SPRING MUSIC NEWS (MARCH - MAY 2022)
SECTIONS
(1) M&A / Business Activity News
(2) Legal
(3) People News
(4) Culture & Operations
M&A / Business Activity News
FEATURED: Republic relaunch Mercury Records; Post Malone moves to the new category
Epic Games Acquires Bandcamp as ‘Fortnite’ Maker Expands Into Music (March 2, 2022)
Video-game developer Epic Games announced that it has bought Bandcamp, the online music store and community geared around independent musicians. Terms of the deal weren’t disclosed.
UMG N.V. Reports Financial Results for the Fourth Quarter and Full Year Ended December 31, 2021 (March 3, 2022)
2021 Business Highlights include: Successful separation from Vivendi by distribution of 60% of UMG's shares to Vivendi shareholders and listing of UMG shares on the Euronext Amsterdam; Global artist success across platforms, including 8 of the Top 10 IFPI Global Artists of the Year – and 2021's Breakthrough Artist Olivia Rodrigo; Selective acquisitions of iconic catalogues – including Sting, Neil Diamond and others; Expanding relationships with top platform partners and diversifying revenue sources into areas like social media (Tik Tok, Snap, Twitch), health & fitness (19 partnerships), original film & TV production; Frontline of developments in Web3 and metaverse space with artist-centric approach.
Hipgnosis acquires Leonard Cohen's song catalogue (March 7, 2022)
Within this deal, 127 songs are from Leonard Cohen’s Stranger Music catalogue, for which Hipgnosis has acquired the songwriter’s share of royalties. It covers the period from the inception of his career through to the year 2000 and includes all derivative works, making a total of 211 songs. Cohen had a long relationship with Sony Music Publishing, which continues to control the publisher's share.
Sony Music’s $430m Acquisition of AWAL Officially Cleared By UK Competition Watchdog (March 16, 2022)
The agreement also saw Sony acquire Kobalt Neighbouring Rights. The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) referred the merger to an in-depth Phase 2 inquiry in September 2021, after identifying competition concerns during its initial Phase 1 investigation. The CMA’s inquiry assessed the extent to which Sony-owned The Orchard and AWAL may be expected to compete to provide artist and label (A&L) services. It also looked at how closely Sony and AWAL may be expected to compete to sign successful artists.
Here’s why Warner Music Group has a meaningful debt burden (March 21, 2022)
When we think about how risky a company is, we always like to look at its use of debt, since debt overload can lead to ruin. As with many other companies Warner Music Group Corp. makes use of debt. But is this debt a concern to shareholders?
Republic relaunch Mercury Records; Post Malone moves to the new category (April 11, 2022)
Republic Records has re-launched the Mercury imprint as an “extension” of the label, the company announced Monday. The move is similar to the relaunch of Atlantic’s Electra and Interscope of Geffen, an attempt to segment the original brand’s large roster so that artists get more attention. Mercury will launch with a new roster that includes Post Malone, James Bay, Lord Huron, Jeremy Zucker, Chelsea Cutler and Noah Kahan.
Deezer, with a $1.16bn valuation, is going public via merger with SPAC in France (April 18, 2022)
Streaming company Deezer has reached a definitive agreement to combine its business with I2PO, a Special Purpose Acquisition Company (SPAC) based in France. As a result, Deezer is to publicly list on the Euronext Paris, seven years after its last attempt at an IPO failed. After the merger is completed, the combined company will benefit from the cash currently held by I2PO, in addition to cash raised through a PIPE (Private Investment in Public Equity).
Sony Music Entertainment Posts 10% Revenue Increase for Q1 2022 as Annual Streaming Growth hits 37% (May 10, 2022)
Sony Music Entertainment (SME) turned in a roughly 10.16 percent year-over-year revenue increase during Q1 2022 due in large part to an 18.90 percent YoY jump for recorded music’s streaming income, which achieved a 37.16 percent YoY hike during the entirety of the 2021 fiscal year.
Warner Music Group posts Solid Quarter With Revenue Rising to $1.38bn (May 10, 2022)
Napster is best remembered as the peer-to-peer audio sharing network that scared the hell out of the music industry, but now it's going in a new direction filled with crypto, blockchain, NFTs, and Web3. As The Verge reports, the Napster Group has been acquired by two companies called Hivemind and Algorand, with the acquisition being confirmed in a post on Linkedin by Hivemind founder Matt Zhang. In the post Zhang says, "Dear friends, we are excited to share that we've taken Napster Group private, and to bring the iconic music brand to web3."
Warner Music Group acquires Dubai-based digital entertainment firm Qanawat Music (May 13, 2022)
Global entertainment and record label Warner Music Group (WMG) has acquired Qanawat Music, a digital music and entertainment company in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) and a subsidiary of Qanawat FZ LLC, in a move that is set to boost Dubai’s status as a media industry hub and an emerging focal point for growth in the digital music sector.
Napster Just Became a Web3 Company (May 18, 2022)
Citing the success of such Warner label and publishing artists as Silk Sonic, Ed Sheeran, Jack Harlow, Dua Lipa, Megan Thee Stallion, […] CEO Steve Cooper said, “Warner Music Group’s unique combination of scale and agility gives us, our artists, and our songwriters an edge in music’s ever-expanding universe of opportunity. We continue to build our unparalleled artist development expertise, our differentiated approach to global expansion, and our ground-breaking commitment to innovation at the intersection of music, gaming, social and fitness. […],”, pointing to forthcoming releases from Lizzo, Ava Max, Cardi B, and such rising artists as Pink Pantheress and Bella Porch.
2. Legal
FEATURED: Dua Lipa’s hit song ‘Levitating’ slapped with two copyright cases
Sam Smith, Normani Accused of Copying ‘Dancing With a Stranger’ (March 7, 2022)
Sam Smith and Normani are facing a copyright lawsuit over their 2019 hit “Dancing With a Stranger,” filed by three songwriters who say the song is “strikingly similar” to an earlier track with the same name and refrain. In a complaint filed Friday in Los Angeles federal court, songwriters Jordan Vincent, Christopher Miranda and Rosco Banlaoi accused Smith and Normani of stealing the core from their 2015 track “Dancing With a Stranger.”
George Michael’s estate orders Tory Lanez to remove ‘Careless Whisper’ sample (March 15, 2022)
Reportedly, Lanez requested to use the sample in the middle of last year, which Michael’s estate rejected. However, they ignored the refusal and decided to use ‘Careless Whisper’ anyway despite not being allowed permission. The estate said in a statement: “It was brought to our attention that the song ‘Enchanted Waterfall’: by the artist Tory Lanez incorporated an unauthorised sample of ‘Careless Whisper’ written by George Michael and Andrew Ridgeley.”
Bad Bunny Loses Money By “Whisltyle” Against Missy Elliot (March 17, 2022)
No matter how many views “Safaera” keeps adding, kids aren’t for Bad Bunny, for Jowell & Randy, or for Ñengo Flow. Most of the money earned from the song on the album “YHLQMDLG” belongs to rapper Missy Elliot, who, under an agreement in a plagiarism lawsuit, was able to bear the song’s fee, while Bad Rabbit and his co-stars barely get paid 1%.
Ed Sheeran copyright case: ‘Shape of you’ did not copy parts of Sami Chokri’s ‘Oh Why’, High Court judge rules (April 6, 2022)
The singer-songwriter and his co-authors originally launched legal proceedings in May 2018, asking the High Court to declare they had not infringed Chokri and O’Donoghue’s copyright. Two months later, Chokri – a grime artist who performs under the name Sami Switch – and O’Donoghue issued their own claim for “copyright infringement, damages and an account of profits in relation to the alleged infringement”. The pair alleged that an “Oh I” hook in “Shape Of You” is “strikingly similar” to an “Oh Why” refrain in their own track.
Dua Lipa’s hit song ‘Levitating’ slapped with two copyright cases (April 20, 2022)
Dua Lipa is facing two copyright infringement cases relating to her smash hit song “Levitating” released during the pandemic. A US-based reggae band has accused her of copying a portion of their song, while two songwriters have accused her of ripping off their decade-old disco songs.
Spanish court dismisses Shakira appeal in tax fraud case (May 26, 2022)
A court in Spain on Thursday dismissed Colombian singer Shakira's appeal in a tax fraud case, paving the way for a trial after a judge previously concluded there was enough evidence to suggest the pop star may have avoided her fiscal obligations to the state. The case first made headlines in December 2018 after Spanish prosecutors charged the singer with failing to pay 14.5 million euros ($15.5 million) in taxes on income earned between 2012 and 2014.
3. People News
FEATURED: Harry Styles Breaks U.S. Spotify Record for Most-Streamed Song in Single Day With “As It Was”
6ix9ine Says He’s ‘Struggling’ Amid Stalled Career In new Declaration To Judge (March 13, 2022)
In court documents obtained by Complex, 6ix9ine informed a judge overseeing his civil lawsuit regarding a 2018 armed robbery his career hasn’t been the same since his time in jail and career-wise, money is drying up and labels aren’t extending him advances.
Hipgnosis Songs hires private equity veteran as CIO (March 14, 2022)
Music royalties fund Hipgnosis Songs has appointed Markku Lonnqvist as chief investment officer. Lonnqvist joins from Pamplona Capital Management where he was a partner for 17 years, and managed funds in both Europe and North America.
Veteran Exec Patrick Moxey Unveils New Label Group With Warner Music (March 24, 2022)
[…] A new, worldwide deal for two key record labels with Warner Recorded Music. The agreement, which encompasses the legendary Payday Records and the newly created Helix Records, will see Warner Recorded Music handling global digital distribution via its independent services arm ADA Worldwide, and includes the option for the parties to co-sign new repertoire.
Harry Styles Breaks U.S. Spotify Record for Most-Streamed Song in Single Day With “As It Was” (April 3, 2022)
The streaming platform shared on Saturday, a day after the release of Styles’ latest single, that the pop star now holds the record for the most-streamed song in a single day in the U.S. On top of that, “As It Was” has now become the most-streamed song on Spotify worldwide, in a single day, in all of 2022 so far.
Clive Davis at 90: His Executives Recall the Man, the Mentor, the Music and the Long, Cold Meetings (April 6, 2022)
For his 90th birthday, we took a different approach and spoke with 25 or so executives who were employed by Davis over the years.
Jonathan Vlassopulos Is Officially Leaving Roblix as Head of Music (April 21, 2022)
The gaming company’s executive made the announcement on his personal LinkedIn. Vlassopulos says the time has come to embark on a new adventure, but that he will stay on as an advisor to help Roblox continue to execute its music strategy. So far, Roblox itself has not commented on the departure of Vlassopulos.
Matt Pincus’ Music raises $200m, because it eyes file label, publishing, tech and Web3 investments (May 26, 2022)
New York-based Matt Pincus is a extremely revered entrepreneur within the music enterprise: in spite of everything, he based SONGS Music Publishing, which not solely signed The Weeknd, Diplo, and Lorde – however ended up promoting to Kobalt Capital for round $160 million in 2017. After exiting SONGS, Pincus quietly launched an funding home centered on the music enterprise, in partnership with Liontree. Since 2019, that enterprise – MUSIC – has made investments in corporations reminiscent of music-making platform Splice, music monetary providers firm HIFI, the ticketing platform DICE, and others. (Pincus is at present a member of the board of administrators of Splice and HIFI.)
The Kid Laroi Re-Signs With Former Manager Scooter Braun (May 28, 2022)
Nearly a year after signing his first major management deal with Scooter Braun, before leaving the firm just three months later, the Kid Laroi is reuniting with the renowned music executive.
4. Culture & Operations
FEATURED: As ByteDance IPO rumors resurface, TikTok hires A&R executives in London and LA to ‘sign’ new artists
Billboard Teams Up With Universal Music Group To Put NFT On Charts (March 2, 2022)
Billboard and Universal Music Group have teamed together to establish ChartStars, an NFT-based digital collectibles initiative based on the Flow blockchain. The collection will feature artist-focused digital artwork that honors the Billboard Charts’ triumphs and milestones. Clips from music videos, album cover, and other items will be included in the collectibles. There will be games included into the platform as well.
Tik Tok has just launched its own music distribution platform, SoundOn (March 9, 2022)
The ByteDance-owned viral video app has just launched its own promotion and music distribution platform, called SoundOn. SoundOn is already live in the UK, US. US, Brazil and Indonesia, and it lets artists upload their music directly to TikTok and RESSO. It can also distribute their music to other platforms like Spotify, Apple Music and Instagram.
Vinyl Sales Soar — and Even CDs Rebound — as U.S. Recorded Music Industry Posts $15 Billion Year-End Revenue (March 9, 2022)
The U.S. recorded-music business continues its upward swing, posting a near-record $15 billion in revenue for 2021, driven by a surge in streaming, solid vinyl and even CD sales, and the inclusion of TikTok music revenue for the first time. In fact, all major formats of music posted growth over the prior year, except digital downloads.
Sony Music and Warner Music suspend their operations in Russia (March 10, 2022)
The news came shortly after streaming service Spotify confirmed that it was suspending its premium tier in Russia and expected to lose 1.5 million paying subscribers as a result. Previously, Live Nation had announced that it would not promote shows in or do business with Russia, while collecting societies PRS for Music and BMI have suspended their relationship with Russian equivalent RAO.
Music is still the sausage festival: a study shows that nothing has been done about the gender gap (April 1, 2022)
The music industry has not been able to effectively make the bands that create the big hits inclusive and this in spite of the many promises made for years to women in the sector. This is the conclusion of the latest report in the series Inclusion in the Recording Studio? published for five years now by the Annenberg Institute of the University of South California in order to analyze the genre composition of artists, authors and producers who have worked on all the tracks that have arrived in the Billboard annual Hot 100 chart and who have been nominated in the main Grammy categories. Purpose: to accurately measure how well women are represented in one of the key sectors of the industry. This year’s study reveals that only 23.3% of artists, 4.4% of authors and 3.9% of producers are female.
Why Are There So Few New Hits in 2022? (April 11, 2022)
If you’ve been looking to catch up on the hottest new songs released in 2022, you wouldn’t find them towards the top of the Billboard Hot 100 lately. While the Hot 100 measures the biggest songs in the country every week, recently the chart has been absolutely dominated by holdovers from 2021 — some of which didn’t begin their chart runs in 2022, some of which have only hit their peaks in 2022, and some of which have just continued to hang around the listing many months (a couple even close to a year) after reaching their chart apex.
What separates the Hitmakers from the One-Hit Wonders? (April 11, 2022)
A search for what causes this divergence lies at the heart of new research open in new window by Berg, who has long studied the workings of creativity. He finds that a musician’s portfolio of songs leading up to their initial success helps predict how well their career will endure. Artists who have crafted a creative catalog of music by the time they achieve their first hit tend to keep generating additional hits. Those with less creative catalogs early in their careers often peak quickly, then fade away.
As ByteDance IPO rumors resurface, TikTok hires A&R executives in London and LA to ‘sign’ new artists (May 12, 2022)
The catalyst for this article, besides the launch of TikTok SoundOn’s distribution and artist incubator platform in March, was a job posting by parent company ByteDance for an A&R executive in Jakarta. According to this announcement, one of the responsibilities listed for the role is “finding and signing new musical talent”. It got us thinking. With TikTok fulfilling functions for artists like marketing, distribution, discovery and development, is the platform poised to become a record label?
Justin Timberlake sells his song catalog for $100M (May 26, 2022)
Timberlake’s deal marks the continuation of a trend of a long string of established artists selling their songbooks to big-pocketed investors or music labels. They’re also fueled by streaming, which offers the possibility of more lucrative royalties as customers flock to services like Spotify and Apple Music.
Sony Music To Expand Unrecouped Balance Program to More Artists and Songwriters (May 26, 2022)
Last June, Sony Music Group made the landmark announcement that it would no longer apply existing unrecouped balances to earnings for eligible artists who were signed prior to the year 2000, and who hadn’t received advances since. The move was launched via an initiative called “Artists Forward” which, according to a statement from the record company at the time, focuses on “prioritizing transparency with creators in all aspects of their development”.
