Kobalt Music Pulls Out of Russia Over Ukraine Invasion

Jem Aswad Senior Music EditorRoxy Music, the legendary and influential British group who launched during the glam-rock era of the early 1970s but evolved into a suave and romantic brand of pop that influenced everyone from Chic to Duran Duran and Maxwell, will tour for the first time in 11 years to mark the 50th year since their groundbreaking self-titled debut album.Singer-songwriter Bryan Ferry, saxophonist Andy Mackay, guitarist Phil Manzanera and drummer Paul Thompson will perform 13 arena shows across North America and the UK, beginning September 7 in Toronto at the Scotiabank Arena.The tour will take the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame members across the U.S., including New York’s Madison Square Garden and The Forum in Los Angeles, before culminating with a performance at the O2 Arena in London. Tickets for the Live Nation produced North American shows will go on sale Monday, April 4 (10 a.m.

Jem Aswad Senior Music EditorSpotify, which suspended its paid subscription service in Russia earlier this month due to that country’s unprovoked and bloody invasion of Ukraine, has announced it will “fully suspend our service in Russia,” apparently indefinitely. It joins dozens of other music companies that have ceased operations in the country.“Spotify has continued to believe that it’s critically important to try to keep our service operational in Russia to provide trusted, independent news and information in the region.

Jem Aswad Senior Music EditorWhen Sting first released the song “Russians” in 1985, the Cold War had been raging for nearly 40 years, and the song aimed to strike a humanizing tone on the people actually behind that Iron Curtain. Just weeks earlier, the Soviet Union had gotten a young new leader named Mikhail Gorbachev who ultimately would end that war and change the world in the process, for the better, it seemed at the time.Sadly, four decades later, Russia has launched the most devastating ground war in Europe since World War II with its unprovoked invasion of Ukraine, and it’s necessary to strike a humanizing tone again, and Sting has released a re-recorded version of the song to benefit www.helpukraine.center — a volunteer storage center established by Ukrainian business owners where humanitarian and medical aid can be sent from all over the world – with funds being processed through the German charity foundation, Ernst Prost, People for Peace – Peace for People.

Jem Aswad Senior Music EditorVeteran dance music executive Patrick Moxey has announced details of his new label group and has signed a new, worldwide deal for two key record labels with Warner Recorded Music.The agreement, which encompasses the legendary Payday Records and the newly created Helix Records, will see Warner Recorded Music handling global digital distribution via its independent services arm ADA Worldwide, and includes the option for the parties to co-sign new repertoire.The move comes just weeks after Moxey left Ultra, the label he founded during the 1990s, and Sony Music.Helix Records, the group’s new flagship electronic dance music label, which was officially launched this week at Miami Music Week, has already signed several artists, including electronic duo Snakehips, British-Australian band AR/CO, legendary house dj/producer Marshall Jefferson, and tech house maven DJ Susan. Helix and Payday Records have offices in Los Angeles, New York, and London with 36-member team covering marketing and promotions in Canada, Sweden, Germany, France, and Australia.

Jem Aswad Senior Music EditorThe global recorded music market grew by 18.5% in 2021, driven by growth in paid subscription streaming, according to IFPI (International Federation of the Phonographic Industry), the organization that represents the recorded music industry worldwide. Figures released Tuesday in IFPI’s Global Music Report show total revenues for 2021 were $25.9 billion.While the free version of the report does not attach numbers to all of the rankings, they’re pretty fascinating anyway:The top 10 global artists, based on “consumption across all formats and all countries, weighted based on the value of each method of consumption,” are:The top 10 global digital singles were: The top 10 all-format albums were:And, for good measure, the top-selling vinyl titles across the world were:Digging into the data, the report notes that paid subscription streaming revenues increased by 21.9% to $12.3 billion, with 523 million users of paid subscription accounts at the end of 2021.

Jem Aswad Senior Music EditorOn Thursday morning, Dolly Parton ventured into the belly of Fox News’ hotbed of propaganda and misinformation, “Fox & Friends,” in an attempt to set the record straight about her decision to decline her likely nomination into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.“Well, I didn’t feel exactly right about that,” she said, while being interviewed on the show along with James Patterson, who co-authored her new book “Run, Rose Run.” “Because my perception, and I think the perception of most of America — I just feel like that’s more for the people in rock music. I’ve been educated since then, saying that it’s more than that, but I still didn’t feel right about it.

Jem Aswad Senior Music EditorOne might think that, just weeks after his company scraped through the biggest crisis of its existence — its stubborn defense of giving a gigantic international platform, not to mention more than $200 million, to Joe Rogan and his destructive, malignant opinions — Spotify’s Daniel Ek might exercise a little caution and humility.One might think that, after paying millions to Capitol Hill lobbyists in an ongoing battle to pay less to songwriters — the very foundation of his company’s existence — than the Copyright Royalty Board decreed it should pay, he wouldn’t spend even more millions on something as flashy and business-uncritical as sponsorship of a soccer team, especially with Russian bombs killing hundreds of Ukrainian civilians every day. But one would be wrong.

Jem Aswad Senior Music EditorAs Russia’s brutal invasion of Ukraine continues and more music companies have ceased doing business with the country, many in the songwriting, music-publishing and especially the performing-rights communities have looked to CISAC, the global confederation of authors societies such as ASCAP and PRS, to make a unilateral decision.However, on Monday, the organization announced that although it “deplores and condemns the war waged by the Russian government against the Ukrainian population,” it will leave such decisions to individual societies, although it continues to develop a relief fund for Ukraine, first announced on Wednesday.“While abhorring the actions of the Russian armed forces, CISAC is not empowered to impose sanctions on member societies based only on the actions of their government,” the statement says in part. “Russian authors, just as their counterparts elsewhere, cannot be blamed for the grotesque actions of their government.” “CISAC’s global network of authors societies deplores and condemns the war waged by the Russian government against the Ukrainian population,” the statement reads.

Jem Aswad Senior Music EditorThe Rolling Stones have announced dates for their 60th anniversary tour, their second jaunt since the death of founding drummer Charlie Watts last August. The European summer tour will take in fourteen shows in ten countries across the contintent and will present the premiere of “a brand new ‘Sixty’ production,” starting in Madrid on June 1.The announcement notes that the group will be playing its first concert in Liverpool in more than 50 years, followed by two shows in London’s Hyde Park.

Sony Pictures is the latest company to pause its business operations in Russia in the wake of the Ukraine invasion. SPE’s Tony Vinciquerra informed staff of the decision in a memo Friday that was obtained by TheWrap, and the pause of business operations includes halting planned home entertainment releases of “Spider-Man: No Way Home” and other future TV distribution deals.

Jem Aswad Senior Music EditorSony Music has suspended all of its operations in Russia, the company has confirmed to Variety. “Sony Music Group calls for peace in Ukraine and an end to the violence. We have suspended operations in Russia and will continue our support of global humanitarian relief efforts to aid victims in need.,” the company said in a statement.Sources tells Variety that the company’s staffers will continue to receive their salaries for an undetermined time; the artists’ situation is still being worked out.Universal Music Group announced that it is suspending its operations in the country on Tuesday.

Jem Aswad Senior Music EditorWhile businesses across the globe have been pulling out of Russia, many have wondered why the music industry largely has not been following suit. While sanctions have severely hampered Russia’s global business and the music industry is a very small part of that business, the optics on continuing to work in the country are not good.CISAC, the global confederation of authors societies such as ASCAP and PRS, has launched a new support fund dedicated to helping the victims of the war in Ukraine, although it stopped short of suspending operations with Russia, as Universal Music Group and many other companies have.

Jem Aswad Senior Music EditorAs more and more companies have cut ties with Russia in the wake of the country’s invasion of Ukraine, many have wondered why more music companies have not done the same.Early Tuesday, the U.K.’s performing rights organization, PRS for Music, said it has formally and immediately suspended its rights representation relationship with RAO, the Russian collecting society for musical works, “pending confirmation of its separation from the Russian Government and those individuals and companies on the sanctions lists.“We are also working with CISAC to consider the ongoing membership of Russian societies in the global network. It is not our desire to punish the Russian composer, songwriter and publisher communities who support peace, and we will work with the global community to identify opportunities to amplify the voices of protest.

Nearly 30 major British companies have cut ties with Russia in an act of condemnation against Putin's war in Ukraine.

“South Park” remains timely.

Jem Aswad Senior Music EditorAfter what we’ve all been through in the past two years, every concert feels like a miracle, but a Dua Lipa show more than most. On the surface it might be easy to underestimate the heavy emotions associated with her “Future Nostalgia” album, which was famously released on March 27, 2020, just as the horrors of the pandemic were becoming clear: It’s a dance-party album that arrived at seemingly one of the worst possible times in human history for a dance party album, when there were no parties and the only dancing was done on our own.Yet instead of striking a sour note or seeming like a cruel taunt, it was many people’s escape, their comfort food, their crying blanket — a reminder not only of what we couldn’t have, but what we hoped to get back as everyone wondered, without exaggeration, when or if we’d ever be at a concert or on a crowded dancefloor again.

The international union that governs skating said Tuesday that it was following the recommendations of the International Olympic Committee in banning athletes from Russia and Belarus from its competitions across the sports of figure skating and speed skating. It becomes the latest organization in the sports world to take action since Russia began its military invasion of Ukraine.