Laden...
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Click JUMP to skip direct to a section of this email or ONLINE to read and share stories on the CMU website (JUMP option may not work in all email readers). For regular updates from Team CMU follow us on Twitter, Facebook or Tumblr. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
CMU Jobs is a proven way to recruit the best music business talent for roles across the industry at all levels, from graduate to senior management. To book an ad contact Sam on 020 7099 9060 or email [email protected] | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
A guide to upcoming events from and involving CMU, including seminars, masterclasses and conference sessions from CMU Insights and workshops from CMU:DIY, plus other events where CMU journalists are speaking or moderating. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Suge Knight blames Dr Dre for hit and run death, claims he's due cut of Beats sale money We know all this because of a new lawsuit filed by Knight who, of course, co-founded Death Row Records with Dre in 1991, which then released the latter's debut solo album the following year. It was a relatively short-lived business partnership though, Dre famously quitting Death Row in 1996 to launch his own rival label. The new lawsuit brings together a little bit of that hip hop history with much more recent events. First of all, Knight alleges that, despite their working relationship ending acrimoniously in 1996, he had a lifetime management agreement with Dre meaning that he is due 30% of the rapper-producer's earnings in perpetuity, which would include 30% of all that Beats dosh. With Knight seeking to enforce that alleged arrangement following the big Apple/Beats deal, he says that Dre and his business partners hired a man called Cle Sloan to "handle the Suge Knight problem". It was an altercation between Knight and Sloan on the set of NWA biopic 'Straight Outta Compton' that led to the incident from which Knight's murder charges stem. Outside a burger bar nearby the film set Knight drove his vehicle towards Sloan and one of his associates, Terry Carter. Carter was then hit by the vehicle and killed. In addition to the criminal proceedings around that incident, Knight and various other people have been sued by Carter's widow, although Dre was recently removed as a defendant on that case. However, Knight argues that it was Dre's actions that led to the run in between him and Sloan that in turn resulted in Carter's homicide. In his countersuit to the legal action being pursued by Carter's widow, Knight alleges that Sloan wasn't just hired to keep him away from Dre as prep for the release of the big NWA movie got underway. Actually, he claims, the intent was to use Sloan to pressure Knight into waiving his rights under the alleged management contract. This would reduce Dre's financial commitments to his former business partner, and ensure that Knight had no formal links to the Apple deal, Dre's new corporate allies not keen on having direct links to the former Death Row boss. Or, in the words of the lawsuit itself, according to Rolling Stone: "Apple and [Dre] developed a mutually agreeable scheme that would result either in Knight relinquishing his rights under the management contract or [Dre] gaining the appearance of legal separation from Knight and the management contract through bankruptcy filings". To that end, it is alleged, Universal Music, as producer of the NWA biopic, "provided [Dre] with capital, employees and the staging area through which to intimidate Knight and to ensure that Knight relinquished his right in the management contract payouts". Knight then adds that he is at "an extreme disadvantage in defend[ing] himself or prosecuting his claims herein because portions of the evidence that would help Knight prove his claims are sealed by protective order". Which might all sound a bit far-fetched, though Knight also claims that Dre hired the man who shot him multiple times at a Chris Brown party ahead of the VMAs in 2014, so it's not even the most dramatic of the allegations contained within the lawsuit. Knight's lawyer Thaddeus Culpepper says that the new legal filing "explains what happened to Suge in the past year and a half". Knight, who is pleading not guilty in the murder case, argues that Carter was killed by accident as he tried to escape Sloan, who was targeting him at Dre's request. The new lawsuit, Culpepper tells Rolling Stone, provides the context for that incident. Knight isn't just "a crazy man" who "ran some people over", he adds, there was a reason for the events that led to Carter's death and "we think we set it out pretty well". Needless to say, legal reps for Dre are having none of it. Responding to the new litigation, they simply remark that: "Given that Dre has had zero interaction with Suge since leaving Death Row Records in 1996, we hope that Suge's lawyer has lots of malicious prosecution insurance". Like I say, never dull. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Italian promoters also want touting crackdown According to IQ, Assomusica, which represents over 100 promoters who between then present around 80% of live shows in Italy, has called on the country's competition authority to take action on ticket touting, especially on those touts who post "speculative ticket listings", ie put tickets for sale on secondary sites that they haven't even secured yet. The trade association's announcement follows two consumer groups in Italy urging the same competition authority to investigate the country's primary and secondary ticketing markets after tickets for two Coldplay shows due to take place in Milan next year sold out in minutes, only to then immediately appear on the resale sites at hiked up prices. IQ reports that Assomusica supports an outright ban on the resale of tickets except where named secondary agents are authorised to resell them by an event's promoter. The trade group adds that: "It is the firm belief of our association that urgent legislative measures are necessary to govern the peculiarities of this evolving sector, which is of great socio-economic impact". Although online ticket touting has been controversial for over a decade now, opposition to secondary ticketing within the artist and live community does seem to be gaining a new momentum of late, possibly because of the resale market becoming ever more prolific and sophisticated. Campaigning in the UK on this issue is now focused around the previously reported FanFair Alliance. -------------------------------------------------- New music booker for Latitude Festival She takes over the job from Natasha Haddad, who joined Festival Republic in 2013. She will continue to have a consultancy role with the festivals firm, but is stepping down from her full time involvement with Latitude. Confirming all this, just in case you don't believe me, you distrustful lot, is Festival Republic chief Melvin Benn, who says: "Natasha has become an integral part of the Festival Republic team, and will be greatly missed in that role but we obviously welcome her continued participation and advice in the consultancy role. Her work on Latitude has helped position the festival to be recognised for its innovative and exciting music programming. I wish Natasha every success in her future ventures." He goes on: "I am very pleased to be welcoming Lucy, and have no doubt that her fresh and vibrant attitude will be an invaluable asset to the twelfth edition of Latitude Festival and for future years to come. Lucy brings a wealth of experience from her previous role and her addition to the team will absolutely help maintain Latitude's ethos". For her part, Wood adds: "I'm really excited to be joining the Festival Republic team. Latitude has always been one of my favourite festivals because it has consistently strong programming, and attracts people who are devoted to music but not hung up on genre. It's amazing to be able to programme for such an open-minded, music-loving audience". -------------------------------------------------- StreetTeam hires former TicketFly exec to strengthen North American presence Commenting on his new gig, Kreinik said: "I'm delighted to join StreetTeam and return to my roots in marketing. Peer-to-peer is a great sales channel but many events still struggle to sell enough tickets, so there's a real need for software that can drive peer-to-peer sales at scale. StreetTeam makes that quick and easy, so I'm proud to help hasten its adoption across the US and Canada". Meanwhile StreetTeam co-founder Liam Negus-Fancey told reporters: "We're excited to welcome Jeff on board and to strengthen our commitment to the live entertainment sector in North America. Jeff has an exceptional track record and his experience growing successful companies such as TicketFly makes him a powerful addition to our team". | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Digital Stores founder joins Music Glue Through Digital Stores, a business that began its life in 1997 as Recordstore.co.uk, Coultart was an early player in providing e-commerce solutions for artists and independents in an era when terms like 'e-commerce' sounded all modern and futuristic. His business was acquired by EMI in 2010 and he became direct-to-consumer chief for the major as part of that deal, then subsequently being appointed Global Head Of E-Commerce at Universal after it bought the EMI record company in 2012. Confirming his new hire, Music Glue CEO Mark Meharry told reporters: "When our paths crossed several months ago we instantly hit it off; which makes sense considering the time we have both operated in the same space. What I hadn't considered is that not only do Russel and I share the exact same vision for future of music retail, but also share an aligned moral compass". He added: "Russel brings to Music Glue skills, knowledge and experience rarely found in the industry and I consider his confidence in us as a genuine compliment. At Music Glue we have known for some time that our platform is a game changer; the addition of Russel will help take us to the next level". Coultart, meanwhile, added: "I'm excited by the vision, the innovation and the ambition of Mark and his team to offer artists and their fans the best experience possible. Music Glue have built a fantastic and truly global technology platform, purpose built for today's and the future music industry. It's by far the best music e-commerce platform I've seen". | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Pete Burns dies "It is with the greatest sadness that we have to break the tragic news that "All of his family and friends are devastated by the loss of our special star", they continue. "He was a true visionary, a beautiful talented soul, and he will missed by all who loved and appreciated everything he was and all of the wonderful memories he has left with us". Burns formed Dead Of Alive in 1980, scoring a minor hit with a cover of KC And The Sunshine Band's 'That's The Way (I Like It)' in 1984. They went on to release the band's best known single, 'You Spin Me Round (Like A Record)', the following year. Produced by Stock, Aitken & Waterman, the song went to number one in the UK singles chart, as well as finding success worldwide. He continued to record and perform under the name up to the present day. Burns' last single, 'Never Marry An Icon', was released in 2010, and his last major performance was at Pete Waterman's 'Hit Factory Live' show at the O2 Arena in 2012. To modern audiences, he was perhaps best known for his appearances on reality TV, particularly the 2006 series of 'Celebrity Big Brother'. He was also known for his appearance, created through more than 300 cosmetic surgeries. He almost died on the operating table in 2006, while undergoing a procedure on his nose, and was left bankrupt in 2014 after having to pay for corrective surgery on his lips after another operation went wrong. -------------------------------------------------- Bobby Vee dies Born Robert Velline in Fargo, North Dakota in 1943, his career ascension began in 1959 when he was drafted into perform at a concert in Moorhead, Minnesota after Buddy Holly, Ritchie Valens and The Big Bopper were all killed in a plane crash en route to the show. Vee and his band, The Shadows, had only been together for around two weeks at that time, but their performance was a success, helping the frontman's career get started. Bob Dylan was also briefly a member of the band, and was responsible for suggesting that Vee shorten his name from Velline. Soon after that first show, Vee scored a local hit with his song 'Suzie Baby', going on to sign with Liberty Records, which later became part of EMI and is now owned by Warner Music. In 1961, he released what is possibly his best known song, 'Take Good Care Of My Baby', written by Carole King and Gerry Goffin. He scored numerous other hits along the way - including 'Rubber Ball', 'Run To Him', and 'The Night Has A Thousand Eyes' - and continued to perform up until 2011, when he announced his retirement and played a farewell show after being diagnosed with Alzheimer's. He also recorded one final album, 'The Adobe Sessions', which was released in 2014. Announcing his father's death yesterday, Vee's son Jeff Velline said that it was "the end of a long hard road". -------------------------------------------------- Council decision means Prince's former home can properly open as a museum As previously reported, plans to open Paisley Park to the public were put on hold earlier this month when the council said it needed more time to consider proposals to 'rezone' the area around the property, adding that it needed to review the probable effects of the museum on traffic, parking, pedestrian safety and the safety of the public at large. The Bremner Trust, which is handling Prince's estate, was allowed to run a small number of trips around the property for those who had already bought tickets, but no new bookings for visits were being taken. Yesterday's decision means the Paisley Park museum can now properly open for business. To that end, tickets are now on sale to tour dates from this weekend through to the end of December. Graceland Holdings, which runs Elvis Presley's Graceland home in Memphis, is managing the museum for the Prince estate. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
CMU's One Liners: Martin Fry, Nigel Adams, Spotify, more Other notable announcements and developments today... Â ABC's Martin Fry has signed a deal with Sony/ATV covering publishing and neighbouring rights for the band's catalogue. "I've been writing songs for 30 years now", says Fry. Â Nigel Adams MP yesterday tweeted that he's "very pleased" that the government's Culture Secretary Karen Bradley is "convening an industry meeting to try to deliver a solution on industrial touts". So that's a thing. Adams, of course, wants to outlaw touting bots via the Digital Economy Bill. Â Have you see the Spotify bus yet? I have. It's a bus painted all Spotify stylee. Yep, the streaming service has ramped up its above-the-line marketing efforts in the UK. Doing things like painting buses. How very, erm, un-modern. Â Vevo has a new Chief People Officer all set to office round those people in a way that only a chief can. Colleen McCreary previously worked at social games firm Zynga and, says her new employer, she knows a thing or two about "successfully managing organisations' growth from the start-up phase through to IPO". Make of that what you will. Â Drake has announced that he will release a "playlist project" called 'More Life' on Apple Music in December, featuring himself and other OVO artists. Â Joanna Newsom's released a new song called 'Make Hay', an outtake from her fourth album 'Divers'. Â Run The Jewels have released the first track from their third album, 'RTJ3'. Have a listen to 'Talk To Me' here. Â Soft Hair have released another new track, 'Relaxed Lizard'. Their debut album is out this week. Â Deftones have announced three UK shows next May, kicking off at Alexandra Palace in London on 5 May. Here's a little mini-documentary filmed by Fact at the band's Wembley Arena show earlier this year. Â Jorja Smith will be playing three UK shows in December, including one at Omeara in London on 7 Dec. She will release a new EP, titled 'Project 11', in November. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Justin Bieber walks off stage in Manchester, chats biology with 'respectful' Birmingham audience "I appreciate all the support, I appreciate love, I appreciate the kind things", he told the audience. "But the screaming in these breaks has got to stop. Please and thank you. I don't think it's necessary when I'm trying to say something and you guys are screaming". When the screaming continued, he left the stage in anger, though returned shortly afterwards, explaining: "The point of the no screaming thing is that when I'm looking at you in the eyes you know that we're actually having a moment and having a connection". When that didn't stop the screaming, he announced that he was "just going to quit the talking" and "do the music". Sounds like a plan. Bieber's current UK tour has mainly been in the news for the singer's various calls for fans to listen when he is talking to them. He told some screaming fans in London that they would be "the first to go when Jesus comes back" and others in Birmingham last week that they were "obnoxious". Returning to Birmingham last night, things seem to have gone a little better. "THE BIRMINGHAM CROWD RESPECTED JUSTIN SO MUCH HE WAS SO NICE", one fan screamed on Twitter afterwards. The respectful silence from the audience meant that Bieber was able to run a Q&A session, in which he was asked by one fan, "Why are you so beautiful?" "Well", he began. "I have a very beautiful mother and a very beautiful father, and they came together one day. Late night, probably. I think Mom slept over at Dad's house. They got to makin the lovin, and out comes JB. That's the science behind it". I think I preferred it when you couldn't hear him speaking. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Send ALL press releases to [email protected] - this is checked daily by the whole editorial team meaning your release will definitely get to the right person. For details of the training and consultancy services offered by CMU Insights click here - Andy and Chris are also available to provide music business comment, just email them direct. To promote your company or advertise jobs or services to the entire UK music industry via the CMU bulletin or website contact Sam on 020 7099 9060 or email [email protected] | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
Laden...
Laden...