Epic Records signs Alkaline Trio who has been a band together for 10 Years. Years ago, these indie bands remained indie on smaller labels, but these types of artists are looking more attractive to major labels who are willing to partner with bands who have built a touring business for themselves. Andy Gershon, Epic’s Executive Vice President, shared his enthusiasm about the signing, saying, “My personal and professional appreciation for Alkaline Trio is immense. They’re the type of band any label would be lucky to partner with: They’re passionate, important, fiercely conscious, and we look forward to expanding the band’s boundaries.”

Rap gets another bad Rap: Sales continue to Plummet:
CNN recently linked the Hip Hop and Rap culture to dog fighting. The recent NFL Star Michael Vick who is charged for a brutal dog fighting ring brought these cruel disgusting acts to light. Hip-hop culture put Vick in this bind,” declared the headline on a recent column in The Kansas City Star. The Humane Society of the United States points to a number of CD’s from rappers and to videos which features a pit bull lunging at the camera. Russel Simmons says the Vick case “is a blessing in the fact that he’s brought this to light, that this is happening in our society.” The question now is “how we handle it now that it’s on the front page.”

EMI Still on the Market: Terra Firma was Forced To Extend EMI Deadline Again and new sources claim that China Mobile is expected to acquire EMI for 3.2 bln stg through Terra Firma. But China Mobile denies the claim. We haven’t heard of any such deal,’ a spokeswoman for the Hong Kong-listed firm said.

Just imagine that you could purchase a song everytime and everywhere you saw, streamed and listened to a song on the net. That is the goal here.

Record labels big and small are working toward the goal of turning every social network profile, blog and fan site into a digital music storefront. Their ultimate objective is to post a “buy” button next to each track. For instance, More than 9 million fans have posted Fall Out Boy’s “A Little Less ‘Sixteen Candles,’ a Little More ‘Touch Me'” to their respective sites.

We don’t know if social networks can translate promotion into sales, but who cares. Its about impressions..right?

Read the full details here.

Madonna is pondering hanging up on Warner Music Group in favor of life without a traditional record contract.

Madonna is considering an all-inclusive music deal with touring giant Live Nation that could be worth more than $100 million.

The agreement would create an entity that would manage all Madonna-related businesses, including albums, touring, merchandise and sponsorships over a multi-year period. Live Nation would acquire an equity stake in the pop diva’s overall business.

The joint venture company would then look to enter into an agreement with a label to handle distribution and marketing support of any Madonna album releases.

Sources say her camp has also been shopping to other labels the joint venture concept, which follows in the vein of deals inked by EMI with Korn and Robbie Williams.

(NYPOST)

Many have predicted the death of a concert eons ago. But it looks like the country genre is carrying the torch.

Regardless of the grim outlook according to Pollstar, concert revenues in North America have increased from $1.3 billion annually to $3.1 billion a year over the past 10 years.

Aside from classic rock and pop acts with huge catalogs, such as the Rolling Stones, U2 and
Elton John, the winner on the live scene has been country music. “No genre has been better at developing arena-level headliners in the past decade as has country music,” says Ray Waddell, who covers touring for the trade publication Billboard.

No one sold more concert tickets last year than country star Kenny Chesney. The Stones, Madonna and Barbra Streisand made more money on the road — but their average ticket prices of $136, $183 and $298 topped Chesney’s average price of $58. Chesney put 1.1 million people into seats at his shows; for Madonna’s shows, by comparison, only 467,314 parted with their money.

The Tim McGraw/Faith Hill Soul2Soul Tour 2006, which sold a million tickets last year and, with a higher average ticket price ($80), wound up as the most successful country tour in history, besting even Garth Brooks’ historic runs in the mid-’90s.

Even though Hip Hop and rap generally dominant the radio playlists, it can’t fill seats or draw a crowd. Waddell says, rap is not viable in a large venue. “It’s a live performance of a guy with a mike and some dancers. That’s not as compelling as people whaling away on guitars and singing and who can play. It may be exciting in small club venues but it doesn’t translate in a large arena.”

Also, country music has been getting more national exposure. Not only that country fans are more loyal. Its a lifestyle. “The format doesn’t churn artists the way it happens in other formats,” adds Carole Bowen, the country station’s general manager. “People will be a star longer and the labels build stars differently in our genre.”

Lastly, country has been able to create younger arena acts rapidly through sweat equity on the road.

(Austin 360 via Coolfer)

Check out this article ‘Singer-songwriters, or just singers‘? This article follows the recent blowout of Avril Lavigne taking credit for songs she didn’t write. This is a disturbing trend among the hollywood perez pop tarts. The dishonesty usually runs in the female pop circles who are fighting for credibility.

“It’s crazy!” exclaimed Grammy-winning songwriter Diane Warren, who has written for artists such as Whitney Houston, Celine Dion and Mary J. Blige. “How can someone look in the mirror and know they didn’t do something and their name is on it? For money? For credit? It’s a lie.”

Apple Shares Fall: AT&T wiped some of the glow off Apple iPhone, releasing numbers that showed fewer people than expected signed up for service in the first two days of the multimedia cell phone’s release.

Top Current Albums….Â

Now 25
TW 222,523

Colbie Caillat
Cocoa
TW 50,894

Kelly Clarkson
My December
TW 41,746
Total 505,172

Smashing Pumpkins
Zeitgeist
TW 41,661
Total 187,210

Yellowcard
Paper Walls
TW 40,415

Paramore
Riot
TW 14,127
Total 115,971

Three Days Grace
One-X
TW 9,187
Total 812,607

Papa Roach
Paramour Sessions
TW 8,334
Total 301,254

Top Digital Song:

Plain White T’s
“Hey there Delilah”
Total 1,516,920

Catalog Albums: Metallica/Metallica (15 Million), Nirvana/Nevermind (9 million), Prince/Purple Rain (2 million).