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Lawyers for Dr. Dre sent a scathing cease-and-desist letter to Marjorie Taylor Greene on Monday (Jan. 9), threatening her with legal action after she used the rapper’s 1999 smash hit “Still D.R.E.” without permission in a social media post.
Hours after the superstar publicly slammed the Republican congresswoman over the post — he said he’d never license his song to someone so “divisive and hateful” — his lawyers formally told Taylor Greene that her post constituted copyright infringement and that she had until Wednesday to remove it.
“You are wrongfully exploiting his work through the various social media outlets to promote your divisive and hateful political agenda,” wrote attorney Howard King in a copy of the letter obtained by Billboard.
The video in question — posted Monday morning on Greene’s social media accounts — features the Republican representative strutting through the halls of Congress in slow motion, grinning at the camera as Dre’s infamous piano riff from “Still D.R.E.” repeats on a loop. By Monday evening, the video had already been disabled by Twitter.
If actually unlicensed, the use of a copyrighted song in a political advertisement would almost certainly constitute infringement. In Monday’s letter, Dre’s lawyers told Greene as much — and then some.
“The United States Copyright Act says a lot of things, one of the things it says is that you can’t use someone else’s song for your political campaign promotions unless you get permission from the owner of the copyright in the song, a step you failed to take,” King wrote.
Top artists have long chafed at the use of their music by politicians, particularly conservatives. Foo Fighters and John Mellencamp blasted John McCain for using their music during the 2008 presidential election, and Neil Young, Guns N’ Roses, Pharrell, Rihanna and the estate of Tom Petty have all spoken out about their music being used at campaign events for Donald Trump.
Owing to the complex thicket of blanket licenses that govern the public performance of music, it’s actually more complicated than you might expect for artists to prevent their music from being played at political rallies. But the use of music in a video advertisement is far more straightforward; if a politician doesn’t secure a license, a musician has a great case for copyright infringement.
In Monday’s letter, Dre’s lawyers said that a federal lawmaker ought to know that.
“One might expect that, as a member of Congress, you would have a passing familiarity with the laws of our country,” King wrote. “It’s possible, though, that laws governing intellectual property are a little too arcane and insufficiently populist for you to really have spent much time on. We’re writing because we think an actual lawmaker should be making laws not breaking laws, especially those embodied in the constitution by the founding fathers.”
Greene’s office did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Billboard, but she reportedly told TMZ: “While I appreciate the creative chord progression, I would never play your words of violence against women and police officers, and your glorification of the thug life and drugs.”
Mike Dungan, chairman and CEO of Universal Music Group Nashville (UMGN), is stepping down from his position in March after more than four decades in the music business and in his current capacity since 2012.
The well-respected and liked executive will continue to serve as an advisor to UMG Chairman and CEO Lucian Grainge, with whom he has closely worked over the past decade.
Dungan goes out on top with UMGN Billboard’s Top Country Label on the 2022 year-end charts. Additionally, UMGN’s Capitol imprint was the No. 1 on Billboard’s year-end Country Airplay Labels chart. UMGN is home to such artists as Chris Stapleton, Luke Bryan, Carrie Underwood, Keith Urban, Mickey Guyton, Little Big Town, Alan Jackson and Brothers Osborne.
Cindy Mabe remains president of UMGN and is expected to take the helm, according to sources. She was not included in the announcement and UMG reps has no official comment.
“For 43 years the music business has been my home – smiling, dialing, selling, hustling, laughing, doing my part to help the art and magic realize its potential. And loving every minute of it,” Dungan said in a statement. “I’ve lived a charmed life, and there are no words to describe how grateful I am, and how blessed I feel, for everyone that I have encountered along the way. I’m also proud to boast that through it all, with little exception, I have been “all-in” as a competitor and as a friend.
“The solemn truth is that over time, that intensity takes its toll, and a lot of the dog has been knocked out of me. By the time I leave here I will be 69 years old. It is time to slow down – I look forward to devoting more time to my family and to my garden,” he continued. “I have an incredible wife who has put up with my nonsense for 45 years. We have two great kids who have two great wives of their own. And we have five wonderful grandkids who I intend to spoil to the fullest. I am forever grateful to Sir Lucian Grainge, who eleven years ago handed me the keys to the best job in the world. To him and to everyone at UMG, to all of those who have been my family-in-arms now and in the past, to all those creators whose art it has been my pleasure to represent… I am at a loss to express my love and gratitude. I am the luckiest man alive.”
Grainge added, “Mike is a unique force. He has had an incredible impact on the careers and well-being of so many in Nashville through the years – from artists to employees. After a brilliant four decades in Nashville, and with our team they are well-positioned for continued strength, Mike is making an admirable and well-deserved life change. And while he won’t be serving in his CEO capacity, I’ve asked him to continue to contribute to areas that we’re both passionate about—breaking genre barriers and delivering critical support to artists past and present. I am deeply grateful to Mike for all he has done for our company and our artists and congratulate him on his unprecedented career success. I’m so pleased we will continue to have the benefit of his experience, deep relationships and wisdom.”
Sources say Dungan has been planning the move for awhile –rumors had been circulating throughout Nashville for months about his departure– and had stopped actively signing acts since he would not be around to work them, but otherwise remained actively engaged.
Dungan began his career in the music business at 16 working at Cincinnati record store. He then worked with RCA/BMG starting in 1979 as a pop music promotion rep, working his way to senior vp of sales and marketing.
He then relocated to Nashville working at Arista Nashville, alongside Tim DuBois, rising to senior vp/general manager. Among the acts he worked with at Arista included Brooks & Dunn, Alan Jackson (who is now on UMGN).
In 2000, Dungan was named President of EMI Music’s Capitol Nashville, where for 12 years he led the label. Capitol was named Billboard magazine’s “Country Label of the Year” for seven consecutive years from 2005 to 2012. He assumed his current title in 2012 following UMG’s purchase of EMI.
Brooklyn rapper Lola Brooke has inked a deal to join the Arista Records roster in collaboration with Team Eighty Productions, Billboard confirmed on Monday (Jan. 9).
Brooke had been weighing offers before deciding to become part of the Arista family, which is under the Sony Music Entertainment umbrella.
“Lola is the rare talent whose presence matches her message,” Arista Records CEO David Massey tells Billboard. “Her music is larger-than-life, but her vision is just as powerful. We’re excited to welcome her to the Arista Records family.”
The punchy drill rapper broke through with her rumbling “Don’t Play With It” featuring Billy B which slow-burned its way to success following a 2021 arrival and cracked the most recent R&B/Hip-Hop Airplay chart.
The tarmac is clear for Lola Brooke to take off and Arista will do their best in guiding the tenacious femcee to stardom.
“From the moment I saw and heard Lola Brooke, I knew it was imperative that I sign her,” Arista VP Kendall “Sav” Freeman adds. “She’s an elite rapper and a born performer with an undeniable vision. Lola has an amazing work ethic, her music is phenomenal and her personality is unmatched. I’m excited for everyone to witness her path to greatness in 2023.”
The magnetic 718 Princess has received A-list co-signs from various celebrities including genre trailblazer Missy Elliott, Cardi B, NBA legend Shaquille O’Neal, and Kim Kardashian alongside daughter, North, even posted a TikTok featuring “Don’t Play With It.”
Lola Brooke closed out 2022 on a high-note when Future brought her out to perform as a special guest to a sold-out Barclays Center in her hometown.
Madrid is hosting the first UMusic Hotel, a venture that aims to become an entertainment hub in the heart of the capital of Spain. Co-created by Universal Music Group and Dakia Entertainment Hospitality Group, the hotel is located inside the historic Albéniz Theater building, just a few steps from downtown tourist sites such as Puerta del Sol and Plaza Mayor.
The hotel opened on Nov. 14, 2022 at a 60% capacity and is now fully operating, with Antonio Banderas‘ take on the musical Company showing at the theater until Feb. 14. Next, Spanish singer-songwriter David Bisbal will take the stage for 20 days between March and April as part of the celebrations of his 20th music career anniversary.
The Albéniz Theater was inaugurated in 1945 and was in operation for more than 60 years until it closed its doors in 2009, when its owners wanted to demolish it and build a luxury residential building in its place. A group of citizens came together to create the Albéniz Theater Aid Platform and asked for it to be declared an Asset of Cultural Interest to prevent its demolition, which was finally granted in 2016. This allowed the 898-seat venue to be rehabilitated, and negotiations began for what is now the UMusic Hotel Madrid.
UMusic Hotels is a new international brand that offers first-class accommodations and entertainment. The goal is to create a unique experience for both guests and artists staying at their hotels, and to offer a wide range of music-related services and activities.
Music is in every corner of UMusic Hotel Madrid. Details such as the “Pasillo de la Música” (Hall of Music) — which connects the two buildings that make up the venue, and where you can see works of musicians such as Freddie Mercury, Lady Gaga, Alejandro Sanz and Katy Perry created by the Mexican artist and athlete Hubertus de Hohenlohe — is magical. Upon entering the access foyer located on Carretas Street, visitors are greeted by a neon sign that says, “Vente Pa’ Madrid” (Come to Madrid,) like the famous Ketama song, a cheerful welcoming. On one wall is a verse from Bob Dylan’s classic “Mr. Tambourine Man.”
The hotel has 130 rooms divided into four categories: classic, deluxe, premium and ultimate, all equipped with Nespresso coffee machines and Marshall speakers. There’s also the Artist’s Suite, an exclusive two-floor room with a private solarium terrace, living room and guest bathroom.
Guests can enjoy a vinyl library, gym, bar, amphitheater, outdoor pool, three meeting rooms, a two-level solarium, events spaces, a gastronomic experience at El Albéniz restaurant, 24-hour room service, and the Nota Alta (High Note) bar, located on the rooftop with a lovely city view.
Universal Music Spain has said it will keep working with the hotel to continue attracting top international stars to Madrid. UMusic Hotel confirmed that it is already working on the development of a second hotel, this time in South America, in Barranquilla, Colombia.
Sony Music Entertainment and the leader of one of its frontline labels are launching a new artist and label services company. The major and Alamo Records founder and CEO Todd Moscowitz announced on Monday (Jan. 9) the formation of Santa Anna, a New York-based company that aims to “support entrepreneurs and assist artists in maximizing their creative potential and build their businesses.”
Lee L’Heureux, most recently general manager at Geffen Records, has been onboarded to lead Santa Anna as well as take on the newly created role of president of Alamo, reporting to Moscowitz and working closely with chief operating officer Juliette Jones to support operations, signings and partnerships.
Prior to Geffen, L’Heureux was senior vice president of rhythm, urban and hip-hop promotion at Warner Records, working hits for Lil Pump, Andra Day, PARTYNEXTDOOR and BlocBoy JB, among others, and earning a spot on Billboard’s Hip-Hop Power Players list.
“I’m excited for Lee to join the team and leverage his experience to create new opportunities for Alamo as well as launch the start of what will be an incredible journey for Santa Anna,” commented Moscowitz.
Moscowitz founded Alamo in 2016 after leaving 300 Entertainment, which he started alongside Lyor Cohen, Roger Gold and Kevin Liles three years prior. While initially distributed through Universal Music’s Interscope Records, Alamo decamped to Sony Music in June 2021 after the latter acquired a majority stake, bringing its entire catalog and roster over to SME.
Over the years, Alamo has had several breakthroughs with its artists, particularly Rod Wave, blackbear and Lil Durk. Other artists on the label include Smokepurpp, Comethazine, Yung Mal, 03 Greedo, Lil Gotit and more.
“I’ve always admired Todd’s approach to the music industry, as well as his dedication to supporting artists and their distinct, creative visions,” said L’Heureux. “I’m honored for the opportunity and look forward to taking Alamo to the next level and carving out a path for Santa Anna.”
“Flower Shops” hitmaker and singer-songwriter Ernest is launching his own music publishing venture, ERN’s Cadillac Music, with three songwriters.
The venture, in partnership with Big Loud Mountain Music, has signed writers Chandler Walters and Cody Lohden. Then, in conjunction with Big Loud Mountain Music and fellow singer-songwriter Mitchell Tenpenny’s publishing company High Dime, ERN’s Cadillac Music has signed Mitchell’s brother, Rafe Tenpenny.
As a songwriter, Ernest remains signed to a joint publishing deal between Universal Music Publishing Group and Big Loud Publishing. The CMA Triple Play Award winner has co-written hits for Morgan Wallen (“More Than My Hometown”), Chris Lane (“Big, Big Plans”), Kane Brown (“One Mississippi”), Florida Georgia Line (“I Love My Country”) and Diplo (“Heartless,” feat. Wallen).
Launching his own music publishing venture marks the fruition of a long-held dream. “It’s definitely been within my five-year plan, but I didn’t know it would happen so fast,” Ernest tells Billboard. The company’s name is a tip of the hat to the cover of Ernest’s second Big Loud project, Flower Shops (The Album), which features the beloved Cadillac that Ernest bought in September 2021.
“Cadillac music, that’s kind of what I’ve been joking and calling any of my demos that I’d listen to in the Cadillac,” Ernest says. “It’s gotta pass the Cadillac test.”
Two of the initial signings to ERN’s Cadillac Music have close connections to Ernest. Walters, whom Ernest discovered through TikTok, is his touring steel player, while Ernest met Tenpenny in the fifth grade. Ernest was introduced to Lohden’s music through a social media post from Barstool Sports.
“I respect him not only as a friend, but as one of the best writers in the game right now, so for him to show faith in signing me means the world,” Tenpenny says of Ernest, adding that they wrote their first song together in eighth grade. “It’s always just been two friends coming together and having fun. He’s always had a talent for coming up with words and rhymes on the spot, he’s one of the best freestylers ever.”
“Over the past year we’ve traveled all over the country together and I have gotten to know him as a brother,” Walters says of Ernest via email. “Ern picking me to be in Cadillac Music is super humbling for me. He is one of the most accomplished songwriters in Nashville and him seeing something in me means more than anything.”
“Ern is the GOAT,” Lohden says, adding Ernest is already giving him advice.
“Ern told me to stay humble and keep doing what I’m doing…Just keep working hard and the songs will just keep getting better. It’s very cool to have him on my side and I’m very grateful!”
Big Loud Publishing staffers will work with ERN’s Cadillac Music writers, though as the venture grows, staffers may be added in the future. Ernest says he doesn’t have a set number of writers that he would ultimately like his publishing venture to support, preferring that it grow organically.
“I’m not in a hurry to stack a roster. I love the writers I have now, and the Big Loud building is kind of like one big family,” Ernest says. “It’s like Motown in a way, where there’s several rooms going on at once and I can bounce between rooms and throw in ideas. Now, I’ve got my space over there and Big Loud writers are welcome to crash those rooms and we all just work together.”
He also credits his and Big Loud’s mission of “empowering young creatives to just be free, creatively. Magic will happen if you just create the environment for people to be comfortable and let their guards down.” He adds, “That’s the environment I flourish in and those are the types of writers that I gravitate to when it comes to signing.”
Ernest hopes ERN’s Cadillac Music helps aspiring songwriters get their big break in the same way songwriters The Warren Brothers (Tim McGraw’s “If You’re Reading This,” Toby Keith’s “Red Solo Cup”) did for him.
“I want to be a source for young writers who haven’t gotten a chance yet to play ball,” Ernest says. He recalls how The Warren Brothers became advocates for Ernest and Mitchell Tenpenny earlier in their careers. “That changed our lives because we were in [writing] rooms we had no business being in, but we were getting in them because the Warren Brothers vouched for us, and then we had to do the rest on our own. But getting that one person that could bridge the gap, that’s the hardest part in this town. I want to create an environment where more writers can get a break.”
HONG KONG — Zhang Haisheng feels like his business may never go back to normal under China’s strict and constantly changing pandemic policies. Zhang, who runs three live houses in Shanghai under the brand Yuyintang, struggled over the past three years to navigate China’s “zero-COVID” curbs, which shifted from blanket bans on live events in early 2020, to quarantines, to sudden city-wide lockdowns last spring when cases surged — bringing Yuyintang’s operations to a halt.
Since early 2020, Zhang has canceled close to 1,000 shows. Even during some windows when performances resumed, to meet the country’s strict testing rules he had to hire extra workers to check customers’ nucleic acid test records — and ended up operating at a loss. “In the first two years of the pandemic, sometimes performances could be held normally,” Zhang tells Billboard. “But [2022] was bad, the loss has been relatively huge.”
Now, after a series of street protests, the Chinese government appears to be abandoning its zero-COVID strategy. On Dec. 7, it began easing mass testing requirements and allowing people who have mild symptoms to quarantine at home instead of at government-managed facilities.
More than a year after most of the world resumed concerts and festivals, China’s live industry is finally looking at a rebound. That recovery is likely to focus mostly on domestic acts, live executives tell Billboard, in part because Western artists were already electing to skip China on their Asian tour swings because of stricter Chinese permitting rules — a trend that is expected to continue for the foreseeable future.
While other parts of the world were lifting travel restrictions and bracing for a reopening early last year, the fast-spreading Omicron variant spurred dozens of cities across China, including Shanghai, Beijing, Wuhan and Guangzhou, to lock down. During one virus surge, more than 4,000 performances were canceled or postponed throughout China from mid-February to mid-March of 2022, the China Association of Performing Arts estimates.
Citizens reacted angrily to the measures, triggering some of the most widespread anti-government protests in years. On Nov. 25, a fire killed 10 residents of Ürümqi in northwest China, which many suspected was linked to strict COVID policies that have trapped people in their homes. Workers, students, and residents in a dozen cities across China took to the streets, demanding changes to the Chinese government’s harsh COVID rules. Some protesters even called for China’s leader Xi Jinping to step down.
With the lockdowns lifted, musicians, live music venues and concert bookers are bracing for a surge of infections, while at the same time looking for ways to recover their previous losses.
Zhu Ning, founder of VOX Livehouse, one of the best-known live venues in Wuhan, has been finding ways to leverage his empty venues throughout the pandemic. He ventured into the world of music training, turning his three live venues into rehearsal rooms with recording studios. Zhu also operates his own music label, which has signed bands such as Chinese Football, a four-piece indie rock group. “Since it’s impossible to perform during the pandemic, we did more work on the songwriting and recording side,” he says.
As the founding drummer of SMZB, one of China’s early punk bands, Zhu supports and promotes new indie acts in Wuhan. “Since China’s borders were closed and foreign bands were not able to come in, there has been more space for local acts to perform, and I guess that’s one of the silver linings coming out from this pandemic,” he says.
Starting in early December, Chinese authorities have begun to review show permits again, and he expects local performances to go back to normal levels in 2023, which for VOX would mean around 230 shows per year. “It was quite frustrating in the past three years,” Zhu says. “It affected us too much, and we are almost unable to bear the consequences.”
Protesters march along a street during a rally for the victims of a deadly fire as well as a protest against China’s harsh Covid-19 restriction s in Beijing on November 28, 2022.
NOEL CELIS/AFP via GI
While some have high hopes for the future, Ai Jing, who runs the concert booking agency Haze Sounds, is still struggling to resume operations. Touring musicians from outside of China — who have not been allowed to perform in the country for three years — are still unable to obtain a visa and show permit, since China’s borders are still closed to outside performers.
Acts booked through Haze Sounds, such as Novo Amar, who were scheduled to perform in March of 2020, have been postponed multiple times, currently to November 2023. “I have fans who bought tickets for this performance when they were freshmen in college, and now they have all graduated,” Ai says.
Western Artists Eschewing China For Other Asian Cities
Even with a reversal of zero-COVID policies, the reemergence of China’s live music market is likely to be almost entirely domestic for at least the first half of 2023, as global touring artists decide to skip China and perform elsewhere in Asia, one live music industry executive tells Billboard. International acts such as Arctic Monkeys, Aurora and Kings of Convenience have announced their Asia tour dates for 2023, but China is not on their schedules.
Even before the pandemic started, Western artists were already doing fewer shows in China, often because of permitting and other challenges. Chinese officials “made it harder and harder to get permits for quite a long time, so a lot of artists just stopped going there,” the industry source says. “Everything started to somehow potentially step into the world of politics.” (Promoters typically need permits from China’s Ministry of Culture and Ministry of Public Security.)
A Billboard review of eight major venues — including Mercedes-Benz Arena in Shanghai and Wukesong/Cadillac Arena in Beijing — shows that the number of major Western artists performing in China has been falling since 2013. In that year, 21 artists visited China, including Justin Bieber, Alicia Keys and OneRepublic, compared to only five in 2019, when The Chainsmokers and Shawn Mendes played Mercedes-Benz and Westlife visited Cadillac Arena.
Global acts have adjusted to the challenges of touring in China by finding other cities in Asia to fill out their Asian tour schedules, which typically total between eight and 12 shows. The absence of Shanghai and Beijing, the Chinese cities with the most viable venues, is not affecting the profit and loss picture for most Western acts, the source says.
Ai, the concert booker, is worried about the long-term effects a border shutdown would have on China’s culture sector and global reputation. “I hope we can open to the world again,” he says. “It would be better if we could be more inclusive and accept more diversity and different voices, but I dare not expect too much.”
In Shanghai, Zhang says that if pandemic measures don’t ease soon, to cut costs he’s considering closing one of his three venues, which host mostly indie rock, folk and jazz acts and have a capacity of about 300 people each. “I hope the policy will relax gradually, because people’s demand for performances has not decreased, and their expectations for overseas bands still exist,” says Zhang. But, he adds, “it will take time for us to get back on our feet.”
–Additional reporting by Alexei Barrionuevo
The Ledger is a weekly newsletter that covers the financial and economic side of the music business. An abridged version appears at Billboard Pro. Pro subscribers automatically receive The Ledger. Sign up here to receive the newsletter without a Pro subscription.
Music companies across the board grew revenues in 2022, fueled by global streaming growth and the return of live music. Their stock prices went in a different direction, though.
The Billboard Global Music Index, a group of 20 music-focused companies listed in five countries, declined 36.4% in 2022.
The index aggregates the market capitalizations of 20 music companies spanning record labels, music publishing, live music, streaming and broadcasting. Each company’s float — the outstanding shares — has been adjusted to remove corporate owners, executives, directors and other long-term shareholders.
Music companies weren’t the only stock losers of 2022. Markets were down across the board as interest rates rose, inflation soared and investors placed greater value on profits than growth potential. The index’s deficit was slightly bigger than that of the tech-heavy Nasdaq composite and almost double the 19.4% decline of the S&P 500. The Dow Jones Industrial Average, a collection of 30 blue-chip companies such as Johnson & Johnson and Home Depot, fell just 8.8%.
The two largest companies in the index, Universal Music Group and Warner Music Group, fared relatively well. UMG’s share price fell 9.2% and WMG’s declined 18.9%. Another label group, South Korea’s SM Entertainment, improved 3.4% — one of only two companies in the index whose share prices rose in 2022. As a group, however, record labels and publishers’ adjusted float declined 23.1%. The largest deficit of the group was 50.3% by South Korea’s HYBE, whose main artist, BTS, sent the stock spiraling by announcing a hiatus in June.
The six streaming companies’ index value declined 54.9%, the worst of the index’s four sectors. Spotify’s share price dropped 66.3% and the company dropped to the fourth-largest contributor to index value, after finishing as the top contributor at the end of 2021. The dramatic downturn wasn’t surprising given what was happening in the broader marketplace. Streaming stocks generally benefited from the early days of the pandemic as consumers listened to and viewed more content online and subscriptions spiked. But investors fled many pandemic darlings in 2022: Netflix shares fell 51.1% and Disney shares dropped 43.9%.
With a 20.9% gain in 2022, Tencent Music Entertainment was the rare company in positive territory — not that it isn’t well below its all-time high. While Spotify and other stocks started to drop in mid-December 2021 after the Federal Reserve announced it would raise interest rates in 2022, Tencent Music’s share price had nowhere to go but up. In March 2021, after Chinese regulators cracked down on Tencent Music’s exclusive licensing contracts — many other Chinese companies also came under fire for various reasons — the share price fell 58.5% over three days and another 70.9% through Dec. 20, 2021.
The smaller streaming companies, on average, fared worse than their larger competitors. Abu Dhabi-based Anghami declined 84.3% and French streamer Deezer dropped 51.4%. Both companies went public in 2022 via reverse mergers with publicly traded blank check companies (SPACs), so their annual performance is calculated using the Dec. 31, 2021, share price of the public companies they merged with. Shares of LiveOne fell 49.7%.
Streaming companies’ declines mirrored the losses of some high-profile tech stocks. Amazon, another high-flying pandemic stock, fell 49.6%. Meta sank 64.2% as the company put billions of dollars into building a metaverse that few people seemingly want to visit. Tesla fared even worse by slipping 65% as investors appeared worried that CEO Elon Musk was spending too much time mismanaging his latest acquisition, Twitter, and hurting the brand’s value amongst liberal consumers.
The index value of live music companies — Live Nation, CTS Eventim and MSG Entertainment — declined 35.9%. Even though Live Nation posted record revenues in the second and third quarters as the touring business recovered from pandemic-era lows, the company’s index value dropped 41.7% in 2022. Live Nation’s shares stumbled 10.9% over two days in November after the problematic pre-sale for Taylor Swift’s Eras Tour enraged consumers and brought the possibility of regulatory action (about half of that loss was recovered by the end of December). MSG Entertainment shares fell 36.6% while German promoter CTS Eventim fell just 7.4%.
Broadcasters’ index value declined 33.3%. Even though shares of satellite radio company SiriusXM, the largest broadcaster by market capitalization, declined just 8.0%, the two terrestrial broadcasters in the index fared much worse. IHeartMedia shares fell 70.9% and Cumulus Media dropped 44.8%.
The relatively good performance of labels and publishers — especially the larger ones — brought those eight companies’ share of the index’s value to 49.2%, up from 40.7% at the end of 2021. The six streaming companies’ share of the index value declined to 22.1% from 31.1%.
U.S.-listed companies improved their share of the index to 58.9%, up from 49.9% at the end of 2021. Some of the change can be attributed to the growth in the dollar, which reduces the value of foreign-listed companies when adjusted market capitalizations are converted to U.S. dollars. Compared to the dollar, the euro was down 5.5%, the pound sterling was down 10.4%, the Korean won was down 5.8% and the Hong Kong dollar was down 0.2% in 2022.
Lincoln said, “A house divided against itself cannot stand.” It was true then and it’s true today — on great issues like politics and governance and, closer to home, for America’s music community.
We know the costs of division and mistrust. During the Napster era, we lost nearly half the revenue from recorded music. Working together over the last 10 years, we’ve built a robust and thriving streaming economy well on its way to recovering what was lost. But we still have a long way to go.
From powerful platforms that undervalue music to short-sighted attacks on creators’ rights around the world to abuses of new technologies that attack the very idea of human authorship — it’s more important than ever that we unite to face new challenges in 2023 and beyond.
And we know how to do it.
In recent years, the music industry has joined together over and over again to accomplish great things and move music forward.
In 2018, we enacted “once-in-a-generation” Music Modernization Act legislation here in the U.S. to update streaming rights for songwriters and ensure legacy artists are finally paid. We are now working together to protect artists’ free expression through bills like California’s Decriminalizing Artistic Expression Act and the federal RAP Act.
In 2021, we saw a landmark Copyright Directive in the European Union to strengthen music markets and fair pay for artists on all platforms.
Earlier this year, all three major record labels decided to voluntarily disregard unrecouped balances owed by certain legacy performers ensuring these great artists could immediately share in streaming royalties.
And of course, we supported one another through a devastating pandemic, working to sustain small venues and develop public policies and relief programs to reach working artists and songwriters.
Those were all major steps, but new challenges keep coming — including some designed to stoke division and turn our community against itself. Fortunately, we know from our many recent achievements that the music community — and music itself — does best when we stick together in the face of common challenges. Especially at a time when American music is already thriving — across formats, styles, and all around the world with competition, creativity and choice all stronger than ever.
Artists continued to find new ways to reach more fans than ever with do-it-yourself recording and distribution, while independent labels have become the fastest-growing sector of the market. In a shrinking online world where language and geography are no longer barriers, an artist’s potential audience has become almost limitless.
In this dynamic new music business, success is more broadly shared than ever, with growing opportunities and revenues for indie artists and the very top acts taking a smaller share of revenues today than during the CD era. Globally, out of a $10 per month streaming subscription, artists receive roughly $1.35 while labels net $0.55 once the cost of spending to drive artists’ success is accounted for. Meanwhile, the share of revenues going to publishers and songwriters has nearly doubled in the streaming era.
It’s a powerful testament to what all of us who make up the music community have built together.
It is success borne first from the blood, sweat and tears of America’s creators — artists, songwriters, session players and the legions of those who support and distribute music — producers, publishers, road crews and venue operators, tour support, managers, digital services and more.
It is also the product of round-the-clock drive and commitment by the people working at record labels– music lovers who wake up every day fighting for the artists they work with and helping them achieve their creative dreams and commercial goals. From marketing and promotion to brand and design to social media campaigns to wellness and health to business and back office services, labels today do more than ever to support artists and position them to break new ground and thrive.
The labels that make up the RIAA are committed to a future of continued shared growth. We are determined to keep pushing for even more positive change. And we will work every day in this new year to unite our music community with forward-looking policies and goals that benefit artists, songwriters and fans as well as rightsholders and music services.
That means standing together and ensuring creators get full value for their work on every platform, service, game, fitness app and anywhere else it is used — from AM/FM radio to the metaverse. It also means building on shared commitments to diversity, wellness, and equality — both inside and outside the recording studio and across our entire community.
Additionally, it means presenting a united front when tackling the next generation of challenges, including artificial intelligence, where artists, songwriters, labels and publishers have an immense and shared interest in establishing responsible rules of the road that value human authorship and creativity. Also important is fighting against new forms of music piracy and other efforts to undermine the creative economy, from stream ripping to stream manipulation to pre-release leaks that suck the economic value out of the most seminal times in an artist’s career.
All of us who make up this community are bound together by a shared love of music — and a shared commitment to the people who create, distribute, and listen to it.
In 2023, let’s work — together — to turn those values into concrete action that builds a rich and lasting music future for us all.
Mitch Glazier is the Chairman and CEO of the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA), the trade organization that supports and promotes the creative and financial vitality of the recorded major music companies.
Universal Music Group is suing Triller over allegations that the video-sharing app has failed to make payments for months under its music licensing agreements, echoing accusations made by Sony Music Entertainment in a similar lawsuit last year.
In a complaint filed Thursday (Jan. 6) in Los Angeles court, the music giant’s publishing arm claimed that Triller stopped making payments in April 2022 under two different licensing deals and had missed several required payments since.
Universal says it filed a notice of default in November and terminated the deal earlier this week, but that Triller has still not paid the money it owes — despite allegedly spending plenty of cash elsewhere.
“During the same period that Triller was defaulting on its payment and reporting obligations, it was reported that Triller was spending substantial amounts of money acquiring companies … and throwing lavish events catering to members of the media and entertainment industry,” the company wrote.
Universal says Triller has also breached provisions that require the company to report how the music has been used on the platform. Combined with the lack of payment, Universal cited the breaches as cause to terminate the licensing contract, effective Jan. 3.
In a statement to Billboard, Triller downplayed the seriousness of the case, saying it dealt with only “a very small percentage of the catalogue, and is the ordinary course of business for the music industry and over a small amount of money.”
“This will be decided upon in a proper venue in a few years, and we clearly believe we are in the right and that a court will find in our favor,” Triller wrote in the statement. “It’s a plain vanilla case that virtually every social network has faced in one form or another. It’s not the first and won’t be the last but similar to the past disputes of these nature they tend to settle quietly and end up being a lot to do about nothing .”
The lawsuit is the latest recent legal trouble for Triller. Sony filed a similar case in August, saying it had terminated its licensing deal with the company after months of non-payment. That case, filed in federal court, claimed that Triller had continued to use Sony music without a license — meaning it had also infringed Sony’s copyrights. The case remains pending.
Before that, Triller got into a messy fight with Swizz Beatz and Timbaland, who sued in August over allegations that they were still owed $28 million from the sale of their Verzuz livestream series to Triller. The company was sued again later that month by a smartphone app consulting firm, which claimed the company had failed to pay more than $100,000 in fees. Both cases were quickly settled on confidential terms.
It’s also not the first sign of problems between Triller and Universal. In early 2021, the music giant abruptly pulled its catalog from the platform, claiming Triller had “shamefully withheld” artist payments. Three months later, the two companies announced a new worldwide licensing agreement, spanning recorded music and publishing and restoring the UMG catalog to the app. But in December, UMG was one of several major music companies to again be pulled down from the platform.