Music

In the wake of PledgeMusic falling behind in paying artists over the past few months, the direct-to-fan platform issued a statement Friday confirming rumors that it is seeking a partner or a buyer to help it return to financial health. In the past two weeks the company has faced an online uproar from many musicians and

Those flying in for Super Bowl weekend in Atlanta can expect to be greeted by Quality Control, the local music company that savvily purchased prime display space at the airport and is sniping key areas in the city to the tune of more than 14,000 posters. QC, founded just five years ago by Pierre “Pee” Thomas

Last year, after a sonic boom of backlash, the Grammys boosted the number of nods in its big four categories (Record of the Year, Album of the Year, Song of the Year, Best New Artist) from five to eight, with the intent to encourage diversity. But did you know the Alternative Album category got a rethinking, too?

February 1, 2019 8:37AM PT Jussie Smollett has issued his first public statement since it was reported that he was assaulted by two men in Chicago earlier this week. “Let me start by saying that I’m OK,” Smollett said in a statement to Essence. “My body is strong but my soul is stronger. More importantly,

February 1, 2019 8:00AM PT Manager Nick Stern has left Vector for Izzy Zivkovic’s management concern Split Second, which counts Arcade Fire and Banks on its roster. Stern, who spent nine years at Vector, brings with him music clients Saint Motel, Phosphorescent (pictured above), Ben Abraham and Black Angels, among others acts, as well as

Today, the Recording Academy’s Task Force on Diversity and Inclusion announced a new initiative that aims to expand opportunities for female music producers and engineers. The Producer & Engineer Inclusion Initiative is the inaugural action of a larger strategy to address gender inequity in the music industry; the Task Force was formed last March in

Japanese electronics giant Sony reported $3.78 billion of net profit in the three months to December, the third quarter of its financial year, which runs to the end of March. Revenues amounted to $21.3 billion. The company’s pictures division, which spans film and TV, content and channels, reported improved profits of $102 million, up from

In a promo for Entertainment Tonight’s Thursday interview with Maroon 5 frontman Adam Levine, the singer talks about performing at the Super Bowl halftime show this Sunday, which he calls, “the biggest gig in the game.” The musician also discussed his approach to the show. “The spectacle is the music. We wanted to bring it back

The heavy metal band Disturbed is currently on tour in support of their seventh studio album, “Evolution,” and during a stop at the Toyota Center in Houston on Monday, January 28, the band stopped the show to help out a fan in need — and then rewarded her in a very special way. While the

Harold Bradley, a co-founder of Nashville’s famed Music Row, and one of the most recorded studio session guitar players in history, died in his sleep Thursday morning at age 93. Bradley was a part of Nashville’s recording scene for more than seven decades. A member of Nashville’s famed “A-team” group of studio musicians, Bradley played on

January 31, 2019 1:59PM PT In an update to lawsuits Kanye West filed on Friday seeking to get out of his deals with EMI Music Publishing and Roc-A-Fella Records, the artist has filed new legal documents in which he claims that his deal with EMI amounts to servitude and he should be “set free from

Penske Media Corporation (PMC) has purchased the remaining 49% stake in Rolling Stone from BandLab Technologies, giving the company full ownership of the venerable magazine, including all event and licensing rights, and the parallel entity Rolling Stone International. In December 2017, PMC acquired a controlling interest in Wenner Media, parent company of Rolling Stone, at a valuation just over

Now in its 43rd year, the Clive Davis Pre-Grammy Gala is famously the music industry’s hottest ticket, an invite-only affair held the night before the Grammy Awards and loaded with the kind of A-list guest list that only Davis could assemble. Organized by Davis with his son, attorney Doug Davis, it’s legendary as a platform

January 31, 2019 9:57AM PT In the wake of direct-to-fan platform PledgeMusic falling behind in paying artists over the past few months, the British Musicians’ Union announced that it had met with executives from the company on Wednesday, and advised artists to use other platforms “until such time as this situation has been resolved.” Last

After the power, presence and flash of Prince, Beyonce, Bruce Springsteen, U2 and Lady Gaga’s Super Bowl halftime performances — not to mention the controversy of this weekend’s Maroon 5-Travis Scott spot — it’s hard to believe that the big game’s intermission show used to consist of college marching bands along with performers like the

Canadian rap ambassador Drake, who has worked with dozens of homegrown artists on his albums and regularly touts his native Toronto — and Canada overall — in his music and onstage banter, appears to be shunning the country’s biggest awards show, the Junos. For the second year in a row, the rapper’s record label and

UPDATED: The Chicago Police Department has released two images from surveillance video of “potential persons of interest” in the alleged attack of “Empire” actor Jussie Smollett. “Photos of people of interest who were in area of the alleged assault & battery of Empire cast member,” the Chicago PD’s chief communications officer tweeted alongside the photos. “While video

The Jan. 3 debut of the Lifetime docuseries “Surviving R. Kelly” dealt a swift blow to R. Kelly’s career. One week after the premiere of the incendiary exposé covering longstanding sexual abuse allegations against him and uncovering new ones, Lady Gaga cemented his persona non grata status by joining Team #MuteRKelly. Gaga apologized for working

A stylishly appointed traditional in a premium neighborhood in the upscale foothills of Los Angeles’s celeb-favored Los Feliz area, owned through an anonymous trust that is, according to a couple of well-connected snitches, controlled by powerhouse pop songwriter and record producer Jeff Bhasker and Swedish model and singer Lykke Li, has come to market at

January 30, 2019 11:43AM PT Anonymous music producer/DJ Marshmello will perform a set within Epic Games’ hugely popular battle royale title “Fortnite” on Saturday, Feb. 2, according to the site Bandsintown. Information about the virtual show leaked online on Tuesday. Marshmello’s performance will start at 2 p.m. ET on Pleasant Park’s football field. Players who visit

“The Power of Love,” a $23 million music-filled film about Canadian singer Celine Dion, is in the works from French studio Gaumont. One of the highest-profile French films slated for 2020, “The Power of Love” is the latest project to tell the story of a celebrity singer, following smash hit “Bohemian Rhapsody,” about the late

Reading the reported details of the attack on “Empire” star Jussie Smollett is chilling on a few distinct levels, all of them painful. The violence of the story is troubling on its own. Add to it Smollett’s identity as a gay black man, and details that his attackers were reported to have shouted racist and

Cardi B, Ludacris and Chance the Rapper are three of the confirmed stars of this weekend’s Super Bowl commercials, all of whom will be accompanied by a soundtrack of their own music (or in Chance’s case, a “hot” cover of Backstreet Boys’ “I Want It That Way” inspired by Flaming Hot Doritos.) And off-camera, the

Clive Davis’ annual Grammy eve gala in L.A. is getting some pretty hip competition at a club two miles away. The night before the awards telecast, a singer-songwriter legend who’s up for three Grammys this year, John Prine, will be saluted with a tribute concert at the Troubadour, put on by the Americana Music Association.

The odds of ever seeing all four original KISS members on a stage again grew even more remote after Ace Frehley ripped into Gene Simmons in a Facebook post Tuesday, calling his former bandmate “an asshole and a sex addict” who “groped my wife.” “The gloves are off,” Frehley declared in the eviscerating missive, which

Warner/Chappell Music today announced the promotion of Ben Vaughn to president & CEO of Warner/Chappell Nashville. According to the announcement, Vaughn, who joined the company in 2012 and was promoted to president five years later, will continue to lead the division’s creative and commercial activities. He will report to Warner/Chappell Music’s incoming Co-Chair & CEO

SiriusXM announced fourth quarter and full-year 2018 operating and financial results in an earnings call Wednesday morning, including record revenue of $1.5 billion and $5.8 billion, respectively, increasing 7% and 6% compared to the prior year periods. Sirius CEO Jim Meyer (pictured) and CFO David Frear also discussed the company’s plans for Pandora, which it

Lady Gaga got into a heated verbal exchange with one of Dr. Luke’s lawyers while being deposed as part of the long legal battle between the producer and Kesha, according to court documents recently unsealed and reported by The Blast. At one point, Gaga tells Luke’s attorney that she “should be ashamed of yourself.” The deposition,

While the Carters — a.k.a. Jay-Z and Beyonce — are notable by their absence from the 2019 Grammy nominees in a category Jay has won a record seven times, that makes this year’s slate only slightly less interesting: For the first time since 2007, the lead artist on two of the nominated performances are white.

Industry personnel working with Taylor Swift, Kenny Chesney, George Strait, Blake Shelton and more were honored at the seventh annual CMA Touring Awards, held at Marathon Music Works in Nashville Monday. Hosted by Jerrod Niemann, the awards ceremony honored the staff behind country music’s most prominent artists, ranging from business managers and publicists to coach