business
Watch Offset Ring New York Stock Exchange Opening Bell to Celebrate Reservoir Media IPO
“This morning, Reservoir rang the @Nasdaq Opening Bell in celebration of our recent IPO. It is both exciting and humbling to take this next step in Reservoir’s journey,” the company wrote on Twitter while sharing photos from the ceremony. “We look forward to all the opportunities this creates, as we deepen our commitment to #investinginentertainment. Reservoir Media signed Offset and Takeoff to global publishing deals back in 2017, which represent their individual and collective catalogs. Reservoir Media’s EVP of A&R and Catalog Development Faith Newman was responsible for bringing the rappers to the roster. The company experienced its first day of trading on the Nasdaq stock exchange on July 29, when its shares took a 4.9% dip after opening...
Ed Sheeran’s ‘Bad Habits’ Racing to 10th Week Atop U.K. Chart
“Bad Habits,” lifted from Sheeran’s forthcoming LP = (equals), is his second-longest reigning single in the U.K. behind only “Shape of You,” which ruled the U.K. chart for 14 weeks back in 2017. Meanwhile, Joel Corry and Jax Jones’ club tune “Out Out,” with assists from Charli XCX and Saweetie, lifts 10-5 on the Official Chart: First Look, which ranks singles based on streaming and sales activity in the first 48 hours of the chart week. Also, Tones And I’s “Fly Away” looks set for its first stint in the Top 10, lifting 13-9 on the chart blast, while “Butter” by BTS could return to the weekly survey following the release of a version featuring Megan Thee Stallion. It’s at No. 14 on the early tally. The Official U.K. Singles Chart is published late Friday, local time. You Deserve to Make Mon...
Kanye West Claims Universal Music Group Released ‘Donda’ Without His Approval
Billboard has reached out to Def Jam for comment. The Donda track “Jail pt 2,” featuring DaBaby, was originally unavailable when the album first appeared on streaming services Sunday morning, but became available later in the afternoon. In a now-deleted Instagram post from early Sunday, West shared screenshots of text messages saying the track was being held up because of clearance issues from DaBaby. During Ye’s third large-scale listening event for Donda at Chicago’s Soldier Field on Aug. 26, it was revealed that Jay-Z’s verse on “Jail” had been replaced by a new one from DaBaby, who has been under fire for making homophobic and misogynistic comments at Rolling Loud Miami in July. Fans were pleased to learn Sunday that Jay’s verse had been ...
Lorde Powers Australia’s Albums Chart
The Aucklander will support the new LP in these parts with a tour of Australia, set for March 2022. Also new to the survey this week is Hello My Beautiful World (Wonderlick/Sony), the fourth album from Sydney alternative rock outfit Holy Holy. It’s new at No. 4, for the duo’s career chart peak. Hello My Beautiful World is the act’s fourth album and the followup to the ARIA Award-nominated effort My Own Pool Of Light, which reached No. 14 following its release in August 2019. Melbourne blues rock outfit Tropical F**k Storm sweeps into the Top 10 with Deep States (TFS/Universal), new at No. 7, for a new chart best. It’s the third album from the “supergroup,” comprised of members from The Drones, High Tension, MOD CON, Harmony, and Palm Springs. U.S. rapper Trippie Redd makes his first appear...
Supplemental Shuttered Venue Grant Program Now Underway
“The SBA has awarded approximately $9 billion in crucial relief to approximately 11,500 performing arts venues and other related businesses so they can continue to anchor our neighborhoods and define our communities. We know many of these businesses still need assistance to fully recover from the unanticipated expenses and debt caused by the pandemic,” SBA Shuttered Venue Operators Grant program director Matthew Stevens said in a release. “These supplemental grants will go to the hardest-hit Shuttered Venue Operators Grant awardees to ensure they can get back on their feet and get back to the business of driving our nation’s economy.” The supplemental awards also allow SVOG recipients to extend the time to use their grant funds for expenses accrued through June 30, 2022 and lengthen their ...
Want Guitar Lessons From Metallica? Yousician Launches New Artist Series
“I’ve partnered with Yousician because I hope that anyone at any age feels that now is the right time to learn,” said Mraz in a statement. “Yousician makes it so easy to learn and play. It’s like having a friend to personally guide you on your musical journey.” Hadley Spanier, head of brand marketing and artist relations at Yousician who joined the company in January 2020 after a stint as senior vp and head of marketing at UMG’s Verve Label Group, calls the Spotlight series a “natural progression” for the growing platform, which currently boasts a combined 20 million users across Yousician and its associated guitar-tuning app GuitarTuna. Spanier tells Billboard the initiative grew out of a series of live virtual sessions the platform hosted last year, which saw artists includin...
Tomorrowland Forms Dance Label With Universal Music Germany
Through the partnership, Tomorrowland will enjoy direct access to a collective pool of UMG’s international label divisions, including Virgin Records and Astralwerks in the U.S. Leading the partnership will be Berlin-based Virgin Records executives Alexander Neipp, Daniel Schmidt and Magnus Textor, and Tina Adams at Virgin Music Label & Artist Services. Over the past 15 years Tomorrowland has built a reputation as one of the world’s leading festivals and electronic music brands by consistently expanding and evolving their relationship with music fans,” Frank Briegmann, chairman and CEO, Universal Music Central Europe and Deutsche Grammophon, said in a press release. He added that the partners had created a “uniquely flexible model” that will “help drive success and create global hits fo...
Inside the Business of BTS — And the Challenges Ahead
When the seven members — Jin and Suga, 28; J-Hope, 27; RM, 26; V and Jimin, 25; and Jungkook, the mystery hallway singer, is 23 — sit down and begin answering questions, however, they look and sound like the veteran pop stars they are. Seated in foldaway chairs on a stage — where the white surfaces bear shoe prints and other marks from a recent livestreamed appearance on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon — they speak politely, eloquently and with conviction, emanating the humble charisma that has charmed millions of fans into supporting them with an almost religious fervor. “We are not exceptional people — our plate is small,” says rapper Suga, the group’s bookworm, using the Korean expression for lack of ability or small-mindedness. “We’re these rice-bowl-size guys getting so much po...
Warner Music Nabs Kristin Burke From Universal to Run Canadian Label
Burke, who is currently executive vp and general manager at Universal Music Canada, where she has worked for more than 20 years, will report to Simon Robson, president, international, recorded music at Warner Music Group. She will succeed Steve Kane, who has served as president since 2004, and was inducted into the Canadian Music and Broadcast Industry Hall of Fame in 2015. (Kane did not respond to a request for comment.) “Kristen has a great reputation across the industry, combining great strategic insight with an instinctive empathy for artists,” Robson said in a statement. Kane, in his own statement, said he knows the company’s “future is in safe hands,” adding that he plans to focus more energy on social justice issues and music. (Kane notoriously has shopped for vinyl every weekend si...
As ACM Awards Move on to Fourth Broadcast Partner, How Do Other Music Awards Shows Compare?
The move will likely be closely watched by the entire industry. The Academy of Country Music announced last week that it is moving its ACM Awards to Amazon Prime Video next year. The show aired on one of the three legacy broadcast networks continuously for 50 years. The move will likely be closely watched by the entire industry. If the show holds its audience, and if top artists continue to support it, other awards shows may seriously consider streaming partners. If the show falters, other shows may be reticent about following suit. Amazon Prime Video will be the ACM Awards’ fourth broadcast partner, which is more than any other major music awards show. Let’s see how the other shows compare: You Deserve to Make Money Even When you are looking for Dates Online. So we reimagined what a datin...
Spotify Expands Its Podcast Subscriptions to All U.S. Creators
Though the focus is on building exclusive content within Spotify, which has 165 million paid users and 365 million monthly users, Anchor will also provide creators with private RSS feeds that are compatible with other podcast distribution platforms. “Our model is built to maximize creator revenue and offer the widest possible reach so creators can grow their audiences and develop deep connections with listeners,” the company said. Spotify’s top competitor in the podcasting space, Apple, went global with its own podcast subscription options in June. Like Spotify/Anchor, Apple subscriptions provide support for ad-free listening for exclusive content, however, there are more fees involved. In line with other App Store purchases, Apple will keep 30% of sub fees for the first year a...
SiriusXM Wins Appeal in Turtles Lawsuit Over Pre-1972 Royalties
“We are gratified that this important issue has been finally and correctly resolved,” Sirius’ attorney, Daniel Petrocelli of O’Melveny & Myers, said over email. Billboard has reached out to Flo & Eddie’s attorney for comment. The ruling is the latest to come from a series of royalties disputes between the parties, stemming from a complex web of state and federal laws governing radio providers and recent changes to those laws. When an AM/FM radio station plays a song over the air, it does not have to pay public performance royalties to the owner of the original sound recording. On the other hand, digital and satellite radio providers including Sirius must pay public performance royalties whenever they broadcast post-1972 recordings — but unti...
