business
The Doobie Brothers Tell Bill Murray to Pay Up
Often, the legal threats come hot and heavy. But that’s not what happens when Bill Murray uses, without license, the Doobie Brothers‘ “Listen to the Music” for an advertisement for his golf shirts, and the band must react. Here, the group’s attorney Peter Paterno attempts to lightly scold Murray for using the 1972 hit, written by Tom Johnston. He writes, “It seems like the only person who uses our clients’ music without permission more than you do is Donald Trump… We’d almost be OK with it if the shirts weren’t so damn ugly.” Ouch! Murray’s camp hasn’t responded yet. Here’s the rest of the letter… This article was originally published by The Hollywood Reporter. You Deserve to Make Money Even When you ...
CISAC Completes Upgrade of Music Coding System
CISAC, the International Confederation of Societies of Authors and Composers, has centralized the assignment and administration of International Standard Musical Work Codes (ISWC). Previously, those codes, which already have been assigned to 52 million song compositions, had been handled by a network of 54 registration agencies in 79 countries. The ISWC administration switchover began in July with over 100 collection management organizations now participating in the new system, according to CISAC which commissioned Spanish Point Technologies to develop the new registration scheme. The rest of the publishing community and digital music platforms are expected to roll over to the new ISWC system shortly. “The upgrade of the ISWC could not come at a more timely moment for songwriters and compo...
California Graphic Artist Claims He, Not Kurt Cobain, Created Nirvana’s Smiley Face Logo
In the latest twist in Nirvana’s two-year-old copyright and trademark battle with designer Marc Jacobs over the use of the band’s smiley face design, a California graphic artist has stepped forward to say that he created the band’s logo and not Kurt Cobain. Robert Fisher, a freelance graphic designer based in Woodland Hills, filed a motion Sept. 13 to intervene in the ongoing federal litigation in the U.S. California Central District claiming to be the rightful creator and owner of the copyright design. Nirvana LLC has been in litigation with Jacobs since 2018, when they sued the designer for copyright infringement and trademark infringement alleging that he had used that Happy face design as part of his “Bootleg Redux Grunge” line without their permission. The band’s legal papers state Co...
Billboard Parent Company MRC Teams With Penske Media for Publishing and Content Ventures
The newly established PMRC will oversee THR, Variety, Rolling Stone, Billboard and Vibe, while the content partnership will produce TV, film, and other formats with access to IP across the portfolio of brands. Billboard and The Hollywood Reporter parent company MRC and Penske Media Corp. on Wednesday announced a deal to create two joint ventures in publishing and content, with both companies holding significant ownership. The deal becomes effective Wednesday, with a transition period through the end of 2020. The news was announced by PMC CEO Jay Penske and MRC CEOs Asif Satchu and Modi Wiczyk. The first joint venture is the establishment of PMRC, which will encompass trade and consumer brands in entertainment and music such as PMC’s Variety, Rolling Stone and Music Business Worldwide...
All Music Industry Initiatives to Help Get Out the Vote This Election Season (Updating)
On Nov. 3, U.S. voters will decide if President Donald Trump gets four more years in office or send Democratic ticket Joe Biden and Kamala Harris to the White House. Ahead of what has been said to be the most important election in at least a generation, non-partisan voter registration organizations including HeadCount and Voto Latino, in partnership with labels and artists, have launched music-driven initiatives that incentivize eligible voters – especially young ones – to get registered and vote. Even labels and digital streaming platforms have rolled out campaigns to encourage both employees and artists to vote this election. And venues across the country will serve as polling sites for early voting and on Election Day. From Spotify’s “Play Your Part” to HeadCount’...
Post Malone Leads 2020 Billboard Music Awards Nominations With 16: Full List
Post Malone leads the 2020 Billboard Music Awards nominations, which dick clark productions and NBC announced on Tuesday (Sept. 22). The “Wow.” rapper is nominated 16 times in 15 categories, followed by first-time nominees Lil Nas X with 13 and Billie Eilish with 12. Khalid ties Eilish with 12 nominations. Among other nominees is Kanye West, whose Jesus Is King album grabbed him nine nominations in Christian categories including top Christian artist, top gospel artist, top Christian album, top gospel album and top Christian song. West also competes against himself for top gospel song, in which “Closed on Sunday,” “Follow God,” “On God” and “Selah” are all nominated. There are three fan voted categories this year ...
Taylor Swift, Post Malone & More Artists Who Could Make History at the 2020 BBMAs
Juice WRLD, Avicii and Whitney Houston were all nominated posthumously. Post Malone and Lil Nas X are this year’s leading nominees for the Billboard Music Awards, with 16 and 13 nods, respectively. They are followed by Billie Eilish and Khalid, with 12 nods each; and Lizzo, with 11. See the full list of nominees here. The awards, which were originally scheduled for April 29, will finally be handed out on Oct. 14. Kelly Clarkson will host the show for the third straight year. This year’s BBMAs are based on the chart period of March 23, 2019 through March 14, 2020. A statement from the Billboard Music Awards explains: “The original eligibility period will remain intact to recognize and honor the chart-topping artists and musical successes achieved and to maintain consistent tracking per...
Former Paradigm, WME Agents Launch Mint Talent Group
After the Coronavirus crisis devastated the music touring business and left creators with an uncertain future, former Paradigm agents Patrick McAuliff and Phil Egenthal and ex-William Morris Endeavor agent C. J. Strock have combined to launch Mint Talent Agency. Founding agents also include Mary Allen and Cassie Siegel, formerly of Madison House, Michael Morris and Ryan Owens, also from Paradigm, former WME agent Peter Wiederlight and Logan Handelsman, most recently with CAA. Mint as a booking agency and entertainment company says it aims at “career longevity” for artists by securing film, TV and brand endorsement deals in the near term. That comes as the live events business eyes a return to scale in 2021 at the earliest as public health officials continue to rule out la...
A Supreme Court Without RBG May Impact Hollywood’s Grip on Intellectual Property
When Ruth Bader Ginsburg died on Friday at the age of 87, the country lost a true champion of equality. The story of the “Notorious R.B.G.,” the Supreme Court’s second female justice, has been told repeatedly in media, books, and films including RBG and On the Basis of Sex. From being an architect of the women’s rights movement in the 1970s to spending her later years on the high court fighting for the rights of the less advantaged (see for example her concurring opinion just months ago in Comcast v. NAAAOM), her lifetime of service will deservedly be lionized. But there was a less noticed aspect of Ginsburg — and her untimely loss will influence the course of industry. On Oct. 7, the U.S. Supreme Court holds an oral argument in Google LLC v. Oracle America Inc., th...
Ava Max’s ‘Heaven & Hell’ Leads Action-Packed Midweek U.K. Chart
Ava Max’s debut album Heaven & Hell (Atlantic) blasts into an early lead in what’s shaping as a classic U.K. chart race. Heaven & Hell leads an action-packed midweek chart, ahead of Live At The Roundhouse (Sony Music CG), the 2019 live recording from Saucerful of Secrets, the prog-rock supergroup of Pink Floyd drummer Nick Mason. The top five is bunched tight at the halfway point. According to the Official Charts Company, just 1,700 chart sales separate Heaven & Hell from the current fifth-ranked album, Potter Payper’s Training Day 3 (2020 Potter Payper). Also cracking the lead pack, at No. 3, is Yusuf / Cat Stevens’ Tea For The Tillerman 2 (UMC), a rerecording of the veteran singer-songwriter’s 1970 set which originally peaked at No. 20. Hip-hop outfit Run The Jewels reen...
Trump Backs Proposed Deal to Keep TikTok Operating In U.S.
President Donald Trump said Saturday he’s given his “blessing” to a proposed deal that would see the popular video-sharing app TikTok partner with Oracle and Walmart and form a U.S. company. Trump has targeted Chinese-owned TikTok for national security and data privacy concerns in the latest flashpoint in the rising tensions between Washington and Beijing. The president’s support for a deal comes just a day after the Commerce Department announced restrictions that if put in place could eventually make it nearly impossible for TikTok’s legions of younger fans to use the app. Trump said if completed the deal would create a new company likely to be based in Texas. “I have given the deal my blessing,” he said. “If they get it done, that’s great. If they don’t, that’s OK too.” Trump said the ne...
Following TikTok Deal, Judge Agrees to Delay U.S. Restrictions on WeChat
A judge has approved a request from a group of U.S. WeChat users to delay looming federal government restrictions that could effectively make the popular app nearly impossible to use. In a ruling dated Saturday, Magistrate Judge Laurel Beeler in California said the government’s actions would affect users’ First Amendment rights, as an effective ban on the app would remove their platform for communication. WeChat is a messaging-focused app popular with many Chinese-speaking Americans that serves as a lifeline to friends, family, customers and business contacts in China. It’s owned by Chinese tech giant Tencent. The group of WeChat users requested an injunction after the U.S. Commerce Department said Friday it would bar WeChat from U.S. app stores and keep it from accessing essential interne...
