-Rapper/ producer Dr. Dre and Interscope Records CEO Jimmy Iovine have filed a lawsuit against a Delaware based company over an oral breach of contract.

–Clear Channel Communications said Tuesday its second-quarter earnings fell more than 10percent on higher operating costs, despite a 7 percent increase in revenue. To stem the loss of listeners to satellite radio, Clear Channel has cut back on commercials, but raised its rates.

-Victory Records signs Ohio hardcore screamo act Beneath the Sky

-Los Angeles based indie pop/rock band The Hanks have signed to Cobra Music distributed by Fontana/Universal. Legal rep is Ben McLane, Esq and management: Jennifer Dare

-Billboard executive editor Ken Schlager and bureau chiefs Melinda Newman and Phyllis Stark were axed as part of a bigger overhaul triggered last month when the magazine’s VNU parent bought radio trade publication Radio & Records and closed down Billboard Radio Monitor. A total of 26 employees were let go from editorial, sales and operations, including nine from Billboard (Hits).

-According to Hits , P.O.D. split with Atlantic Records. Although the band has sold 7 million records, the last two records failed to react with a larger audience.

– MTV VMA’s nominates Alternative act 10 Years (pictured) Wasteland Video for ‘Best Direction and ‘Best Art Direction’. The band who is currently on the Family Values Tour has sold close to 350,000. New single ‘Waking Up” will impact radio 8/15.

Vol 22 Now That’s What I call Music
TW 127,156
Total 883,125
**An album full of Hits.

Come (Whatever) May
Stone Sour
TW 80,786
Total 80,949

All The Right Reasons
Nickelback
TW 43,545
Total 3,209,312
**Incredible

Taking The Long Way Home
Dixie Chicks
TW 32,012
Total 37,336
**Cancelled 14 shows after slow ticket sales.

Greatest Hits
Guns N Roses
TW 13,195
Total 3,093,530

Simon wants to change how talent is developed and exposed.He wants to develop blossoming artists who might meet obstacles financially, stylistically or otherwise in trying to break through mainstream standards. Just as “Idol” does with novice singers, the goal is to empower all kinds of performers and “push the boundaries.”Simon will take American Idol to the next level with a songwriting competition that will be incorporated into the show and produce a song that will be sung by the next “American Idol.” Anyone can now compete and write a song that will be sung by the two finalists, broadening the choices for possible finale songs and bring in a whole new competition for fans to follow.

“What drives me is moving forward. That is what my brain is focused on,” he said. “What really excites me is fulfilling my vision. I now have the resources to do everything I want to do.”

MIke Darnell, executive vice president of alternative programming and specials for Fox, called Fuller “a genius” for coming up with a show that other networks call “the tsunami, the tidal wave. It just can’t be stopped.”

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Not Surpringsly, Hawthorne Heights is suing Victory Records. It was a matter of time.

Due to recent events we have decided to leave Victory Records. Our departure is anything but amicable. We have decided to leave Victory, in part due to the actions of the man who sits at the head of the label, Tony Brummel. Tony Brummel is a man that cares more about his ego and bank account than the bands themselves. Tony is a man whose greed knows no bounds. After selling more than 1.2 million copies of The Silence In Black and White and If Only You Were Lonely, we have never seen a single dollar in artist royalties from Victory Records. Tony will claim that we have not recouped, a term used by those in the music business which means the label has spent more money in advertising than has been made by CD sales.

You may be wondering, why now? Why did they wait three years before saying something? Why did they sound happy in that interview??? Like being in an abusive relationship, we let certain things slide as we were afraid, as many of the bands on Victory are, to stick our neck out for fear of being beaten, in this case represented by the threat of not being promoted as has been the case with certain bands on the roster. Were done being abused. The reasons stated above represent the final straw in a huge pile of hay that broke our backs.
– Hawthorne Heights

The complaint consist of damages including lost record sales, lost publishing revenues, lost merch revenues, lost touring revenues, and damage to Hawthorne Heights reputation. Victory also sent out an email blast to street teamers without the bands consent directing those to misplace copy of CDs of “Ne-Yo” to boost record sales of Hawthornes sophmore record. According the document, Tony Brummel referred to this as a “joke”. KOAR fell for the joke.

Courtrooms are filled with jokes. Check out the PDF of the complaint (via Velvet Rope)

Check out the article in Fortune Magazine titled
‘Big musicians flex their muscle with record labels’. Jeff Kwatinetz, CEO of the Firm says he is trying to diversify the Firm into a company that not only manages music clients but can produce and promote their records and oversee publishing, touring, and merchandising. He says this is what record companies did in the 1960s and ’70s.

After meeting with various labels, Ice Cube one of the Firms clients chose to release his record himself. Ice Cube felt it was only fair that he own the music and reap all the profit from its sale in the U.S.

“We have ring-tone checks coming in. We’ve licensed music to TV shows. We’ve licensed music to films. It all goes into his pocket.”Says Kwatinetz.

Radiohead’s contract with EMI’s Capitol label has expired, and the band seems to be in no rush to sign a new one. In July, Thom Yorke, Radiohead’s lead singer, released a solo album, “The Eraser,” on an indie label. It was promoted on the homepage of Apple’s (Charts) iTunes Music Store and became the No. 2 record on the Billboard 200 without a major label.

Record sales became so profitable that the labels gave up their revenue streams from ticket and T-shirt sales. Napster came along and CD sales plummeted. Kwatinetz argues that now these same companies are so focused on making their quarterly results from album sales that they can no longer build long-term careers for their artists.

Let’s put this all together. If your a megastar or use to be a megastar with somewhat of a fan base, then yes, you don’t need a major label given you have enough capital. The same platforms labels use (I Tunes, MTV, Internet) to launch artists are available to anybody. The problem isn’t with megastar artists, the problem remains with new artists.