business
After Dismal Year-End Results, LiveXLive Wants to Pivot Conversation to Pay-Per-View and Podcasts
Would you pay $150 for a ticket to see a virtual Monsta X concert if it included a 20-second digital meet and greet with the band? Plenty of the Monbebes (the nickname for the K-pop group’s fans) would gladly pay, according to a press release from LiveXLive, one of five announcements the company has sent out since it dismal annual earnings report came out last week. Besides announcing LiveXLive had sold out of the VIP passes, LiveXLive is hoping to convince investors it is on sound financial footing as it goes into the second quarter. With live events on hold for the rest of the year, the company is hoping pay-per-view concerts and podcasts will help the streaming company reign in growing losses, a high-interest loan that’s restricted a large chunk of its ca...
Apple Music Launches Africa Rising Artist Showcase with Debut Cover Star Omah Lay
The new program, designed to elevate the careers of African artists, will also include a companion playlist. Over the last couple of years, Africa has become an increasingly important force on the global music scene, leading labels, publishers and streaming services to extend their reach on the long-neglected continent. In late April, Apple Music announced an expansion of its platform in two dozen African countries, and now the streaming service has unveiled a new initiative to identify and showcase rising talent on the continent. Named Africa Rising, the artist program and companion playlist will feature an African artist chosen by Apple Music’s editorial team every two months, using the full weight of the platform to elevate their careers in Africa and around the world. The first artist ...
Ed Sheeran, Rolling Stones and More U.K. Music Stars Plead With Government for Live Sector Aid
Some 1,500 artists backing #LetTheMusicPlay warn of ‘mass insolvencies’ from ongoing concert lockdowns due to COVID-19. Some of the U.K.’s biggest music stars are pleading with their government to come to the aid of the £4.5 billion ($5.6 billion) live music sector during the coronavirus lockdown, warning that government support is vital to prevent “mass insolvencies.” A group of 1,500 artists — including Ed Sheeran, Dua Lipa, The Rolling Stones, Rita Ora and many others — signed a letter to Oliver Dowden, the secretary of state for digital, culture, media and sport, urging the government to create a funding package for the live sector similar to what Germany’s government did last month. “With no end to social distancing in sight or financial support from government yet agreed,...
Banda Los Sebastianes’ ‘En Eso No Quedamos’ Hits No. 1 on Regional Mexican Airplay Chart
The song follows the reign of “Mi Meta Contigo.” Banda Los Sebastianes clock their third No. 1, and second in a row, on the Regional Mexican Airplay chart as “En Eso No Quedamos” ascends 2-1 on the survey dated July 4. “En Eso No Quedamos” (which translates to “We Didn’t Agree on That”) follows the six-week reign of the group’s “Mi Meta Contigo” in November. Banda first led the Regional Mexican Airplay chart for six weeks with its longest-charting title “A Través del Vaso” (39 weeks on the chart) in Feb. 16, 2019, over three years after the band’s first entry on the chart, “Indeleble” (No. 39, Sept. 2015). “En Eso No Quedamos” rises thanks to a 13% boost in audience impressions (to 6.2 million) earned in the week ending June 28, according to Nielsen Music/MRC Data. With a 19-week cli...
Jay-Z’s Made in America 2020 Canceled Due to Pandemic
Jay-Z’s annual festival in Philadelphia, Made in America, won’t take place Labor Day weekend due to the coronavirus pandemic. In a statement Wednesday, the rap mogul’s Roc Nation company said it plans to produce the popular festival in 2021. “2020 is a year like no other. We are in a pivotal time in this nation’s history. Collectively, we are fighting parallel pandemics, COVID-19, systematic racism and police brutality. Now is the time to protect the health of our artists, fans, partners and community as well as focus on our support for organizations and individuals fighting for social justice and equality in our country. Therefore, the Made In America festival will be rescheduled for Labor Day Weekend 2021,” Roc Nation said in a statement. {“nid”:”8528889″,”t...
LP Announces Global Livestream Concert From Los Angeles
Musician and prolific songwriter LP has announced her first global livestream event scheduled for Aug. 1. The 2020 Virtual World Tour will broadcast live from The Beehive studios in the Los Angeles and is expected to be the artist’s only full-production concert in 2020. “I was expecting to tour throughout 2020 around the world, but unfortunately we had to postpone that to 2021. So, to lift my own spirits, and hopefully other people’s, I decided to put together a proper concert here in L.A., live-streamed everywhere, for everyone to be a part of,” LP said in a release. The multi-camera, HD video, 80-audio-channel concert will kick-off live at 1pm PST and will feature LP and her band performing a set of hits, fan favorites, covers, brand-new music, new v...
Spotify Launches New Subscription Plan For Couples in U.S., 54 More Markets
Spotify has unveiled a new, cheaper premium subscription option for couples, called Premium Duo, that will be rolled out in the United States and 54 other markets today (July 1). The single plan will allow two people living at the same address to have individual premium accounts, which are also entwined through playlists like its Duo Mix of favorites from each party, for just $12.99 a month. Spotify began testing the new tier last March, piloting Premium Duo in Columbia, Chile, Denmark, Ireland and Poland. Now with its wider rollout, Duo joins Spotify’s individual plan ($9.99/month), family plan ($14.99/month for up to six accounts under one roof) and student plan ($4.99/month). [embedded content] In a blog post announcing the new tier, the company noted that a user study found that of cou...
Cirque du Soleil Files for Creditor Protection
Cirque du Soleil filed for creditor protection in Canada on Monday (June 29) while it develops a plan to restart its business amid the pandemic. The creator of many of the most popular shows in Las Vegas on Monday blamed the “immense disruption and forced show closures as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic.” The Montreal-based circus arts show company temporarily suspended its productions around the world in March because of the new coronavirus outbreak. Cirque du Soleil also announced the termination of approximately 3,480 employees previously furloughed in March. In connection with the filing, Cirque du Soleil said it has entered into a purchase agreement with its existing shareholders TPG, Fosun and Caisse de depot et placement du Quebec as well as Investissement Quebec as a debt provide...
Blackpink’s ‘How You Like That’ Collects Multiple Guinness World Records
Blackpink’s historic week has been rewarded with a swag of Guinness World Records. The south Korean girl group’s music video for “How You Like That” earned 86.3 million views on its arrival June 26, enough to set records for most viewed YouTube video in 24 hours, most viewed music video on YouTube in 24 hours, and most viewed YouTube music video in 24 hours by a K-pop group. It’s not such a great week for compatriots BTS, who were the previous record holders in those categories with the video for “Boy With Luv” featuring singer Halsey, which dropped in April 2019. “Boy With Luv” is now scrubbed from the record books. Jisoo, Jennie, Rose and Lisa aren’t done with busting records. The live premiere of ‘”How You Like That” reached 1.66 mil...
Marjorie Garcia Promoted to Partner at King, Holmes, Paterno & Soriano
Los Angeles-based attorney Marjorie García has been promoted to partner at King, Holmes, Paterno & Soriano. The promotion makes García one of the few female Latinas to make partner in a major law firm. García, who previously worked as an attorney at Universal Music Latino, has spearheaded the expansion of the Latin music department at KHPS, a broad practice with particular emphasis on entertainment law, complex business litigation, real estate, banking and corporate finance. Her roster of clients includes Juanes, J Balvin, Los Tigres del Norte, Gloria Trevi, Carla Morrison and the production team of Andrés Torres and Mauricio Rengifo, among others. “When I started out, there weren’t a lot of faces or voices like mine that I could look up to within my field, so I had to forge my own pat...
Here’s Where The Weeknd Is Donating $1 Million Amid Coronavirus Pandemic
The Weeknd’s altruism isn’t slowing down. On Monday (June 29), the XO commander donated a whopping total of $1 million with $500,000 going to MusiCares and the other half to front line hospital workers of the Scarborough Health Network. The Weeknd’s generous gesture is to help those affected by COVID-19. Along with his charitable donation, the After Hours singer brought back his XO face masks and matched every dollar to help raise the money. Earlier this month, The Weeknd shelled out $500,000 to nonprofit organizations committed to racial equality. Split between Black Lives Matter Global Network, Colin Kaepernick’s Know Your Rights Camp and National Bail Out, The Weeknd spoke on the importance of creating change for African ...
Haim Lead Midweek U.K. Albums Chart With ‘Women in Music Pt. III’
Haim are on course for another U.K. chart crown. The Los Angeles sister trio’s third LP Women in Music Pt. III (Polydor) dominates the midweek albums chart, with a lead of nearly 5,000 combined sales, according to the OCC. It’s also the best-selling album on vinyl so far this week. Haim have good form on the U.K. survey. Their debut Days Are Gone (Columbia) bowed at No. 1 in October 2013, and their July 2017 sophomore set Something to Tell You reached No. 2. The album with the best chance of snatching the crown is Bob Dylan’s Rough and Rowdy Ways, which sits in second place and is the market-leader on CD sales. Rough and Rowdy Ways opened at No. 1 on the Official U.K. Albums Chart last Friday, for Dylan’s ninth leader in the territory. British singer and songwriter Jessie Ware is at N...
