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In a new series following the devastating L.A. wildfires of January 2025, Billboard is speaking to impacted members of the music industry about their lives in the wake of the disaster. Affected music professionals who wish to take part in the series can email us at afterthefire@billboard.com.
This installment is with Iyana, an R&B singer, songwriter and instrumentalist who lost her Altadena apartment in the Eaton Fire.
I was at the recording studio when it happened. The power went out and [my neighbor] texted and invited me to over to hang with him and his lady and their dog.
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I wasn’t at home, so I said thank you and passed, and that was it for a few hours. I was doing my thing, hanging out with friends making music in Studio City, which is pretty far from my house. My neighbor checked on me again a few hours later and said “Don’t come back. We’re getting evacuated.” But I had my two cats at home, so I had to go back.
I texted another friend and told him we were getting evacuated and that I was having a lot of anxiety because of the cats at home. I don’t have a car, so he asked if I needed him to come pick me up so we could go rescue the cats. I told him I would love that. He drove all the way from downtown to Studio City to pick me up, then to Altadena.
This was hours after the evacuation notice had gone out, and the power was still off when I came home. It was pitch black and I had to wrangle my two cats. I was using my iPhone flashlight to see, and my brain was just mush. I didn’t really know how to process everything that was going on. I grabbed my laptop and a couple chargers, a little bit of cash that I had stashed away and that was about it. I was there for about 10 minutes.
I could see the fire from my window, but it looked far enough away that if they could get it under control, my place would be fine. I honestly did not think my place was going to burn down, so in my head I just kept telling myself it was going to be okay and that I’d be able to come back tomorrow. It was a crazy feeling to get a message from the property managers the next day telling me that the buildings were destroyed, knowing that I didn’t really get anything out of [my apartment.]
My mom passed away when I was younger, and I had a lot of her artwork and all the things I had left from her. Photos from my childhood, memorabilia from when I was a kid, things I thought I’d share with my future children one day. There were journals that I wanted to keep for my entire life to look back and see where I was at certain times. It’s all gone.
It’s been a lot to process. I feel like I’m doing pretty well accepting that it is what it is. I’m trying my best to practice non-attachment. This is a really huge lesson in non-attachment. It’s kind of crazy not to have anything, but’s a little bit liberating in some ways too, I suppose. I’m trying to see it from that perspective.
My friend who came with me to grab the cats is also a producer, so in the immediate aftermath I went with him to the recording studio and spent two nights there. It wasn’t the most comfortable situation, but I was able to have my cats there, which was really nice. It was a safe place for me to be for a couple of days.
A friend of mine called the next day and asked what I needed. It was just like, “I don’t know what I need. I’m having so many emotions that I can hardly think.” She asked, “Do you need underwear? Do you need toothpaste?” I was like, “Oh my gosh, yes. I actually do need underwear.” These were things that I wasn’t thinking about right after it happened, because I was honestly still in a state of shock. I needed other people to use their brain for me.
I also had a friend who told me I should start a GoFundMe. It’s been helpful. I’m still not sure about insurance, because the insurance company has been wishy-washy and trying to play games with us a bit. Even the FEMA thing, [they said] the National Guard was blocking my area for so long that FEMA wasn’t able to get proof or something. A lot of people have donated stuff to me. I got some clothes and the things I need for hygiene and whatnot. I’m pretty much living out of two suitcases and a duffel bag. I have a friend who’s in India for the month, and she’s letting me stay in her place while she’s gone. Another friend took my cats and she’s willing to [house them] as long as I need her to.
I’ve had a couple studio sessions since it happened, and it’s been really helpful for me to be in the studio and create, just because everything’s so crazy. It gives me a sense of normalcy or just allows me to have a moment of therapy.
I had a whole release schedule before this happened, a whole plan of what I was going to be doing for quarter one, two and three and the singles and projects I was going to release. I love writing love songs, but it feels weird too, because my house just burned down, and then I am going to drop a love song? It just didn’t feel right, so it felt nice to write a song about the situation. I think that will probably be the next song I share with the world.
It’s crazy too, because I’d released a song the day before the fire. I was also planning on this month being a marketing and promotion month for me, but I haven’t really been able to do any promo. It just doesn’t feel right to be like, “Hey guys, listen to my new song” while this is all going on. Instead, it’s been a whirlwind of trying to readjust and figure out how I go back to having a normal life… I typically work at a restaurant, but luckily the donations I’ve gotten are keeping me afloat for now, because to be honest, the idea of smiling in people’s faces and asking them what they want to eat for dinner just does not feel like mentally where I’m at right now.
I feel like I’ve seen this narrative on the internet, from people who aren’t from here and think this only happened to rich people and celebrities, which is silly… If people have the capacity to donate monetarily, that’s helpful for me right now, just in terms of rebuilding.
If people don’t have that capacity, I would love for people to tap into my music and see what I’m doing. It’s hard for me to imagine going back to a regular life after this. Theoretically, it’d be so nice if my music moved and did some numbers. It’s definitely my dream to be able to make money and start a life with music being the foundation, so having people support me on my journey and see my growth would be more than I could ask for. If people are willing to listen to my tunes and share them, that would warm my heart.
Wale Davies first met Nigerian singer Tems in 2018, shortly after she released her first single, the stirringly plaintive “Mr. Rebel.”
“Initially it was informal; I just liked her song, I was just helping her put it on sradio and connecting her with people in the industry in Nigeria,” says the artist-turned-manager. “I’m always attracted to music that makes me feel something, so when I heard the first single, what I felt was somebody singing for their life — she meant every word she was singing in that song.”
Davies, who co-manages Tems with Muyiwa Awoniyi, has been with the singer ever since — and has watched her grow into one of the biggest African artists on the planet. To name just some of her accolades: She’s landed 28 songs on the Billboard U.S. Afrobeats chart, including 10 top 10s and two No. 1s; she’s collaborated with the likes of Drake, Beyoncé and Future and covered Bob Marley’s classic “No Woman, No Cry” on the Black Panther: Wakanda Forever soundtrack; she reached the top 10 of the Billboard Hot 100 in 2021 with a feature on Wizkid‘s inescapable hit “Essence,” which got a remix from Justin Bieber; she’s earned eight Grammy nominations, and became the first Nigerian to ever win two Grammys after taking home best African music performance for her single “Love Me JeJe” earlier this month; and this week, she became the first African female artist to hit 1 billion Spotify streams for her feature on the Future and Drake song “Wait 4 U,” which samples her 2020 single “Higher.” That’s to name just a few of her accomplishments.
It’s been a rapid-fire rise in just a few years for the singer, and one she’s had to handle in the public eye. “Just seeing her grow as a human being, first, has been the most remarkable thing,” Davies says. “She’s had a lot of fame thrust on her super early, and her adjusting to those changes and how everything came, and now working with the record label and getting global attention and big artists reaching out to you, and social media and all these different platforms and people, seeing her adjust to that and learn and grow and work on herself has been the most impressive thing.”
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Now, all that success helps Davies earn the title of Billboard’s Executive of the Week. Here, he discusses Tems’ rise as an artist, the work that went into her 2024 debut album Born In the Wild, the record-breaking success of “Wait 4 U” and the rise of African music in the U.S. “I’ve worked in the music space in Nigeria for quite a long time, and I’ve never seen anybody grow and accelerate that quickly,” Davies says. “Seeing the change of where she was to where she is now, and the confidence and how she’s grown as a person, is as close to a miracle as I’ve ever seen.”
This week, with “Wait 4 U,” Tems became the first African woman to hit 1 billion streams on Spotify. What key decisions did you make to help make that happen?
For Tems, her music is very personal to her and comes from a very personal place. So initially when we got the call [about the song sample], the first thing she said was, “What do you think?” And I said, hearing what they’ve done with the song, they honored it in a good way and it would appeal to a whole bunch of different, new people, and if the goal is to have people feel something from your music, as long as the music still represents that, and it opens the door to new people to hear it, I think it’s a great idea to do it. And she loved Future as well, she just wanted to see how that marriage would work, and it turned out beautifully. And with all the structure and all the business behind the scenes with the song, my job is to make sure that everything is done for the benefit of my artist, and making sure that, yes, we are coming from Africa, and yes, these are big global superstars, but that we’re well represented at the table as well.
You mentioned the sample is “Higher,” which is off her first EP For Broken Ears, which came out five years ago now. What is it about that song and that EP that has given it such staying power?
One of the things I noticed very early on in Tems’ music is, each time I listened to her songs, I found new things and loved them even more. And that’s very rare with records, because after a while you can hear a record too many times. And even going on tour with her, having been in the studio with her working on these records for years, and then hearing them live, they still sound fresh and new, and I still feel something every time. I think people are trying to tap into their emotions and tap into things, and when music allows you a safe space to do that, it has a quality that’s timeless and lasts. The best music, you remember the first time you heard that song, and that’s timeless music. And that’s what it does — it evokes emotions, it helps you place it. So for me, “Higher” does that as well. It’s such a beautiful song. I heard it from voice note to this version to “Wait 4 U,” and each iteration of the song has been great.
“Wait 4 U” won her a Grammy, and then she just won another with “Love Me JeJe” a few weeks ago. That makes her the first Nigerian to have ever won two Grammys. What’s the significance of that for you?
We never really started out with the intention of global stardom or anything, she just really wanted to sing. She would joke at the beginning, “If I didn’t meet you guys, I would just be happy to sing in hotel lounges, just for people to hear my music.” But the way it’s gone and the way it’s grown and the way it’s resonated with people, what the Grammys do is they solidify the fact that you can still make music that is true to yourself and have it recognized globally.
“Love Me JeJe” was a strong choice for us to be the lead single from the project because it referenced something nostalgic to us, because the original “Love Me JeJe” song was one that we all grew up with in Nigeria, our parents loved the song, and so for us to be able to pay homage to that song was really special. We spoke afterwards — the original guy who sang the song, Seyi Sodimu, is also now a Grammy winner, 21 years after. So it was also giving him his flowers for doing something remarkable at a time when there wasn’t that much light being shown on our music and where we’re from. It just gives people the opportunity to dream — yes, you can get this global acclaim. And for us, it being the first song that she’s done herself by herself to win a Grammy, it just shows that the work is being seen and felt.
This song is off Born In the Wild, her official debut album. How did you want to roll that out and market it? And did you feel like you needed to introduce her with this project?
She had her first two EPs, she had “Wait 4 U,” she had “Free Mind,” “Essence” was a big song as well; all of this was without actually putting out a debut album. The phrase we would laugh about while we were recording was just trying to figure out a way to dance like you’re still in your little studio by yourself. Now we’re in bigger studios and there’s more opinions and more people. So it was trying to, first of all, block out all that noise and allow the artist to just be themselves, and then helping sometimes when they have internal noise telling them to do this or that. So it was trying to do something that felt really true to Tems. She listens to loads of different music, she creates loads of different music, and I think with the EPs you got certain glimpses of what types of music she makes, and with the album she wanted to lay it all out: Here are the different influences I have, some of them might be reggae, some of them might be Nigerian songs, some of them might be Sade Adu. So in all those different worlds, how do you connect that seamlessly?
And it was also important for us that we started the project back home. For us, we feel like there’s a lens through which people are able to look at Africa, look at an African woman and look at what a modern African looks like through Tems, whether through the way she portrays herself or carries herself, or through her music as well. So it was important that the first look we gave from the album was “Love Me JeJe.” We shot the video in Lagos, she was on a flatbed going through Lagos, which was surreal in itself because of the traffic in Lagos. It was a crazy moment.
Starting with “Essence,” she’s really been at the forefront of African music’s rise in the United States in the past couple years. How do you feel that’s progressing?
My theory is that we’re in a world now where we’re constantly looking for new things, consciously and subconsciously. I feel like with music you were hearing a lot of versions of the same thing you’ve heard before, and I think it came to a point, to me, where people started looking outwardly. Initially, I felt like the U.S. was very insular: U.S. music, U.S. charts. But once they started listening to new things, what people found was that there’s similarity and threads in everything. It’s called Afrobeats, but a lot of the songs Tems does are R&B songs. All of us grew up on American music, but also on Nigerian music and Jamaican music. Our music is more or less like a melting pot of all of our influences growing up, and I think there’s definitely a part of that that people will relate to because they’re mostly global references, and then you’re hearing Nigerian sounds that you may have never heard before which sounds new. So I think the rise of African music is extremely needed, and what people will realize is that they will find there are more artists in different genres playing in different spaces and different lanes, and it’s really a beautiful thing.
What’s next for you guys?
Tems has different ways she wants to express and showcase the music, so we’re finding different ways of how to push out the music. The project is already out, but what does it sound like reimagined, with different musical elements added to it or stripped back from it? She’s interested in exploring that more. At the same time, she’s always recording and working on new music. She’s got an interest in film, so that’s something we’re exploring.
And then on the business side, we’re trying to figure out, how do we utilize this position we’re in to create more opportunities back home? Our vision is in a lot of ways very global, but also very Africa-focused. Right now, we’re putting together an initiative to support young women producers on the continent, what that will look like, and that will be rolled out very soon. We just got involved in the sports world as well; that’s mainly to see how we can bring opportunities in sports back home to young people because we come from a place where we have to create opportunities for the younger generation ourselves. So that’s where our head’s at, and Tems is always recording. So there will be new music and new recordings and new versions of Born In the Wild out soon.
ATEEZ has emerged as one of the most popular K-pop groups in the U.S., achieving milestones that defy industry norms. They became the first group unaffiliated with the “Big Four” entertainment companies, such as SM, JYP, YG, and HYBE, to top the Billboard 200 chart. In 2024, they became the first K-pop boy group to perform at Coachella and claimed their second Billboard 200 No. 1 with their 11th mini album, Golden Hour: Part 2. Yet, their name remains curiously absent from Korea’s domestic music scene.
Album sales paint a striking picture. Their 11th mini album sold over one million copies in its first week. However, their Korea streaming performance tells a different story. ATEEZ is nowhere to be found on Korea’s YouTube Music Hot 100 chart or the charts of local platforms like Melon, Genie, Bugs, and FLO. Spotify data reveals their most streamed cities are Jakarta, Bangkok, Tokyo, Kuala Lumpur, and Singapore, notably excluding Seoul.
Stray Kids, under JYP Entertainment, face a similar paradox. Their album HOP made history in 2024 as the first to achieve six consecutive Billboard 200 No. 1 albums by a group. This record-breaking achievement prompted the announcement of a 20-stop global stadium tour in 2025, solidifying their global appeal. Yet in Korea, their title track “Chk Chk Boom” failed to claim the top spot on major streaming charts. Like ATEEZ, their strongest Spotify numbers come from Indonesia, Japan, Chile, Brazil, and Malaysia.
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K-pop thrives globally, driven by its fiercely loyal fanbase. According to IFPI’s Global Music Report, SEVENTEEN’s FML and Stray Kids’ 5-STAR ranked first and second, respectively, in global album sales for 2023. In IFPI’s Global Artist Chart, SEVENTEEN, Stray Kids, Tomorrow X Together, and NewJeans all placed in the Top 10. However, this global success highlights a surprising shift: K-pop’s domestic market no longer mirrors its international dominance.
Data from the Korea Culture and Tourism Institute (KCTI) illustrates this disparity. In 2023, K-pop’s overseas revenue reached 1.2377 trillion KRW (approximately $950 million USD), while HYBE reported 63.3% of its earnings from international markets in the first half of 2023. JYP followed with 52.2% and YG at 48.6%. Luminate’s Mapping Out K-pop’s Global Dominance report placed Korea as the fourth largest consumer of K-pop, trailing Japan, the U.S., and Indonesia.
Then why is K-pop less visible in its home country?
To better understand this, one must revisit the mid-2010’s, a period when K-pop began its meteoric rise in the U.S., spearheaded by BTS’s success at the Billboard Music Awards and their domination of Western charts. Back home, K-pop reigned supreme in Korea’s music scene, led by heavyweights like BLACKPINK, TWICE, EXO and SEVENTEEN, while audition programs such as Produce 101 captivated audiences and amplified K-pop’s domestic appeal.
Ironically, as K-pop’s global footprint grew, its local presence waned. The absence of a trusted official chart to represent Korea’s music industry dealt a major blow. Once reliable indicators of popularity, real-time charts on platforms like Melon and Genie fell into disrepute after controversies surrounding chart manipulation and ballot rigging in audition programs. These incidents eroded public trust in K-pop as a genre.
By 2018, the industry shifted its focus from broad audience appeal to catering to core fandoms. Fanbases, in turn drove album sales to record-breaking heights, pushing physical sales to over 116 million units in 2023, a tenfold increase over the past decade. Billboard 200 chart topping acts, which were once a rarity, have now expanded to include a slew of K-pop groups like SuperM, Tomorrow x Together, and NewJeans.
Billboard Korea: Predicting K-pop Companies’ Strategies for 2025
Meanwhile, K-pop’s evolution into a fandom centric business model has redefined its strategy. Entertainment companies prioritize retaining and strengthening existing fanbases over attracting casual listeners and songs are designed to reinforce a group’s identity rather than to appeal to the masses. Global promotions, such as BTS’s and BLACKPINK’s massive stadium tours in the U.S. and Japan, underscore this trend, with groups like Stray Kids and ATEEZ leading the charge in self-produced artistry.
In Korea, K-pop activities increasingly resemble fan service. Despite low domestic ratings, programs like Music Bank, M Countdown, and Inkigayo remain important platforms for launching new songs and generating live performance clips for social media platforms such as YouTube. This demonstrates that while K-pop may no longer be music for everyone, its transformation into a niche-driven, global phenomenon is undeniable.
However, not all groups face this disconnect. Acts like aspea, IVE, SEVENTEEN and NewJeans continue to dominate Korean media and achieve commercial success domestically. Across the board, K-pop’s overall revenues keep climbing, driven largely by its international market.
As K-pop popularity continues to grow around the global, its strategy continues to evolve. English lyrics, international artist collaborations, and streamlined promotional cycles reflect its shift toward the global stage. Circle Chart data shows that the percentage of English lyrics in girl group releases reached 41.3% in 2023, up nearly 19% from 2018. For boy groups, the figure stood at 24.3%. Major comebacks are now followed by world tours, with U.S. talk shows often serving as debut platforms for new releases.
As K-pop increasingly focuses on global markets, can it find a balance between domestic recognition and international acclaim? Will it achieve a universal appeal similar to Latin music, fostering sustainable support both at home and abroad? The dual identity of K-pop, its paradoxical success offers both challenges and opportunities for the industry’s future.
This article is courtesy of Billboard Korea.
A court in Argentina dropped charges of criminal negligence against three of the five people indicted in connection with the death of Liam Payne, the former One Direction singer who fell from a third-floor hotel balcony in Buenos Aires last October, according to a ruling obtained by The Associated Press.
A preliminary autopsy report cited multiple traumas and hemorrhages as the cause of death, while a toxicology report revealed alcohol, cocaine, and prescription antidepressants in Payne’s system.
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The court cleared Esteban Grassi, head receptionist at the CasaSur Hotel, Rogelio Nores, an Argentine-American businessman who accompanied Payne on the trip, and Gilda Martin, the hotel’s manager. Grassi had made two emergency calls prior to the accident, first reporting that a guest was “trashing the entire room” and later expressing concerns that the guest “may be in danger.”
Prosecutors argued that Nores neglected his duty of care by leaving Payne alone while intoxicated, but the court ruled that he had no legal obligation. Martin and Grassi, who had escorted Payne to his room, were also cleared, as the court found insufficient evidence that their actions directly contributed to his fatal fall.
However, two other defendants, Ezequiel David Pereyra, a former hotel employee, and Braian Paiz, a waiter who served Payne at a restaurant, remain in custody. They are charged with supplying narcotics to Payne, an offense that carries a prison sentence of four to 15 years in Argentina. The court justified their continued detention due to the severity of the charges.
In Argentina’s legal system, prosecutors gather evidence for a judge to decide whether a case proceeds to trial.
Payne was laid to rest in November in the U.K., with his funeral attended by his One Direction bandmates, girlfriend Katie Cassidy, and ex-partner Cheryl Cole, with whom he shared a son.
There’s no denying West Coast rapper AZ Chike had a remarkable 2024. After appearing on two of rap’s biggest releases with ScHoolboy Q’s “Movie” and Kendrick Lamar’s Hot 100 top 15 hit “peekaboo,” Chike announced on Friday (Feb. 21) that he’d be inking a deal with Warner Records, a mere two weeks after K. Dot rapped his bars on the Super Bowl stage.
“Everything was just aligned bro. Even right now, it’s so aligned [that] it’s kinda scary,” Chike tells Billboard.
Chike has been hard at work making music since 2013, getting his first taste of success in 2017 with “Burn Rubber Again.” The song accrued over 25 million plays on SoundCloud, and from there, he’s been steadily building momentum. Eventually, the hard work caught the attention of TDE and as Chike said multiple times in our interview, “the rest is history.”
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“We are thrilled to welcome AZ Chike to Warner Records at such a pivotal moment in his career. As an artist who has built incredible momentum over the past year, Chike, who was brought in by our partner Tim Hinshaw, has already captivated audiences and proven his impact,” says Aaron Bay-Schuck, co-chairman & CEO of Warner Records in a statement. “His talent, vision, and artistry have set him apart, and we are honored to support and help bring his music to an even larger global audience.”
Chike is equally as excited and dropped off his latest single “Whatx2” on Friday to celebrate the news.
“Tim Hinshaw bringing me in at Warner and having a sit down with Aaron Bay-Schuck was the best decision I could have made following up all my current success,” he says. “I love how in tune they are with the culture and hip-hop. It feels like I’m supposed to be here. The stars are aligning and I’m happy they are a part of that alignment.”
Billboard spoke with AZ Chike about his new single, signing with Warner, and how he’s been doing since Kendrick’s electric Super Bowl performance.
Where were you when Dot rapped your “peekaboo” bars at the Super Bowl? How were you feeling?
I had rented out a house to go watch it with my close friends and family type sh-t and we didn’t know he was gonna do that. That’s the thing with this dude Dot, he always surprisin’. He’s got somethin’ up his sleeve, he don’t share the information and I’m close with a lot of people on his team, and every time something happens that’s surprising, he calls me right after, like, ‘yeah, I wanted to tell you so bad.’ He did the same sh-t when GNX dropped.
When did you first connect with TDE?
We wanted to follow in their footsteps and do the conscious rap, but L.A. wasn’t f–king with it, bro. So we just [rapped about] the life we actually live. The ratchet, street shi-, lot of bi–hes, money all this other sh-t goin’ on. We resulted to that and right hand to God, probably like four months after that, it took off.
How did you tap in with ScHoolboy on “Movie?”
[Akeem] called me like, ‘What you on?’ I was like, ‘I ain’t on sh-t’. He was like, ‘pull up to the studio right quick,’ he didn’t even tell me it was with Q. I pull up and it’s Q there and Q is just given’ me all these props. Letting me know he been seein’ everything. I spent like a week with him in the studio and for the first three days we didn’t even do no music. He was just feelin’ me out, givin’ me the homie treatment. I passed I guess! [laughs] It was dope.
How did you meet Kendrick?
Q FaceTimed me, and he never f–kin’ FaceTime’s me. I answer, he in the Double R with the stars on the ceiling. He’s like, ‘What you on? You around anybody?’ I’m like, ‘Nah.’ He like, ‘I just got off the phone with Dot. He wanna f–k with you. I just wanted to hit you up and let you know before I give him your number.’ Like, pause. But I had to keep my cool! That’s the thing with TDE, you don’t wanna be groupied out. That night, Dot text me. We say, ‘What’s the deal?’ in L.A. or, ‘Sta deal?’ He say, ‘Sta deal? This Dot.’ I pulled up on him and the rest was history.
Nothing’s been the same since.
Before Q and Dot hit me up, I went through something crazy in life where I was ready to crash. Last year, I was still one foot in, one foot out with sh-t. So I was f–ked up in the head about sh-t just ready to go a different way, and in a sense that sh-t kinda saved my life. God will take everything from you and give it back to you ten times. It was in a sense of that and, I still gotta tell Dot that cause that sh-t was crazy.
What’s next for you? Tell me about your new single “Whatx2?”
“Whatx2” is the fun record, just circling back to how I got here and just having fun and kicking things off before I get even a little crazier. Now I get to kick it into tenth gear. Now you’re gonna really see what’s going on on the music side. I am coming out with an album called No Rest For the Wicked. The goal is to release it in May. We dropping a video and a single every month leading up to it.
It’s game-time.
Yeah, this is just what I signed up for. As you see, I’m on go. I’m in every meeting, [and] on every e-mail. This is what I’m built for, and I’m not turning down no responsibility. I embrace the pressure.
Welcome to the latest Executive Turntable, Billboard’s weekly compendium of promotions, hirings, exits and firings — and all things in between — across the music business. There’s a full slate of personnel news this week, so let’s hop to it.
Long-time listener, first-time employee Rich Baer joined SiriusXM Holdings as the satellite radio giant’s new executive vp, general counsel and secretary, effective March 3. Baer, who replaces the retiring Patrick Donnelly, boasts over 40 years of legal and business experience, most recently serving as chief legal officer at Airbnb before hanging it up in 2023. “I failed at retirement,” he joked this week. His extensive career also includes roles as chief administrative officer and chief legal officer at Liberty Media, evp and CLO at UnitedHealth Group, and general counsel at Qwest Communications. Baer began his legal career as a homicide prosecutor in Brooklyn before leading the litigation department at a Denver law firm. He’ll report to SiriusXM CEO Jennifer Witz, who highlighted Baer’s background in counseling complex companies and said “his ability to navigate legal issues and balance the needs of a business will enable him to succeed here.” Witz also honored outgoing GC Patrick Donnelly, recognizing his nearly 27 years of dedicated service.
Partisan Records hired Nick Wagner as the indie label’s new chief financial officer, effective late last year. Based in NYC and reporting to president and co-founder Tim Putnam, Wagner will oversee global financial operations, strategic planning, team management and growth initiatives at Partisan, home to PJ Harvey, IDLES and more. Wagner brings extensive experience from his previous role as global vp of business operations at Endeavor, where he improved operational efficiency across the company’s portfolio. He also served as vp of finance at Warner Music Group, focusing on artist-driven growth in digital and social media. Additionally, Wagner led the North America Digital Media division at Vice Media Group, managing finance and operations for brands like Noisey and Vice.com.
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Sony Music Nashville has promoted Mallory Michaels to vice president of radio marketing & promotion. In the new role, Michaels will develop and implement strategic and tactical national radio promotion plans for rostered artists at Sony Music Nashville, supporting both Columbia Nashville and RCA Nashville imprints. Michaels will report to senior vp, radio marketing & promotion Dennis Reese. Michaels joined SMN in 2018 and previously held roles at Warner Music Nashville and Red Bow Records. –Jessica Nicholson
Mike Faul / Courtesy Photo
Dynamic Talent International appointed veteran marketer Mike Faul to lead its newly launched Brand Partnerships division. Based in New York, Faul will spearhead efforts to connect creative talent with top brands across industries like fashion, technology, luxury, lifestyle and media. The division will focus on sponsorship acquisition, co-branded content creation and immersive experiential activations, aiming to craft bespoke campaigns that amplify both brand identities and artistic expression. Faul brings extensive experience to the role, having worked with major names like YouTube, MTV, A24, The North Face and Taco Bell. In 2017, he founded Sub Rosa Curation, driving innovative marketing initiatives across sports and entertainment. Prior to that, he served as marketing manager at Bagavagabonds, curating festival programming for brands like Vans, Toyota and Anheuser-Busch. DTI, a leading talent management firm with offices in Sacramento, Los Angeles, Nashville, New York and Poland, is known for its forward-thinking approach in supporting artists. The firm recently celebrated Taemin’s sold-out show at the Kia Forum and announced new signings, including The Georgia Satellites and Hot 8 Brass Band. “This is an exciting opportunity to bolster what is already one of the most dynamic agencies in entertainment,” said Faul.
Legends appointed Chris Bray as president of Europe for its combined Legends and ASM Global business. Bray will oversee operations across the UK and Europe, managing venue operations and revenue generation for sports, entertainment, conventions and other industries out of the company’s office in Manchester. Previously president of Europe for ASM Global, Bray brings over 30 years of experience in commercial operations and development. Since joining ASM Global in 2022, he has driven growth, enhanced guest experiences, and sealed key contracts with venues like Utilita Arena and Olympia London. Bray also oversaw significant investments in venues, including a major glow-up for AO Arena in Manchester. Before ASM Global, he spent 15 years at Sodexo, where he boosted the firm’s Sports and Leisure division. Following Legends’ acquisition of ASM Global in August 2024, the combined company includes iconic venues like AO Arena and major football clubs such as Arsenal and Liverpool. Legends CEO Dan Levy praised Bray’s leadership, adding, “With a strong presence across the UK and Europe … we’re in an incredible position to set new standards in sports and entertainment.”
Sony Music Publishing promoted Taryn Miller to vice president, IT global copyright and royalties, effective immediately. Based in Nashville, Miller will report to chief information officer Bill Starke. In her new role, she’ll oversee the development and management of SMP’s royalty and copyright systems, including the Tempo platform and client portal SCORE, while collaborating across departments on enterprise applications. With over 20 years at the company, Miller has been instrumental in advancing key systems like Tempo and SCORE. She began her career in North American Royalty Administration before becoming a Tempo migration specialist and later transitioning to the IT team, most recently serving as director, IT global administration systems. Starke praised Miller’s contributions, stating “her work has elevated our services for songwriters.”
Creative Artists Agency promoted five Elevate trainees to agent roles across its music, comedy and theatre departments. In the Music Touring group, Ethan Goldish, based in Nashville, was elevated after joining CAA in 2019 and progressing from floater to booking professional in 2022. Also in Nashville, Cam Jensen was promoted after starting as an assistant in 2022, later becoming a booking professional overseeing the Southeast club territory. In Los Angeles, Dom Valentyn was promoted to Music Touring Agent, having joined CAA in 2019 and previously working in artist management and playlist marketing. In the Comedy Touring department, Marissa Pisterzi in Los Angeles was promoted after starting at CAA in 2021, working with several agents before becoming a booking professional. In New York City, Kennedy Woodard was promoted to Agent in the Theatre department. She joined CAA in 2021 as an assistant to Justin Edbrooke and Ethan Kurtzman, and has worked closely with theatre pros to develop stage and screen projects. All five promotions reflect CAA’s commitment to nurturing talent through its Elevate program, which identifies and advances rising professionals within the agency.
Kobalt appointed Claes Uggla as general manager of Kobalt Scandinavia, overseeing operations from the Stockholm office. With over 25 years of A&R experience, Uggla has shaped the careers of many Scandinavian artists. He joins from RMV, where he worked with acts like Gustaf & Viktor Norén. Previously, at Universal Music Sweden, he licensed hits like Lukas Graham’s “Ordinary Things,” and at Sony Music Sweden, he earned a special A&R award for Alan Walker’s “Faded.” Jeannette Perez, Kobalt’s president, praised Uggla’s track record, saying his “approach to A&R, his deep connections to the creative community and his leadership skills will be an important asset to us as we continue to build upon our success in the region.”
Range Music elevated Jared Cotter to managing partner of the management company, the music division of Range Media Partners. Cotter, who joined Range in 2022 and co-manages Shaboozey, made partner last May and before that was vp of A&R for the company. Outside the Hot 100 juggernaut that is Shaboozey, Cotter manages Paul Russell, whose “Lil Boo Thang” reached No. 14 in 2023. Cotter came to Range after co-founding The Heavy Group in 2016, a management and production company where he first signed Bazzi several years ago. He also co-founded 3AM Entertainment, an indie label focusing on music from the South Asian diaspora.
Celine Hollenbeck and Jenna Akemi Kon are named partners at Carroll Guido Groffman Cohen Bar & Karalian LLP, a leading music and entertainment law firm. Hollenbeck, based in Los Angeles, and Kon, in New York, joined the firm in 2017 and 2018, respectively. Founding partner Michael Guido and Los Angeles managing partner Renee Karalian praised their dedication and industry acumen, adding that their “enthusiasm and passion for music and artistry continue to impress the firm’s clients and partners alike.” They join the firm’s growing partner group, including Paul Gutman, Ira Friedman, Leah Seymour and Dave Keady.
BOARD SHORTS: Grammy Museum Mississippi added three new members to its board: Betsy Aguzzi of Mississippi Limestone Corporation, music publicist and entrepreneur Zach Farnum, and artist manager Gaines Sturdivant. They’ve been elected to 3-year terms, starting last month. The board is responsible for governance, oversight and major decision-making at the Cleveland, Miss. museum … VPL, which licenses music videos for public and TV broadcasts in the UK, made key board appointments: Charlotte Saxe is now VPL chair, with Alison Wenham and Shamus Damani joining as new board directors. The VPL Board, consisting of eight directors, oversees all aspects of music video licensing operations for the PPL sister company.
The Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum promoted five staff members to key leadership roles. Tess Pardee is now associate director of creative project management, overseeing creative projects and resources. Marshell Ruffier has been named associate director of food and beverage operations, managing the banquet team, the museum café, and sustainability initiatives. Alex Krompic has been promoted to director of production and technical services, leading audio, video and lighting for events. Emily Zirkle is now associate director of events administration and entertainment, managing revenue and public events in the CMA Theater. John Sloboda has been promoted to executive director of exhibitions and curatorial services, overseeing gallery exhibitions.
Red Street Records promoted Kelly King to vp of Red Street Publishing, while Patrick Waters joins as senior director of A&R country for the company’s country roster, which includes Chris Lane, Ryan Griffin, Neon Union, Ryan Larkins and Kaleb Sanders. King, known for discovering and/or developing artists and writers including Rascal Flatts, Brett James and Brothers Osborne, earned a partnership at Teracel Music and Good Girl Music (a co-venture with Sony Publishing), before launching her own King Pen Music (a co-venture with Warner Chappell Publishing) prior to joining Red Street Records in 2022. Waters has previously held roles at Red Light Management, Warner Brothers and Interscope. –J.N.
NASHVILLE NOTES: Gotee Records appointed Jess Loper as its new general manager. Reporting to Joey Elwood, CEO of Bell Partners Christian Music, Loper steps into this role following Gotee’s integration under Bell Partners. Previously, she was vp of brand management at Gotee Records and publishing at Emack Music … The International Bluegrass Music Association made three staff changes. Rebecca Bauer joins as marketing director after working as a marketing manager for City Winery; Elizabeth Dewey was promoted to communications director from administrative manager; and Haley Grimm, who’s in her final semester at Belmont University, took over Dewey’s former position … Publicist Jessica Nall joined Jonesworks, where her country clients include Zac Brown Band, Drake Milligan and Adam Doleac. She formerly was Atlantic director of press and media strategy … Paquin Artists Agency, a booking firm focused on Canadian country acts, hired agent/talent buyer Paul Biro, formerly president/operating partner at Sakamoto.
Killphonic Rights launched a dedicated label division, led by CEO Caleb Shreve and co-head of A&R Syd Butler. This follows the company’s executive expansion and a $3 million investment from Stilwell Creative Capital in 2024. The label’s first release, Heart Of Gold: The Songs of Neil Young, is set for April 25. Butler emphasized the label’s “artist-first” approach, highlighting the team’s industry experience and commitment to artist development. He stressed the importance of community and fair profit sharing, aiming to provide essential support at a time in the industry when it’s being abandoned. We believe artists need a community and a label that has their back as they navigate their future in this business.”
ATC Live has two key staffing updates. Lucy Atkinson joins as a new agent from Earth Agency, bringing her 30-strong roster, including Sega Bodega, Alice Glass and Erika de Casier, to boost the live booking agency’s electronic music prowess. Known for her forward-leaning approach, Atkinson has secured high-profile brand collaborations, such as Deijuvhs for Versace Jeans Couture and Ecco2k with Bella Hadid for Marc Jacobs eyewear, among others. Additionally, Alice Hogg was promoted to head of tour marketing, a new role aimed at integrating tour marketing services within ATC Live. This move will strengthen the London-based company’s approach to live campaigns, focusing on cohesive fan engagement and marketing strategies. Hogg, who joined ATC Live in 2020, has 15 years of experience in the live music industry and has worked with artists like Black Pumas and Aaron Frazer. Her roster will continue to be represented by ATC Live.
Raw Power Management, which like ATC Live is part of the ATC Group, bumped-up Dan Brown to the newly created role of head of A&R. A key figure on the senior management team for over a decade, Brown is currently managing You Me At Six’s farewell tour. In his new position, he will lead talent acquisition, focusing on expanding Raw Power’s diverse roster and signing new acts. The company represents artists like Bring Me The Horizon, Bullet For My Valentine, Jordan Adetunji and Heartworms.
ICYMI:
Jodi Dawes
REPUBLIC Collective announced a big stack of promotions across various departments … Warner Chappell Music elevated Gabz Landman to senior vp of A&R … Fox veteran Nick Terranova joined Dick Clark Productions as its new senior vp of brand partnerships … Ole Obermann is out as TikTok’s global head of music business development … Publicity pro Jodi Dawes landed at Big Machine Label Group … and AEG Presents elevated Andrew Klein to lead its global partnerships division. [Keep Reading]
Last Week’s Turntable: Syracuse Grads Band Together for New Advisory Board
A busy year in high-margin amphitheaters and arenas pushed concert promoter Live Nation to a record $2.15 billion in adjusted operating income (AOI) in 2024, up 14%, on record revenue of $23.16 billion, up 2%.
In the concerts division, full-year revenue rose 2% to $19.02 billion. Despite having 30% fewer stadium shows in 2024, the total number of fans grew to a record 151 million from more than 50,000 Live Nation events. A heavy slate of concerts at arenas and amphitheaters, where Live Nation can offer VIP experiences and capture more revenue from food and beverage sales, helped AOI climb 65% to $529.7 million and AOI margin — AOI as a percentage of revenue — reach a record 2.8%.
Ticketing revenue for the full year increased 1% to $2.99 billion while AOI dropped 1% to $1.12 billion. Ticketmaster had 23 million net new enterprise tickets that were signed in 2024, with two-thirds coming from international markets.
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Sponsorships and advertising revenue grew 9% to $1.2 billion and AOI rose 13% to $763.8 million. Led by festivals in Latin America and Europe, international markets were up double digits. The number of new clients increased 20%.
Live Nation is expecting 2025 will top its record-setting 2024. Through mid-February, stadium shows are up 60% from the prior-year period and 65 million tickets have been sold for Live Nation concerts, a double-digit annual increase. Ticketmaster’s transacted ticketing revenue for 2025 shows is up 3% to 106 million tickets, due mainly to an increase in concert demand.
The current year “is shaping up to be even bigger thanks to a deep global concert pipeline, with more stadium shows on the books than ever before,” CEO Michael Rapino said in a statement. Currently, Live Nation’s stadium tours for 2025 include Beyoncé’s Cowboy Carter tour, Morgan Wallen’s I’m The Problem Tour, Kendrick Lamar and SZA’s Grand National Tour, and Post Malone and Jelly Roll’s Big Ass Stadium Tour.
Consolidation fourth-quarter revenue dropped 2% to $5.68 billion as concerts revenue dipped 6% to $4.58 billion and ticketing and sponsorships and advertising grew 14% and 10%, respectively. Fourth-quarter AOI fared better, however, rising 35% to $157.3 million despite concerts AOI falling 16%.
HarbourView Equity Partners is buying Grammy award-winning rapper-producer T-Pain‘s publishing catalog and certain master recording rights, the company announced on Thursday (Feb. 20). The Tallahassee, Fla.-born artist known for late-2000s party music hits like “Buy U a Drank (Shawty Snappin’),” “Bartender (featuring Akon)” and “I’m N Luv (Wit a Stripper) (featuring Mike Jones),” has been […]
Here’s a lede I never thought I’d write: On Tuesday, Feb. 11, I tried to buy a swastika t-shirt from a hip-hop artist.
The artist was Ye, of course, and my interest was purely journalistic. I live in Berlin, where there’s a law against the use or distribution of symbols of “unconstitutional organizations,” including those of the Nazi party, and I wanted to see if West might be enabling the breaking of it by shipping to Germany. It took me a day to make sure I wouldn’t be breaking the law as well, since potential penalties include jail time. By then, the e-commerce giant Shopify had taken down Yeezy.com — which seems like a very reasonable solution.
How seriously does Germany take this law? In 2006, a Stuttgart court fined a company selling anti-Nazi merchandise, with images of a swastika with a red line through it. It’s not clear if the law would apply to a company selling swastika t-shirts from another country, as Ye was, but ordering or wearing such a shirt would be a criminal offense. Nazi symbols are also banned in France, Italy, Poland and more than a dozen other countries, and although Ye performed in Italy last year, it’s hard to believe that he could find a promoter or venue willing to book him in these places anytime soon. If human decency fails, Ye’s unpredictability brings with it too much legal risk.
Over the last few decades, few popular musicians have behaved so badly, so publicly, and so unapologetically for so long without facing serious consequences. (Plenty have done one of these, and a few less popular musicians have done all.) And Ye doesn’t seem to be playing with Nazi iconography just for shock value the way, say, Sex Pistols bassist Sid Vicious did. (This is not okay either, obviously, but Ye’s assurances that he means this makes him far worse.) And although discussion of the Nazi regime tends to focus on its murderous antisemitism, it also persecuted and murdered people because they were gay, Roma, or Black. This is a regime under which Ye’s marriage to Bianca Censori would have been illegal under racial purity laws. And Ye is endorsing it. (It should be noted that, on Feb. 19, he walked it back “after further reflection.”)
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So far, Ye has avoided serious consequences, partly because he apologized to “the Jewish community,” rather lamely, in December 2023 and perhaps partly because he clearly seems to struggle with mental health issues. (He recently said he was autistic.) There’s also a tendency to see his behavior as so completely absurd that no one could possibly take him seriously. Him saying he wants to be called “Yedolf Yitler” sounds more like something out of a Dave Chappelle sketch than any kind of fascist advocacy.
So then why does this matter so much?
Partly because, in a country without hate-speech laws, like the U.S., it’s important to define the boundaries of acceptable discourse and impose some kind of consequences on those who cross them. And partly because doing so is a good way to start a more serious public discussion about where those boundaries ought to be. So far, Ye’s agent dropped him after he started selling the swastika shirts, and while it’s not clear when he might release another album, no company ought to go into business with him now.
I think it would be foolish to take offline music that Ye released years ago — his rhetoric is hateful but most of that music is great. Obviously, companies make money on that music — Universal Music Group owns the recordings from the early part of his career, and Sony Music Publishing administers his publishing rights — and they have an obligation to pay him. (Sony’s administration of his publishing will end in less than a year, after which the company will no longer have an interest in his catalog.) Both companies made statements that Ye’s behavior is unacceptable.
Since Ye started selling the shirts, the only big executive who has made a major statement is YouTube global head of music Lyor Cohen, in the form of an open letter. That’s important, since it will help make sure other companies take the issue seriously. The day after Ye started selling the swastika shirts, I joked that if he isn’t careful, he’s going to end up as a tenured professor at Columbia University. Of course, Columbia would never tolerate the way he spoke about having “dominion” over his wife. When it comes to antisemitism, however, it seems to be a bit more open-minded. The truth is that some of the tropes Ye espouses about Jewish money and power are not as far from respectable society as we might want to think.
Just look at the new video for the Macklemore song “fucked up,” which has the look of quick-cut propaganda. Macklemore is certainly free to advocate for his politics — I don’t like war, Trump, or Netanyahu, either! But his ideas about how the conflict in the Middle East is driven by the hidden agendas of powerful people — some of whom are in the media! — are creepy. Then there’s his juxtaposition of the Israeli flag and a $100 bill, which seems about as subtle as Elon Musk’s arm movements (which he attacks in the song). Plenty of people don’t seem bothered by the video, and plenty of people move their arms that way. But it’s hard to have a serious discussion about any of this while we’re tolerating outright Naziism. Obviously, Ye’s behavior is cartoonishly extreme. But it’s worth remembering that the symbols of Hamas, which have started to show up at the kind of on-campus anti-Israel protests that Macklemore seems to love so much, are also banned in Germany — just like the swastika.
Primary Wave Music has signed a marketing and administration agreement with legendary songwriter Jimmy Webb to represent a major portion of his music publishing catalog, including such classic songs as “Wichita Lineman,” “The Worst That Could Happen,” “Galveston,” “By the Time I Get To Phoenix,” the Grammy-winning “MacArthur Park” and “Up, Up and Away.” Moreover, […]