Como No & La Linea // Director (London/Hybrid)

UK Music // Chief Executive (London/Hybrid)

Ambassador Theatre Group // Ticketing Ops Senior Assistant (London)

Domino // Promo Dept Coordinator (London/Hybrid)

The Ivors Academy // Chief Executive (London/Hybrid)

Deviate Digital // Digital Marketing Assistant (London)

Today's music business news

TOP STORY

Hipgnosis Songs Fund delays finance results because of catalogue valuation concerns

The publicly listed music rights owning Hipgnosis Songs Fund has delayed publication of its financial results for the six months to 30 Sep. The figures were expected to be published today, but have been pushed back because of board concerns about the valuation of the company's catalogues.

The board said in a statement this morning that the valuation provided by an independent valuer "is materially higher than the valuation implied by proposed and recent transactions in the sector". And that includes transactions proposed and undertaken by HSF itself.

HSF announced last week that it had sold a catalogue of 20,000 "non-core songs". That deal, the board notes, was worth $23.1 million, "reflecting a 14.2% discount to the valuation of these assets as at 30 Sep 2023".

HSF also negotiated a deal to sell a set of more valuable rights to the separate Blackstone-backed Hipgnosis Songs Capital for $417.5 million, "reflecting a discount of 24.3% to the valuation of these assets as at 31 Mar 2023".

Given what they had seen in recent deals in the music rights space, the board sought advice from its investment adviser, that other Hipgnosis entity Hipgnosis Song Management, which the board's statement also notes "is majority owned by funds managed and/or advised by Blackstone".

"Hipgnosis Song Management eventually provided an opinion", the board continues, "which was heavily caveated, such that the board has concerns as to the valuation of the company's assets in its interim results. The company expects to publish the interim results by 31 Dec 2023".

The publicly listed Hipgnosis fund has had a shaky few months, of course, with investors becoming increasingly critical of both the HSF board and HSM. The proposed sale of rights to HSC was part of a plan to placate investors by boosting HSF's share price. However, some shareholders were critical of the proposed Hipgnosis to Hipgnosis deal.

That transaction never went ahead after investors overwhelmingly voted against HSF continuing in its current form at a continuation vote in October. A strategic review is now underway to find a way forward that is backed by shareholders.

ONE LINERS

One Liners: Olly Alexander, Lorde, Sound Of The Year + more

DEALS

Bucks Music Group has signed Wonky Logic - real name Dwayne Kilvington - to a worldwide songwriting agreement. “I'm genuinely buzzing about signing a publishing deal with Bucks Music Group”, he says. “I can't wait to get stuck in and start working with all of the amazing people on the team. I'm especially excited about working closely with [A&R] Rhiannon [Bramley]. Her warmth and professionalism fill me with confidence and I'm eagerly anticipating what we can achieve together”.

ARTIST NEWS

Having been announced as next year’s UK Eurovision entrant, Olly Alexander says that he has lots of new music on the way. “The song that I have for Eurovision I made with Danny L Harle, who’s a brilliant pop producer, and we made basically a whole album”, he told Magic. “So I’ve got a lot of music ready to go, so I’m so, so excited that it’s coming”.

Lorde has teased new music with a post on Instagram showing her wearing headphones, with the caption “listening to myself”.

RELEASES

Porno For Pyros have released new Christmas song ‘Pete’s Dad’, about guitarist Peter DiStefano’s father being given the all-clear from cancer as they sat down for Christmas dinner.

Charlotte Adigéry and Bolis Pupul have released Christmas single ‘Hoho’, a rework of their song ‘Haha’. “What started off as a joke became a reality a day later”, they explain. “We reworked, ‘Haha’ and added new depths to it - such as bells - so you can blast it during your cozy Christmas dinners. Your grandmother will love it. We just saw great commercial opportunity in this brilliant idea. The goal is to finally throw Mariah Carey off her throne and to annoy generations to come!”

GIGS & TOURS

Jehst has announced UK tour dates early next year, kicking off with a show at the Jazz Cafe in London on 28 Feb. Tickets are on sale now.

AWARDS

Submissions for the Sound Of The Year Awards are now open. Organised by The Radiophonic Institute and The Museum Of Sound, the awards are now in their fourth year and aim to recognise “the everyday sounds that encapsulate the events of the past twelve months to the year’s most innovative and creative sound technology”. The deadline to put forward sounds is 29 Feb. Find out more here.

CMU MASTERCLASSES

CMU's 2024 masterclass sessions now on sale

As the music industry prepares for the Christmas break, CMU is launching a brand new series of online masterclasses for 2024. Each Tuesday from 30 Jan CMU's Chris Cooke will share expert insights on the latest trends and developments in the music business.

The first set of four masterclasses will provide a comprehensive and timely overview of the music business in 2024, including the recording, publishing and live sectors, the digital music market, and the ways in which artist businesses are evolving. There is also a session on how music copyright is being monetised, protected and traded in 2024, and another outlining all the challenges and opportunities posed by AI.

The second set of four masterclasses will tell you everything you need to know about the economics of music streaming. They will ensure you understand how the streaming business model works - how that model is changing - and how labels, publishers, artists and songwriters get paid. We’ll also talk you through all the debates around streaming, and will outline the initiatives that are addressing data and transparency issues, explaining how you can play your part in the solutions.

Each masterclass will be delivered live at 2.30pm UK time every Tuesday from 30 Jan, with the opportunity to ask questions. All will be available on-demand following the live delivery - so attendees can access the materials at any time.

Bookings are now being taken at special early bird rates. 

LEGAL

Lizzo seeks dismissal of clothing designer lawsuit on jurisdiction grounds

Lizzo and her company Big Grrrl Big Touring have hit back at the second lawsuit filed by a former employee who made allegations of racial and sexual harassment, assault and illegal retaliatory termination against her former employer.

A new filing with the courts claims that that former member of Lizzo's touring crew, clothing designer Asha Daniels, "refused to comply with instructions from her supervisors and tour management, failed to perform the work that she was assigned and, eventually, just played hooky and refused to show up for work. Unsurprisingly, she was terminated after abandoning her post on the day of a concert in Paris, France".

Daniels went legal in September, following the lead of three former members of Lizzo's dance team, who made similar allegations in a lawsuit filed the previous month. The designer said that, given how Lizzo talks about diversity and positivity in public, she was expecting to be working in a “healthy, diverse environment with virtues of respect and empowerment of women. Unfortunately, the opposite turned out to be true".

A lot of her specific allegations targeted Amanda Nomura, who was wardrobe manager on the tour. However, the lawsuit also made more general criticisms about working practices put in place by Lizzo and her management team.

Despite the disparaging statement about Daniels, the formal response to her lawsuit mainly raises jurisdiction issues. The litigation was filed with the courts in California. But, the new court filing goes on, "plaintiff has alleged that she is a New York resident who worked for a Delaware corporation in Europe. She has alleged no nexus to California and therefore has not established any basis to obtain redress pursuant to California statute".

To that end, Team Lizzo want Daniels' lawsuit to be dismissed.

Responding to the new legal filing, a legal rep for Daniels, Ron Zambrano, told reporters: “This motion was expected and is yet another Hail Mary by Lizzo’s team to try to shift blame to the victims, as she has done to the three other plaintiffs who have sued her for similar allegations of harassment, disability discrimination and retaliatory termination".

"Lizzo and her lawyers can continue trying to rationalise her illegal and wretched conduct", he added, "but we remain committed to seeking justice for our clients, and look forward to our day in court where Lizzo can explain her behaviour in a public forum".