business
Life After Death: What Are the Posthumous Grammy Odds For Rap’s Lost Stars?
Hip-hop lost three of its brightest voices in the past year — but thanks to recent posthumous albums, their presence could still be felt on Grammy night. One of the most moving moments of February’s Grammy ceremony came during the pretelecast, when best rap performance was awarded to “Racks in the Middle,” led by the late Nipsey Hussle, who had been killed in a March 2019 shooting. The award was accepted by his family, including his grandmother Margaret Boutte. Wearing sunglasses, she thanked those in attendance for “showing all the love that I have felt for [Nipsey] all of his life.” Powerful moments like that could well take center stage on the main telecast at the next ceremony. Over the past few years, a number of hip-hop’s leading artists have died — many of whom still had recorded mu...
Carrie Underwood, Thomas Rhett & All the Record-Setters at the ACM Awards
A tie for entertainer of the year? Beautiful. Crazy. There was a shocker at the end of the 55th ACM Awards, the first tie for entertainer of the year (or any major category, for that matter) in the show’s history. The co-winners were Carrie Underwood, winning in the category for the third time, and Thomas Rhett, winning in the category for the first time. Swift is the first woman in ACM history to win entertainer of the year three times. She previously won the award in 2008-09. The only other female artist to win twice in the category is Taylor Swift, who took the prize in 2010-11. Rhett won a second prize this year—video of the year for “Remember You Young.” That award was announced in the run-up to the show. Underwood previously won female artist of the year three times (2006-08). Rhett ...
Bogota Music Market: 5 Takeaways From Henry Cárdenas’ Inspiring Chat
On the third day (Sept. 16) of the Bogotá Music Market, Billboard‘s Leila Cobo sat down with Henry Cárdenas, owner and president of event and concert promotion firm Cardenas Marketing Network (CMN) for the weekly daily “inspiring” conversation. During the chat, the pair talked about the impact the COVID-19-imposed lockdown has had on the live industry, when shows are likely to resume again and how he met his longtime friend and business partner Marc Anthony. Cárdenas was part of a number of panelists featured on BOmm’s first all-digital edition with programming that includes 20 panels, workshops and showcases running through Sept. 18. The full program and viewing instructions can be accessed here. Below, find five takeaways from the nearly one-hour ch...
Apple Unveils All-In-One Subscription Bundle
Apple will bundle some of its subscription services together for discount. Customers who want to buy subscriptions to Apple TV+, Apple Music, Apple Arcade and iCloud storage will soon be able to do so for a combined price that starts at $15 per month. The company has unveiled Apple One, a series of bundles of its various services. Plans range in monthly price from $15 to $30 depending on how many people are accessing the bundle and what offerings are included. The Apple One individual plan will cost $15 per month and includes Music, TV+, Arcade and 50GB of iCloud storage. The family plan, which includes access for up to six people, features the same mix of services and more cloud storage for $20 per month. The premiere plan, which also includes access for up to six people, adds News+ and n...
Kaskade Loses Bid to Thwart Financial Subpoena in KAOS Nightclub Lawsuit
A U.S. magistrate judge has rebuked an effort by Kaskade to withhold information on concerts the DJ played in the wake of the closure of the KAOS nightclub is Las Vegas and ordered the performer to pay the hotel’s attorneys’ fees for the cost of enforcing a subpoena. Ryan Raddon, who performs as Kaskade, is suing F.P. Holdings, a limited partnership connected to the Palms Casino Resort, for breach of contract over his residency deal at the KAOS nightclub, which closed in November after six months of operation. KAOS was supposed to anchor a $690 million renovation of the Palms and host a residency by global superstar Marshmello, but the club lost nearly $50 million, according to a Nov. 6, 2019, quarterly earnings call, and shut down permanently. Raddon was ma...
YouTube Launches TikTok Competitor in India
YouTube Shorts allows users to record and upload 15-second videos straight from their mobile phones. YouTube is entering the race to usurp TikTok’s dominance in the short-form video space with YouTube Shorts, a new tool that will allow users to record and upload 15-second videos straight from their mobile phones. This week, YouTube will launch an early beta of Shorts in India, which in late June banned TikTok and dozens of other Chinese-owned apps, citing security concerns. Since the ban, the popularity of TikTok competitor Triller exploded in India, surging to No. 1 on Apple’s App Store in the country. In its early beta launch in India, Shorts will boast a number of creation tools similar to those on TikTok and its competitors, including a multi-segment camera allowing users t...
‘The Apollo’ (About the Legendary Theater) and ‘Apollo 11’ Win Big on Night 1 of Primetime Emmy Awards
This year’s creative arts and other pre-telecast awards are being split into five (count ‘em) nightly shows. The Apollo, an HBO film about the legendary Harlem theater, won the Primetime Emmy Award for outstanding documentary or nonfiction special on Monday (Sept. 14). This year’s creative arts and other pre-telecast awards are being split into five (count ‘em) nightly shows, leading up to the televised Primetime Emmy Awards next Sunday (Sept. 20). This first night was devoted to reality and non-fiction programming. Apollo beat formidable competition– Beastie Boys Story (Apple TV+), (Michelle Obama’s) Becoming (Netflix), The Great Hack (Netflix) and Laurel Canyon: A Place in Time (Epix). Apollo 11, about the 1969 space launch which put man on the moon, won t...
Doves Are Flying Towards U.K. No. 1 With ‘The Universal Want’
Doves are soaring atop the midweek U.K. chart with The Universal Want (Virgin), their first album in more than a decade. The Manchester alternative rock outfit should nab a third No. 1 with The Universal Want, which is outselling the rest of the Top 5 combined, according to the Official Charts Company. The band already has five Top 20 albums, including chart leaders The Last Broadcast (2002) and Some Cities (2005). The trio’s most recent studio album Kingdom of Rust debuted at No. 2 back in 2009. Another Manc band is flying high on the Official Chart Update as Everything Everything’s Re-Animator (Infinity Industries) starts at No. 2. The indie rock outfit is well on pace to best their No. 5 chart peak, which they’ve managed on two occasions. Veteran goth-metal artist Mari...
ViacomCBS to Sell CNET for $500 Million to Red Ventures
ViacomCBS has struck a deal to sell its CNET unit to Red Ventures for $500 million. The transaction, which is expected to close in the fourth quarter of 2020, is subject to regulatory approvals and customary closing conditions. CBS acquired CNET, which offers consumer electronics product reviews and news, in 2008 for $1.8 billion. Since the recombination of Viacom and CBS, the new ViacomCBS has been selling off non-core assets to reduce debt and free up financial fire power for expansions in the streaming space and other core businesses. The company, led by CEO Bob Bakish, also has put on the auction block CBS’ longtime Manhattan headquarters Black Rock and book publisher Simon & Schuster. “Red Ventures believes in the power of premium content from trusted brands that help ...
Rolling Stones Crush U.K. Chart Record With ‘Goats Head Soup’
After a tight race, The Rolling Stones finished with another chart crown and a place in the history books. The legendary British rock band bagged the title in the final hour with their reissue of Goats Head Soup (Polydor), the second time the album has ruled the Official U.K. Albums Chart. On this occasion, Goats Head Soup finished with an advantage of just 800 combined sales over the midweek leader, Declan McKenna’s Zeros. With their latest chart feat, The Stones become the first band in history to land a No. 1 album across six different decades. The Rolling Stones now have 13 No. 1 albums, including the 1973 original edition of Goats Head Soup, placing them level with Elvis Presley and Robbie Williams. Only The Beatles have more career No. 1 albums in the U.K., at 16. Mick Jag...
TikTok Sale: ByteDance Partners With Oracle
ByteDance has selected Oracle as its partner for a deal to keep TikTok operating in the U.S., a source familiar with the talks confirms to The Hollywood Reporter. The decision comes as ByteDance has rejected a bid by Microsoft that earlier this summer was seen as the likely option for the company as it looked to avoid a shutdown of the popular social media app amid increased tensions between the U.S. and China. Microsoft confirmed that its bid had been rejected in a statement on its corporate blog on Sunday night. “We are confident our proposal would have been good for TikTok’s users, while protecting national security interests,” the company wrote. “To do this, we would have made significant changes to ensure the service met the highest standards for security, priv...
All-Star ‘Music From The Home Front’ Charity Fundraiser Returns to No. 1 In Australia
There’s a familiar feel to the top end of Australia’s albums chart this week as Music From The Home Front (Bloodlines/Universal) returns to No. 1 and Powderfinger’s classic Odyssey Number 5 (Universal) reenters at No. 2, while Cardi B and Megan Thee Stallion’s “WAP” (Atlantic/Warner) makes it a full month atop the national singles survey. The all-star Home Front album bagged two consecutive weeks at No. 1 in June and July, and returns for a third week off the back of its release on triple vinyl. The companion album to Michael Gudinski’s virtual concert on ANZAC Day, April 25, Home Front features performances from Jimmy Barnes, Crowded House, Dean Lewis, Tones And I and many others, with all profits going to Support Act, the charity that delivers crisis relief services to artists, crew and ...
