Every year, thousands of artists descend into Austin for SXSW determined to turn in the type of performance that could turn them into stars overnight. It happens, occasionally: Over the years the buzzes around Billie Eilish, Amy Winehouse, Vampire Weekend and Alabama Shakes rose from low to deafening thanks to the kind of rocket-fuel performances
Music
March 15, 2019 9:17AM PT In Friday’s early hours, Spotify and Apple traded potshots in their ongoing battle over the App Store. That conflict centers around Spotify’s longstanding complaint that Apple charges excessive fees, routinely blocks Spotify upgrades and unfairly promotes its own streaming service in its App Store; early Wednesday, Spotify lodged an anti-competition
Among the many musical genres spawned during the 1960s was a sophisticated strain of orchestral pop purveyed by songwriter/producers such as John Barry, Burt Bacharach, Jimmy Webb, Scott Walker and various Frenchmen — a kind of aural noir; moody, melodramatic and atmospheric, heavy on orchestras and drenched in echo but with prominent drums and electric
The iHeartRadio Music Awards felt like a more intimate affair this year. That may be because of a change in venue, from The Forum to the smaller Microsoft Theater in downtown Los Angeles’, with a capacity of just over 7,000. But you could also credit the tight and exclusive club of artists who churn out
March 15, 2019 7:22AM PT Def Jam Recordings has signed an exclusive long-term joint venture agreement with Grammy-winning producer/artist Timbaland and his Mosley Music Group. The announcement was made today by Def Jam chairman & CEO Paul Rosenberg and Tim “Timbaland” Mosley. The first release from the partnership, 21-year-old Chicago artist Cosha TG’s debut EP, “Summer Nights,” (produced by Timbaland
March 15, 2019 6:48AM PT Red Hot Chili Peppers will livestream their performance at Egypt’s legendary pyramids in Giza today: The show will be broadcast from the band’s YouTube page as well as on Twitter and Facebook, beginning at 3 p.m. ET. “Before each new place my body tingled with excitement, a yearning for a
Apple hit back Friday at Spotify’s anti-competition complaint against it in Europe, saying the music streamer had cloaked its “financial motivations in misleading rhetoric about who we are, what we’ve built and what we do to support independent developers, musicians, songwriters and creators of all stripes.” The tech giant said that “Spotify wouldn’t be the
March 14, 2019 8:19PM PT No “Bad Blood” after all? A Taylor Swift and Katy Perry collaboration may be in the works. During an interview with Entertainment Tonight at the iHeartRadio Music Awards, Perry said she would be open to collaborating with the singer. “I’m open! Open, open, open!” she said, imitating an artificial intelligence
March 14, 2019 5:35PM PT Jon Platt doesn’t officially start his new job as CEO of Sony/ATV Music Publishing until next month, but he’s already making moves: co-president Rick Krim is leaving the company, multiple sources tell Variety. A rep for Sony/ATV declined Variety’s request for comment. Based in Los Angeles, the industry veteran was
Dominique Gardner, an ex-girlfriend of R. Kelly’s who is featured in the docu-series “Surviving R. Kelly,” has just spoken up further with shocking details of abuse she says she endured during their nine-year relationship — even though one of the shocks is how often defensive and protective on behalf of the troubled star. In an
Today, Warner Bros. Records says goodbye to 3300 Warner Blvd. in Burbank — the venerable company’s home since 1975. At the time the label moved into the 89,452-square foot architectural landmark, affectionately dubbed the “ski lodge,” its top artists included James Taylor, the Doobie Brothers, Alice Cooper, Van Morrison and a recently reconfigured British group
March 14, 2019 11:25AM PT LSD, the collaborative project comprised of hitmakers Labrinth, Diplo and Sia, have dropped a new song called “No New Friends” that is very likely to be on the group’s debut album, due on the RECORDS label via Columbia on April 12. The three — who released one of 2018’s biggest
Melissa Etheridge will headline the 2019 San Diego Pride Festival, Variety can exclusively announce. The festival will take place in the city’s Balboa Park July 13-14 and will host over 90 musical acts across four stages. A limited amount of Etheridge meet-and-greet tickets are available; tickets for the Festival are on sale at www.bit.ly/sdf19 The singer
You might say that LeRoy Bennett is a shining light among lighting and production designers for pop music. Doing double duty creating both touring sets and their illumination, he started out with a 14-year run as Prince’s collaborator, went on to work with Nine Inch Nails and Madonna and has counted Beyoncé’s and Bruno Mars’
In 1958, Ross Bagdasarian Sr. used the last $200 he had to purchase a state-of-the-art tape recorder and crafted the blend of sped-up vocals/standard-paced music for his novelty hit “Witch Doctor.” “After that, he wanted to give it some more personality,” says his son Ross Bagdasarian Jr., and that prompted the concept of harmonizing chipmunks
The Black Keys today announced dates for an extensive 31-date arena tour of North America called, fittingly enough, the “Let’s Rock” tour. Special guests Modest Mouse will provide support on all dates, while Shannon & the Clams, repeat repeat, and Jessy Wilson will each open select shows. The outing will kick off September 23 in
March 13, 2019 4:45PM PT Universal Music Group today announced that Dan Morales has been appointed Chief Information Officer (CIO), overseeing UMG’s global technology platforms and developing new systems to expand the company’s analytics and data platforms. Most recently CIO of eBay, Morales will oversee UMG’s global information technology team, as well as the company’s
A week after Spotify finally launched in India on Feb. 26, the company published a chart of the 10 top-streamed artists, songs and playlists in the service’s inaugural seven days in the country. Those charts featured an interesting mix of global and local talent, where Lady Gaga was alongside singers like Arijit Singh, best known
While Bozoma Saint John became rather famous after her memorable address at Apple’s WWDC in 2016, her most recent job transition may have been the most newsworthy. She left Apple in 2017 amid great fanfare to become Chief Brand Officer at Uber, and left that gig almost a year to day later for her current
Elton John has announced his first-ever autobiography, set to hit bookshelves this fall. “My life has been one helluva roller coaster ride and I’m now ready to tell you my story, in my own words,” the singer tweeted last week. “My first and only official autobiography will be released October 2019.” The legendary singer and
“Us,” Jordan Peele’s second outing as a director, following his 2017 critical and box office success “Get Out,” revisits similar psychological horror-thriller territory. But this time the stakes are, well, doubled. In the new film, to be released by Universal on March 21, Adelaide Wilson, played by Lupita Nyong’o, returns to her childhood beachside home
Aretha Franklin is going on tour — or, rather, the concert movie she stars in is, as “Amazing Grace” is being booked for a solid week’s worth of premieres across the country at the end of March, Variety has learned. Alan Elliott, the documentary’s producer, and prominent civil rights activist Rev. William J. Barber II will
Disgraced music manager and Ponzi scheme perpetrator Lou Pearlman created the Motown of pop music in the early aughts. He launched two iconic bands, Backstreet Boys and ’N Sync, pitted them against each other for profit and stole millions of dollars from them in the process. Now, former ’N Sync member Lance Bass is ready
Jim Marshall, the artist behind some of classic rock’s most legendary images, including Jimi Hendrix lighting his guitar on fire at Monterey in 1967 and Johnny Cash flipping the bird at San Quentin in 1969, is the subject of a new documentary film. “Show Me The Picture: The Story of Jim Marshall,” directed by Alfred
March 13, 2019 9:00AM PT Composer Tom Holkenborg, who also works under the moniker “Junkie XL,” will participate in a keynote Q&A at the inaugural SYNTHPLEX music conference set for March 28 to 31 at the L.A. Marriott Burbank Airport Hotel and Convention Center in Burbank, Calif. He joins previously announced speakers Thomas Dolby, who’ll
March 13, 2019 8:51AM PT Lee Leipsner has exited his post as executive vice president of promotion at Columbia Records, Variety has learned. The veteran promo exec spent more than two decades at the Sony Music label, starting as a regional promotion rep in 1994. He was promoted to EVP in 2013. In recent years,
March 13, 2019 8:50AM PT “Hand me my armor” was the catchphrase of a recent Sara Bareilles single, but she won’t be the only person on “Saturday Night Live” April 6 who could make that request. Kit Harington of “Game of Thrones” will be hosting the same night that Bareilles appears as the show’s musical
Imagine Dragons frontman Dan Reynolds today announced the lineup for his third annual Loveloud Festival, which will take place June 29 in Utah and will feature him, Kesha, Martin Garrix, Tegan & Sara, Daya, Grouplove, K. Flay, PVRIS, and Laura Jane Grace. Additional performers and speakers will be announced in the coming weeks. The festival, held at the Usana
The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame has announced the names of the presenters for this year’s induction ceremony. Continuing the tradition of suitable artists inducting other artists, the presenters will include Harry Styles for Stevie Nicks, Brian May of Queen for Def Leppard, Nine Inch Nails’ Trent Reznor for the Cure, Janelle Monáe for Janet Jackson, David Byrne for Radiohead, Susanna Hoffs of the Bangles for the
UPDATED: Spotify has filed an official complaint against Apple in Europe, contending that Apple unfairly limits choice and competition through the rules of its app store. Spotify founder Daniel Ek outlined the reasons for the complaint in a post on the company’s website Wednesday titled “Consumers and Innovators Win on a Level Playing Field.” “My