State Champ Radio IHeartRadio
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iHeartMedia struck a new partnership with TikTok that will see TikTok creators featured in long-form audio and video content across iHeart platforms, it was announced on Monday (Nov. 10).
The deal includes the launch of the TikTok Podcast Network, a slate of up to 25 podcasts from TikTok creators. Under the agreement, iHeartMedia will open co-branded podcast studios in Los Angeles, New York and Atlanta that will be set up for both audio and video content. The podcasts will be distributed by iHeartPodcasts and made available on the iHeartRadio app and other podcast platforms. Listeners will also be able to watch highlights and clips from the podcasts on TikTok.
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Another component of the deal is TikTok Radio, which will pair TikTok creators and established iHeartRadio personalities on iHeart broadcast radio stations across the U.S. and digitally on iHeartRadio. According to a press release, “TikTok Radio will feature not only TikTok’s hottest new songs, but also trend-driven storytelling and emotional context behind the music,” with segments including Behind-the-Charts, New Music Fridays and On the Verge.
iHeart and TikTok will additionally team up on iHeart events like the iHeartRadio Music Festival and iHeartRadio Jingle Ball, “empowering brands to activate with a dynamic network of content creators,” according to the release.
More details on the partnership will be announced in the coming months.
“This partnership connects TikTok’s cultural energy and creator community with the unmatched scale and reach of iHeartMedia,” said Rich Bressler, president, COO and CFO of iHeartMedia, in a statement. “We’re giving creators access to the biggest audio platforms in America — creating new ways to tell stories, entertain, and build deeper connections with fans. Together, we’re combining our vast networks to deliver relevant content on a massive scale. It’s a win for creators, fans, and brands alike.”
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“At TikTok, empowering creativity and connecting communities are at the heart of everything we do,” added Dan Page, global head of media and licensing partnerships at TikTok. “This partnership with iHeartMedia opens up exciting new opportunities for creators and brands to reach wider audiences, collaborate across platforms and extend their creativity beyond the TikTok platform. Together, we’re amplifying the connection between artists, creators and our community through the shared power of cross platform storytelling.”
TikTok and iHeart kicked off their partnership earlier this year with the singing competition Next up: Live Music, which was hosted exclusively on TikTok LIVE.
Jelly Roll, Tate McRae, Mariah Carey, Maroon 5 and Ed Sheeran are among the artists set to perform at the 2025 iHeartRadio Music Festival. Hosted by Ryan Seacrest, the event will be held on Sept. 19 and Sept. 20 at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.
The lineup will also include performances by Bryan Adams, Feid, GloRilla, John Fogerty, Justice, Lil Wayne, LL COOL J, Sammy Hagar, The Offspring and Tim McGraw, with more to be announced.
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On each of those two nights, the 2025 iHeartRadio Music Festival presented by Capital One will broadcast live via iHeartMedia radio stations throughout the country across more than 150 markets. Hulu will be the official streaming destination of the festival, with performances livestreamed each night exclusively to all Hulu subscribers. Additional information about the livestream will be posted across Hulu’s platform and social media channels.
Tickets go on sale to the general public on AXS.com beginning Friday, June 13, at 2 p.m. ET/ 11 a.m. PT.
Eligible Capital One cardholders will have priority access to presale tickets for the iHeartRadio Music Festival beginning Wednesday, June 11, at 10 a.m. PT/1 p.m. ET through Friday, June 13, at 10 a.m. PT/1 p.m. ET or while presale tickets last. Cardholders will also be able to add a Capital One Access Pass to their purchase to enjoy an exclusive pre-show party with LL COOL J on Friday or Jelly Roll on Saturday, which includes food, drinks and a private performance. Pre-sale info and tickets will be available at iHeartRadio.com/CapitalOne.
In addition, throughout a summerlong on-air and online promotion, iHeartMedia station listeners across the country will have chances to win exclusive trips to Las Vegas.
The iHeartRadio Music Festival will be executive-produced by John Sykes, Tom Poleman and Bart Peters from iHeartMedia and Diversified Production Services (DPS). iHeartMedia will also executive-produce the livestream and VOD special on Hulu.
For more details about the iHeartRadio Music Festival, visit iHeartRadio.com/festival. iHeart notes that artists and/or the event are subject to change or cancellation without notice.
On Friday (May 23), 13 artists were presented with iHeartRadio Titanium Awards for reaching 1 billion spins of their songs across iHeartRadio stations in 2025 — and Billboard can exclusively reveal the new honorees. Artists that reached the milestone include: Benson Boone with “Beautiful Things”; David Guetta and Bebe Rexha with “I’m Good (Blue)”; Doja […]
iHeartRadio is facing a class-action lawsuit from subscribers after disclosing that several of its radio stations were hacked months ago, exposing Social Security numbers, financial information and other personal details.
The lawsuit came a week after the radio giant warned customers in regulatory filings last week that “an unauthorized actor viewed and obtained files” at a “small number of our local stations” in December, potentially stealing SSNs, dates of birth, and credit card info.
iHeart said it “immediately implemented our response protocols” to contain the hack, and is offering free credit monitoring to those affected. The company also said it had “strengthened its existing security measures” to “help prevent something like this from happening again.”
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Those assurances were not enough for Cheryl Shields, a subscriber who filed a proposed class action against iHeart on Wednesday in New York federal court, seeking to represent customers nationwide whose data was compromised. In doing so, her attorneys blasted iHeart for waiting four months to warn subscribers that their data was at risk.
“As a result of this delayed response, plaintiff and class members had no idea for four months that their private information had been compromised, and that they were, and continue to be, at significant risk of identity theft and various other forms of personal, social, and financial harm,” Shield’s lawyers write. “The risk will remain for their respective lifetimes.”
The data exposed in the iHeart breach “represents a gold mine for data thieves,” the lawyers write, and there has been “no assurance offered by iHeart that all personal data or copies of data have been recovered or destroyed.”
A spokesperson for iHeart did not immediately return a request for comment on Thursday.
Such lawsuits are common following data breaches. After the credit-reporting company Equifax suffered a 2017 data breach that exposed the personal data of nearly 150 million Americans, the company agreed to pay $425 million to resolve nationwide class-action litigation filed by consumers.
The scale of the iHeart data breach is undoubtedly far smaller. The company did not disclose in regulatory filings how many total victims were involved nationwide, though a notification filed in Maine said only three subscribers in that state had been impacted. Disclosure forms were also filed in California and Massachusetts, as first reported The Record.
In technical legal terms, Wednesday’s lawsuit accused iHeart of negligence, arguing that the company had a legal duty to safeguard consumer’s data.
“As a national media and audio provider in possession of millions of customers’ private information, iHeart knew, or should have known, the importance of safeguarding the
Private Information entrusted to it by Plaintiff and Class Members and of the foreseeable consequences they would suffer if iHeart’s data security systems were breached,” Shields’ lawyers write. “Nevertheless, iHeart failed to take adequate cybersecurity measures to prevent the data breach.”
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Drake is doubling down. After initially accusing Universal Music Group (UMG) and Spotify of boosting Kendrick Lamar’s “Not Like Us” to his detriment, in a second filing, Drizzy claims that UMG and iHeartRadio defamed him in the process of making the song massive.
According to Billboard, Drake filed this latest petition in Texas, and he alleges that K. Dot “falsely” accused him of being “a sex offender” in his megahit diss song “Not Like Us.” But his label promoted it anyway.
Per Billboard:
A day after filing an action in New York accusing UMG of illegally boosting Lamar’s track on Spotify, Drake’s company leveled similar claims in Texas court regarding radio giant iHeartRadio. The new filing, filed late Monday and made public on Tuesday, claims UMG “funneled payments” to iHeart as part of a “pay-to-play scheme” to promote the song on radio.
But the filing also offers key new details about Drake’s grievances toward UMG, the label where he has spent his entire career. In it, he says UMG knew that Kendrick’s song “falsely” accused him of being a “certified pedophile” and “predator” but chose to release it anyway.
Part of the backlash to Drake’s initial filing was that he had all this energy to question Kendrick Lamar’s ht song getting all these spins, but none for the accusation of being a pedophile. However, the way he addresses it in this filling is not earning him any points. Instead, the Toronto rapper sounds sour that UMG dared to make money at his expense—when considering they surely made cash off his own diss tracks.
“UMG … could have refused to release or distribute the song or required the offending material to be edited and/or removed,” Drake’s lawyers write. “But UMG chose to do the opposite. UMG designed, financed and then executed a plan to turn ‘Not Like Us’ into a viral mega-hit with the intent of using the spectacle of harm to Drake and his businesses to drive consumer hysteria and, of course, massive revenues. That plan succeeded, likely beyond UMG’s wildest expectations.”
While Spotify and iHeartRadio have yet to respond, UMG did so on Monday (Nov. 25). From the tone of its statement, the entity is not to happy with their superstar rapper and the nefarious actions he is insinuating.
“The suggestion that UMG would do anything to undermine any of its artists is offensive and untrue,” said the company in a statement to Billboard. “We employ the highest ethical practices in our marketing and promotional campaigns. No amount of contrived and absurd legal arguments in this pre-action submission can mask the fact that fans choose the music they want to hear.”
This is only going to get more interesting, while Drake is going to continue getting cooked online.
Damiano David is iHeartMedia’s latest “On the Verge” artist with his new solo single, “Born With a Broken Heart.” In a first for iHeart, he will be featured across three formats, with all iHeartRadio CHR, Hot AC and Alt stations participating in the promotion. Damiano, 25, is best-known as frontman for the Italian rock band Måneskin, […]
‘Tis officially the season, which means its time for festive songs on the radio! iHeartMedia announced that the annual station flip to holiday music kicked off on Friday (Nov. 15) with more than 85 stations across the country broadcasting modern holiday hits as well as Christmas classics from Bing Crosby, Dean Martin, Frank Sinatra and […]
iHeartRadio and Z100’s annual holiday concert at Madison Square Garden will feature a mix of veterans (Katy Perry, Meghan Trainor) and hot breakout stars (Teddy Swims, Benson Boone and Shaboozey).
iHeartRadio Z100’s Jingle Ball 2024 Presented by Capital One is set to take place on Friday, Dec. 13, at 7 p.m. Other performers on the bill include Tate McRae, twenty one pilots, The Kid LAROI, Madison Beer, Gracie Abrams and NCT Dream. Z100’s Elvis Duran & The Morning Show announced the performers on air Friday morning (Sept. 27).
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Z100’s Jingle Ball is part of the national iHeartRadio Jingle Ball Tour Presented by Capital One. This year marks the 28th time the New York tour stop has been at MSG.
iHeartRadio 102.7 KIIS FM’s Jingle Ball lineup will be revealed at the iHeartRadio Jingle Ball Lineup Announcement Party featuring The Kid LAROI and Dasha presented by Capital One on Friday afternoon at the iHeartRadio LA Theater. iHeartRadio personality JoJo Wright will announce the lineup on site and the event will feature performances by The Kid LAROI and Dasha. The program will be broadcast across iHeartRadio stations and on Jingle Ball Radio on the iHeartRadio app at 8 p.m. ET/5 p.m. PT.
iHeartRadio Jingle Ball Tour stops will be part of an exclusive network special on ABC, airing Dec. 18, and streaming next day on Hulu.
For the 10th straight year, Capital One will be the national presenting partner of the iHeartRadio Jingle Ball Tour. Eligible Capital One cardholders will get first access to high-demand tickets and exclusive experiences through a special Capital One Cardholder Pre-Sale in each city. The iHeartRadio Jingle Ball Capital One Cardholder Pre-Sale begins Tuesday, Oct. 1, at 10 a.m. local time and runs through Thursday, Oct. 3, at 10 a.m. local time, or while pre-sale supplies last. Pre-sale information and tickets will be available at iHeartRadio.com/CapitalOne.
All other tickets go on sale to the general public on Friday, Oct. 4, at noon local time and will be available at iHeartRadio.com/JingleBall.
Nine cities on the tour will partner with the Ryan Seacrest Foundation, a nonprofit organization dedicated to inspiring pediatric patients through entertainment and education focused initiatives.
The iHeartRadio Jingle Ball Tour is executive produced by Tom Poleman, chief programming officer for iHeartMedia, and John Sykes, president of entertainment enterprises.
The iHeartRadio Jingle Ball special on ABC is produced by Sykes, Poleman and Bart Peters, svp of production & development; as well as OBB Pictures, a division of OBB Media, for the second consecutive year. The special is executive produced by OBB’s Michael D. Ratner, Scott Ratner, Kfir Goldberg, Simone Spira and Glenn Stickley; with Arlen Konopaki and Lana Womack co-executive producing. Sam Wrench is returning to direct.
For the latest information on Z100’s Jingle Ball 2024, visit Z100.com/jingleball or listen to Z100’s Jingle Ball on-air or online via the station’s website, as well as on iHeartRadio.com and the iHeartRadio mobile app.
Lineups for several of these shows will be announced throughout the day. Artists and/or event subject to change or cancellation without notice.
Dallas/Fort Worth, Texas
Date: Tuesday, Dec. 3, at 7:30 p.m. CT – iHeartRadio 106.1 KISS FM’s Jingle Ball 2024 Presented by Capital One at Dickies Arena. Lineup will be announced at 9 a.m. ET, visit 1061KISSFM.com/jingleball for more information.
Los Angeles
Date: Friday, Dec. 6, at 7:30 p.m. PT – iHeartRadio 102.7 KIIS FM’s Jingle Ball 2024 Presented by Capital One at the Intuit Dome. Lineup will be revealed at the iHeartRadio Jingle Ball Lineup Announcement Party featuring The Kid LAROI and Dasha presented by Capital One this afternoon at the iHeartRadio LA Theater. Broadcast live across iHeartRadio CHR stations and on Jingle Ball Radio on the iHeartRadio app at 5 p.m. PT/ 8 p.m. ET, iHeartRadio personality JoJo Wright will announce the lineup onsite and the event will feature performances by The Kid LAROI and Dasha. For lineup information, visit kiisfm.com/jingleball.
Chicago
Date: Monday, Dec. 9, at 7 p.m. CT – iHeartRadio 103.5 KISS FM’s Jingle Ball 2024 Presented by Capital One at Allstate Arena. Lineup will be announced at 8:55 a.m. ET, visit 1035kissfm.com/jingleball for more information.
Detroit
Date: Tuesday, Dec. 10, at 7:30 p.m. ET – iHeartRadio Channel 95.5’s Jingle Ball 2024 Presented by Capital One at Little Caesars Arena. Lineup features: Jack Harlow, Teddy Swims, Jason Derulo, Madison Beer, Saweetie, NCT Dream, Isabel LaRosa and Wonho.
New York
Date: Friday, Dec. 13, at 7 p.m. ET – iHeartRadio Z100’s Jingle Ball 2024 Presented by Capital One at Madison Square Garden. Lineup features: Katy Perry, Tate McRae, twenty one pilots, Teddy Swims, Meghan Trainor, The Kid LAROI, Madison Beer, Benson Boone, Gracie Abrams, Shaboozey and NCT Dream.
Boston
Date: Sunday, Dec. 15, at 6 p.m. ET – iHeartRadio Kiss 108’s Jingle Ball 2024 Presented by Capital One at TD Garden. Lineup features: Tate McRae, twenty one pilots, Meghan Trainor, The Kid LAROI, Kesha, Benson Boone and KATSEYE.
Philadelphia
Date: Monday, Dec. 16, at 7:30 p.m. ET – iHeartRadio Q102’s Jingle Ball 2024 Presented by Capital One at Wells Fargo Center. Lineup features: Katy Perry, Tate McRae, Teddy Swims, Meghan Trainor, Jason Derulo, Gracie Abrams, Shaboozey and Dasha.
Washington, D.C.
Date: Tuesday, Dec. 17, at 7:30 p.m. ET – iHeartRadio HOT 99.5’s Jingle Ball 2024 Presented by Capital One at Capital One Arena. Lineup features: Tate McRae, The Kid LAROI, Meghan Trainor, Teddy Swims, Kesha, Jason Derulo, Gracie Abrams, Dasha, Isabel LaRosa and P1Harmony.
Atlanta
Date: Thursday, Dec. 19, at 7:30 p.m. ET – iHeartRadio 96.1 The Beat’s Jingle Ball 2024 Presented by Capital One at State Farm Arena. Lineup will be announced at 4 p.m. ET, visit Power961.com/jingleball for more information.
Miami
Date: Saturday, Dec. 21, at 7:30 p.m. ET – iHeartRadio Y100’s Jingle Ball 2024 Presented by Capital One at Kaseya Center. Lineup will be announced at 9 a.m. ET. Visit Y100.com/jingleball for more information.
The business of music has transformed in the last two decades, driven by technology that shattered barriers to entry and creators’ determination to control their destiny. At the 66th Grammy Awards earlier this year, more than half of the nominees were independent. And it’s more than just business: the indie movement has enabled diverse voices that could not be heard previously to occupy their rightful place in the industry. This makes music, and our society, more egalitarian and better.
Whether blues, punk, hip-hop or country, America’s most recognizable music genres started out in the indie sector, and today the association I lead has more than 750 members across 35 states, and most of them are small businesses with less than 50 employees. As the music industry has changed, so have they.
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Yet, some of the most important players in the music ecosystem cling to a bygone era that was dictated by the motto, “Might Makes Right.”
Exhibit A is iHeartRadio. The corporate behemoth controls 860-plus stations across the country that play over 50 million songs a year. Those songs helped iHeart’s multiplatform group — covering broadcast radio and national sales — generate more than $2.4 billion in 2023 alone, according to its latest earnings report.
But iHeart is stuck in 1990. It doesn’t bother discovering new artists. Instead, it overplays the hits and milks classic songs that were released decades ago. Despite the growing movement to achieve economic justice, iHeart denies artists and labels payment for their work.
Take a moment to reflect on that. iHeart makes $12 billion a year playing music but refuses to pay the hard working and talented people who perform and produce the songs that are the reason consumers tune-in in the first place. In its desperate attempt to cling to the past, iHeart and lobbyist group the National Association of Broadcasters (NAB) have spent nearly $100 million since 2020 lobbying Congress and spreading campaign contributions around to maintain the unfair status quo.
iHeart is powerful. But it’s on the wrong side of history. And it’s about to face what it hates most: a public forum where broadcasters must defend their craven practices. On Wednesday (June 26), the House Judiciary Committee will hold a hearing on the refusal of broadcasters to pay music creators for their work.
Richard James Burgess speaks onstage during the GRAMMY Influencer Activation at GRAMMY House during the 66th GRAMMY Awards on Feb. 1, 2024 in Los Angeles.
Jerod Harris/Getty Images for The Recording Academy
Of course, iHeartMedia CEO Bob Pittman won’t testify. He leaves the dirty work to the NAB. But that doesn’t matter. When the issue of compensation for AM/FM airplay is held in a public forum, broadcasters lose. That is why their lobbyists work so hard to prevent congressional hearings. But courageous members of Congress such as Reps. Darrell Issa (R-Calif.) and Jerry Nadler (D-NY) are making sure there is a public debate. And they have a solution to ending the injustice: the American Music Fairness Act, which would grant an AM/FM performance royalty. This bill would bring AM/FM radio into the 21st Century, and finally grant American recording artists the same rights enjoyed by their counterparts in almost every other country on the planet.
In the last two decades, how we discover and listen to music has dramatically changed, and not just the move from vinyl records to streaming. We can now ask a device in our house, such as Alexa, to play music, and it does. Spotify and SiriusXM are now buttons next to AM/FM on the dashboard of our cars. Polling from 2020 found that of the people who regard staying up to date on new music as important to them, only 11% turn to AM/FM radio to do so. Even in my generation, that number is only 27%. OK, Boomers!
We need to update the laws to catch up to these changes. It makes no sense if, when driving, music creators heard on SiriusX are being compensated, but not if you hear them on an AM/FM station. If you listen to radio programming through the iHeartMedia app on your phone, through a smart speaker, or even in your car, iHeart has to pay creators too. That’s why they have their hand out to Congress asking for a mandate to keep AM radios in cars.
The American Music Fairness Act brings justice and balance to the industry. Music creators get paid for their work. AM/FM stations have to pay just like the streaming services. And, because the legislation protects truly local radio stations, most stations in the country would pay just $10 to $500 a year to play music.
I know independent music creators, who I represent as president and CEO of the American Association of Independent Music, could definitely use the income from those royalties. My members love partnering with true locally controlled community radio stations, but the behemoths usually don’t take their calls. There are hundreds of thousands of artists and other creators who hustle and struggle to make a living by giving us the music we love.
This approach is fair, it’s equitable, and it’s just. And iHeart hates it.
Broadcasters try to create as much fear, uncertainty, and doubt to avoid doing what’s right. They claim a $500 annual fee to play music would decimate stations’ ability to broadcast emergency communications – then they hike the annual dues it charges its members. They cling to the asinine rationale that the alleged promotional value of radio play justifies their immoral scheme. Worse, broadcasters claim they shouldn’t have to pay for the songs they play while demanding Congress get more money for them when their content is used by YouTube and other platforms.
Broadcasters do all of this with a straight face. But time is running out. When the arc of justice comes around, iHeart and the National Association of Broadcasters will learn they are on the wrong side of history.
Dr. Richard James Burgess is an acclaimed musician, singer, songwriter, record producer, composer, author, manager, marketer and inventor, who presently serves as the president and CEO of the American Association of Independent Music (A2IM).
The iHeartRadio Music Festival is returning to heat up Las Vegas on September 20 and 21, and iHeartMedia revealed the star-studded lineup on Tuesday (June 4). The Ryan Seacrest-hosted event, which is presented by Capital One and will take place at T-Mobile Arena, is set to feature performances by Big Sean, Camila Cabello, Doja Cat, […]
