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Warner Music has announced plans to use AI technology to recreate the voice and image of legendary French artist, Edith Piaf, in an upcoming full-length animated film. Titled EDITH, the upcoming project is developed by production company Seriously Happy and Warner Music Entertainment in partnership with the Piaf’s estate.
EDITH is set to be a 90-minute film, chronicling the life and career of the famous singer as she traveled between Paris and New York. The voice clone of Piaf will narrate the story, revealing new details about her life never before known.
The AI models used to aid EDITH’s storytelling were trained on hundreds of voice clips and images of the late French singer-songwriter to, as a press release puts it, “further enhance the authenticity and emotional impact of her story.” The story will also feature recordings of her songs “La Vie En Rose” and “Non, Je Ne Regrette Rien,” which are part of the Warner Music catalog.
The story will be told through a mix of animation and archival footage of the singer’s life, including clips of her stage and tv performances, interviews and personal archives. EDITH is the brain child of Julie Veille, who previously created other French-language music biographies like Stevie Wonder: Visionnaire et prophète, Diana Ross, suprême diva, Sting, l’électron libre. The screenplay was written by Veille and Gilles Marliac and will be developed alongside Warner Music Entertainment President, Charlie Cohen. The proof of concept has been created, and the team will soon partner with a studio to develop it into a full-length film.
This is not the first time AI voice clones have been used to aid in the storytelling of a film. Perhaps the most cited example of this was Roadrunner (2021), a documentary about the life of chef and TV host Anthony Bourdain, who passed away in 2018. AI was used to bring back Bourdain’s voice for about 45 seconds. During that time, a deepfaked Bourdain spoke a letter he wrote during his life aloud to the audience.
Visual AI and other forms of CGI have also been employed in movies in recent years to resurrect the likenesses of deceased icons, including Carrie Fisher, Harold Ramis and Paul Walker. Even James Dean, who died in 1955 after starring in only three films, is currently being recreated using AI for an upcoming film titled Back to Eden.
The EDITH project is likely just the start of estates using AI voice or likeness recreation to rejuvenate the relevance of deceased artists and grow the value of older music catalogs. Already, HYBE-owned AI voice synthesis company Supertone remade the voice of late South Korean folk artist Kim Kwang-seok, and Tencent’s Lingyin Engine made headlines for developing “synthetic voices in memory of legendary artists,” like Teresa Teng and Anita Mui.
Veille says, “It has been the greatest privilege to work alongside Edith’s Estate to help bring her story into the 21st century. When creating the film we kept asking ourselves, ‘if Edith were still with us, what messages would she want to convey to the younger generations?’ Her story is one of incredible resilience, of overcoming struggles, and defying social norms to achieve greatness – and one that is as relevant now as it was then. Our goal is to utilize the latest advancements in animation and technology to bring the timeless story to audiences of all ages.”
Catherine Glavas and Christie Laume, executors of Edith Piaf’s estate, add, “It’s been a special and touching experience to be able to hear Edith’s voice once again – the technology has made it feel like we were back in the room with her. The animation is beautiful and through this film we’ll be able to show the real side of Edith – her joyful personality, her humor and her unwavering spirit.”
Alain Veille, CEO of Warner Music France, says, “Edith is one of France’s greatest ever artists and she is still a source of so much pride to the French people. It is such a delicate balancing act when combining new technology with heritage artists, and it was imperative to us that we worked closely with Edith’s estate and handled this project with the utmost respect. Her story is one that deserves to be told, and through this film we’ll be able to connect with a whole new audience and inspire a new generation of fans.”
TikTok launched a new feature on Tuesday (Nov. 14) that allows users to easily save music they find on the platform to Spotify, Amazon Music or Apple Music for future listening. This will presumably reduce friction between the apps, helping translate interest on TikTok into streaming activity at a time when the music industry has been concerned that the relationship is weakening.
“TikTok is already the world’s most powerful platform for music discovery and promotion, which helps artists connect with our global community to drive engagement with their music,” Ole Obermann, TikTok’s global head of music business development, said in a statement. The new feature “takes this process a step further, creating a direct link between discovery on TikTok and consumption on a music streaming service, making it easier than ever for music fans to enjoy the full length song on the music streaming service of their choice, thereby generating even greater value for artists and rights holders.”
This “Add to Music App” will be available to users in the United States and the United Kingdom. TikTok started testing the integration earlier this year with Apple Music.
When TikTok initially came to prominence more than four years ago, virality on the app often appeared directly correlated with a jump in streams. But that link appeared to weaken as the app ballooned in popularity. The top 10 TikTok tracks in the United States were streamed far less in 2022 than they were in 2021, according to data from Luminate. And the top 10 songs on the app in 2021 were streamed far less than they were in 2020.
“For a while it was like, ‘All you gotta do is get a song going on TikTok, and it’s outta here!’” a major label executive told Billboard last year. But “it’s not a guarantee anymore” that a song will become a hit, the executive said.
Some sounds appear to thrive on TikTok but never catch fire on streaming services, where they actually generate money for the music industry. Labels will surely be excited if the “Add to Music App” helps strengthen the connection between TikTok activity and clicks on Spotify.
In the past, Spotify and TikTok have sometimes seemed at odds, competing for user attention and influence over the music industry. During the former’s Stream On event in March, for example, Gustav Soderstrom, Spotify’s co-president, took a subtle jab that seemed aimed at TikTok: “Discoveries on Spotify, unlike many other platforms, give creators so much more than just a fleeting moment of viral fame,” he said.
This sentiment was echoed at the same event by Sulinna Ong, Spotify’s global head of editorial, who noted that “there’s a disconnect between where music is being teased and where music is actually being streamed. The most powerful time to reach fans is when they’ve chosen to engage with music, like when they open up Spotify.”
But despite past poking and prodding, the two platforms now appear happy to work together. “We want to create less work to get to the audio you love,” Sten Garmark, Spotify’s global head of consumer experience, said in a statement. “That means being everywhere our users are and creating seamless ways to save songs to Spotify to enjoy when and how they choose to listen.”
Karolina Joynathsing, the director of business development for Amazon Music, used similar language in her own statement. “Some of the best parts of being a music lover are those serendipitous moments when you discover a new song or artist that you connect with instantly,” Joynathsing said. “At Amazon Music, we’re looking to make it easier to convert those moments into enduring fandom,” leading to the adoption of the Add to Music app.
TikTok plans to roll out the new feature in additional markets in the coming months.
In a stunning wrinkle in the fevered battle between Kakao Corp. and HYBE for a controlling stake in K-pop company SM Entertainment, Kakao’s chief investment officer was indicted Monday (Nov. 13) for allegedly manipulating the stock price to ward off HYBE’s rival bid.
Bae Jae-hyun, Kakao’s chief investment officer, will face a trial for violating South Korea’s Capital Markets Act, according to reports. He allegedly inflated the price of SM Entertainment shares by purchasing 240 billion won ($181.3 million) of shares while HYBE, home of K-pop group BTS, was attempting to buy a large stake in the company. Prosecutors also charged Kakao using a provision in the law that allows both a company and its employees to be punished.
The scheme to manipulate SM Entertainment’s share price stemmed from a heated competition between Kakao and HYBE to become the largest shareholder in SM Entertainment — home to such K-pop acts as NCT Dream and Red Velvet — to help rebuild the company after it terminated a production contract with its founder, Lee Soo-man. In February, HYBE acquired a 14.8% stake in the K-pop giant from Lee and attempted to acquire an additional 25% stake through a tender offer at 120,000 won ($92.36) per share. HYBE’s bid was too low, however, and the tender offer gave HYBE less than 1% of outstanding shares.
Bae allegedly acquired SM Entertainment shares to drive up the price above HYBE’s tender offer price, thus thwarting its efforts to obtain a larger stake. On March 6, Kakeo and Kakao Entertainment followed with a tender offer of 150,000 won ($115.46) per share — 25% above HYBE’s tender offer price — and ended up acquiring an additional 25% stake, bringing its ownership of SM Entertainment to 40%. HYBE abandoned its bid to control SM Entertainment on March 13 and announced on March 28 that it would sell nearly half of its stake in SM Entertainment to Kakao for 248.8 billion won ($191.8 million).
Kakao is a South Korean tech conglomerate that owns the country’s dominant chap app, KakaoTalk, and a popular taxi-hailing app, Kakao Mobility, among other products. A subsidiary, Kakao Entertainment, owns Starship Entertainment, home to such K-pop groups as Monsta X, as well as South Korea streaming app Melon. In August, Kakao Entertainment and SM Entertainment revealed their plans to create a North American joint venture by the end of 2023.
The investigation into stock manipulation started soon after Kakao and Kakao Entertainment beat out HYBE for the SM Entertainment stake. South Korean officials raided the offices of Kakao and Kakao Entertainment on April 6 and SM Entertainment’s headquarters on April 18. Bae was arrested for suspected stock manipulation on Oct. 19 before being indicted on Monday. Other executives were suspected of working with Bae to inflate SM Entertainment’s share price, according to a Reuters article at the time of his arrest, but to date no one else has been charged.
K-pop giant JYP Entertainment has signed a multi-year global strategic pact with Live Nation to produce tours for all artists on JYP’s roster, it was announced Monday (Nov. 13). Under the deal, Live Nation will produce tours for established JYP artists including TWICE, Stray Kids, iTZY, Xdinary Heroes (XH) and NMIXX as well as emerging […]
Warner Music Latina has appointed Brenda Carrasco as vp of marketing and artist strategy. According to the label, in her new role, Carrasco will be responsible for overseeing the marketing strategy and career development for Warner Music Latina’s roster — tasked with providing creative direction and tools for campaign development and setting short and long-term […]
R. Kelly is suing the federal Bureau of Prisons over allegations that the agency leaked private information about the disgraced singer to social media personality Tasha K — the same YouTube gossip host that Cardi B sued for defamation last year.
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In a complaint filed Monday (Nov. 13) in Chicago federal court, Kelly’s lawyers say an unnamed Bureau of Prisons (BOP) agent illegally accessed Kelly’s digital prison records — including recordings of private phone calls with his girlfriend and lawyers — and sold them to Tasha, who then broadcast them online to more than 1 million followers.
“The defendant United States of America breached its duty of care to the plaintiff when it allowed countless BOP officers to access plaintiff’s confidential information without any legal basis to do so,” Kelly’s lawyer Jennifer Bonjean writes.
The lawsuit, which also names Tasha K (Latasha Kebe) as a defendant, claims that the influencer then “rallied her massive following to harass the plaintiff with the use of the stolen information and created chaos in plaintiff’s personal life.”
The leaks left Kelly “isolated and fearful to communicate with his attorneys or other third parties,” the lawsuit claims, because he knew it could be “released to the general public for mass exploitation.”
Kelly was convicted in 2021 on racketeering and sex trafficking charges stemming from accusations that he orchestrated a long-running scheme to abuse women. In September 2022, he was convicted in Chicago on separate federal charges of child pornography and enticement of minors for sex. The singer, who is currently appealing both convictions, was later sentenced to 30 years in prison.
If Kebe’s name sounds familiar, it should. Last year, Cardi B won a $3.9 million defamation judgment against the blogger over false statements Kebe made about drug use, STDs and prostitution on her YouTube channel “UnWinewithTashaK.” Kebe has since filed for federal bankruptcy, citing her inability to pay that huge judgment.
In his new lawsuit, Kelly claims that Kebe first published private information in November 2019, starting with a video called “R. Kelly Can’t Control his Girlfriends while Behind Bars” that contained information Kebe said came from a “phone tap somewhere.” Later posts allegedly divulged more personal information, including highly-sensitive communications with his legal team.
“The communications … related to personal and family problems, romantic interests, health problems, literacy issues, and issues related to the defense of his pending criminal cases,” Kelly’s lawyers write.
According to the lawsuit, an internal BOP investigation revealed that an unnamed officer had pulled Kelly’s records from the agency’s TruView system, a digital database of information on prisoners. The officer then allegedly scanned them and “emailed that scan to third parties, including defendant Kebe.” But that probe ended without any action against the officer, Kelly’s lawyers claim.
“No charges were brought against defendant BOP Officer A, and the government has refused to reveal any details about the investigation including the identity of Officer A,” Bonjean wrote in Monday’s complaint. “In short, there has been a cover-up of the rampant BOP misconduct that is ongoing.”
Kelly’s lawyers claim that illegal leaks continued even after the BOP was made aware of the initial disclosures to Kebe. They cited a report last summer by the Washington Post about Kelly’s $25,000 in commissary funds — a report that resulted in federal prosecutors seizing the money to pay off his victims.
In technical legal terms, Kelly’s lawyers allege that the leaks amounted to negligence, an invasion of his privacy, an intentional infliction of emotional distress, civil theft and civil conspiracy. They also claim that the officer who stole the records violated the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act — a federal statute that makes computer hacking illegal.
A spokesperson for the BOP declined to comment, citing agency policy on pending litigation. An attorney who has represented Tasha K on other matters did not immediately return a request for comment.
Nepal’s government in the capital of Kathmandu decided to ban the popular social media app TikTok on Monday, saying it was disrupting “social harmony” in the country, home of Mount Everest. The announcement was made following a Cabinet meeting. Foreign Minister Narayan Prakash Saud said the app would be banned immediately. “The government has decided […]
The Warner Music Group has signed on to Deezer’s new royalty payment structure in France, which was developed in partnership with Universal Music Group and announced in September, the president of the major label’s French operations confirmed today (Nov. 13). The move, which was first confirmed in a story with French outlet Les Echos, has been in place since Oct. 1, and only covers streams in France, where Deezer is based.
In September, Deezer and UMG announced their new model, which they referred to as an “artist-centric” royalty model aimed at combatting fraud, reducing the royalty pool for so-called “non-artist noise” like white noise and nature sounds, and boosting payouts for what the companies referred to as “professional artists,” or artists who were accumulating 1,000 streams per month from 500 unique listeners. The model replaces the existing pro-rata model, in which rights holders were paid by share of streams, regardless of their stature or content, which is still in place globally.
“We are delighted to partner with Deezer on this artist-centric model which rewards engaging music and demonetizes non-artist noise,” Warner Music France president Alain Veille told the outlet. “Our new deal will benefit creative talent at all stages of their careers and support our ability to invest in the next generation.”
In opting in to Deezer’s new structure, WMG joins UMG and a handful of small indies, while the third major, Sony Music, has so far not signed on. The move comes amid a year’s worth of conversation in the music industry about how to tweak the streaming royalty structure as the amount of tracks being uploaded each day to major services surpasses 100,000, and fraud on services is becoming an increasingly big topic. Universal also announced a royalty review with SoundCloud and TIDAL, while Spotify released its own tweaked model, which has far lower thresholds for artists than Deezer’s and is more narrowly aimed at fraud, rather than at determining the level of streams that constitutes an artist’s professional status.
When Deezer and UMG first announced the new model, it was met with pushback from several corners of the music business, particularly the indie sector, which was concerned about those seemingly-arbitrary levels to qualify as a “professional” and about the one-label study that led to its adoption. And while there is broad consensus in the industry that the model needs to change — including public statements from UMG chairman/CEO Lucian Grainge and WMG CEO Robert Kyncl — there is not universal agreement in how to do so, and there is a possibility that each digital service provider could adopt its own model moving forward.
In initially announcing the model in September, Deezer CEO Jeronimo Folgueira told Billboard that he expected more rights holders than UMG to sign on, and planned on rolling out the new structure globally in the coming year. For now, the model is limited to France.
Warner Records has launched underscore works recordings, a joint venture with Charly Salvatore’s Nashville-based management company underscore works.
The new label will focus on discovering and developing fresh country music talent, and launches with two new signings: Dipper and Wesko.
Salvatore launched underscore works in 2022; the company works with artists including Warren Zeiders, Priscilla Block and Dalton Dover. Zeiders, who is signed directly to Warner Records, debuted on Billboard’s Hot 100 with “Pretty Little Poison,” which is currently in the top 20 on the Country Airplay chart.
Texas native Dipper recently released his debut EP Evergreen, including his first single, “She’s Got Wings.” Dipper also signed a global publishing deal with Bailey Zimmerman, The Core Entertainment and Warner Chappell Music.
North Carolina native Wesko spent the past four years performing with his band and writing songs, while working as a foreman for an erosion control company and balancing a full college course load. He continued building his audience in North Carolina, as well as building his social media following before signing with underscore works recordings.
Warner Records’ Co-Chairman & CEO Aaron Bay-Schuck and Co-Chairman & COO Tom Corson said in a statement, “Together with Charly, we’ve already seen incredible success with Warren Zeiders – a newcomer to the scene who has quickly made a big impact. The underscore team shares the same dedication we have when it comes to artist development and building meaningful and lasting careers, making it a no brainer to expand our partnership so we can support even more special artists. Dipper and Wesko are two genuinely talented, hard-working musicians with bright futures ahead, and we look forward to collaborating with underscore to bring even more great music to fans around the world.”
Salvatore added, “Aaron, Tom, and the entire world-class Warner Records team have an amazing track record when it comes to breaking new acts and, more importantly, sustaining that momentum. They’ve been incredible partners with Warren, and there’s no one else I’d want to be running alongside as we take this exciting next step in the underscore works journey. With a deep passion for developing emerging artists, I’m thrilled to embark on this new chapter with remarkable talents like Dipper and Wesko, who are destined to captivate the world’s stage.”
South Korean music company HYBE, home of K-pop giants BTS and Seventeen, has made its first entry into the Latin music sector with the acquisition of Exile Music, the music division of Spanish-language studio Exile Content. HYBE said HYBE Latin America will incorporate K-pop business methods and focus on artist management and talent discovery across […]