Not many bands can claim they’re having the best year of their career exactly 50 years into their run. All right — not any bands can make such a claim, historically, except for Sparks, which saw its star rise dramatically in 2021 due not to any recording or touring activity but as film creators and
Music
If last year’s Brit Awards went out with something of a COVID-restricted whimper, this year’s ceremony came in with a bang. Several bangs in fact, as an unexpected mash-up between emo-metal hybrid Bring Me The Horizon and Ed Sheeran on the latter’s “Bad Habits” launched the show to, no doubt, the bewilderment of mums and
The widow of Ol’ Dirty Bastard sued Wu-Tang Clan Productions on Tuesday, alleging that the late rapper’s estate is owed at least $1 million in unpaid royalties. ODB, whose legal name was Russell Tyrone Jones, was a founding member of the Wu-Tang Clan, the rap group that catapulted to stardom in the early 1990s. He
Last month, rumors had it that although the official reason was Covid on the production staff, Adele postponed her hotly anticipated Las Vegas residency because the staging was too over-the-top — and at the otherwise over-the-top BRIT Awards in London on Tuesday, she kept things relatively straightforward, performing “I Drink Wine” while seated in front
Melissa Goodwin, a former top executive at the T.J. Martell Foundation, pleaded guilty Tuesday to federal charges related to accusations that she embezzled $3.7 million from the charity by using company credit cards to buy Super Bowl tickets and other purchases. Goodwin entered a guilty plea to a single count of wire fraud, in which prosecutors
In the winnowing down of what was the most pop-star-studded shortlist for best original song in Oscar history, it was inevitable that there would be some big and beloved names left out what that field got narrowed from 15 to five. Among the music stars not making the cut: Jay-Z, U2, Ariana Grande, Kid Cudi,
Warner Music set a record for quarterly revenue in the fiscal first quarter that ended on Dec. 31, 2021, with $1.614 in revenue powered by a 31% increase in publishing revenue, 19% in recorded music and 21% in digital revenue. Major sellers for the quarter included Ed Sheeran, Coldplay, Dua Lipa and Silk Sonic. “Hitting
Heirs of Jimi Hendrix’s former bandmates, bassist Noel Redding and drummer Mitch Mitchell, have filed a lawsuit against Sony Music in the U.K., alleging copyright infringement and seeking royalties. The filing, in London’s High Court, follows an application for a legal declaration made by Sony Music and the Hendrix estate in a Manhattan federal court
On Jan. 27, in the thick of the Joe Rogan-Spotify rumble — which precipitated Neil Young’s exit from the streaming service — SiriusXM gleefully announced that its dedicated Young channel was returning. The PR stunt seemed to accomplish what it had intended: to show that the 14-year-old broadcaster, with some 425 channels to its name,
Veteran executive LaTrice Burnette, who was named president of the relaunched 4th & Broadway Records in 2020 — has been appointed executive VP of Def Jam Recordings while retaining her post at 4th & Broadway, new Def Jam chairman & CEO Tunji Balogun announced Tuesday. The 4th & Broadway roster — which, along with Burnette,
Lin-Manuel Miranda is one step closer to achieving EGOT status after earning an Oscar nomination in the best original song category for “Encanto’s” “Dos Oruguitas.” Miranda already has Emmy, Tony and Grammy awards. Should he succeed in winning the Oscar, he would join the elite group of artists who have achieved the status, including John
Iggy Pop and Paris-based contemporary music troupe Ensemble intercontemporain have been named the 2022 recipients of the Polar Music Prize. The Polar Music Prize, which was founded in 1989 by Swedish musician Stig ”Stikkan” Anderson, is one of the world’s most prestigious music awards. Previous winners have included Paul McCartney, Patti Smith, Bob Dylan, Ray
Alice in Chains members Jerry Cantrell, Sean Kinney, Mike Inez and William DuVall have sold their catalogs with the band to Round Hill Music, a rep for the company has confirmed. Terms of the deal were not disclosed, but sources tell Variety the deal was for $50 million. The Round Hill deal does not encompass
The phrases “music festival” and “Super Bowl” didn’t always seem like they should be naturally conjoined, but in an era where halftime performers get as much scrutiny as which teams make the finals, it’s made sense to draw out the musical parts of the annual festivities as much as possible, even if it’s just for
Irving Azoff’s music rights firm has settled its five-year legal battle with the group that represents more 10,000 radio stations, ending a fight that threatened to undermine the 80-year-old arrangement under which artists are paid for commercial airplay. Azoff’s Global Music Rights and the Radio Music License Committee filed a joint stipulation on Monday to
After seeing her song “Fingers Crossed” become a TikTok smash, Vancouver Island singer/songwriter Lauren Spencer-Smith has partnered with Universal Music Group’s Island Records and Republic Records. According to the announcement, “The innovative partnership, structured with manager and business partner David Ehrlich (pictured above, right, with UMG chief Lucian Grainge, left, and Spencer-Smith), allows Lauren Spencer-Smith to keep her independent spirit via
As Spotify awkwardly attempts to defend its stance on Joe Rogan — first over the Covid-19 misinformation on his show, and then over his frequent use of the N-word on that same show — the controversies have revived musicians’ longest-standing problem with the platform: The royalty rates it — and other streaming platforms — pay,
“Encanto” seems to be the new Adele, as far as the Billboard charts are concerned. The Disney film’s soundtrack and lead single have a lock on the top of the album and song charts for a second straight joint week, enjoying the kind of multi-week domination of both that only Adele’s “30” and “Easy on
For Pearl Jam frontman Eddie Vedder and producer Andrew Watt, all it took was a couple of guitar chords to unexpectedly jumpstart sessions for Vedder’s third solo album, “Earthling.” The project, due Feb. 11 from Seattle Surf/Republic, is imbued with the spontaneity of friends new and old jamming together for the pure love of music,
Micky Dolenz has announced a “Micky Dolenz Celebrates the Monkees” tour, in which he’ll keep the torch for the band alive with a series of shows that will utilize multi-media elements to honor the legacy of the ’60s band, and put to further use the “Mike and Micky Show” band that accompanied him and late
It’s cool enough that U.S. Olympic skaters Madison Chock and Evan Bates chose Daft Punk for their performance on Sunday — but even cooler was the music they chose: One would expect maybe one of their dancefloor hits, like “One More Time,” “Around the World” or their actual 2013 radio hit, “Get Lucky.” But instead,
Elton John is back. The legendary rocker and his husband David Furnish’s annual Oscar viewing party for the Elton John AIDS Foundation will return as an in-person event on March 27 after going virtual last year due to the pandemic. The AIDS organization announced Monday morning that Grammy winner Brandi Carlile will perform during the
Primary Wave Music announced that it has acquired the music rights from the estates of Layne Staley and Mike Starr of the Grammy-nominated Seattle band Alice In Chains. The deal will see the publisher acquire a stake in the Layne Staley’s and Mike Starr’s music publishing catalog, as well as master royalty income stream; terms of the deal were
Billie Eilish put the well-being of a fan front and center during her Saturday, Feb. 5 concert at the State Farm Arena in Atlanta. The Grammy winner stopped the second night of her “Happier Than Ever” world tour mid-way during the concert after seeing a distressed fan in the audience. Eilish then took it upon
Dr. Dre has made the historic move of bringing two deaf rappers into this year’s Super Bowl Halftime Show. Sean Forbes and Warren “WaWa” Snipe, will appear alongside Dre, Eminem, Mary J. Blige, and Kendrick Lamar on Sunday to sign the big performance. It’s the first time sign language interpreters will be included in the halftime show’s
Alexander Hamilton, who died Jan. 30 at age 77, was a conductor and arranger who was able to add “movie star” to his credits in the last years of his life. His work on Aretha Franklin’s 1972 “Amazing Grace” album — certified as the bestselling album of her career — was heard by millions over
A decade after she had to convince her label that her choice of a first single wasn’t far too depressing and slow — and despite a baffling, ongoing lack of support from radio (country or otherwise) since — Kacey Musgraves has become a superstar capable of selling out arenas by simply being her sweet, weird
Indian singer and Bollywood icon Lata Mangeshkar died Feb. 6 in Mumbai, India. She was 92 and was suffering from multiple post-COVID complications. She was admitted to Mumbai’s Breach Candy Hospital in January with pneumonia. Indian media have reported that she also had heart problems. The Indian government has declared a two-day period of national
Kay Hanley, best known as the frontperson for Letters to Cleo and co-founder of the activist group Songwriters of North America (SONA), felt gratified when Spotify was put in the spotlight by some musicians who hadn’t weighed in before in the wake of the Joe Rogan controversy. She writes a guest column for Variety amplifying
On the basis of his solo show at New York’s Beacon Theater on Friday night, Eddie Vedder hasn’t lost his sense of spontaneity. Since last May, the Pearl Jam frontman unexpectedly recorded an album with a new group of musicians and is now on the road with them for his first performances in indoor venues