in 2021, and it also owns Starship Entertainment, which has developed internationally successful K-pop groups like Monsta X and Ive. But in 2023, Bae Jae-hyun, Kakao’s chief investment officer, was indicted for allegedly manipulating stock price during a corporate battle with HYBE for a controlling stake in K-pop company SM Entertainment.
In December, Kakao’s founder and chairman said the company would “reset our expansion-centered management strategy,” “focus on core businesses,” as part of an effort to “change the company culture,” according to The Korea Economic Daily.
The promotion announcement at Kakao Entertainment emphasized “the need for leadership with a new perspective.” “We feel a great responsibility as we take on leadership during these pivotal times,” Kweon and Chang said in a joint statement.
“Our priority is to contribute to and meet the expectations of society going forward,” they added. “At the same time, we are dedicated to proving Kakao Entertainment’s full potential in the global market. We are excited to accelerate the innovation of our expansive content business to grow as a truly global entertainment player.”
The announcement of the co-CEO nominees indicated that they would each have slightly different purviews. Kweon “plans to focus on stabilizing the business while emphasizing innovation,” according to the press release, while Chang — a former Sony Music executive — will prioritize “strengthening [Kakao Entertainment’s] competitiveness in IP planning, production, and distribution.”
Now that Kweon and Chang are nominated as co-CEOs, the announcement noted that they “will undergo a formal appointment process through the board of directors and general shareholders’ meetings.”
It’s time for another quick whirl around the Executive Turntable, Billboard’s comprehensive(ish) compendium of promotions, hirings, exits and firings — and all things in between — across music.
The National Association of Music Merchants (NAMM) launched a search for its next executive director of the NAMM Foundation, following a recent decision by longtime leader Mary Luehrsen to step down by Sept. 30. In addition to her director role at the foundation, Luehrsen is senior advisor for public policy at the music trade organization, which stages its 2024 event next week in Anaheim. The foundation’s key activities include school and career resource programs such as Careers In Music and GenNext, as well as Best Communities for Education, which gives props to schools for committing to music education. In her legendary and impactful 22-year run at NAMM, Luehrsen’s “visionary ideas and leadership have resulted in thousands of music educators, college students, community nonprofit music service leaders and international partners meeting, learning and networking at [the] NAMM Show,” the trade org said. She also expanded NAMM’s connection with other domestic and international music orgs and worked to shape public policy toward making music integral to education.
“Her passion, intellect, and relentlessly positive efforts have laid a strong foundation for our future success and we are so grateful she has lent us her talent, mentorship and creativity, all of which have joyfully impacted millions of next-generation music makers,” said NAMM CEO John Mlynczak.
Russell Reynolds is leading the search for Luehrsen’s replacement. All prospective candidates are invited to reach out directly to the Russell Reynolds Associates team at NAMMFoundationED@russellreynolds.com.
Meanwhile …
Sixthman has a brand-new captain. Norwegian Cruise Line tapped Jeff Cuellar to succeed Anthony Diaz atop — or should we say aboard — its floating music festival subsidiary, which is coming off its “most successful year to date.” Cuellar’s been with Sixthman since October 2021, first as vp of partnerships and later vp of events, marketing and community — all during the backdrop of the boat-rocking COVID-19 pandemic. Prior to Sixthman, he was vp of strategic partnerships at festival promoter AC Entertainment, where he worked on Bonnaroo, Forecastle, Railbird and many more. As CEO, Cuellar will keep pushing for growth and work to solidify Sixthman’s place as the entertainment cruise king. Sixthman hosted over 45,000 guests over the course of 18 cruises in 2023, including the massive EDSea electronic music festival aboard the big ol’ Norwegian Joy. This year’s dock-et includes events hosted and/or curated by Kevin Smith, Yellowcard, Sister Hazel and Joe Bonamassa, among others. “In the short time Jeff has been at Sixthman, he’s made a significant impact,” said outgoing CEO Diaz, who is staying on as an advisor until June. “He played an integral role in the success of 2023, leading the strategy and outreach to strengthen and develop new artist relationships and debut first-for-the-brand festival concepts across all genres.”
Warner Chappell Music Germany promoted Natascha Augustin to managing director, reporting to WCM co-chair and CEO Guy Moot. The move means outgoing Germany MD Lars Karlsson will now be able to solely focus on his other gig, leading WCM Scandinavia. Augustin joined WCM in mid-2010 and was most recently vp of creative and head of A&R. She also helped launch Atlantic Records Germany, where she was head of strategy, but will now focus on WCMG. “I see myself as an advocate for songwriters and artists, fighting for their rights in a rapidly changing world full of new challenges,” she said. The company noted that Augustin will spend time in all three German hubs for WCM — Berlin, Hamburg and Munich. “Germany is such an important global market, and home to some of the world’s best writers, producers and artists,” added Moot. “We’re the number one domestic publisher there thanks to the support that Natascha has given a generation of songwriters under Lars’s expert guidance.”
Staying in Deutschland, BMG promoted Johannes von Schwarzkopf to senior vp of corporate development — marking a title fist-bump in a department he has led since its formation last year. Von Schwarzkopf joined BMG in 2021 as senior director of board projects and was promoted for the first time in 2023. In his vp-of-cd role, he’ll continue developing new business opportunities for the world’s fourth largest music company, and spearhead initiatives to accelerate growth in areas like partnerships and GenAI. He reports directly to BMG CEO Thomas Coesfeld and is based in the company’s Berlin headquarters. “Johannes has a proven track record of analytical rigor and thought leadership, and has played a pivotal role in developing and implementing our new strategy over the past year,” said Coesfeld. “His entrepreneurial mindset and commitment to the team make him a great leader.”
Black Music Action Coalition co-founder Binta Niambi Brown has joined Manatt, Phelps & Phillips, LLP as entertainment partner in the legal and consulting firm’s NYC office. Brown has worked in a number of industries: as a corporate lawyer for top firms like Cravath Swaine & Moore and Kirkland & Ellis, as a member of Chance the Rapper’s management team at Nice Work, and more recently as head of operations and strategy at Keep Cool Records/RCA. She is also an adjunct professor at the Clive Davis Institute of Recorded Music at NYU Tisch. At Manatt, Brown will work within the creator economy and advise global mogul-level clients on how to build, innovate, expand and protect their businesses and brands, the firm said. “Binta has a tremendous reputation as a corporate dealmaker, talent manager and artist advocate, making her incredibly invaluable to talent-side clients who are increasingly building their businesses and taking ownership of their personal brands in today’s exploding creator economy,” said Manatt entertainment leader Jordan Bromley.
David Barbis is the new head of promotion at Big Loud Rock, the label home of HARDY, Blame My Youth, Jaguar Twin and other alt-rock acts. Barbis will spearhead all promotional matters at the Los Angeles-based label and report up to BLR president Greg Thompson. He joined from C3 Management, where as vp of promotion he worked on campaigns for wide slate of artists, including White Reaper, The Head and the Heart, Modest Mouse and Chevelle, among others. Prior to C3, Barbis held roles at Polygram, Dreamworks and Capitol Records. “Dave is a true music man and one of the most outstanding promotion executives I have ever known,” Thompson said. “His passion for his artists is unparalleled, and we are beyond thrilled to have him join the Big Loud Rock team.” Barbis can be reached at daveb@bigloud.com.
Primary Wave Music added Agnes Kacicki to its executive team as head of corporate development. Working closely with Primary Wave’s founder and CEO Larry Mestel, Kacicki will focus on big-fish catalog and business acquisitions, as well as forming portfolio-expanding partnerships on the international scale. Based in Los Angeles, Kacicki will also work closely with Bill Cisneros, president of IP investment management, and Ramon Villa, the company’s COO, to assist with investor relations. Kacicki comes from RBC Capital Markets, where she served as director in the investment banking division and specialized in advisory and capital raising activities across various entertainment sectors, including Primary Wave’s bailiwick: music publishing. “Agnes has been a close adviser to Primary Wave for many years in her senior role at RBC, she will make a very significant impact on our ability to increase our acquisition capabilities, and service our partners,” noted Mestel.
Sony Music UK hired Brooke Salisbury to fill the newly created position of senior vp of international marketing and digital partnerships. In the role, Salisbury will oversee the various teams working on cross-border marketing and partnership with digital services like Spotify, Apple Music and YouTube. She arrives at Sony from Warner Music’s ADA UK, where she was general manager of the distribution and label services division. Prior to ADA, Salisbury held senior roles at Domino, where she rose to head of marketing in the UK market and worked with rock favorites Arctic Monkeys and Franz Ferdinand, among others. She reports up to Sony Music UK & Ireland chairman and CEO Jason Iley, who remarked of being “delighted to welcome Brooke to her new role where she will help bolster our service for both artists and digital partners.”
Global management company IMG Artists promoted Sam Snook to head of vocal, London. Snook has clocked 17 years in the classical musical industry, including positions at the Lyric Opera of Chicago, Santa Fe Opera and Opera America. He first joined IMG Artists in 2009, working closely with evp and global head of vocal Matthew A. Horner. “Sam’s move to London is a very positive development for IMG Artists,” Horner said. “With the complicated nature of our business, and the best artists needing true worldwide representation, I see this move by one of my most trusted colleagues as a fruitful venture for all of us in vocal.”
BOARD SHORTS: Music community startup We Are Giant added AEG Presents COO of global touring David Rappaport to its board of directors. He’ll lend his expertise on event execution, artist relations and more at the freshly launched plaform for hosting licensed listening parties, live streams, chats and more on its site and app … Hipgnosis Song Fund’s board of directors have a plan to attract bidders — and satisfy concerned shareholders. Learn all about it here.
Deluge Music founder David Robkin has launched two new record labels. Robkin worked with Johnny Gates and Austin Luther to ideate East Music Row Records — “with a goal of blending the hip, innovative sides of Nashville’s new indie rock and alt-country music with the musicianship, professionalism, and ingenuity of Music Row classists.” Robkin then took inspiration from Sun Records and Motown for Deluge Records Nashville, which is modeled in the tradition of a classic collaborative music incubator. “DRN wasn’t created to extract all the worth possible out of its artists, instead, the team chose to foster relationships between artist and label, creating a home in which equitable recording deals aren’t rarities,” the company said. DRN was born through a relationship between Robkin, songwriter Sam Grow, and Grow’s manager Brad Austin.
Breanne Hoke joined Joie Manda’s Encore Recordings as executive vp, head of business and legal affairs. Prior to Encore, she spent five years with Interscope’s business and legal affairs team, rising to vp in October 2021. She got her start in music as a legal fellow at the NMPA before joining Warner Records as an attorney-then-associate director in its B&LA department. Manda, a longtime executive at Interscope Geffen A&M, launched Encore Recordings in 2021 with a goal of “pushing culture forward.”
CAA promoted Jenna Powell to communications executive. She joined the agency in early 2018 as assistant to then-COO Michael Mand before rising through the communications ranks to her current position, which is based in Nashville and supports CAA’s music touring, digital media, theatre and gaming divisions.
Garrett Ream has joined Position Music as vp of artist strategy and promotion, a move announced by president and CEO Tyler Bacon. Ream previously served as vp of rhythm promotion at Republic Records, where he worked on radio and promo campaigns for a murderers’ row of stars including Taylor Swift, Drake, The Weeknd, Arianna Grande, Post Malone, Pop Smoke and Greta Van Fleet. Ream will report directly to J Scavo, general manager of recorded music at Position. “Garrett is a key hire for us as we continue to build our frontline artist roster and label marketing team,” said Bacon. “In addition to bringing major label promotion experience, he also has an indie drive and entrepreneurial approach to identifying and developing artists that is in lockstep with our company ethos.”
Ten2 Media appointed “avid technologist, hacker and maker” Mike Flynn as chief technology offcer of the upstart company, which works with clients on strategies and then distributes, markets and monetizes that video content on YouTube. Flynn was previously CTO of Studio71, where he spearheaded the development of numerous technology platforms during an 11-year tenure. “”Mike’s track record of success and his passion for leveraging technology to drive business growth align perfectly with our vision for the future of Ten2 Media,” glowed Ten2 Media co-founders Donna Budica and George Karalexis.
Music industry veteran Bob Reeves opened the private venture Excelsior Music, which will focus on management, artist development, radio/tour marketing and promotion. Reeves’ first client is Nashville-based country singer-songwriter Orlando Mendez. Mendez, a second-generation Cuban-American from South Florida, appeared on NBC’s The Voice in 2022, and is currently working on his debut project. Reeves previously held posts as vp and national director with Warner Music Nashville, Sony Music, Monument Records, Epic Records and most recently, Riser House Entertainment. –Jessica Nicholson
Tom Stingemore, who spearheaded Hipgnosis’ sync efforts until his departure over the summer, launched ALLOY Sync Distro as part of an ambitious effort to modernize the music biz’s sync licensing and approvals process. ALLOY is described as a “state-of-the-art, industry-wide platform that significantly streamlines the sync licensing process, while allowing labels & publishers to retain full control of their sync rights,” according the announcement. Stingemore, who has also previously held senior sync roles at UMG and BMG, said the licensing process has been “arduous, disjointed and fractured” for too long and is collaborating directly with industry stakeholders to develop a “gamechanging commercial solution for the entire music business.”
ICYMI:
Phill Bauer was named president of DistroKid … Alvaro Rizo joined Carlos Vives’ Gaira Musica Local label as managing director … the National Music Publishers’ Association (NMPA) hired former Mitt Romney staffer Chris Barkley (pictured) as its senior vice president of government affairs … YouTube laid off 100 in its content and creator teams … and Condé Nast gutted Pitchfork as part of a restructuring that folds the esteemed music criticism site under men’s style and fashion bible GQ.
Last Week’s Turntable: Resnik Makes It Raines
HarbourView Equity Partners continues to scoop up R&B/hip-hop music assets with its latest acquisition of certain publishing and recorded music assets from singer, songwriter and record producer Jeremih. Terms of the deal were not disclosed. Explore Explore See latest videos, charts and news See latest videos, charts and news Jeremih’s Hot 100 hits include “Birthday […]
Authorities in the Dominican Republic have arrested U.S. rapper Tekashi 6ix9ine, who is scheduled to appear in court on Thursday on charges of domestic violence. The rapper, whose real name is Daniel Hernández, is being held at a jail in the capital of Santo Domingo, where he was arrested Wednesday, officials said. No further details […]
Hipgnosis Song Fund’s board of directors wants a workaround to the call option that gives the investment advisor, the Merck Mercuriadis-led Hipgnosis Song Management, the ability to purchase the company’s music catalogs if its contract is ended. After consulting with shareholders who own more than 60% of outstanding shares, Hipgnosis Songs Fund’s board of directors […]