Music industry makes $26bn but wants streaming prices to rise

A new calling. Granger Smith announced that his upcoming Like a River tour will be his last before he transitions to ministry.

Spotify have the weakest representation of women and non-binary people in technical roles, with only 3.6 per cent and 3.7 per cent in key positions respectively.Looking at credits in the top ten songs across DSPs, the report found that women and non-binary individuals are more highly concentrated within assistant roles than in key technical roles.Metal was found to have the lowest percentage of women and non-binary people in key technical roles, while electronic music and folk and Americana had the highest representations. You can read the full report here.Musician Brandi Carlile, who is also a soundBoard member of We Are Moving The Needle, said of the findings: “We’ve got such a long way to go to reach parity in the studio, but I know we can get there.“This is a systemic problem in the recording industry that we cannot ignore any longer.

Thania Garcia Rimas Entertainment CEO Noah Assad, his star client Bad Bunny, and Rimas exec Jonathan Miranda have jointly launched a sports management agency with a starting roster comprised of Major League Baseball players. “We are thrilled to break into a new industry with the launch of Rimas Sports. In the music world we accomplished success by knowing how to develop talent, helping our clients reach their vision by catering to their unique needs,” said Assad in a statement. “This new venture is an expansion of that mission as we aim to bring greater representation to the Latin community in the world of sports.” Miranda will serve as president of the newly-created Rimas Sports which offers services like agent management and public relations, performance and skills training, financial guidance, concierge, and logistics. As for the talent, it’s an All-Star affair with Iván “Pudge” Rodríguez, a 14-time All-Star winner and an American League MVP honoree (1999), tapped as an ambassador.

FIFTY FIFTY have released an official sped-up version of their viral TikTok hit ‘Cupid’.Over the weekend, FIFTY FIFTY unveiled an official sped-up edition for the English version of ‘Cupid’ – also known as the ‘Twin Ver’. The new release is similar to the fan-made sped-up rendition that originally went viral on TikTok.The sped-up version of the TikTok hit is available on streaming platforms under the artist name “sped up 8282”, and was released by distributors Warner Music and Warner Korea, as noted by music journalist Jeff Benjamin.Last month, FIFTY FIFTY became only the sixth K-pop group to ever chart on the Billboard Hot 100 with their viral hit song ‘Cupid’, debuting at Number 100.

Tory voters should vote Labour at the next election if their candidate is best placed to beat the SNP, the leader of the Scottish Conservatives has suggested. Douglas Ross risked a split with Tory leader Rishi Sunak as he said people should “do what’s best for the country” to help loosen the nationalists’ grip on Scotland.

EXCLUSIVE: A+E Studios is getting into business with Curate Management and its founder Britton Rizzio. The studio has signed a first-look deal with the company to develop scripted series for broadcast and streaming in the U.S. and international space. Curate says the deal reinforces the company’s commitment to producing content that reflects unique perspectives and stories. 

The body of an American man missing for almost two months has been discovered in a secret burial site in Mexico.

From the Bachelor mansion to the driving range! Michelle Money and Mike Weir have been going strong since 2016.

in December that they would be licensing shows including “Westworld” to third party FAST services (free, ad-supported streaming TV), such as the Roku Channel.There’s enough WB content for 13 Roku channels, some of which are dedicated to family programming, true crime, pets, reality TV series, and do-it-yourself. Here is the full list: WB TV All Together: Programming includes family-friendly TV hits “Head of Class,” “Better With You,” and “Eight is Enough.” WB TV At the Movies: A mix of classic films from the ’70s, ’80s, and ’90s, including “Born to Be Wild,” “Matchstick Men” and “Joe Versus the Volcano.”WB TV Crime Scenes: Were to watch true crime series “Murder Chose Me,” “A Crime to Remember,” “Southern Fried Homicide” and more.

What could the future possibly hold for an artist if they have grown too comfortable with success? If they have stayed put in that snug place of glory, but the times have moved on fast without them? These are the hefty considerations at the heart of “Paint,” a slight comedy that sadly embraces neither the worthwhile questions that surround its central premise nor the story’s dark humor potential.That’s too bad, because writer-director Brit McAdams’ narrative feature debut is rooted in a genuinely fascinating subject that apparently served as an inspiration for “Paint.” McAdam’s muse is Bob Ross, a real-life American public television mainstay of the ‘80s and ‘90s. Being the host of a successful PBS show called “The Joy of Painting” during that time, Ross built a loyal audience who loved and were mesmerized by his soothing voice, and even haunted by his creative process and ease with a brush, as Ross slowly created his art in front of curious eyes, narrating it softly and philosophically.

William Earl Music industry veteran Michael Leon died on April 2 in Beverly Hills. He was 76. A cause of death was not revealed. A longtime label executive, who was married to powerhouse publicist Leslee Dart, Leon’s career began at Bell Records, home to albums in the 1960s and 1970s by Al Green, the 5th Dimension and Shirley Jones, whose repertoire was later absorbed by Arista. He went on to join revered independent label A&M Records in 1976, where he would ascend to senior VP and head of East Coast operations. While at A&M, Leon took on the role of VP of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Foundation and was tasked with spearheading the museum’s initial exhibition. Among his credits while at the Rock Hall: championing architect I.M. Pei for the museum contract as well as the city of Cleveland.

Thania Garcia On the heels of the Band Perry’s hiatus announcement, co-founder Kimberly Perry has signed to Records Nashville/Columbia Records in pursuit of a solo career. “From the moment I met the team at Records, their appreciation for my journey and my vision for the future as a solo artist has been overwhelming,” Perry commented about the signing. “Everything came together so organically, and it felt right from the very start.” Based in Nashville, Perry will release a new body of work that “promises to be her most honest and intimate,” per the press release. 

New Music Friday! The weekend is here, which means more streaming, new playlists and the best that music has to offer. ET has you covered for everything in between.Charlie Puth leads this week's releases with his new single, «That's Not How This Works,» featuring Dan + Shay and released in conjunction with a short film for the song.

Thania Garcia The New York music scene is a bustling playground for the industry’s most eager power players. Ready to face the evolving landscape head-on, the executives featured in Variety’s larger New York Women’s Impact Report (see the full report here) are navigating everything from accelerating advances in technology to global takeovers. Here we highlight the achievements of powerful women who have broken barriers in their respective fields to innovate and elevate the ever-expanding business of music in 2023. From launching one-of-a-kind talent partnerships and experiential activations to championing long-deserving artists, the women in this list have risen to unimaginable heights to create a long-lasting impact.

Hollywood Diversity Report separated its findings between films made for streaming and those made for theatrical. The results showed that the industry’s push for diversity is making much more progress on the small screen than the big screen. Among the top 100 original streaming films in 2022, 64% had casts that had at least 30% actors of color, compared to 57% for theatrical films.

Twice-impeached former president Donald Trump hasn’t been arrested yet, but Jimmy Fallon is pretty sure he’s starting to feel the heat. During Monday night’s episode of “The Tonight Show,” Fallon joked that the location of Trump’s first official 2024 campaign rally was the clearest sign of that.On Saturday, Trump stopped in Waco, Texas to make his first official campaign bid to the people and, as always, his speech was full of lies and gripes about how he’s being treated unfairly.

Millions of mobile phone and broadband users across the country will see their bills rise dramatically in April.

Jem Aswad Senior Music Editor Warner Chappell Music has renewed its global publishing deal with producer Marco “MAG” Borrero. A frequent Bad Bunny collaborator, MAG produced 15 of the 23 tracks on the blockbuster album “Un Verano Sin Ti,” which led to his 2022 Variety Hitmakers honor and his No. 1 position on Billboard’s Year-End Hot Latin Song Producers chart. “Un Verano Sin Ti” became the first all-Spanish album to top the year-end Billboard 200 chart as well as earn a nomination for Album of the Year Grammy award. The Brooklyn-born, Puerto Rican-Dominican producer was mentored by Max Martin — the most successful songwriter-producer of the past 25 years — and over the course of his career has also collaborated with Rauw Alejandro, Arcángel, Bebe Rexha, Imagine Dragons, Selena Gomez, and Demi Lovato.

Pulse Music Group has signed punk band Turnstile to a worldwide publishing deal via a creative joint venture with Rick Rubin’s American Songs. The agreement covers Turnstile’s entire song catalog, including their 2021 record “Glow On,” which boasts Grammy-nominated singles “Blackout” and “Holiday.” “We have been waiting a very long time for the next great rock band to emerge and feel very fortunate that we will get to work with Brendan and the band,” commented Scott Cutler, co-CEO of Pulse Music Group. “Welcoming Turnstile to our Pulse Music Group roster is a great example of what we set out to do creatively when we formed our joint venture with Rick Rubin. We’re proud to welcome Turnstile to our roster and to partner with American Songs to publish culturally impactful talent.”

Jem Aswad Senior Music Editor Global recorded-music revenue growth slowed down dramatically in 2022 but still was up 9% according to the year-end report from the International Federation of the Phonographic Industry’s released Tuesday. While 2021 saw an 18.5% growth, largely due to an increase in streaming numbers as the world waited at home for the pandemic to lift, a growth in global streaming numbers powered the past year’s lift, which showed total trade revenues for year at $26.2 billion. Subscription audio streaming revenues increased by 10.3% to $12.7 billion, and there were 589 million users of paid subscription accounts at the end of 2022, according to the report.  Total streaming (including both paid subscription and advertising-supported) grew by 11.5% to reach $17.5 billion, or 67% of total global recorded music revenues, according to the IFPI, which represents more than 8,000 record company members worldwide.