News Believe launches new services unit in Thailand dedicated to breaking indie-pop acts in the market Believe plans to push artists under its care into the Top 20 of the Thai music charts this year
News K-pop business could ‘collapse’ if NewJeans controversy sets a precedent, industry groups in South Korea warn The music industry groups are urging the government to implement regulations against poaching of artists who are under exclusive contracts
Analysis News Benson Boone’s ‘Beautiful Things’ was the biggest-selling global single of 2024, IFPI confirms Benson Boone wins the IFPI Global Single Award for 2024
News Primary Wave Music strikes publishing admin deal with Grammy winner Jimmy Webb The deal includes some of Webb’s biggest hits performed by icons like Glen Campbell, Frank Sinatra, Guns N’ Roses and Johnny Cash
Interviews After paying out nearly 1,500 advances of between $1,000 and $10m+ to date, and with access to ‘hundreds of millions of dollars’ in funding, beatBread launches Deal Comparison Tool for indie artists and labels beatBread CEO Peter Sinclair on why and how the company developed its data-driven comparison tool
News Celine Hollenbeck and Jenna Akemi Kon, named partners at entertainment law firm Carroll, Guido, Groffman, Cohen, Bar & Karalian The law firm has represented artists in numerous high-profile rights acquisitions in recent years
Interviews ‘Ten years ago, DSPs were the cornerstone of establishing a new business model. What’s the next evolution of this?’ Carletta Higginson, Chief Digital Officer at Warner Music Group, discusses her time on both sides of the copyright line, at DSPs and record companies, as well as the future of streaming and the importance of keeping an open mind
News Instagram adds new music-sharing feature to direct messages App users will be able to share 30-second previews of songs via direct messages or on broadcast channels
News Red Hot Chili Peppers seeking $350M in masters catalog sale, with WMG leading the bid (report) If a deal is sealed at that price, the band will have amassed some $500 million for their recorded music and publishing rights
News Daniel Ek has now cashed out $666M in Spotify stock, with his latest transaction banking $31.5M Latest transaction comes just days after Spotify's stock hit a new all-time high
News TuneCore launches new ‘Advanced Trends and Analytics’ dashboard for for self-releasing artists The new dashboard features cross-platform performance tracking and real-time engagement metrics, among other functions
News Sony Music asks court to dismiss copyright lawsuit filed by Patrick Moxey’s Ultra Music Publishing Lawsuit was filed in November
News Court orders identity of 100 alleged music pirates to be revealed in record companies’ lawsuit against Altice USA The RIAA has been dragged into a lawsuit pitting dozens of music companies against a major US internet provider
News Warner Records strikes strategic partnership with Hip-Hop & R&B exec Tim Hinshaw to launch Free Lunch Records Ericka Coulter named General Manager of Free Lunch Records
News Spotify Singles franchise hits 10bn streams Over 750 artists from 45 countries have created more than 1,000 unique recordings under the Spotify Singles program
News Reservoir acquires UK dance/electronic label New State – including recorded music catalog of 13,000+ tracks Newly-signed New State artists, along with some legacy names, will benefit from marketing and promotion by Reservoir-owned Chrysalis Records
News Lady Gaga tops 123m monthly listeners on Spotify, breaking record for largest monthly audience achieved by a female artist on the platform With 123.7 million monthly listeners, Lady Gaga now sits behind only Bruno Mars and The Weeknd in Spotify’s overall rankings
News Richard N. Baer appointed Executive VP, General Counsel and Secretary at SiriusXM Baer previously served as Chief Legal Officer at Airbnb, Liberty Media, and UnitedHealth Group