business
Australia’s Live Industry Welcomes Fine for Viagogo
In one example, the ACCC said the total price for two Cat Stevens (aka Yusuf Islam) tickets was found to increase from A$450.00 ($357) to A$579.95 ($460), a rise of 29%, when the A$125 ($100) booking and A$4.95 ($4) handling fees were added. Justice Burley described one category of representations as having been made on “an industrial scale”. The company’s business practices were “unacceptable,” says ACCC Chair Rod Sims. “Viagogo misled thousands of consumers into buying tickets at inflated prices when they created a false sense of urgency by suggesting tickets were scarce and when they advertised tickets at a lower price by not including unavoidable fees.” The federal court’s stiff penalty is meant as a warning to other companies that breached consumer protections. The court also or...
Indie Venues Devastated After Trump Kills Stimulus Talks: ‘This Is Real. We Need Help’
“It’s devastatingly horrible news,” says Stephen Chilton with the Rebel Lounge in Phoenix. “More venues are going to close — I think the reason we haven’t seen even more venues shut down is because everyone is holding out hope that Save Our Stages passes. I’m not sure how much longer people can hold on — there’s rent, there’s debt obligations and there’s a lot of costs. It’s already been six months with zero revenue.” The news came as a major disappointment for two major independent arts associations who were encouraged last week when Pelosi announced that the Save Our Stages Act would be included in the $2.2 trillion Heroes Act. Save Our Stages would have provided up to $18 million to any independent music ...
Daymond John Launches Black Entrepreneurs Day; 25K In Business Grants Available
Source: JLN Photography/WENN.com / WENN One of the culture’s biggest entrepreneurs is giving back to the people. Daymond John is looking to make history with a new initiative. As spotted on TMZ the founder of FUBU is trying to empower people of color in a major way. Today (Tuesday, October 6) the Queens native announced that he is launching the inaugural Black Entrepreneurs Day. He took to social media to make the formal unveiling. “Excited to announce the first ever ‘Black Entrepreneurs Day’ – a celebration of black business, presented by @Chase For Business 🙌🏾 .@blackentrepreneursday is sure to inspire and educate across all ages and levels of success as we come together to celebrate Black business 🙏🏾” he wrote. The goal is to...
Queen Is Ready to Rule the U.K. Albums Chart
If Live Around The World holds its position when the Official U.K. Albums Chart is published Friday, it will mark the Queen’s 10th U.K. No. 1 album, and Lambert’s first. Another iconic British rock band is at No. 2 on the Official Chart Update as Oasis’ sophomore album (What’s The Story?) Morning Glory (Big Brother) flies high following its vinyl reissue. On an Official U.K. Chart Update stuffed with new releases, Bon Jovi is chasing a 16th U.K. Top 5 album with 2020 (EMI) arriving at No. 3, while former Pink Floyd vocalist and bass player Roger Waters could bag a fourth solo Top 10 as his live album Us + Them (Sony Music CG) starts at No. 4. Rounding out the Top is CMFT (Roadrunner), the first solo album from Slipknot frontman Corey Taylor. Meanwhile, K-pop girl group Blackpink bow at No....
Fleetwood Mac’s ‘Dreams’ Surges to Biggest Streaming Week Ever After Viral TikTok Video
The TikTok video in question has “Dreams” soundtracking a man in a hoodie (Nathan Apodaca) seemingly being pulled on a skateboard, as he drinks from a bottle of Ocean Spray Cran-Raspberry juice and sings along with Stevie Nicks’ lead vocal. The video became so popular, it moved the band’s own Mick Fleetwood to recreate the clip. “Dreams” also sold 7,000 downloads in the U.S. in the week ending Oct. 1 (up 584%) – its best sales week since the week ending July 24, 2011, when it sold 9,000. “Dreams” makes moves on the Billboard charts (dated Oct. 10), too, as it re-enters at a new peak of No. 9 on the Hot Rock & Alternative Songs chart, climbs 19-1 on Rock Digital Song Sales, and rises 7-3 on Rock Streaming Songs. (Billboard‘s charts dated Oct. 10 will refresh to Billboard‘s w...
Idles, 24kGoldn Rule U.K. Charts
Meanwhile, Machine Gun Kelly scores a career high with his pop-punk album Tickets To My Downfall (Bad Boy/Interscope), which opens at No. 3. Of MGK’s previous four albums, just one cracked the Top 40 (2017’s Bloom peaked at No. 37). Following Michael Kiwanuka’s Mercury Prize win with KIWANUKA (Polydor), the album fires up on the Official U.K. Albums Chart. The winning album enjoyed a 4,537% week-on-week rise in physical and digital sales, according to the BPI, powering the 2019 album to a No. 4 return, just two places below its peak position. Rounding out the Top 5 is the Deftones’ Ohms (Reprise), new at No. 5. It’s the veteran rockers’ third Top 10 album. Over on the Official U.K. Singles Chart, 24kGoldn extends his chart reign into a second week with “Mood” (RECORDS/Black Butter) featuri...
24kGoldn Strikes Chart Gold In Australia With ‘Mood’
Elsewhere on the weekly chart, Canadian singer-songwriter Tate McRae bags a Top 10 as “You Broke Me First” rises 14-10.Travis Scott “Franchise,” his team up with Young Thug and British rapper M.I.A., cracks the Top 40 on debut. It’s new at No. 31. There’s a surprise reentry in the Top 40 for Fleetwood Mac’s 1977 classic “Dreams,” which is enjoying chart spikes around the globe following a viral video on TikTok. It returns to the ARIA Top 50 Singles Chart at No. 39. Over on the national albums survey, Australian-Japanese artist Joji scores his first No. 1 with Nectar, which features guest slots with the likes of Benee, Lil Yachty and Diplo. Joji is the first artist part of the hip-hop collective 88rising to have a chart-leader in Australia. Machine Gun Kelly’s move from rap to pop-punk appe...
Sony Music Suing Musicians for Allowing Attorney to Use Album Artwork
Sony wishes to sue Lyon and Collins for selling unauthorized, “pirate” versions of their own albums on websites. Last week, UMG made a similar move, countersuing musicians including Joe Ely and Syd Straw for distributing their own music in an unauthorized way. But that’s not all! Most spectacularly, Sony aims to hold the musicians liable for secondary copyright infringement because the musicians’ attorney, Evan Cohen, is apparently using album artwork to recruit other clients. As a letter to the judge puts it, “[B]oth Lyon and Collins appear to have authorized their attorney, Evan Cohen, to distribute and display SME’s copyrighted album artwork on Mr. Cohen’s website, so that Mr. Cohen can advertise his business centered on preparing termination notices.” Here’...
Korean Supermodel Irene Kim Launches Capsule Collaboration Project With TikTok
The combination of TikTok’s playful world and Irene’s vibrant aesthetics are said to encourage individuality and carry the important message of spreading positivity, especially during 2020’s difficult times. The #GoodFriendChallenge was created to capture the spirit of friendship and invite users to co-create with friends and share viral-worthy moments. The challenge has so far seen more than 65 major TikTok creators take part, as well as K-pop stars, models and influencers like Eric Nam, Red Velvet’s Seulgi, Jessica Jung, CLC’s Sorn, Holland V, Heize, Nayoung Kim, Hojung Lee, and Lia Kim. The challenge has garnered more than 37.9 million views and 10,000 videos since its launch. The 15-second track, titled “Good Vibes,” was composed by R&B star Jooyoung, $un and Mins...
Phoebe Bridgers Launches Saddest Factory Label With Dead Oceans: Exclusive
That dream comes to fruition today with the launch of Bridgers’ own Dead Oceans imprint, Saddest Factory. The name is a tongue-in-cheek mispronunciation of the word “satisfactory” — which also happens to be a term used frequently in record deals — that was originally made on Twitter by her former Sloppy Jane bandmate Haley Dahl. “It’s always been a dream of mine to have a label, because I’m also such a music fan,” says Bridgers. She says she has been essentially pitching artists to Dead Oceans for years, and finally decided to ask Secretly for a label of her own when indie band Bright Eyes announced their signing to Dead Oceans in February — a deal that came together after Bright Eyes frontman Conor Oberst and Bridgers formed the indie-rock du...
Logic Demands Def Jam ‘Pay My Friends and Musicians’ Who Worked on ‘No Pressure’
“My boy 6ix ain’t been paid all his money! Like who produced the intro hasn’t been paid all his money! Kevin Randolph who the RattPack know as the voice of Kai who I’ve worked with for years hasn’t been paid his money!!!!!! Lil keke hasn’t been paid his money! AND MY DJ RHETORIK, AFTER I HIT YOU UP 2 MONTHS AGO TO PAY THIS MAN HE STILL HASN’T GOTTEN HIS MONEY,” he said. “These are just the calls I’ve received I don’t even know who else of my friendships you’re f—in up!” Logic added. Billboard has reached out to Def Jam for comment. Later in his post, Logic said, “Pay these people what is wrong with you! I pay all my Debts. This is not my debt to pay. these are friends but they are hired musicians and I demand you stop f—ing up my personal relations...
Recording Academy, MusiCares Cut 13 Staffers in Reorganization
The moves stem from a major reorganization the Recording Academy began this summer when it streamlined into three divisions: the entertainment/consumer divisions (led by new COO Branden Chapman), the trade/industry group (led by label veteran Ruby Marchand) and organizations/cross verticals (led by CFO Wayne Zahner, chief diversity and inclusion officer Valeisha Butterfield Jones and chief people & culture officer Shonda Grant). “We did our reorganization in July and as part of that, we really have been doing deep dives into all the verticals,” interim president/CEO Harvey Mason Jr. told Billboard Friday night. “There’s some new alignment [and] some crossover in different sections and because of that we wanted to make sure the skill sets ...
