INDUSTRY
Nigeria declares telecoms facilities critical national Infrastructure
In response to the yearnings of industry stakeholders to declare telecom facilities Critical National Infrastructure, President Muhammadu Buhari, has finally approved and also directed that necessary physical protective measures be put in place to safeguard telecommunications infrastructure deployed across the country. This followed a proposal by the Minister of Communications and Digital Economy, Dr. Ibrahim Pantami, to the President to identify telecommunications infrastructure as Critical National Infrastructure, with a view to protecting them from vandalization and theft, amongst other things. Recall that telecom operators and industry players had over the years been consistent in their demand for the Federal government to declare all telecoms facilities across the country critical nat...
Introducing The Fluffy Cloud, the UFO-Like 360° Immersive Stage That is Reinventing Live Performances
“Doing the same thing over and over is boring,” says Jorge Perdomo, creator of The Fluffy Cloud. No, The Fluffy Cloud isn’t the name of a fancy new weather app or a pillow you saw on Shark Tank. It is a futuristic art installation that doubles as a formidable concert stage, towering 30-feet high and flaunting a 60,000-watt circular sound system and a dazzling centrifuge of 33,000 polychromatic LEDs. The Fluffy Cloud is a structure like no other, and that’s the point—its goal, Perdomo says, is to disrupt the live entertainment industry by creating something that blurs the lines of art and music to offer a truly immersive experience. At its core, The Fluffy Cloud represents subversion through immersion. Inspired by his own experiences at conce...
Amsterdam’s Sir Adam Hotel to Host Socially Distanced Music Festival Next Month
The Netherlands’ Sir Adam Hotel is set to host a socially distanced music festival for up to 120 attendees next month, on June 20th. The Dutch collective No Art is hosting their first hotel event, which will combine music, dining, and art into a 24-hour experience. In organizing the event, the group has stated they’ve met the public health guidelines set by The Dutch National Institute for Public Health and the Environment (RIVM). The No Art Hotel experience will see four groups of attendees divided into segments of 30. Each group will independently experience different rooms of the hotel and will be scheduled for a dinner shift that includes a three-course meal. Guests will need to rent one of the two-person or four-person rooms available at the hotel for the price o...
LA’s Famed Greek Theatre is Cancelling its Season for the First Time in 90 Years
Guidelines surrounding safety during the global COVID-19 pandemic have been instituted by health organizations and governments across the nation and the globe. In order to protect the population and limit the spread of the virus, music venues and event centers have seen darker times than they’d imagined, forcibly closing their doors for an indeterminable amount of time. The latest venue to fall victim to these closures is iconic Los Angeles outdoor venue The Greek Theatre. LA’s other illustrious open air theater, The Hollywood Bowl, was also forced to cancel its 2020 season just two weeks ago. Now, The Greek Theatre has announced its cancellation of all events for 2020. The venue will use the time of closure to reschedule events booked for this year and readjust to n...
AIAIAI Overhauls Its Headphone Materials to Reduce Carbon Footprint
Esteemed Copenhagen-based AIAIAI is widely regarded across the globe as a leading headphone and audio design brand that is committed to producing its products in a sustainable manner. With a focus on both quality and sustainability, AIAIAI is now further deepening that globally-minded commitment by pledging to reduce its carbon footprint even more. The brand has taken new steps that will significantly reduce the amount of waste resulting from its products, approaching the issue from all sides, right down to the packaging of the products themselves. Packaging is now produced using 100% FSC-certified materials, guaranteeing that it is fully recyclable, which will reduce carbon dioxide emissions by as much as 80%. As for the headphone components themselves, the materials ...
Look Inside This Illegal Rave Broken Up by Police at a UK Nature Reserve
Things across the pond are getting dicey in the rave community as large group recently held an unauthorized rave at Kirkstall Valley Nature Reserve in Leeds, West Yorkshire, which was shut down by police. The illegal festivities took place over the Bank Holiday weekend (May 23rd to 25th), with images surfacing of partygoers ranging from late teens to early ’20s deliberately ignoring the social distancing measures instated amid the COVID-19 pandemic. Posting on Facebook, a Kirkstall Valley environmental advocacy group admonished the event. Local police said people were wading their way across a section of the river to gain access to the reserve, sparking concerns for their safety. Since the reserve is a nesting ground for several species of birds, t...
Instagram Will Impose “90-Second Rule” for Copyrighted Tracks on Livestream DJ Sets
While we are all out here trying to regain a sense of normality, not much is more painstakingly traditional than the stress of your recording getting taken down due to copyright. Though this is nothing new, the sting hurts just the same. As our champions of easing the quarantine blues, DJs have been faced with navigating the field maze of livestream guidelines during this time of social distancing. Now, Instagram, the social media giant that lives under the Facebook umbrella, is imposing a new initiative they dub the “90-second rule” in order to prevent copyright issues on tracks being used during these livestreams. Instagram has implemented a new pop-up to warn users who are featuring more than 90 seconds of a copyrighted track to stop or risk having thei...
Livestreaming Has Led to Social Media Growth for Artists, According to Chartmetric Study Featuring Diplo and DJ Snake
Music analytics firm Chartmetric has released its third and final report analyzing the impact of COVID-19 on the global music business. The analysis, which explores the effect of livestreaming on artists and their social media followings, follows Chartmetric’s previous reports detailing genre quarantine trends on Spotify and music consumption habits on YouTube during six countries’ lockdown timelines, respectively. In order to explore the correlation between livestreaming social media follower growth, Chartmetric utilized data gathered from the streaming exploits of 12 different artists: Jill Scott and Erykah Badu (Verzuz battle), Tory Lanez (Quarantine Radio) and Ty Dolla $ign, Metallica and Iron Maiden, H.E.R. and SZA, Diplo and DJ Snake, and Charli XCX and Miley Cyrus. The rep...
Spain to Resume Welcoming International Travelers Starting in July
There’s a glimmer of hope that summer in Ibiza may still be possible after all. Over the weekend, Prime Minister of Spain Pedro Sánchez announced that the country will reopen to international tourists starting July 1st. The move will hopefully support Spain’s crucial nightlife industry down the line. However, at the time of writing, Ibiza’s major clubs are still closed through the end of June and have not yet announced their own plans for reopening. Ibiza’s most popular clubs all have capacities of at least 3,000, making it difficult to imagine that any of the venues will operate even close to scale in the immediate months ahead. Spain is the second most popular tourist destination in the world and welcomed an estimated 80 million visitors annually pr...
German Venue Holds First Social Distancing Club Event
A Münster-based venue, Coconut Beach in Germany, has held what is believed to be the first socially-distanced event at a club. Promoter TakaTuka threw the event which hosted just 100 attendees at the open-air club. Patrons were each positioned in personal sections which were each distanced several feet apart. Gerd Janson, who performed at the the socially-distanced event, took solace in the thought that this was a first step towards a return to normal. In a statement provided to Resident Advisor, the DJ commented, “It felt like a reinsurance that it [the event] can go on in some way, shape or form until things can get back to normal.” Coconut Beach normally has a capacity of 2,000, meaning the 100 person cap marks a 95% attendance reduction compared to the club’...
Iconic DJ and Producer Black Coffee Buys Significant Portion of South Africa’s Oldest Indie Label
Earlier in the year, Gallo Record Company, South Africa’s oldest independent record label, was purchased by Lebashe Investment Group. Recently, it was revealed that iconic South African DJ and producer Black Coffee has acquired a significant stake in the label. Gallo Record Company was founded in 1926 and has been going strong ever since, with many major releases under its belt. Black Coffee used his investment arm FlightMode Digital to acquire the shares. Since its inception in 2017, he has used FlightMode to fund businesses in Africa. In a quote obtained by Music Business Worldwide, Black Coffee shared his views on how the purchase goes beyond business and how he hopes to change the landscape of music in the continent. “T...
Live Music Returning to Nashville Tomorrow
In phase two of Nashville, Tennessee’s COVID-19 reopening plan, live music will be making its grand return. While this is exciting for the local music scene, this absolutely does not mean full-scale events or festivals will be permitted, as there are strict rules in place. According to the new guidelines reported by Digital Music News, only two performers are allowed on stage at a time and only twenty-five people may be in attendance. In addition, performers and attendees must be at least ten feet apart at all times, equipment must be sanitized after each act concludes their set, and dance floors are strictly prohibited. Alongside the live music resurrection, gyms, hair and nail salons, retail stores, and more are permitted to open their doors with capacity restrictions in plac...
