CMU Daily 22.11.17: More lawsuits filed over mass shooting at Route 91 Harvest Festival, Paypal drops trademark actions against Pandora

More lawsuits filed over mass shooting at Route 91 Harvest Festival
A number of new lawsuits have been filed in relation to the mass shooting that occurred at the Route 91 Harvest festival in Las Vegas last month. Festival promoter Live Nation is a defendant in the cases alongside MGM Resorts International and the estate of the gunman. Unlike the initial lawsuit filed in relation to these tragic events, a number of the new cases will be pursued through the Californian courts.

As previously reported, as final night headliner Jason Aldean began his performance at the open air Vegas country music event, Stephen Paddock opened fire on the 22,000 strong audience from a room on the 32nd floor of the MGM Resorts-owned Mandalay Bay hotel, which is situated near by. He killed 58 people and left hundreds more injured.

Paige Gasper, who was seriously injured during the shooting, was the first to go legal last month. The new lawsuits filed last week and on Monday include a re-filing of Gasper's litigation, plus cases being pursued on behalf of the families of some of those who were killed, as well as on behalf of many more injured festival-goers and others who say they were left emotionally traumatised by the event.

To succeed, the plaintiffs will have to prove negligence on the part of MGM Resorts and/or Live Nation. The former has been criticised for failing to prevent Paddock from stock-piling weapons in his room at the Mandalay Bay hotel and for its response to the shooting of a security guard, which occurred six minutes before the gunman opened fire on the festival's audience.

Meanwhile, Live Nation has been accused of not adequately building and signposting emergency exits for the festival site, or training staff in how to deal with an emergency situation such as the one that unfolded at the event.

The initial lawsuit was filed in Las Vegas, but some of the new litigation is being pursued in LA on the basis that many of the victims are from California and are incurring medical costs in relation to their injuries within that state.

Though one of the lawyers working on the case has admitted that he believes his clients will get a fairer hearing in LA than Las Vegas, partly because MGM Resorts is such a major employer in the latter city that there's a high chance jury members would have informal links to the company.

According to the Associated Press, attorney Chad Pinkerton said: "Los Angeles is a better venue for fairness for our clients" because "there would be certain advantages for MGM to defend its case in Nevada", where it employs 70,000 people.

Responding to the new litigation, a spokesperson for MGM Resorts told reporters: "The incident that took place on Oct 1 was a terrible tragedy perpetrated by an evil man. These kinds of lawsuits are not unexpected and we intend to defend ourselves against them. That said, out of respect for the victims, we will give our response through the appropriate legal channels".

Meanwhile, Live Nation declined to comment on the legal action, simply stating that it continues to co-operate with the FBI investigation into the crime, while reaffirming its sorrow for the "countless people forever impacted by this senseless act of violence".

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Donald Fagen sues former bandmate's estate over Steely Dan company
The surviving member of Steely Dan - Donald Fagen - has sued the estate of his late bandmate Walter Becker in a dispute over the business side of the band.

In the lawsuit, Fagen says that in a 1972 agreement the band's then members agreed that whenever someone died or quit the group, the remaining band members would have the right to buy that person out of the Steely Dan business. At the time of Becker's death in September this year, only he and Fagen still had a stake in that entity.

However, according to the lawsuit filed in the LA County Superior Court this week, shortly after Becker's passing, legal reps for his estate wrote to Fagen insisting that the so called 'buy/sell agreement' from 1972 is "of no force or effect". The letter also requested that Becker's widow become both a 50% shareholder in and director of the band's business.

In his lawsuit, Fagen is seeking to enforce the buy/sell agreement, and also to get hold of the Steely Dan website, which is seemingly currently controlled by Becker's people. He is also seeking paperwork from a firm that handled business affairs for the band, NKSFB, which is still apparently working for the Becker estate.

Fagen's lawyer Louis 'Skip' Miller told The Hollywood Reporter: "This lawsuit is about a contract, the enforcement of that contract and the continuity of Steely Dan. We think the contract is very clear on its face and we hope this lawsuit is resolved expeditiously".

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Paypal drops trademark actions against Pandora
Paypal has dropped its trademark action against streaming service Pandora after reaching a settlement with the digital music firm.

It's not clear whether that means Pandora will have to drop the 'P' icon it launched last year, though pretty much ever since the logo was launched it has used said 'P' in a variety of colours and incarnations in addition to its original PayPal-esque blue form.

As previously reported, Paypal sued Pandora back in May citing confusion on social media caused by the similarity between the music platform's new branding and Paypal's existing logo. The payment processing firm said Pandora's new branding was particularly Paypal-like on the icon for its smartphone app.

Terms of the settlement deal that the two companies have now reached are not known, but according to Law360 they were approved by a judge in New York on Monday. The settlement brings Paypal's litigation to a close.

Neither company has as yet commented on the deal. But at least it means Pandora can now fully focus on its core business of losing subscribers and money. I mean, providing top quality personalised music experiences to its users.

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Messenger bot start-up opens London base, appoints a CCO
Amsterdam-based messenger bot start-up I Am Pop has announced it is opening a new base in Shoreditch, East London as it looks to roll out its Facebook messenger bot and fan messaging platform to more artists and labels in the UK.

The company has also announced the appointment of Sam Taylor as its Chief Commercial Officer, who will oversee the firm's marketing, partnerships and commercial strategy, with new marketing and partnership teams set to be based out of the London office.

Taylor has worked on a multitude of music and digital projects over the years, and for the last two years represented digital distributor TuneCore in the UK. He also has a long association with some thing called CMU, inputting on its commercial and consulting projects. He will continue to act as an advisor to CMU alongside his new role.

Confirming the hire, I Am Pop founder Tim Heineke told reporters: "Sam joins Pop at a key moment for the company and his appointment allows me, the product and technical teams to continue to focus on building the best technology. We're very excited to be heading into 2018 with him on board".

On the potential for the messenger bot technology his company is developing, Heineke said: "People are only just beginning to realise the creative possibilities of what can be done by delivering content through Facebook Messenger - engagement rates outstrip everything else, with open rates close to 100% and vastly improved click through rates. For many of our clients, Messenger has become the number one driver of fans to their digital content".

Taylor added: "I'm excited to be joining Tim and the team at Pop. Over the course of my career to date, I've seen the incredible impact of widespread social media adoption on the music industry, and I wholeheartedly believe that Facebook Messenger is where the future of digital social interaction lies - it's the next wave".

Bigging up the technology too, Taylor went on: "More than 1.3 billion people use Messenger each month, making it a game-changing opportunity for musicians, labels, brands and media to reach fans without content being algorithmically filtered out of traditional feeds. The Pop bot offers the most straightforward way to embrace this opportunity".

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John Preston dies
British music industry veteran John Preston has died, following a short illness, it was announced yesterday. He was 67.

Preston began his career working at a chain of record shops in Scotland before gaining his first record label job in artist development at EMI in 1977. He then went on to hold a number of senior positions at various record labels, including Polydor, RCA and BMG, during their late 20th century boom.

He left the music industry in 1998 in order to train in boat building, he and his wife building their own boat in order to sail around Europe over a period of seven years. But he retained some links to music, in particular working on the development of Dave Stewart's Hospital private members' club in London.

Preston had previously worked with Stewart and Annie Lennox on The Eurythmics during his time in the record industry, alongside a plethora of other artists, including Kate Bush and Take That. He was also the first record company chairman to promote women to the role of Managing Director at a label - Lisa Anderson at RCA and Diana Graham at Arista. Several notable male executives, including Simon Cowell, Hugh Goldsmith, David Joseph, Jeremy Marsh and Korda Marshall, also worked under Preston early in their careers.

Various former colleagues and artists issued tributes in the wake of the news of Preston's death yesterday. "It's very challenging to write about John in the past tense", said Lennox. "His passing seems premature and untimely. John had a deep passion for music. His heart and soul remained intact. He was a thoroughly good man - a rare diamond. Dave and I appreciated everything he did, for and with us".
Stewart himself added: "In addition to being an amazing business leader, John Preston became one of my great friends. The thing about John is that he understood artists. Artists felt akin to him even though he was a CEO and steered a big ship. He had a gentle side to him that was actually quite rare in such a tough business. This is a really sad moment for me".
Alison Wenham, CEO of the World Independent Network, who became another female executive to work under Preston when her Corsair label joined BMG, said: "John was one of the industry's giants. He was an inspirational boss, a scrupulously fair man with an infectious energy which made him a joy to be around. He brought an intellectual rigour to the industry and was crucial in steering us successfully through the MMC enquiry into CD pricing. His untimely death is such a loss".
Meanwhile, BPI chief exec Geoff Taylor commented: "John was a luminary who contributed hugely to our industry - leading some of its most dynamic record labels with his pioneering approach at a time of remarkable growth and success for the industry. In the process he helped to launch and develop the careers of iconic artists and talented young music executives. We will also always be grateful for the direction he helped to give the BPI as its Chairman and as a Council member, and for his important work as a valued trustee of The BRIT Trust in the charity's formative years. He will be greatly missed".

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David Cassidy dies
Actor and musician David Cassidy has died, aged 67. He was admitted to hospital last week following organ failure.

Cassidy retired from performing earlier this year, revealing that he had been living with a diagnosis of dementia. He was admitted to hospital on Saturday, following liver and kidney failure and remained in a coma for two days. He regained consciousness and was in a critical but stable condition by Monday, with hopes that he would be able to receive a liver transplant. However, it was announced that he passed away yesterday.

In a statement, his family said: "It is with great sadness that we announce the passing of our father, our uncle, and our dear brother, David Cassidy. David died surrounded by those he loved, with joy in his heart and free from the pain that had gripped him for so long. Thank you for the abundance and support you have shown him these many years".

Cassidy first found fame in US musical sitcom 'The Partridge Family' in the early 1970s. Although originally chosen for the show for his looks rather than his voice - he was expected to lip-sync, like the other children on the programme - he quickly launched a concurrent career as a pop star, performing lead vocals on 1970 hit 'I Think I Love You'. Released as The Partridge Family, the record only featured one other cast member, his on-screen mother and real-life stepmother Shirley Jones.

He soon moved on to a solo career, and had his first hit in his own right with 'Cherish', the title track from his debut solo album. The TV show and his pop releases quickly launched him as a teen heartthrob - something he apparently struggled with, hoping to be seen as a more credible musician - and he released three solo albums, as well as eight with Jones as The Partridge Family, during the programme's three and a half year run.

Cassidy quit the show and touring its music following an incident at a show in London in 1974, where a crowd surge led nearly 800 fans being injured in the crush. Thirty were taken to hospital, and one fourteen year old girl, Bernadette Whelan, died four days later.

He continued to enjoy success as a solo artist and actor through the 70s and 80s, although it never again reached the heights of the 'Cassidymania' seen in the early 70s. He released his final album, 'Old Trick New Dog', in 1998, and continued to perform up until February of this year.

Complaining of money problems at various points in his career, Cassidy declared himself bankrupt in 2015. In 2008 he publicly admitted that he had issues with alcohol and he was subsequently arrested for drink driving in 2010. He was married three times during his life, divorcing his most recent spouse, Sue Shifrin, last year.

He is survived by his two children, Beau and Katie, his stepmother Shirley Jones, and three half-brothers Shaun, Ryan and Patrick.

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Matthew Herbert responds to Daily Mail claims about taxpayer funding of Brexit Big Band project
Matthew Herbert has issued a statement after the Daily Mail attacked the decision to award government funding to his Brexit Big Band project via the BPI-managed Music Export Growth Scheme. MEGS is funded by the British government's Department For International Trade, which had the Daily Mail dribbling that "taxpayers' money is being given to an opponent of Brexit".

The newspaper also found an MP willing to comment without really knowing what the project was about. Conservative right-winger and Brexiteer Peter Bone said: "I think most taxpayers, whether Remainers or Leavers, will find it extraordinary that we are giving money to someone whose principal activity seems to be to campaign against the decision of the British people to come out of the European Union. If he is so anti what the government's doing perhaps he might like to consider giving the money back".

As previously reported, the Brexit Big Band is a project that was launched at the moment the UK government triggered Article 50 to leave the European Union. The aim is spend two years recording an album with collaborators all over Europe, releasing the resulting record on 19 Mar 2019, the day that the UK is due to leave the EU.

"In an increasingly fractured and divided political climate where tolerance and creativity are under threat, it feels like an important time to assert the desire for our bit of the musical community in Britain to reach out in solidarity with some of our closest, but soon to be less accessible, friends and neighbours", said Herbert when he announced the project earlier this year. "The message from parts of the Brexit campaign were that as a nation we are better off alone. I refute that idea entirely and wanted to create a project that embodies the idea of collaboration from start to finish".

When the Mail published its article last week, Herbert tweeted that he was "happy to be part of the national conversation about what it means to be British".

Yesterday he followed this up with a more extensive statement, in which he refuted that the MEGS grant was a subsidy, as had been suggested, or that his project was inherently anti-Brexit. "Most importantly, this is not an anti-Brexit project", he said. "This is a project that, having accepted Brexit will occur, attempts to work out what a new kind of relationship with our European neighbours may look like. That relationship I believe should be founded on respect, curiosity, creativity, empathy, collaboration and love. I am unclear which of those ideals are controversial".

He continued: "This project is not simply one person's vision or pet project; it has already had contributions from over 1000 people from here and from all over the world who think those values are worth nurturing".

On the nature of the funding he has received, he said: "Having recently successfully applied to the BPI for part of a grant to assist with exporting British music abroad, some of the musicians fees will be covered by this. None of it is a wage or money to me. According to the BPI website every £1 they invest brings a return of £10, so it is clear that they consider this an investment rather than a subsidy".

"The state subsidises many things in this country, including a lot I don't agree with: wars in the Middle East, the arms trade, processed food manufacturers, giant American tech companies who avoid tax, the DUP, fossil fuel companies and so on", he added. "If parts of our democracy can't cope with an industry body supporting musicians in trying to bring ideas of tolerance and hopefully even some joy to others, then maybe we're in worse shape than I thought".

"I reserve my democratic right to hold the government accountable in public and to propose an alternative comment that reflects what I believe to be important British values such as inclusiveness and kindness", he concluded.

"I created this project to be part of the conversation with ourselves and with Europe about what it means to be British post-Brexit. This and any plan should aim to bring people of all identities and beliefs with it. I reject the forced distinction between Remainers and Leavers, and all are welcome to contribute or be part of the show. It's up to others whether they wish to be part of this expression of common values or not".

If any Daily Mail journalists are reading, here's a write up of our session at this year's CMU Insights conference at The Great Escape in May which considered the value of UK music export schemes of this kind, in further enabling the growth of the UK music industry and the value of its exports to the British economy. Maybe include a quote from it next time you report on it. Then sit back and wait for Paul Dacre to delete it and call you a cunt.

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Girl Ray announce Christmas single and non-Christmas tour dates
Girl Ray have released Christmas single '(I Wish I Were Giving You A Gift) This Christmas'.

"Christmas is great and everything but where are the indie bangers", asks the band's Sophie Moss. "We've pulled it all out the stocking on this one. You'd be a fool not to buy one for every family member, friend and Tinder acquaintance this Christmas".

With that in mind, the song will be made available on limited edition seven-inch on 8 Dec.

In non-Christmas news, the band have also announced UK tour dates for next April. These are them:

10 Apr: Bristol, Thekla
11 Apr: Nottingham, Bodega
12 Apr: Hebden Bridge, Trades Club
13 Apr: Glasgow, Art School, Glasgow
15 Apr: Middlesbrough, Wegarth Social Club
16 Apr: Sheffield, The Leadmill
17 Apr: Manchester, Deaf Institute
18 Apr: London, Heaven
19 Apr: Brighton, The Haunt

And here's '(I Wish I Were Giving You A Gift) This Christmas'.

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Lil Peep, Post Malone, Young Fathers, more

Other notable announcements and developments today...

• Lil Peep's videographer Wiggy has released a short tribute to the rapper, who died last week.

• Post Malone has released a bloody video for his single, 'Rockstar'.

• Young Fathers have released the video for recent single 'Lord'.

• Keiji Haino and Sumac have announced that they will release collaborative album 'American Dollar Bill - Keep Facing Sideways, You're Too Hideous To Look At Face On' on 23 Feb. Here's 53 seconds of it. It's quite intense.

• Childcare have released a new single, 'Put Down Your Pen'.

• Luna Shadows has released the video for recent single, 'Youth'.

• 1971 are set to release an EP called 'No Matter Where You Go, There You Are' on 1 Dec. The record will be the final release from the band, following the death of bassist Cameron Cranston earlier this year. "We really hope this release properly puts this band to rest and we hope it touches some people who might have experienced something similar to what we went through", say the band. "Cameron was a great musician and an inspiration to a lot of people he knew. He deserves to be heard and remembered". From the record, this is 'Anxiety (In the Depths of Northwestern Ontario)'.

• Check out our weekly Spotify playlist of new music featured in the CMU Daily - updated every Friday.

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BBC Music Awards downsizing for 2017
So the BBC Music Awards are still a thing. However, instead of putting on a big glitzy televised ceremony - yet another BBC event that competes with the music community it is meant to support - this year they're just going to read out some names on BBC Two. Sounds like a better plan.

In a massive downsizing of what was, I think we can all agree, a monumental waste of everyone's time and money, this year's BBC Music Awards will be part of a programme titled 'The Year In Music 2017'. The show, presented by Claudia Winkleman and Clara Amfo, will look back at the last year in music, tempting big names into the studio to tell some stories with the possibility of them winning some sort of trophy.

"Music on BBC television has gone from strength to strength in 2017", says BBC Music Editor James Stirling, "with a record breaking 23 million viewers watching Glastonbury and the country coming together for the TV and radio simulcast of One Love Manchester, providing one of the most watched, and poignant, broadcast moments of 2017. This programme will revisit the music stories of the year, told by the musicians at the heart of them".

Echoing that sentiment, Amfo adds: "2017 has been a huge year in music for both fresh and established artists, I'm really looking forward to hanging out with Claudia to look back at what it has given us, before we enter in to what I'm sure will be an even bigger new musical year".

As usual, the prizes will be doled out to whoever is deemed to have made the best album, performed the best show, or just been the best artist overall. Despite it being talked up by James Stirling just there, the One Love Manchester show receives no nods whatsoever.

Anyway, here's who did all the best stuff in 2017:

Artist Of The Year:
Ed Sheeran
Harry Styles
Kendrick Lamar
Lorde
Rag N Bone Man
Stormzy

British Album Of The Year:
Calvin Harris - Funk Wav Bounces Vol. 1
Ed Sheeran - ÷
Dua Lipa - Dua Lipa
Rag N Bone Man - Human
Stormzy - Gang Signs & Prayer
The xx - I See You

Live Performance Of The Year:
Boy Better Know - Glastonbury
Depeche Mode - Glasgow Barrowlands, 6 Music Festival
Foo Fighters - Glastonbury
Katy Perry - Radio 1's Big Weekend 2017
Chic feat Nile Rodgers - Glastonbury
U2 - The Joshua Tree Tour 2017

The show itself will include contributions from Stormzy, Foo Fighters, Nile Rodgers, Liam Gallagher, Dua Lipa, Sampha, George Ezra, Blossoms, Nick Grimshaw, Mistajam and Jo Whiley, among others. There'll also be a special studio performance from Rag N Bone Man, but don't take that to mean he's won either of the awards he's nominated for, it's definitely all to play for.

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