Streaming Royalties: Last.fm is now offering streaming royalties to unsigned artists. Artists will now recieve royalties if their tracks are randomly streamed or played. Artists can register at www.last.fm/upload.com

“The young musician making music in a bedroom studio has the same chance as the latest major label signing to use Last.fm to build an audience and get rewarded. The Artist Royalty Program is another revolutionary step towards helping musicians take control of their music — and, more importantly, make a living from it,” said Last.fm co-founder Martin Stiksel.

This is true to an extent and it’s a good promotional tool for artists, just remember that bedroom studio records rarely make it out the box. Last.fm isn’t a free ticket to the pearly gates. ‘MAKING IT’ requires great songs, a unique singer, and an incredible live show. If you don’t have the goods, I would skip Last.fm. How many artists broke off of Last.fm?

TRL: Unsigned pop punk act The Friday Night Boys will be appearing on MTV’s TRL today.

The Knitting Factory is Moving: The Knitting Factory in NYC will be moving to Williamsburg, Brooklyn, the former site of the Luna Lounge.

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Madden 09 Line Up: Here is a list of tracks that will appear on the popular EA Sports video game ‘Madden 09’.

Music Critics Ignored: A recent survey found that 8 in 10 consumers ignore music critics/ music reviews, instead, consumers seek recommendations from friends, family, online music stores and social networking sites.

“What this research shows is that today’s consumer is more informed than ever and that personalization will be critical for e-tailers looking to stand out,” said Avail Intelligence CEO Dr. Rolf Elmer.

Also, music mags lost trust among their readership. True genuine reviews were replaced with hyped artists. Another issue that caused music reviews to lose relevance are the amount of releases. Simply, music critics couldn’t keep up with the amount of releases and just gave up.

TV and Music: Another study from Park Associates says more people are listening to music on their TV than in the past.

“TVs are ubiquitous and increasingly capable of delivering a range of content, especially with new features like digital music delivery and place-shifting services. This is just the tip of the iceberg for TV applications”, says John Barrett, Director of Research at Parks Associates.

New Media Advertising Shows Signs of Explosive Growth: Online-video advertising will soar 45% to $805 million, making it “the fastest-growing emerging-media platform” according to MAGNA Global Worldwide. Mobile advertising is expected to grow 42.6% ($298 million) while social media is forcasted to grow 37.4% ($1.94 billion).

Live Nation World: Nickelback has signed a deal with Live Nation for recordings, touring, merchandise and other rights. Nickelback has signed more than 26 million record worldwide. Live Nation has struck deals with Shakira, Madonna, U2, and Jay-Z.

Signings: Cartel has left Epic Records to sign with Wind-Up Records. Wind-up Entertainment President Ed Vetri shared, “In the continuing evolution of the music industry, Wind-up has been and continues to be a leader in developing a business model that forms true artist partnerships and provides for long term development. We believe that bands like Cartel, and deals like this, are the future of this business. We are excited to begin working with a group that has proven hard work, great songwriting, and a commitment to touring provides the basis for a long term career. We are excited to be in business with Cartel, and look forward to building on their already sizeable fan base.”

Madison, Wisconsin based metal band Luna Mortis have signed to Century Media Records. Legal is Ben McLane and management is Neil Sheehan.

Folk rock artist The Avett Brothers have signed to American/ Columbia Records and have begun working on a new full length album with Rick Rubin.

ADA; New President: Warner Music has named Mitchell Wolk as the new president of its independent distributor, ADA.

Sirius, XM Merger Deal Almost Finalized: Sirius Satellite Radio acquisition of XM Satellite Radio may be finalized this month and cleared by federal regulators.

New Music Label: The New York Times featured Jermaine Dupri and his new label which is funded by pharm company Proctor and Gamble. These big corporations are entering the music business to promote their products. Read more here..

Mercy #1: Duffy has both the best selling album and single of 2008 in the UK. Following Duffy’s single ‘Mercy’ is Nickelback’s single ‘Rockstar’.

More Changes at EMI: More executive changes at EMI, for instance, Veteran exec JF Cecillon is out as President and Billy Mann, EMI Chief Creative Officer based in New York, will assume the additional role of President.

Idol News: Contestants who didn’t make the top 24 cut are elgible for American Idol Season 8. You can only think that the Idol crew is starving for new talent but can’t seem to find any

Trends: Album sales continue to decline, in fact sales are down by 11% in the first half of the year. CD’s have fell at a rate of 16% due to big box retailers limiting their shelf space. That’s not suprising being that the first half didn’t produce a break out star.

Producer News: ZZ Top has signed to Rick Rubin’s label American Recordings, and Rubin will be producing the record as well.

Producer Mutt Lange who brought you AC/DC’s Back in Black and Def Leppard’s Pyromania will be producing the new Nickelback record. Mutt will no doubt eliminate those corporate rock tones and replace them with the much need gritty rock n roll sounds.

David Bendeth will be producing the new Breaking Benjamin record and Red Handed who recently signed to Virgin.

Better Than A Van: Touring artists are seeking alternate ways to save money due to rising gas prices. Here is a tip for touring artists – check out the site www.betterthanthevan.com that offers a community of free places for bands to stay while touring.

Recommended Show: Without Tomorrow performing at Universal City Saddle Ranch (Hollywood) July 5th and The Knitting Factory (Hollywood) July 9th. Listen to the track Break Free.

Shining Through: Did Shinedown re-write Metallica’s Unforgiven? We think so. Check out the track What A Shame. Let us know what you think…