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A company that owns the rights to the “Space Jam” theme is suing a minor-league baseball club for using it – the latest in an increasingly active legal campaign to demand payment for a song that has been heavily used in internet memes and mashups for the past twenty years.
Watson Music Group, which bought the rights to “Space Jam” in 2019 from its original songwriters, has filed three federal lawsuits in the last three months, accusing companies of infringing its copyrights by using the song on the internet without permission. It’s also sent legal threats to an unknown number of others, arguing that unauthorized users must pay a “retroactive license” to avoid legal liability.
The latest target? The Wisconsin Timber Rattlers – a minor league affiliate of the Milwaukee Brewers that Watson sued on Monday, accusing the team of briefly using the “Space Jam” song in a 2017 Facebook video. The 35-second clip, still live as of Tuesday, features the track playing in the background as the team’s mascot dunks a basketball.
“Despite plaintiff’s efforts and willingness to address defendant’s infringing activity, defendant failed to respond and plaintiff was forced to seek judicial intervention for defendant’s infringing activity,” the lawsuit claims, before demanding as much as $150,000 in statutory copyright damages from the team.
Performed by Florida hip-hop trio Quad City DJ’s, “Space Jam” was released as a theme song for the 1996 movie of the same name – a classic live-action/animated flick featuring NBA superstar Michael Jordan and the characters from Looney Tunes squaring off in a basketball game against alien invaders. The song plays during the opening credits, blasting its mix of pumped-up raps and bass-heavy dance beats over archival footage of Jordan’s career.
The movie was a hit, but the music was a smash. A star-studded soundtrack album, also featuring R. Kelly’s chart-topping “I Believe I Can Fly,” reached No. 2 on the Billboard 200 in April 1997. And while Quad City’s theme song didn’t reach the heights the group’s earlier “C’mon N’ Ride It (The Train),” the track was also a hit in its own right, eventually hitting No. 37 on the Hot 100.
In legal filings, Watson (which also goes by Quadrasound Music) says it acquired the rights to “Space Jam” composition in 2019 from its original songwriters: Quad City’s Jay “Ski” McGown and Nathaniel “C.C. Lemonhead” Orange, as well as Van “Thrill Da Playa” Bryant of the closely-affiliated Miami hip hop group 69 Boyz.
Since then, the group has not been shy about enforcing those rights. On a website focused exclusively on Watson’s “100%” ownership of the “Space Jam” rights, a large-print banner reads: “Did you receive a notice from us?” Below that question, the site informs visitors that “U.S. copyright law provides large financial penalties for using someone’s copyrighted work without permission.”
The site then features a frequently-asked-questions section, warning readers that any use of the theme song on social media would require payment: “If your post contains any elements of the original composition ‘Space Jam’, you will need permission (a license) from Quadrasound Music.” Another question in the FAQ asks whether removing such a post, or offering credit, would suffice to avoid litigation. “None of these actions limit your liabilities as a copyright infringer,” the site answers, before explicitly stressing that copyright damages can reach $150,000 for a single infringed work.
But, the Watson website says, it doesn’t need to come to all that: “We would rather save you the expense and worry of litigation by having you work with us to resolve this matter outside of the courts by issuing you a retroactive license.”
Depending on how aggressive they want to get, Watson/Quadrasound could have plenty of targets to send those notices demanding payment.
That’s because, in the mid-2000s, Quad City’s “Space Jam” theme enjoyed a bizarre second act as a meme. Across early internet sites like Something Awful and 4chan, users published hundreds of absurdist “slam remix” videos, combining the track with other songs and video clips, often inexplicably featuring NBA star Charles Barkley.
By the early 2010s, the trend had largely faded away – most memes do. But dozens of slam remixes still exist on YouTube, and whole websites dedicated to the art of slamming are still live in 2023. During a late-night appearance in 2021, Tony-winning playwright Lin-Manuel Miranda heaped praise on Slamilton, a full-length LP splicing “Space Jam” with his musical Hamilton: “Kudos to the genius who made that. The internet remains undefeated.”
In a 2021 Billboard story recounting the long, strange history of slam remixes, Quad City member Jay Ski seemed to love the fact that his song had been meme-ized: “I feel so honored that the community embraced us and said, ‘Hey, let’s use this.’ Think about all the records they could’ve used,” he said at the time. “For ours to take on its own direction and own little world, that’s awesome.”
Do the creators of all those remixes have licenses to use “Space Jam”? Almost certainly not. So, is every one of them going to get letters from Watson, demanding they take “retroactive licenses” or risk costly litigation? Darren Heitner, a Miami lawyer who serves as the company’s outside general counsel, said he could not answer that question and that every case would be treated individually.
“I can’t speak broadly to whether our client is seeking payment from everyone who has used the content as part of a meme, given the facts vary on a case-by-case basis and there are instances where a meme may be commercialized or be used as part of a larger commercial enterprise,” Heitner told Billboard.
Heitner would not say how many legal notices Watson/Quadrasound had sent out, nor how much money the company typically demanded in licensing fees to avoid litigation.
“Our client’s policy is to send out a notice when it, with reasonable diligence, discovers the infringement,” Heitner said. “It has recently become much more active in policing such infringement with the intent to engage in thorough discourse with the infringer before escalating each matter.”
Over the past three months, the company has begun rapidly filing lawsuits against those who refuse to pay or ignore demands. In May, Watson sued SportsGrid, a New York-based sports betting media company, over allegations that it featured “Space Jam” repeatedly in videos and podcasts without licenses. Then in June, the company sued a Florida company called CPPM Leasing LLC, claiming it had used the song in a basketball-themed Facebook video in 2019. And now this week, Watson filed its suit against the Wisconsin Timber Rattlers over its slam-dunk video.
Those cases are a far cry from suing every creator of a meme, of course. They target sophisticated business entities who chose to use a copyrighted song in commercial contexts to help promote themselves, not random individuals who mashed-up two songs for fun. But if you believe Watson’s own language, the company does not make that kind of distinction between different types of alleged infringers.
“Is an unauthorized version of the composition ‘Space Jam’ considered copyright infringement?” the company asks in its FAQ. “Yes (there are a few exceptions). Without permission from Quadrasound Music, you most likely are an infringer.”
LONDON — BMG’s revenues jumped 11.5% to 414 million euros ($450 million) in the first half of 2023, fueled by strong growth in the company’s publishing business and a number of high-profile acquisitions, including a major interest in Paul Simon‘s portion of the Simon & Garfunkel catalog and a deal for George Harrison’s solo recordings.
The record label and publisher’s operating earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA) were up 23% (on a constant currency basis) to 90 million euros ($98 million) at the mid-year point ended June 30, according to figures released Wednesday Aug. 30 by BMG’s German parent company Bertelsmann.
Classic songs from Blondie, Kurt Cobain, Daryl Hall & John Oates, Mick Jagger and Keith Richards – coupled with hit releases by contemporary artists like Lewis Capaldi and Austrian rapper RAF Camora — helped drive the company’s 62% of revenues that come from publishing. That equates to around 257 million euros ($280 million) by Billboard’s calculation (the company didn’t break out revenue numbers).
Recorded music represented 34% of revenue (around $152 million) with Jelly Roll, Kylie Minogue, Godsmack and Rita Ora among BMG’s top-selling recording artists. Among its most listened-to catalog titles were tracks by Motley Crue, Black Sabbath and George Harrison.
In total, BMG said its digital businesses accounted for 63% of revenue, down from 69% in the first half of the previous year. The company said the decrease was due to higher digital revenues being offset by stronger growth in live revenues, driven by a post-pandemic surge in touring.
BMG CEO Thomas Coesfeld, who took over from longstanding chief executive Hartwig Masuch July 1, said the double-digit percentage growth reflected the company’s “strong performance in the face of an increasingly tough market.”
“Against the background of a soft advertising market, a maturing subscription streaming business and a physical music market impacted by inflation-driven cost increases, this is a very positive result,” said Coesfeld in a statement.
Breaking down the revenues on a regional basis, the U.S. was BMG’s biggest market, generating 217 million euros ($236 million), a rise of £14 million euros ($15 million) on the first half of 2022. Germany was BMG’s second biggest market with revenues of 49 million euros ($53 million), followed by the United Kingdom, which brought in 42 million ($46 million).
BMG completed 15 acquisitions in the six-month reporting period, including a deal for Paul Simon’s royalty and neighboring rights income to the full recorded Simon & Garfunkel catalog. Other deals closed in the first half of this year included the acquisition of the song catalog of 1960s British band The Hollies and a share of the writer’s royalties from the heavily synced German Eurodance group SNAP!
In February, BMG reached an agreement with Dark Horse Records over George Harrison’s solo works, marking the first time that the former Beatle’s recorded and publishing rights have sat together under the same roof. To commemorate Harrison’s Feb. 25 birthday, Dark Horse and BMG released Harrison’s entire catalog in Dolby Atmos surround sound exclusively on Apple Music.
Alongside BMG, Bertelsmann’s media holdings include RTL Group, Penguin Random House and service provider Arvato. Bertelsmann reported total revenue of 9.7 billion euros ($10.6 billion) for the first six months of the year, up 4.5% on the previous year. Organic revenue growth was 2.3%.
A team investigating sexual assault allegations by the late founder of a powerful talent agency for boy bands has found the charges credible, calling Tuesday (Aug. 29) for compensation for the victims and the resignation of the current chief executive.
The three-month probe, which included speaking with 23 victims, concluded that Johnny Kitagawa sexually assaulted and abused boys as far back as the 1950s and targeted at least several hundred people.
The investigative panel said Johnny & Associates must apologize, strengthen compliance measures and educate its ranks about human rights. Julie Keiko Fujishima, the chief executive, must resign for not taking action over the years, according to the special team. Kitagawa died in 2019 and was never charged.
“The company’s coverup led to the sexual abuse continuing unchecked for so long,” investigative team leader Makoto Hayashi told reporters in Tokyo. “There were many opportunities to take action.”
Critics say what happened at Johnny’s, as the Tokyo-based company is known, highlights Japan’s lagging awareness about rape, sexual harassment and human rights. Public opinion has often been unsympathetic toward people who say they were targeted by sexual predators.
In the Johnny’s case, about a dozen men have come forward in recent months to allege sexual abuse by Kitagawa, the agency’s founder, while performing as teens. More people are expected to come forward, the report said.
Fujishima has so far only apologized in a brief online video for “disappointment and worries ” over the case. It is unclear whether she will resign. The company in a statement reiterated its earlier apology and promise to hold a news conference, once it had studied the team’s report.
While rumors of abuse at Johnny’s circulated over the years and several tell-all books have been published, Japan’s mainstream media remained silent. Kitagawa began his management career with the teen boy band the Johnnys before founding Johnny & Associates in 1962, which spawned a series of “idol” groups including SMAP and Arashi.
Serious questions resurfaced this year after BBC News produced a special segment focused on several people who claimed to be Kitagawa’s victims. Another turning point came earlier this month when the U.N. Working Group on Business and Human Rights urged the Japanese government to take action. The group also accused Japan’s mainstream media of what it called “a cover-up.”
According to the allegations, Kitagawa asked fledgling singers and dancers, many of them children, to stay at his luxury home. When he told one of them to go to bed early, everyone knew it was “your turn,” those who have spoken up told the panel.
The boys were raped by Kitagawa when they were 14 or 15 and given 10,000 yen (about $100) bills afterward, the report said. It added that the victims feared they would be penalized if they refused. It recommends more people come forward, promises that their privacy will be protected and that no material evidence of a sexual attack will be required.
Those who have spoken out say they have been painfully traumatized, unable to tell anyone, even family, and still suffer flashbacks and depression, the report said.
City of Hope held its third annual Closing the Care Gap event Monday evening (Aug. 28) in association with its Music, Film and Entertainment Industry (MFEI) fundraising group. Focusing on the progress that’s being made while overcoming the challenges that still exist in bringing quality health care to underserved communities, the event was hosted by YouTube and Google global head of music Lyor Cohen and Epic Records chairperson/CEO Sylvia Rhone. Cohen is also MFEI’s 2023 Spirit of Life honoree. He’ll accept the award at City of Hope’s annual gala on Oct. 18.
Held at the Los Angeles home of real estate agent and TV personality Josh Flagg, Closing the Care Gap began with a welcome from Evan Lamberg, president of North America for Universal Music Publishing Group (UMPG). Among the healthcare experts, entertainment industry professionals and prominent music industry executives on hand were City of Hope’s Dr. John D. Carpenter and Kristin Bertell, 300 Entertainment CEO Kevin Liles, UMPG CEO Jody Gerson, CAA head of music and past Spirit of Life honoree Rob Light, former BET CEO Debra Lee, Republic Records executive vp Danielle Price Sanders, 50/50 Music Group Management CEO Willie “Prophet” Stiggers and songwriter Justin Tranter.
Kristin Bertell, Willie “Prophet” Stiggers, Jonathan Azu, Sylvia Rhone, Lyor Cohen, Danielle Price Sanderson, John D. Carpten, Gail Mitchell and Evan Lamberg attend City of Hope’s 3rd Annual Closing the Care Gap Event on August 28, 2023 in Los Angeles, California.
Lester Cohen/Getty Images for City of Hope
In addressing the audience, Cohen said, “The more you give, the more you receive. And today we are all in the business of giving — of our time, our influence, our connections and experiences. It’s our responsibility to do the work to close the care gap. We need to provide access to early detection with routine screenings and better treatment and, of course, resources and education that help increase health equity.”
Rhone, MFEI’s 2019 Spirit of Life honoree, introduced Cohen to the audience. “I’m grateful to have the privilege to help solve these challenges with our industry and give everyone fighting cancer the hope they deserve,” she said.
According to statistics shared by City of Hope, only 20% of cancer patients in the United States are treated at National Cancer Institute-designated cancer centers like City of Hope. In the meantime, economically disadvantaged and racially diverse communities face systemic barriers that limit their ability to find and sustain specialized, lifesaving care.
Dr. John Carpten, director of City of Hope’s National Cancer Institute-designated comprehensive cancer center and director of the Beckman Research Institute of City of Hope as well as the organization’s chief scientific officer and the Irell & Manella Cancer Center Director’s Distinguished Chair, further amplified the equity issue. “Too many people needlessly suffer due to lack of access to the latest medical innovations and systemic barriers that prevent them from getting the best cancer care,” he said. “At City of Hope, we are working to carry out solutions that increase the likelihood that every person living with cancer — regardless of race or region — can get the best care.”
Jacqueline Saturn, Sylvia Rhone, Dina LaPolt and Jody Gerson attend City of Hope’s 3rd Annual Closing the Care Gap Event on August 28, 2023 in Los Angeles, California.
Lester Cohen/Getty Images for City of Hope
Culture Collective CEO and MFEI board member Jonathan Azu added a personal note by sharing his journey after being diagnosed with prostate cancer at age 44. Growing up in a family of medical professionals, he had access to resources and health care that many don’t.
“My outcome is going to be a lot better because of the prostate cancer screening and active surveillance I was able to receive,” Azu said. “There’s nothing I’m more passionate about than breaking the barriers that prevent those who look like me from getting access to screenings and treatment that could save their lives.”
Bertell, City of Hope’s chief philanthropy officer, closed the evening by noting, “You are part of the movement. Your philanthropic partnership supports us in removing obstacles to care for everyone. We cannot cure cancer if we don’t cure it for all.”
Closing the Care Gap is part of a year-long fundraising initiative by City of Hope that will conclude with MFEI’s Spirit of Life Gala honoring Cohen. The gala will celebrate 50 years of philanthropic partnership with MFEI on Oct. 18 at the Pacific Design Center in Los Angeles.
Were David Mamet’s Pulitzer Prize-winning play Glengarry Glen Ross adapted for the music industry, Tom Windish’s mantra — “Keep booking” — could replace the play’s motivational line “Always be closing.”
At a time when agencies are consolidating and many agents are concentrating on their next career move, Windish remains focused on the core purpose of his job as head of A&R and business development at Wasserman Music: building an impressive roster of promising acts and established stars and helping them graduate to larger and larger stages. That roster includes alt-J, M83, Tove Lo, First Aid Kit, Rina Sawayama, Bartees Strange and superstar Billie Eilish, whom Windish helps route with Wasserman Music’s Sara Bowinkle. And this year, he signed one of his first management clients, activist and attorney-turned-artist Danielle Ponder.
“I like finding bands really early and rolling my sleeves up and figuring out every opportunity we can for them,” says Windish, 50. “When I’ve got an artist that’s already established at a certain level, I like going out and finding shows for them.”
The Schenectady, N.Y., native has worked for over three decades as an agent — first as an intern at WMA, where he was fired after three weeks for not being “William Morris material,” he says. After a stint at Billions, he opened The Windish Agency, which he sold to Paradigm in 2017. Wasserman Music launched in 2021 after acquiring Paradigm’s North American live music division. In 2023, the agency earned the distinction of booking the most acts at Coachella.
Windish recently relocated from Vancouver to New York, where he lives with his wife, film producer Emma Ludbrook — actor and 30 Seconds to Mars frontman Jared Leto married the couple in 2017 — and two children.
For Windish, discovery and development remain a large part of what drives him. “I probably take on more new things than almost anyone at the company,” he says. “I’m not necessarily saying that’s a good thing, but I tend to find artists that develop slower.”
How are your artists doing post-pandemic?
Last year was hard for artists because of supply chain issues. Just getting the gear that some artists needed was difficult. But this year sales have been very strong, especially in the United States, which has been very beneficial for agents that have international rosters. In Europe, things are much messier, and you see more acts coming to the U.S. a little more often than they used to.
What is your agenting style?
I’m pretty dry. My main responsibility is to send people music and have a conversation about what’s going on and why I’m excited about it. If they react to it or they don’t, I don’t take it personally. I’ll still call them about the next thing. I look for people I can build some history with that are passionate and take chances early.
Do you rely on data to make the case for your artists?
In the last decade or so, I do look at data a lot, especially global data. I have my ear really close to the ground in America and Canada. But I might not know something that’s happening in the Philippines or Korea or Australia because I’m not talking to the people there as frequently. What Spotify for Artists can reveal is interesting, and it’ll lead me to reach out and just ask other people, “Are you seeing this? What does it mean to you? Who is reaching out about it? What type of promotions are going on there? Should we have a tour strategy there? Should we go there?” I’ll also reach out to promoters at the same time.
Shows are being scheduled further and further in advance — deep into 2024. How do these long lead times affect the routing of tours?
I’m usually booking shows before new music is out. Often it’s nine months before it’s out, and I have no way of knowing how people are going to react or how likely they are to buy tickets. But one of the age-old rules of this business is don’t skip steps. So if you sold 500 tickets the last time, maybe you’ll try to sell 1,000 this time. You’re not just bumping up to 2,000 because you have this data that’s indicating there might be more [demand]. One of my strategies to deal with that is to hold a second night or a [venue] upgrade in case it goes really, really well.
Why sell to Paradigm?
I felt like the bigger we got, and the bigger the artists got, the harder it was to compete with these agencies that had a lot more resources. I felt I needed to compete and offer these things so that I wouldn’t lose out on clients. Paradigm had achieved its scale by bringing together independent agencies that all had similar backgrounds to me. Marty Diamond started in the coat closet booking bands in vans. Paul Morris started in the back of a record shop booking Tiësto.
What was that experience like for you, to sell Paradigm to Wasserman?
The sale was prompted by the pandemic. I didn’t know if the business was even going to come back. It was brutal — a lot more brutal for people in our business than others. It was an existential crisis. In terms of what it meant for the agency, I was in the dark about what was going on. There weren’t many people that I could ask because I think we were all in the dark because of the state of the business at the time. No one knew when shows were coming back. No one knew when there was going to be revenue coming back.
How does Wasserman compare with Paradigm?
They’ve been really helpful and great partners. I met [chairman/CEO] Casey Wasserman a few times over the years before it happened and while the transition was happening and was really excited about it. I mean, I was reading books about his grandfather Lew Wasserman for years because I’m a geek for that kind of stuff. I’ve read, like, every book about agents and Hollywood.
There have been complaints that labels are no longer developing and breaking acts. How does that affect the live business?
It’s hard to put it all in one bucket. I do think artist development is falling on the shoulders of the artists themselves and their managers. Labels are looking for artists to make an impact on their social media and to develop their own streaming. The labels get involved after things are moving. It’s “Don’t call us, we’ll call you.”
Have you ever signed an artist that hasn’t played a live show?
Oh, yeah. I remember a time when it was sacrilegious to sign an artist who hadn’t played a show. But if I didn’t sign artists before they had played a show, I wouldn’t be booking Billie Eilish. I wouldn’t be booking Lorde. And that’s the way it is now, and it’s OK.
What’s your perspective on Ron Burkle’s merging of the AGI and APA agencies?
When you look at all the changes that have happened in the last three or so years, it’s pretty wild. There’s a lot of things moving around, and I think that the biggest thing it shows is that we are all still trying to figure it out. We’re not done. Right now, everyone’s trying to perfect the model maybe, or at least improve their model.
What do you think of the emergence of companies like Firebird?
The interesting thing about Firebird is that we’re seeing now how much managers need to do. A lot of it is stuff that labels used to do. One of the more interesting things about Firebird is going to be how management companies evolve the services that they provide. Will there be more big management companies that are backed by groups like Firebird? Or will a bunch of different management companies share resources, like Artist Nation, where they all shared layers of infrastructure?
What genres are doing well on the road?
The thing I’m most interested in right now is just how global things are. I’ve been a student of that for a long, long time. In the old days, I was looking for artists from other countries because my competitors weren’t. So it was easier for me to sign them. There was an extra layer of a pain in the neck because of the visas and all that kind of stuff, but I was just like, “It’s fine. I’ll do it.” I signed Os Mutantes from Brazil and it was harder than booking an American rock band, but I love them. And now everybody’s signing stuff from all over the world in a lot of different genres. That is the way we now find fans. We kind of ignored these fans in the past because they liked acts we never expected. A lot of artists have been ignored because an agent decided they would never work. And looking back, many of them turned out to be wrong.
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: Eminem invokes special political licensing rules to block a Republican presidential candidate from using his music at rallies; a federal judge cites Biggie & Wu-Tang to dismiss a copyright case; the messy Isley Brothers lawsuit has no quick end in sight; and much more.
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THE BIG STORY: Eminem Pulls Music From GOP Candidate
Eminem is demanding that a Republican presidential candidate stop using “Lose Yourself” on campaign stops — and, lucky for him, licensing groups like ASCAP and BMI have made it easy for him to do so.
In a letter obtained by Billboard, a rep for BMI formally asked Vivek Ramaswamy’s campaign last week to stop using Eminem’s music, saying the star himself had requested that they do so. The move came less than two weeks after the candidate was captured in a viral video rapping the lyrics to the smash hit song at an event in Iowa.
“This letter serves as notice that the Eminem Works are excluded from the Agreement effective immediately,” the group wrote in the letter. “BMI will consider any performance of the Eminem Works by the Vivek 2024 campaign from this date forward to be a material breach of the agreement for which BMI reserves all rights and remedies.”
A spokeswoman for the campaign quickly announced that Ramaswamy would comply, saying they would “leave the rapping to the real Slim Shady.”
And that’s because they pretty much had to under the terms of BMI’s special “political entities” license – a unique legal solution crafted to address the problem of music stars who want to freely license their songs to stadiums, bars and other public spaces, but not to certain politicians.
To learn more about Eminem’s letter to Ramaswamy – and the history of top artists complaining about their music being used at political rallies – go read our full story over at Billboard.
Other top stories…
JUDGE KNOWS HER HIP HOP – It’s not every day that you see a federal judge cite Biggie, Wu-Tang, Kanye, F. Scott Fitzgerald and Neil Young in a single ruling. But that’s what Judge Martha Pacold did when she tossed out a copyright lawsuit against Future claiming he ripped off his 2018 song “When I Think About It” from an earlier track by a little-known Virginia rapper.
TRUMP HIRES GUNNA’S LAWYER – Facing a sweeping racketeering case in Atlanta, former President Donald Trump hired attorney Steven Sadow, a veteran Georgia criminal defense attorney who just represented Gunna in the high-profile criminal case against Young Thug and other rappers. Sadow, who has also represented Rick Ross, T.I. and Usher, will take over for Drew Findling, another lawyer with close ties to Atlanta’s hip hop community.
ISLEY BATTLE CONTINUES – A federal judge refused to quickly end a nasty lawsuit pitting members of the Isley Brothers against each other over the trademark rights to the band’s name. The ruling means more litigation over Rudolph Isley’s accusation that brother Ronald Isley of improperly is trying to secure sole ownership over a name that’s supposed to be jointly owned.
R. KELLY’S UMG ROYALTIES – More than $500,000 in R. Kelly’s royalties held by Universal Music Group must be handed over to Brooklyn federal prosecutors to help pay his victims, a federal judge ruled last week. The decision covers most of Kelly’s money held by Universal, but leaves unresolved questions about his funds held by Sony, Kelly’s former label, and about millions in additional money he owes to victims and debtors in other cases.
NAME CHANGE ENDS ‘FEST’ SUIT – Major League Baseball’s Minnesota Twins agreed to change the name of an upstart “TC Summer Fest” concert series in Minneapolis, a month after they were sued for trademark infringement by the organizers of Milwaukee’s decades-old Summerfest. The lawsuit accused the Twins of picking the name to “piggy-back” on the success of the existing event.
LIVE NATION SUED OVER INJURY – A stagehand hired to prepare a recent concert by The Weeknd in Texas is suing Live Nation, claiming that the company is liable for negligence after his leg was run over by a forklift while the stage was being built.
Grimes is among the first wave of featured speakers for the 2024 South by Southwest (SXSW) conference, an event which promises to lean into AI-focused programming.
Announced today (Aug. 29), the multidisciplinary artist will join a session dubbed “AI and the Independent Artist,” which will explore how artificial intelligence is changing the way artists create and market their music, engage with their fans, and, of course, the challenges and responsibilities for the music industry that come with it.
The Canadian artist is known for pushing boundaries in the creative space. She enhanced that reputation by unveiling her Elf.Tech project earlier in the year, an open-source software program which encourages fans to make music (and money) with replications of her voice.
TuneCore CEO Andreea Gleeson and CreateSafe CEO Daouda Leonard are also confirmed for the panel, on which they will “present principles for companies to consider” and share results and lessons learned from early AI pilot programs, according to a SXSW statement.
The conversation on AI is only getting started. Just last week, streaming giant YouTube and Universal Music Group, the world’s biggest music company, announced a new initiative with artists and producers for an “AI Music Incubator,” and YT unveiled its own set of principals as it promised to “embrace” AI “responsibly together” with its music partners.
Other SXSW daytime discussions will drill into “AI and Humanity’s Co-evolution,”” with speakers venture partner at SignalFire Josh Constine and OpenAI’s VP of consumer product and head of ChatGPT Peter Deng; “Building the Next Era of the Internet” with author, general partner at Andreessen Horowitz, and founder/managing partner at a16z crypto Chris Dixon; and a conversation with creator, host, and executive producer of the podcast Call Her Daddy Alex Cooper and founder and CEO of ACE Entertainment Matt Kaplan.
Also slated for the conference schedule, CEO of the Future Today Institute and professor at NYU Stern School of Business Amy Webb will launch the 2024 Emerging Tech Trend Report.
SXSW 2024 will take place March 8–16 in Austin, TX.
Established in 1987, SXSW celebrates the convergence of tech, film and television, music, education, and culture and is recognized as an important destination for professionals who play in those spaces.
SXSW 2024 is sponsored by Porsche, C4 Energy, and The Austin Chronicle.
Visit sxsw.com for more.
As the world continues to adjust to different types of “new normal” following the generational disruption of the COVID-19 pandemic of the past few years, Warner Music Group CEO Robert Kyncl outlined a new policy for the major label requiring employees to return to the office four times a week, while expanding free lunches and […]
American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers (ASCAP) has launched a new social media campaign that appears to be in response to a recent Billboard exclusive that revealed that ASCAP’s main competitor, Broadcast Music Inc (BMI), may sell itself to a private equity firm. Sources say the potential deal has an estimated price tag of $1.7 billion.
Just two days after the Billboard story was published on last Wednesday (Aug 23), ASCAP — which, along with BMI, is one of the largest U.S.-based performing rights organizations — posted a graphic on Instagram and X (formerly known as Twitter) that read: “ASCAP. Creators first. Not for profit. Not for sale.” In the caption of the post, ASCAP continued to point out that it is the “only U.S. PRO that operates as a not-for-profit” and that it is the “only one founded and governed by songwriters, composers and music publishers.”
In the last three days, the organization has posted seven other similar posts on its socials, seemingly highlighting their distinctions from BMI. The posts include quotes like: “Private equity never wrote an iconic love song,” “ASCAP. Growth without greed,” and “ASCAP writers. Who owns us? Who gets paid? You. And you.”
ASCAP CEO, Elizabeth Matthews, provided a statement about the social campaign to Billboard, saying “it’s important for everyone to understand what makes ASCAP different. We are a membership association, founded and run by songwriters, composers and music publishers. We are the only US PRO that operates as a not-for-profit, and our distribution policy is set by a board of writers and publishers, who are elected by our members. ASCAP’s governing articles require us to put creators first, which puts us in a category of one. And we’ve been overwhelmed by the positive response from our members.”
“Our focus is not on how our competitors position themselves,” replied a representative of BMI when asked to comment on ASCAP’s latest social posts. “Relying on the past never sustained a business for the future. Our goal is to stay ahead of the changing industry and invest in our business to grow the value of our affiliates’ music. Any path forward would prioritize the best interests of our songwriters, composers and publishers, including their financial success. Our focus is on delivering for our affiliates.”
BMI first began experimenting with its business model in March 2022 when it hired Goldman Sachs as an outside advisor to explore new strategic opportunities for growth. This was believed to include a possible sale to an outside firm, but by August 2022, Bloomberg announced that BMI had ditched its exploration of such a sale. A few days later, Billboard found that the PRO laid off about 30 staffers from its workforce, citing “uncertain” economic conditions.
By October 2022, BMI announced that it would be switching from its 80-plus year status as a non-profit organization to a for-profit company. In an interview with Billboard at the time, the company’s CEO and president, Mike O’Neill, explained that the company made this switch because “growth requires investment, not just maintenance… This new [commercial] model will grow at a faster rate.”
This summer, reports surfaced that BMI was once again considering a sale. O’Neill explained to his staff in a memo that the company’s new for-profit model and recent investments into improving its operations “has only intensified outside interest” in purchasing the PRO.
Amid growing concern about the future of BMI, songwriter groups — including Songwriters of North America, Black Music Artists Coalition, Music Artists Coalition, Artists Rights Alliance, and SAG-AFTRA — provided Billboard with an open letter to BMI on Aug. 18. Outlining three areas of concern, the songwriter groups question how they will be impacted by BMI’s increased profits; the proceeds from any potential BMI sale; and what may happen operationally at BMI in the event that the organization is sold. “Songwriters have a right to understand these decisions and how it impacts us,” the letter read.
Days after, Billboard reported that multiple sources say BMI is considering an offer to sell to New Mountain Capital, a private equity firm that has been quietly shopping for music assets over the last few years, according to sources. The deal has yet to be signed, as New Mountain Capital has entered an exclusive window to scrutinize the deal. Sources suggest that the deal, if it takes place, will be worth around $1.7 billion.
In response to that exclusive, the same songwriter groups provided Billboard with another open letter to BMI on Aug. 28, expressing that they were “extremely disappointed and upset” to hear the news of a possible sale. The coalition asked for BMI’s chief executive to respond to songwriters with more information “prior to taking any other action” towards the possible sale to New Mountain.
Of his previous trips to Africa, Larry Jackson says simply, “[They have been] tattooed on my heart.” Now, with his latest venture, he’s looking to put his own stamp on the continent.
Gamma, Jackson’s recently launched media company, announced in May that it was expanding operations into Africa and the Middle East with Sipho Dlamini and Naomi Campbell onboard as president and special advisor for Africa and the Middle East, respectively. And this month, the company named Larry Gaaga vp/GM for Africa and Dany Neville as vp of A&R for the Middle East. One of Gaaga’s primary focuses will be spearheading initiatives to develop local talent, and he’s already begun discussions with Dlamini and Campbell on how they’ll discover and develop more African female artists. In his role, Neville will be identifying and nurturing Middle Eastern talent.
The move into both regions comes at an opportune time. According to the 2023 IFPI Global Music Report, Sub-Saharan Africa became the fastest-growing region in the world last year, with a 34.7% increase in revenue largely driven by South Africa’s booming market, where sales were up by 31.4%. Meanwhile, the Middle East and North Africa (MENA), 2021’s fastest-growing region, experienced a 23.8% increase in revenue driven almost entirely by streaming, which has a 95.5% share of the region’s recorded music market — the highest of any in the world.
Gamma is joining a long list of Western music companies to have set up shop in both territories over the last few years. UMG Nigeria and Sony Music Entertainment West Africa have both established offices in Lagos, Nigeria. In 2020, EMPIRE signed a distribution and publishing deal with Olamide’s independent label YBNL Nation, leading to the launch of EMPIRE Africa in Lagos two years later. Elsewhere on the continent, Warner Music Africa is based out of Johannesburg, South Africa, where Universal Music Africa also established one of two regional headquarters (the other is in Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire). UMG has also been making inroads in the MENA region, from Republic Records partnering with Wassim “Sal” Slaiby to launch Universal Arabic Music to becoming the first major music company to open operations in Casablanca, Morocco. Universal Music MENA and Sony Music Middle East have headquarters in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, while Warner Music Middle East is based out of Beirut.
Gamma will have staff in Johannesburg, Lagos and Dubai, with plans for a physical office in Lagos. Dlamini will be based in Lagos and Dubai while frequently traveling to South Africa, Saudi Arabia and other countries in the markets; Campbell will also be frequently present in both regions, says a company spokesperson. On the African continent, Gaaga will help guide teams in Johannesburg and Lagos (where he’ll be based). And in the Middle East, Neville will be stationed in Dubai, where he’s established himself as one of the UAE’s groundbreaking on-air radio personalities/DJs.
The company has already gained a foothold in Africa thanks to its acquisition of music distribution service Vydia in December. Vydia’s founder/gamma chief technology and product officer Roy LaManna says that since Vydia launched on the continent in 2017, it’s become the company’s second-largest territory in the world thanks to partnerships with local record labels like Mr. Eazi’s emPawa Africa and Don Jazzy’s Mavin Records — which gamma is now using to further expand there. In April, gamma exclusively distributed and marketed a re-release of Mavin artist Rema’s Rave & Roses debut album in African territories, marking the company’s first regional move. The album includes Rema’s latest smash “Calm Down” with Selena Gomez, which has amassed 7.52 billion total on-demand streams globally, including user-generated content (UGC does not count toward Billboard’s charts). Vydia says the single has garnered 482 million streams across the African continent, while Rave & Roses has amassed more than 580 million streams across all tracks.
By owning Vydia, gamma will be able to support African artists in building careers in their home countries and beyond by offering technology and data that “can identify where tracks and artists are performing and then support and elevate them into a better space,” says Dlamini, while also offering staff on the ground where they are.
Dlamini has an impressive track record. For 24 years, he has been a music industry leader in Africa, including the seven years he spent at UMG, first as MD and then as CEO, along with a four-year stint at the Southern African Music Rights Organization (SAMRO), where he was eventually promoted to CEO. Prior, Dlamini was vp of operations at CSM Sport & Entertainment in Dubai, where he oversaw the largest concerts and music festivals in the region. In his previous role as MD of Universal Music South Africa and Sub-Saharan Africa, he launched Def Jam Africa — where he hired Gaaga as vp of A&R last year — with headquarters in Lagos and Johannesburg.
Jackson says he “had always admired” Dlamini’s hustle as CEO of Universal Music South Africa and Sub-Saharan Africa. “[He] built them into the No. 1 market share of any company in music in Africa,” he says. When the two eventually met through a mutual friend, music industry veteran Marc Byers, he continues, “I knew that I wanted to work together.”
While Campbell may not be known for her music industry experience — which has been limited to music video cameos and one studio album — she has long been a champion of developing opportunities in both Africa and the Middle East. She’s founded several charitable organizations benefiting emerging markets, including Fashion for Relief, which helps develop fashion, technology, business, entertainment and arts industries around the world, as well as the Emerge Initiative, which supports the next generation of creatives and entrepreneurs through apprenticeships, after-school programs and more.
“Naomi is truly one of the most powerful and impressive dignitaries in the world,” says Jackson. “She’s really rising to the challenge of being an executive and really has foresight, energy, ambition, ideas, influence – all of it.” Before gamma, Campbell helped him sort out “some work visa issues” when he traveled to South Africa with Drake in 2016 (during his stint as global creative director at Apple Music) by tapping her contacts within the country’s government as well as with Nelson Mandela’s family. Since then, she has introduced him to some of the most notable figures in Africa and the Middle East, from Afrobeats superstars Wizkid and Burna Boy to the Saudi Arabian minister of culture, Prince Badr bin Abdullah bin Mohammed bin Farhan Al Saud.
“I’m proud that a brother, a man of color and culture, is taking the reins and starting his own company,” says Campbell. “When he offered me this gig, I said yes because it’s a challenge for me. Yes, it’s not my day job, but at the end of the day, it’s about if you care. And I care, as everyone knows, about the continent and all the emerging markets.” Campbell also signed a podcast deal with gamma, according to Jackson, with the show expected to launch later this year.
For all of their promise, the African and Middle Eastern music markets come with significant hurdles. Chief among them is the issue of low streaming service subscribers in Africa, which Jackson is currently focused on finding solutions for.
“Streaming services in one of the biggest [African] territories, if not the biggest territory, Nigeria, have very low subscriber growth and very low subscribers in general,” says Jackson, adding that he’s already been speaking with his former Apple colleague Oliver Schusser about solving what he calls the biggest issue limiting that growth: payment.
While “the value of music and people’s willingness to pay for music” on the continent “is a lot less than in other territories,” Jackson admits, part of the payment issue stems from the fact that more people in Africa are likely to own a mobile phone than a bank account — which is why streaming services have been relying on telecommunications deals to significantly grow their subscriber bases. Through partnerships with local wireless providers in key markets — Vodacam in Tanzania, Airtel in Nigeria and MTN in Nigeria, Ghana and South Africa — Africa-focused streaming service Mdundo can bypass the issue of low penetration of payment cards in Africa and reach 185 million wireless subscribers, according to the company’s June 2023 guidance report. Other streamers have developed alternative payment methods, such as M-Pesa, which transforms a user’s SIM card and phone into a virtual banking system. Spotify allowed users in Kenya to pay using M-Pesa when the company began operating in the country two years ago.
While Jackson certainly sees the value in streamers making telco deals in Africa, he believes more can be done to convert music fans into streaming subscribers by, for example, making exclusive deals with artists — a strategy he successfully implemented during his previous gig. “Nothing has more relevance than Drake’s album being exclusive on Apple,” he says. “You can debate that all day, [but] there’s no carrier deal that’s going to bring you that level of audience. Bringing the artists and the culture and the community together with the streaming services I think is a missing part that hasn’t been done.”