business
Run the Jewels’ Killer Mike Strikes Publishing Deal with Reservoir
Rapper and actor Killer Mike has signed a publishing deal with Reservoir Media, including future works and his back catalog. The agreement will include the independent publisher taking a stake in the discography of Run the Jewels, the rap duo comprised of Killer Mike and EL-P, who have released such hit tracks as “Legend Has It,” “Close Your Eyes” and “Blockbuster Night, Pt. 1.” Born and raised in Atlanta, Killer Mike has dropped four landmark albums with Run the Jewels over the course of his career, as well as six solo projects dating back to his 2003 debut record Monster, released via Columbia Records. He’s also renowned for his collaborations with other hip-hop heavyweights including Jay-Z, Outkast, T.I. and Big Boi. As an actor, Killer Mike has had roles in films such as Baby...
ConsenSys notches a $7 BN valuation after completing a $450 M Series D raise
The funds raised will be converted to ETH, used to support the adoption of Infura, a revamp of MetaMask and ConsenSys’ expansion efforts ConsenSys also revealed that MetaMask now has 30 million active monthly users Blockchain and Ethereum–focused firm ConsenSys today announced the conclusion of a $450 million raise. The recently–concluded funding round, led by ParaFi Capita, has seen the valuation of ConsenSys grow more than twofold to $7 billion, a significant swell from the last financing in November 2021. The raise saw the involvement of previous investors such as Third Point, TRUE Capital Management, and Marshall Wace, with newer investors including Temasek, SoftBank Vision Fund 2, Anthos Capital, Microsoft and Sound Ventures also in play. Notably, celebrities including rappers 2...
FTX becomes the first licensed digital asset exchange in Dubai
The crypto exchanges’ Europe subsidiary will offer complex crypto derivatives to institutional clients. FTX also has plans to set up its regional headquarters in the city Sam Bankman-Fried’s crypto trading platform FTX has become Dubai’s premier recipient of a virtual asset exchange (VAX) licence, according to a press release sent out today. The American exchange’s Europe and Middle Eastern subsidiary, FTX Europe, will now be operating legally in the city and would play a role in Dubai’s push to spur the growth of global virtual assets regulation. “Really excited to receive the first (and so far only) digital asset exchange licence from Dubai!” SBF tweeted following the news. The licence allows FTX to offer enterprise investors exposure ...
LimeWire chooses Algorand to host its relaunch as an NFT marketplace
The imminent LimeWire marketplace would be initially focused on music collectables The marketplace chose Algorand for energy efficiency, carbon-negative state, scalability, safety and speed Following the announcement of its comeback as a mainstream-ready NFT marketplace focused on music collectables last week, LimeWire has now chosen the Algorand blockchain to power the platform. LimeWire explained that it settled on Algorand for its sustainable blockchain environment. As a PoS chain, Algorand is one of the most environmentally friendly blockchains and became the first carbon-negative chain last year. Also, as LimeWire intends to offer free minting, Algorand’s performance and scalability will come in handy. “We have partnered with Algorand as our official blockchain partner. Wh...
K-Pop Label JYP Entertainment Doing ‘Full-Scale’ Expansion Into US
One of K-pop’s biggest record labels is firmly planting its foot into the U.S. market in the latest move to indicate South Korean pop music is increasingly creating significant stateside business. JYP USA, the North American subsidiary of JYP Entertainment, will focus on the U.S. development of JYP’s roster, as part of a “full-scale North American market development and global expansion maximization” by the South Korean label, Billboard has learned. JYP Entertainment, one of South Korea’s publicly traded agencies, was founded in the late 1990s by musician-producer J.Y. Park, who created early breakout stars like Wonder Girls, the first K-pop act to enter the Hot 100 chart in 2009. The North American launch follows last month’s news that JYP’s strategic partnership with Republic Records wou...
Mila Kunis’ studio debuts an NFT-backed animated web series ‘The Gimmicks’
A public NFT mint is planned for Friday, via which users could get one of 10,000 NFTs to join the show’s community Holders would be able to vote on the direction the show’s story takes Web 3 animated studio Toonstar has partnered with actress Mila Kunis’ production studio, Sixth Wall, to launch an animated wrestling show that follows the lives of retired professional wrestlers, The Gimmicks. The show’s creators aim to build an NFT community around The Gimmicks, whose members would vote on which path the storyline should take next at the end of every episode. The show, loosely described as ‘South Park meets WWE, but interactive and greasier’ by Toonstar CEO John Attanasio, was conceptualised following the release of athletes by WWE at the onset of the COV...
Magic Eden completes $27M raise, aims to conquer the Solana NFT space ahead of OpenSea
Paradigm Capital led the NFT marketplace’s Series A raise Magic Eden is investing in Solana for its low costs and better performance than Ethereum Solana-based NFT marketplace Magic Eden has closed a $27 million Series A funding round. The raise was led by investment dealer Paradigm Capital, with contributions from Sequoia Capital and Solana Ventures. Backed financially by the raise, Magic Eden intends to expand the breadth of products and services that it offers users. A bet on Solana – the cheaper, better-performing alternative Magic Eden aims to be the first mover to gain a real hold on the Solana NFT market space before OpenSea does. The latter is easily the most dominant marketplace in the NFT business, bragging the lion’s share. Though OpenSea suffered a 50% downturn in t...
Deep Dive: A Musician’s Guide to Web3
The music industry hasn’t always welcomed new technology, but the booming NFT marketplace — overall sales generated $25 billion last year — shows the promise of Web3, and everyone wants a piece of the action. Deep Dive explains how artists and executives can get in on it wisely and examines blockchain’s potential to reshape the industry. Plus: lessons in NFT drops from dance music’s pioneers, legal pitfalls to avoid when you’re minting the goods, all the crypto lingo you need to know and a guide to the top startups supporting musicians in the metaverse. Read the full Deep Dive here. Learn To Speak Web3: Translating Crypto’s Buzzwords For The Music Business A primer for artists and executives considering doing business in the metaverse. Read more. Shira Inbar Doing Music Deals In The M...
Jack White Implores Major Labels to Build Vinyl Pressing Plants Amid Backlog
Jack White is calling on the major labels — Universal Music Group, Sony Music Entertainment and Warner Music Group — to build their own vinyl pressing plants amid explosive growth in the format that has led to industry-wide backlogs. White made the request via an open letter and accompanying video released on Monday (March 14). “With industry-wide turnaround times for vinyl currently leaning towards the length of a human pregnancy, it’s obvious, in a world so contingent on being of-the-moment and timed just right (a single, an album, a tour etc.), these timelines are the killers of momentum, soul, artistic expression, and far too often, livelihoods,” White wrote in the letter. White, who owns the Detroit-based Third Man Pressing plant — opened in 2017 — with his independent label Third Man...
The Hello Group Launches Music Publishing Arm in Partnership With Sony
The Hello Group, a multi-faceted entertainment company, is adding to its capabilities with the launch of a music publishing operation that has pacted with Sony Music Publishing for global administration and other services. Hello Group – which provides label services, artist management, digital marketing and other capabilities – has added a music publishing arm, dubbed THG Publishing, whose initial roster includes Alawn, Andy Love and Lauren Dyson. THG’s core focus will be on placing songs in the K-pop and J-pop markets. THG Publishing’s clients have been involved in writing or co-writing songs that have appeared on No. 1 albums on at least a dozen Billboard albums charts, as well songs that have attained high positions in global and international song charts. They include ITZY’s “Icy,” (Dy...
Weekly Report: Stripe introduces crypto and NFTs support, Goldman Sachs to offer OTC bilateral crypto options
Here are the top headlines from the cryptocurrency space that you might have missed this week: Multinational bank Goldman Sachs wants to offer new OTC crypto options Goldman Sachs is now among several Wall Street banks looking to offer crypto options. The financial services and investment bank revealed this week it has intentions to soon start availing over-the-counter bilateral crypto options for enterprise clients. A recent report by Bloomberg, citing a person familiar with the matter, detailed that the American banking giant is looking to sink its claws deeper into cryptocurrencies. The news outlet said that the individual, who preferred to remain anonymous, observed that Goldman Sachs isn’t the only Wall Street bank exploring bilateral options. The said options enable crypt...
Travis Scott, Astroworld Victims Battle in Court Over Rapper’s Charity Initiative
Attorneys for Astroworld victims are duking it out in Houston court with attorneys for Travis Scott, in a battle revolving around whether the star himself should be subject to a gag order that’s been imposed on lawyers working on the massive case. Lawyers for the family of a young boy killed at the festival say Scott is using the media – specifically the launch of a charitable initiative called Project HEAL, which was announced on Tuesday (March 8) – to try to win favor with potential jurors. Scott’s lawyers say his philanthropy is genuine and that adding him to the gag order would violate his right to free speech. Explore See latest videos, charts and news In the latest filing on Friday (March 11), attorneys for the 9-year-old victim, Ezra Blount, said Scott must be prevented from carryin...
