I was on a major label for many years, and I only knew one way to make music: follow the template that has been in place for years, and work within the system the music industry was built upon. But after years of not having any records released, my label and I decided to part ways, which left me in an incredibly unique position. Due to numerous stipulations and overrides, I couldn’t just go out and sign another major record deal. I was at a place where the standard music-industry template that the large majority of the music industry had always followed was no longer an option for me. Realizing I couldn’t navigate the old system without a traditional label, I was forced to step out of my comfort zone to continue my career. I had to find a way to continue doing what I love without the luxury of a “system” to follow. It was both an exciting and scary place to be. CONTINUE READING
The DJ duo The Chain Smokers who could be the next LMFAO just signed to Universal Republic after a bidding war between Warner Bros., RCA, and others. The war was over the song #Selfie that hit 4 million views on YouTube. Their original tracks have all reached the Beatport top charts and their remixes hit #1 on the HypeM charts, all of which get hundreds of thousands of plays on Soundcloud and posted on countless blogs. The single “#Selfie” has climbed into the iTunes singles Top 20. They are managed by Adam Alpert of the management company 4AM.
Biggest selling iTunes Artists within the last 24 hours
Lady Gaga’s “ARTPop” album last fall certainly didn’t give Universal Music Group any pop.
Gaga’s fourth-quarter flop helped cut Universal’s revenue in the period 9.3 percent, the company said in a report Tuesday.
The tough Japanese economy — which accounts for 25 percent of global music sales — also hurt Earnings before interest, tax and amortization, or Ebita, was off 11.1 percent, or 7.8 percent on a constant-currency basis. The tough quarter cut profits for the year by 2.9 percent, to $702 million (511 million euros). They were up 1.4 percent on a constant-currency basis, the company said. Full-year revenue rose 7.5 percent to $6.7 billion (4,886 million euros) or 12.8 percent when adjusted for currencies. For the year, Universal Music’s best-selling albums were from EMI’s Katy Perry and Interscope’s Eminem. Read more…
Songwriters understandably hate this, but they have almost no power to stop it. The reason is that despite incredibly low payouts, it’s nearly impossible for songwriters to remove their catalogs from Pandora, or even negotiate better terms. The complicated explanation has to do with a century of antiquated laws that basically force songwriters to license their content at fractional rates, and like it.
Last year, a number of prominent songwriters protested on Capitol Hill, with emotional performances designed to combat lower royalty rates. This year, they’re exercising the nuclear option by introducing legislation to change the laws. This bill, introduced this morning, is called the Songwriter Equity Act, with Congressman Doug Collins sponsoring.
Essentially, the bill attempts to plug two massive loopholes in copyright law that greatly benefit Pandora but essentially screw songwriters. ”Roughly two-thirds of a songwriter’s income is heavily regulated by law or through outdated government oversight,” National Music Publishers’ Association CEO David Israelite told Digital Music News. ”This legislation addresses two significant inequities under current copyright law that prevent songwriters and music publishers from receiving compensation that reflects the fair market value of their work.”
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