business
Lauryn Hill Champions California Bill to Limit Record Labels’ Power: ‘Greed Often Perverts’
Lauryn Hill has come out in support of a California bill that would prevent record labels from suing artists who leave their record contracts prematurely. On Thursday (April 14), the eight-time Grammy-winning singer/rapper made a public plea to members of the California State Assembly’s Committee on Arts, Entertainment, Sports, Tourism and Internet Media to support the FAIR Act, also known as Assembly Bill 2926. Introduced by Assemblymember Ash Kalra (D-San Jose) in February, the bill would repeal a 1987 amendment to California’s “Seven-Year Statue” (a.k.a. California Labor Code Section 2855) that allows record labels to sue artists for damages if they leave after seven years but before delivering the required number of albums in their contract. Explore Explore See latest videos, charts an...
Quantum computing firm simulates adoption of crypto payments
Multiverse Computing, a quantum computing firm with offices in Canada and Spain, has partnered with the Bank of Canada to run simulations on how the adoption of cryptocurrency might proceed as a payment method. In a Thursday announcement, Multiverse Computing said it used its equipment as part of a proof-of-concept project with the Bank of Canada to generate examples of how non-financial firms may end up adopting crypto. The quantum simulations used scenarios with 8 to 10 financial networks with more than 1.2 octillion possible configurations. According to the firm, it was “important to develop a deep understanding of interactions that can take place in payments networks” to understand how companies may adopt different forms of payments. The simulations suggested crypto payments may end up...
The Deals: Lostboycrow Plugs Into Nettwerk; Merlin Goes With FLO
Los Angeles indie-pop artist Lostboycrow signed to Nettwerk, which just released his new single “Chewed Up.” His prior releases include the 2016 EP Sigh For Me, 2017 EP trilogy Traveler, 2019 album Santa Fe and 2021 album Valleyheart. Digital music licensing service Merlin struck a partnership with South Korean streaming service FLO that will allow Merlin members to expand their audiences in the country. Users on FLO will now have access to music from Merlin members including Hong Kong-based music distribution and media company Euphoria Media, Latin American online digital distribution company FaroLatino, Brazilian platform Sua Música and California-based punk indie Hopeless Records. Warner Music Nashville and Elektra Music Group signed country singer-songwriter Bailey Zimmerman. According...
Wikimedia community supports proposal to stop foundation from accepting crypto donations
Requests for comments on a proposal urging the Wikimedia Foundation to stop accepting donations in cryptocurrency have closed, with the majority of users voting in favor. According to a Tuesday update on the proposal, roughly 71%, or 232 out of 326, Wikimedia contributors who responded requested that the Wikimedia Foundation — the nonprofit that hosts Wikipedia — stop accepting cryptocurrency donations. The arguments in favor of the proposition included environmental concerns surrounding Bitcoin (BTC) transactions and “the risk to the movement’s reputation for accepting cryptocurrencies.” The community first opened the proposal to comment on Jan. 10, expanding the discussion to include topics like El Salvador adopting BTC as legal tender, crypto as a tool for illicit financial activities, ...
Trending Up: Willow Is Everywhere, With Hits Both New and Old — Plus SZA and Muni Long on R&B Radio, ‘Sun and Moon’ & More
Welcome to Billboard Pro’s Trending Up newsletter, where we take a closer look at the songs, artists, curiosities and trends that have caught the music industry’s attention. Some have come out of nowhere, others have taken months to catch on, and all of them could become ubiquitous in the blink of a TikTok clip. This week: A resurrected older hit of Willow’s bumps up against her newer singles (again), Muni Long and SZA help close the gap between streaming and radio in R&B, and yet another 2010s alt-rock song blows up on TikTok. Willow’s Slow-Release, Sped-Up New Hit Willow has quietly become a ubiquitous figure in pop over the past year — popping up on alternative radio with her great 2021 pop-punk album Lately I Feel Everything, in the top 40 of the Billboard Hot 100 w...
PayMaya’s parent company Voyager Innovations raises $210M
Voyager plans to enhance the services offered by PayMaya, including cryptocurrency solutions The company will use the recent funding to boost its efforts to employ the digital economy in serving the unbanked and underserved. Voyager Innovations, the parent company of the leading digital payments application in the Philippines, PayMaya, has announced that it recently completed a $210 million funding round at a $1.4 billion valuation. Pushing it into unicorn status, the funding round was led by Asia’s SIG Venture Capital. Other investors who participated in the funding round were Tencent, First Pacific, and PLDT – Philippine’s largest telecommunication service provider. “The strong endorsement from our new shareholders and participation of our existing investors in this fundraising validates...
Virtual Avatar Company Genies Raises $150M at $1B Valuation
Genies, a Los Angeles-based avatar startup with close ties to the music industry, raised $150 million in Series C funding led by Silver Lake and existing investors Bond, NEA and Tamarack Global, the company announced today. The deal values Genies at over $1 billion. The six-year-old company has partnerships with Universal Music Group and Warner Music Group as their official avatar and digital goods NFT provider, and has partnered with artists including Cardi B, Justin Bieber, Rihanna, Shawn Mendes, J Balvin and Migos. Genies creates virtual identities for artists to use across the metaverse and releases digital wearables – such as a J Balvin space suit and a Mendes digital hoodie — for fans to collect and wear in the metaverse. Last year, Genies widened its ambition by launching a marketpl...
Belarus-born crypto platform halts operations for Russians in response to invasion of Ukraine
Crypto trading company Currency.com has announced it halted operations for clients based in Russia following the country’s “violence and disorder” imposed on the people of Ukraine. In a Tuesday announcement, Currency.com said Russian residents would no longer be able to access its services following the platform’s decision to stop Russia-based clients from opening new accounts. According to Currency.com’s website, the Gibraltar-based crypto trading platform has offices in Kyiv, London, and Vilnius, but was previously licensed and headquartered in Belarus. “We condemn the Russian aggression in the strongest possible terms,” said Vitalii Kedyk, head of strategy for the platform’s London operations and CEO of Currency.com’s Ukraine arm. “In these circumstances we can no longer continue to ser...
Spotify Podcast and Editorial Exec Courtney Holt Exits
Courtney Holt, Spotify’s head of talk partnerships, editorial and global markets, will transition to an advisory role next month as the audio giant prepares to divide his responsibilities across multiple executives, a person familiar with the matter told The Hollywood Reporter. Holt is expected to stay on as advisor for a year. In the meantime, his duties will be taken over by a team primarily led by Julie McNamara, Spotify’s head of U.S. studios and video, and Max Cutler, the head of new content initiatives and the founder of Parcast Studios. The transition has been underway for a few weeks, according to the person, and Spotify is not hiring a replacement for Holt’s position. “I want to give thanks to the incredible teams at @Spotify I was [lucky] enough to lead and interact with,” Holt t...
Animoca acquires Eden Games following last month’s F1 game disappointment
The digital entertainment and blockchain gaming firm acquired a 96% stake in Eden Games for $15.3 million. Animoca Brands could not renew a license for its Formula 1 game last month Animoca Brands is consistently building its REVV Motorsport ecosystem, and its latest play in this direction is the addition of French gaming production studio Eden Games. The deal was completed for a reported $15.3 million at the end of last week by giving the Hong-Kong based game software company 96% ownership in the company. As part of the terms of the acquisition, the gaming and venture capital firm will gain control over popular racing games, including the Test Drive collection, Gear.Club Unlimited. Animoca intends to use the Eden Games to create new and work on existing blockchain-based rac...
Coinbase to bring BAYC NFTs to the big screens via a short film trilogy
The Degen Trilogy is a three-film trilogy set to air during NFT.NYC this June There are also plans for a series based on Mutant Ape Yacht Club NFTs Crypto exchange Coinbase has announced that it is collaborating with Bored Ape Yacht Club (BAYC) to create a short animated film based on its NFT characters. Coinbase revealed the news via a tweet shared yesterday, alongside a link leading to the trilogy’s website, plastered with the inscriptions’ Something is Coming.’ Titled The Degen Trilogy, the animated film will be produced by a Hollywood director, with the series set to make its silver screen debut at the NFT.NYC event planned for June 20 – 23. BAYC owners who wish that their NFT characters take part in the film can forward their submissions for selection by the director. Community input ...
Sony Music Publishing Commits $100,000 to Songwriters Org The 100 Percenters
Sony Music Publishing is donating $100,000 to The 100 Percenters, a 250-member organization that advocates for music creatives with a focus on BIPOC and marginalized songwriters, composers and producers, it was announced Tuesday (April 12). The money will help provide financial relief through the organization’s Songwriter Stimulus Program and its Emergency Fund, both slated to launch later this year, as well as other efforts. “It’s an honor to have the support of [Sony Music Publishing chairman and CEO] Jon Platt,” said 100 Percenters founder and executive director Tiffany Red. “He heard us and took action in a way that I could never have imagined. This is just the beginning.” The relationship between SMP and The 100 Percenters — which recently sponsored a rally in front of Spotify’s forme...
