Publishing
BMI honored Graham Lyle with the BMI Icon Award at the 2024 BMI London Awards. The private event, held at The Savoy in London on Monday, Dec. 9, was hosted by BMI president and CEO Mike O’Neill.
As part of the tribute, Rich Soul Ensemble performed a medley of some of Lyle’s most popular songs including “What’s Love Got to Do With It” and “We Don’t Need Another Hero,” both originally performed by Tina Turner, and “Just Good Friends,” originally performed by Michael Jackson and Stevie Wonder.
Upon receiving the award, which was previously announced, Lyle thanked people who have supported him over the years, including his longtime co-writer Terry Britten; his former McGuinness Flint bandmates Hughie Flint and Tom McGuinness; and Paul McCartney. He then played acoustic renditions of “Heart on My Sleeve,” originally performed by Ringo Starr, and “Something Beautiful Remains,” originally performed by Turner.
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“Creepin,” written by Enya, Nick Ryan, Roma Ryan, Carlos “Lo” Jones and Mario Winans, was named London song of the year. This award is given to the most performed song of the previous year in the BMI repertoire by UK or European writers.
“Creepin,’” performed by Metro Boomin, The Weeknd and 21 Savage, reached No. 1 on Billboard’s Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs Chart in December 2022 and peaked at No. 3 on the Billboard Hot 100 in February 2023. The song is a partial remake of Winans’ 2004 hit “I Don’t Want to Know,” featuring Enya.
During the ceremony, BMI Million-Air Awards were presented to the songwriters and publishers whose works have achieved the rare feat of surpassing one million broadcast performances on U.S. radio, or multiples thereof. Among the hit songs honored were “Every Breath You Take” written by Sting with 19 million performances, “Another One Bites The Dust” by Queen (10 million), “Here I Go Again,” by Bernie Marsden of Whitesnake (9 million), “I Melt With You” by Modern English (8 million), “Listen to Your Heart,” by Roxette (7 million), “Islands in the Stream” written by Barry, Maurice and Robin Gibb (6 million) and “Someone You Loved,” written by Tom Barnes and Sam Roman (5 million).
Awards for the most-performed pop, film, television, cable and streaming songs were also presented throughout the ceremony. For pop, LiTek and whYJay accepted an award for “Doja” performed by Central Cee; Blush Davis and Chris James were honored for “Like Crazy” by Jimin of BTS; and Ari PenSmith, Believve, Jack LoMastro, Olmo, rayo and Sammy SoSo were presented an award for “Water” by Tyla.
Among the composers honored, Atli Örvarsson won six BMI Network Television Awards for his work on Chicago Fire, Chicago Med, Chicago P.D., FBI, FBI: International and FBI: Most Wanted. Tom Howe received three awards for his work in streaming in both film and TV series categories for The People We Hate at the Wedding and Apple’s Shrinking and Ted Lasso, respectively.
A complete list of 2024 winners will soon be available on the BMI London Awards’ website.
Sony Music Publishing (SMP) has announced the opening of a new office space and creative hub for songwriters in Hollywood. The new location is in the heart of Hollywood’s historic media district and minutes from the city’s old vinyl district. It’s also just down the road from Kobalt and SiriusXM’s offices, making the area a […]
Reservoir has acquired the rights to composer Lebohang Morake, professionally known as Lebo M. Lebo, who is best known for his work on The Lion King franchise. From South Africa, the renowned composer, arranger, producer and performer first broke through as a collaborator of Hans Zimmer, who has also sold part of his catalog to Reservoir, on the soundtrack for The Power of One (1992). He then reunited with Zimmer on The Lion King two years later, writing and performing songs like “Circle of Life” for the legendary Disney film. He has also worked on the soundtracks for many of the subsequent films in The Lion King franchise. This includes his soundtrack for the upcoming prequel Mufasa: The Lion King, which was co-composed by Lin Manuel Miranda. His other contributions to film soundtracks include Dinosaur, Back on the Block, The Life of Quincy Jones, Congo, Long Night’s Journey into Day, Tears of the Sun, The Legend of Tarzan, and The Woman King.
OTM Music has announced new publishing deals with Hemlocke Springs, Erick the Architect and Leon Michels, a touring member of The Black Keys and producer for Clairo, Norah Jones and Lee Fields. The company is also bringing on a new U.S. Head of A&R, Emmy Feldman, to the OTM Music team. Launched in 2017 by CEO Alex Sheridan, OTM Music is a fast-growing boutique publisher that serves a diverse array of songwriting talent, including Sudan Archives, Metronomy, Still Woozy, HONNE, Dot Da Genius and Sub Focus.
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Kobalt has signed rising Latin artist Ela Taubert and her longtime producer KEVN to global publishing agreements. Hailing from Colombia, Taubert announced her deal with Kobalt just a month after winning the Latin GRAMMY Award for Best New Artist and performing her hit “¿Como Paso?” with Joe Jonas at the ceremony.
Warner Chappell Music and All Time Low’s Alex Gaskarth have signed a joint venture publishing agreement with musician, songwriter and producer Dan Swank. Over the years, Swank has played a crucial role in the writing, producing and mixing of releases by Pale Waves, Knox, Taylor Acorn, Mitchell Tenpenny, Charlotte Sands and more.
Berlin-based Bosworth Music GmbH, part of Wise Music Group, has announced the signing of Janus Rasmussen to a global publishing deal. A producer, composer and artist, Rasmussen hails from the Faroe Islands and is based in Reykjavik. An accomplished producer, composer and artist Rasmussen started his career with the Nordic Music Council Prize-nominated debut album “Vín,” which saw him honing his minimal techno chops into an hour-long exploration of acoustic textures and electronic sound design. Aside from his own music, Janus performs alongside Ólafur Arnalds as one half of Kiasmos. Arnalds was also recently signed to the same company.
As 2024 comes to a close, Billboard looks back at the most consequential music publishing stories of the year.
ROSÉ has signed a global publishing administration deal with Warner Chappell Music. News of the deal arrives as her single “APT.” (featuring Bruno Mars, who is also signed to Warner Chappell and Atlantic Records) continues to dominate on the Billboard Global 200 and Global Excl. U.S. charts.
About a month ago, the song debuted at No. 1 on both charts and continues to rank at the top through the week of Nov. 23. It also debuted in the top 10 of the Billboard Hot 100 chart, which tracks popular singles in the U.S.
Though ROSÉ has been a global icon since she joined BLACKPINK as its lead singer in 2016, “APT.” further solidified the singer as a star in her own right and acts as an introduction for her solo debut album rosie, which is set to drop on Dec. 6.
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“I am beyond excited to join the team at Warner Chappell,” ROSÉ said of her new deal in a statement. “There is so much more to come that I can’t wait to share — it’s going to be an amazing journey.”
“ROSÉ has earned this moment, and it’s a huge honor to officially welcome her to our Warner Chappell family,” added Ryan Press, president of North America at Warner Chappell, in a statement. “As she breaks record after record, she’s singlehandedly redefining the K-pop genre while also paving the way for a new era of cross-cultural expression. We’ve already hit the ground running with our partners at Atlantic to support ROSÉ’s bold vision and explore new creative opportunities for her songs. Above all, we can’t wait to see where her music takes us next.”
Born in Auckland and raised in Melbourne, ROSÉ has had her mind set on a career in music since she was 15. To help her achieve her dreams, the young singer moved to South Korea and soon after was selected as a member of BLACKPINK, the first K-Pop girl group to grace the cover of Billboard, win a VMA and headline Coachella.
Though BLACKPINK had a number of top global hits, including “Pink Venom,” “How You Like That,” “Ice Cream (with Selena Gomez),” “Shut Down” and more, the members of BLACKPINK, like many other performers in the K-pop genre, did not take part in the songwriting process of those songs, meaning ROSÉ and her bandmates did not receiving publishing royalties. Now, the singer, whose real name is Park Chaeyoung (or Roseanne Park in English), is in the writing room, lending her pen to her new solo works “APT.” and “Number One Girl,” the second single to be released ahead of rosie. She also received writing credit for the two songs on her debut EP R, released in 2021.
Award-winning songwriter Rhett Akins has signed with Jonas Group Publishing (JGP). Additionally, Jonas Catalog Holdings will acquire songs from Akins’s extensive catalog, while Warner Chappell Music will continue its long relationship with Akins and administer the copyrights.
Akins, who is a two-time BMI songwriter of the year winner, eight-time CMA triple play winner, Academy of Country Music songwriter of the decade recipient and a Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame inductee, has had songs recorded by Jason Aldean, Brooks & Dunn, Luke Bryan, Blake Shelton and more.
Jonas Catalog Holdings has also acquired songs from his Little Brocephus Music,Ritten by Rhettro Catalogs. The acquisition includes songs such as “Love You, Miss You, Mean It” (Luke Bryan), “What’s Your Country Song” (Thomas Rhett), “To Be Loved By You” (Parker McCollum), “Half Of Me” (Thomas Rhett/Riley Green), “It Matters To Her” (Scotty McCreery), and “Red” (HARDY/Morgan Wallen).
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Jonas Group Publishing launched in 2020 and is a division of Jonas Group Entertainment, founded by Kevin Jonas Sr. in 2005. Jonas Group Publishing is led by JGP president Leslie T. DiPiero and is home to songwriters including Akins, Justin Ebach, Terri Jo Box, Franklin Jonas, Bailee Madison, Amy Stroup and the catalog of Julia Michaels.
“Rhett is an extraordinary songwriter,” DiPiero said in a statement. “Personally, I have admired his work since I first came to town. He is a master of everything that is great about country music. It is an honor to represent his catalog of excellence, and our entire team is looking forward to contributing to his continued growth and success.”
“I’ve seen Leslie’s dedication to songwriters for many years,” Akins said. “She is a friend of and advocate for creators. The impact the Jonas family has made on the music world is remarkable, and it is obvious their love for music and family is their driving force. You put all that together, and I think you have a pretty unstoppable squad that leads with their values. I am very excited to join Kevin, Leslie, and the whole Jonas Group Publishing team.”
“We are honored to welcome Rhett to our roster, along with his incredible catalog,” Jonas of Jonas Group Entertainment stated. “Rhett is an immensely talented songwriter whose contributions have shaped the landscape of country music and beyond. His catalog reflects not only his incredible talent but also his ability to create songs that resonate with audiences around the world.
“We are thrilled to bring Rhett’s body of work into the Jonas Group Publishing family, which would not have been possible without the support and expertise of our trusted financial partner, Corrum Capital Management. We must also thank Access Media Advisory and Teresa Miles Walsh, Dave and Ruscell Pavlin, Matthew Beckett, and Milom Crow Kelley Beckett Shehan PLC for providing valuable assistance throughout the purchase of the catalog. All of us at JGP look forward to celebrating and amplifying Rhett’s extraordinary artistry.”
AllTrack, a U.S.-based collection society founded in 2017, has announced the launch of a mechanical rights division. Now, AllTrack members can opt-in to get their mechanical royalties collected along with performance royalties, making AllTrack the only U.S. performance rights organization (PRO) to collect both through a single platform.
With the move, AllTrack tells Billboard it hopes to become a competitor of DIY publishing administrators like SongTrust or TuneCore Publishing which offer short-term deals for small independent songwriters, who are often looking for a stopgap solution to collecting royalties before they sign larger publishing deals.
The AllTrack mechanical collection service will charge a 15% administration fee for all royalties collected, and writers using the service must sign a 2 year agreement.
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Around the world, it is customary for collection societies to collect both performance and mechanical royalties on behalf of writers, but these have always been separate services in the United States, adding to the complexity of the royalty collection process for songwriters. Since the passage of the Music Modernization Act (MMA) in 2017, the legislation that simplified the mechanical royalty collection process for the streaming age, mechanicals for interactive streaming have been collected by the MMA-mandated Mechanical Licensing Collective (The MLC).
The MLC is open for any songwriter who wants to sign up. Unlike PROs, it does not charge an administration fee to any songwriter or publisher for collecting, matching and processing royalties, given the MMA ordered the streaming services to pay for the MLC’s operations. When a songwriter signs up for AllTrack’s mechanical service, those mechanicals still go through processing with the MLC, but AllTrack becomes the liaison that ensures the writer is properly registered and collecting royalties from the MLC. Essentially, the firm wants to offer a one-stop shop for independent writers who find the multi-society system of royalty collection to be too cumbersome.
AllTrack will also collect mechanical royalties for its clients in areas that don’t fall under the domain of the MLC, including social media services like TikTok, YouTube and Meta, as well as fitness and gaming applications.
“We’re thrilled to expand our services to include mechanical rights, which typically represent a significant portion of a music creator’s publishing income,” says Hayden Bower, founder and CEO of AllTrack. “Our integrated approach addresses the independent sector’s long-standing need for a simplified royalty collection process. AllTrack members can now receive the compensation they’re entitled to faster and more efficiently than ever before.”
The news comes just months after AllTrack announced that it had been accepted into CISAC (International Confederation of Societies of Authors and Composers) and after the U.S. PRO system has come under more scrutiny. In September, Billboard broke the news that the House Judiciary Committee had sent a letter to the Copyright Office asking for further examination into PROs, citing “difficult to assess” royalty collections and the “proliferation of PROs.”
TikTok and ICE have signed a long term licensing deal. The new agreement means that TikTok and its users can will to have access to the broad and wide ranging catalog of songs represented by ICE, which includes many of Europe’s biggest collection societies like PRS, STIM and GEMA. ICE also represents peermusic, Concord and Songtrust.
TikTok also launched its first-ever TikTok for Songwriters event on Tuesday (Nov. 19) at its London headquarters. Featuring appearance by JADE and Kamille, the event celebrating the art of songwriting in partnership with PRS and The Ivors Academy.
Seeker Music, the songwriter-led music rights, publishing and record company, has acquired the publishing rights to indie-rock band The Wombats’ first four albums. Formed in Liverpool in 2003, The Wombats early catalog contains hits like “Let’s Dance to Joy Division,” “Greek Tragedy,” and “Turn.” The Wombats said in a statement about the deal: “We are absolutely thrilled to be working with the team at Seeker and can’t think of a better team to help build our catalogue over the coming years.”
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Slipstream, a music licensing platform with over 650,000 songs in its production library, has partnered with Kobalt for publishing administration. Earlier this fall, Slipstream announced that it had acquired Anthem Entertainment’s production music businesses, including Jingle Punks, 5 Alarm Music and Cavendish Music.
Platinum Grammar Publishing has signed singer-songwriter Morgan St. Jean to a global publishing deal. A co-writer on Chappell Roan’s hit song “Casual,” St. Jean is a fast-rising talent in songwriting world. As an artist, St. Jean got her start as a featured artist on the Borgeous single “Famous” and Loud Luxury’s “Aftertaste.” Since then, she has also released solo material, including the viral hit “Not All Men.” Her new publishing home, Platinum Grammar, was founded in 2022 by Joie Manda as a fully independent, self-funded publishing venture with the hopes of developing new talent. The company also recently signed Adam Wendler, co-writer of Dasha’s “Austin.”
Third Side Music has signed Katie Crutchfield, better known as indie band Waxahatchee, to a global publishing deal. News of the signing arrives just after Waxahatchee earned a Grammy nomination for Best Americana Album, and the A&R who signed her, Brontë Jane, received a promotion to become the company’s new executive vp of creative/A&R. In addition, TSM has elevated Mariah Flores to creative/A&R manager.
Maison Arts has signed producer/songwriter Alexander “AYOKAY” O’Neill to a publishing agreement. Along with his own artist project, making dance/electronic music, AYOKAY has lent his production skills to artists like Quinn XCII, Chelsea Cutler, Jeremy Zucker, Carly Rae Jepson and more.
Universal Music Publishing Group has signed Manchester-based singer-songwriter Lusaint to a global publishing deal. The news follows the release of Lusaint’s debut EP, Self Sabotage, released via Heavenly Fire.
Position Music, has announced the signing of SLOE JACK to a worldwide publishing deal. News of the agreement comes soon after SLOE JACK, a 22-year-old multi-genre talent, signed a label deal with Dream Artists and Interscope Records.
Warner Chappell Music and Cornman Music have jointly signed Trent Wayne to a global publishing deal. The southern Mississippi native has collaborated with notable songwriters such as Schmitty, Reid Morris, Noah Hudson, Zach John King, Matt Mulhare, Chase McDaniel, Mia Mantia, and Brett James, among many others.
Bosworth Music GmbH, part of Wise Music Group, has signed a further publishing agreement with the globally acclaimed Icelandic composer, producer and multi-instrumentalist Ólafur Arnalds for his entire back catalogue as well as new works. Arnalds began his relationship with Wise Music Group in 2020.
Haliey Welch, better known as the “Hawk Tuah Girl,” announced the launch of her own vocal sample pack on Wednesday (Nov. 20). Producers looking to sample Welch will be able to do so via BeatStars, the popular online beat marketplace. It’s a shrewd move by Welch: Her voice has already been sampled willy-nilly since she […]
Mexican music star Ana Bárbara has signed a global publishing deal with Kobalt, the company tells Billboard. The indie publisher will administer all of the Mexican music star’s catalog and future recordings. Bárbara’s previous publisher was Ingrooves Music Publishing. The deal comes on the heels of Bárbara’s Reina Grupera U.S. Tour, which celebrated her 30th […]