Music Industry Moves: Live Nation CFO Kathy Willard to Retire

Jem Aswad Senior Music EditorWarner Chappell Music has entered into a co-publishing agreement with rising hip-hop artist 42 Dugg, who is signed to both Yo Gotti’s CMG label and Lil Baby’s 4PF imprint as part of a joint venture.The announcement comes on the heels of the release of the Detroit native’s new project, “Free Dem Boyz,” and last year, he was featured on Lil Baby’s double-platinum single, “We Paid,” which he also performed with Baby on the BET Awards.

Jem Aswad Senior Music EditorGrammy-winning singer/songwriter Brandi Carlile and the National Independent Venue Association (NIVA) will receive 2021 Clio Music Impact Awards as part of Clio Music’s virtual awards celebration, taking place June 10 at Clios.com. The awards are being presented for the sixth year by Citi.

Jem Aswad Senior Music EditorSony Music Entertainment announced a pair of big promotions on Monday, elevating Melissa Thomas to executive VP of International Marketing, U.S. Repertoire and Monica Cornia to Senior VP of Sales, Commercial Music Group.Thomas (pictured above left), who was previously SVP, will continue to report to Sony Music Group Chairman Rob Stringer.

Jem Aswad Senior Music EditorGrammy-winning songwriter and producer James Steed, professionally known as DJ SwanQo, has signed with Giant Music Publishing, a division of the Azoff Company. Giant, in partnership with Pardison Fontaine’s St.

Jem Aswad Senior Music EditorVivendi, owner of the world’s largest music company, Universal Music Group, told investors on Tuesday that it is considering selling an additional 10% stake in the company to an unnamed U.S. investor.

Jem Aswad Senior Music EditorWhen the votes were tallied in Georgia last November, then counted again and again, Donald Trump was characteristically vocal in his outrage that Georgia, a longtime Republican state, had turned blue.

Jem Aswad Senior Music EditorThe “Hella Mega Tour” featuring Green Day, Fall Out Boy and Weezer has unveiled new dates, beginning in July and stretching into September.

Jem Aswad Senior Music EditorOne thing we did not expect to see on this Spring Monday morning was a high-quality audio duel between two of the world’s biggest music streaming services.At around 9 a.m. ET, Apple announced that its Apple Music is bringing “industry-leading” sound quality to its subscribers, with the addition of Spatial Audio with support for Dolby Atmos.

Jem Aswad Senior Music EditorFor the past 15 months, many of us have felt starved by the absence of live music from our lives — as if our bodies have been deprived of an essential nutrient and we’re suffering from some existential scurvy.

Jem Aswad Senior Music EditorManuel Abud has been named CEO of the Latin Recording Academy, effective Aug. 1, the Board of Trustees announced on Wednesday.

Jem Aswad Senior Music EditorJust under a year ago, as protests gripped the U.S.

Jem Aswad Senior Music EditorThe Weeknd will perform at the Billboard Music Awards on May 23 — which is only fitting since he’s the top finalist this year with nominations in 16 categories, riding the success of his blockbuster “After Hours” album and its smash single “Blinding Lights,” which has crushed multiple streaming and chart records.Over the course of his decade-long career, the Weeknd has racked up a dazzling number of Billboard chart records: He’s had 34 top 40-charting hits on the

Jem Aswad Senior Music EditorWhile tours and festivals for later this year are being announced every day and Live Nation’s stock recently reached an all-time high based on the concert industry’s anticipated return to health, the company’s first-quarter earnings report showed that the concert industry is just beginning to revive, it had a rough quarter — as it had predicted on its last earnings report, and as would be expected.The company’s adjusted operating income loss for the quarter was $152

Jem Aswad Senior Music EditorHipgnosis Songs has acquired yet another catalog, this one from Andrew Watt, who recently was named 2021 Grammy Producer of the Year for his work with Miley Cyrus, Dua Lipa, Post Malone and Ozzy Osbourne.

Jem Aswad Senior Music EditorA picture paints a thousand words, the old cliché goes, but it’s truly amazing how much publicity photos of musicians can say about a certain year: The clothes, the shoes, the hats, the belt buckles, the scarves — and most of all, the hairstyles (and lack of styles). G.

Jem Aswad Senior Music EditorSolomon Sounds, ne Solomon Sobande, the former manager of the late rapper and songwriter XXXTentacion, has joined Capitol Records as senior vice president of A&R, reporting to Capitol Music Group (CMG) chairman and CEO Jeff Vaughn. Sounds is tasked with signing and develop artists for the company’s flagship label.

Jem Aswad Senior Music EditorWhen Variety interviewed the Weeknd over the weekend about the Grammys’ decision to eliminate nomination-review committees (more on that here), we naturally slipped in a question about the new music he recently hinted at in social media posts, which presumably will be the follow-up to his blockbuster 2020 album, “After Hours.” To our surprise, he answered the question — and in characteristic, slightly enigmatic fashion, no less.“If the last record is the after hours

Jem Aswad Senior Music EditorThe Weeknd has responded to the rule changes for the Grammy Awards announced by the Recording Academy on Friday — primarily a change that eliminates the “secret” nomination-review committees that played a key role in his being shut out of all nominations for the 2021 awards, despite having one of the biggest albums and the most-streamed single of the year with “After Hours” and “Blinding Lights,” respectively.“The trust has been broken for so long between the Grammy

Jem Aswad Senior Music EditorGoldman Sachs’ annual “Music in the Air” study is widely recognized in the music industry as an optimistic but authoritative survey of the business — and yet again, it will make Universal Music Group very happy, as it has valued the company at a whopping $53 billion ahead of its IPO, expected this fall.That’s up from the $36 billion posited in last year’s report, and shows the strength of the recorded-music and publishing businesses, which are primary among UMG’s

Jem Aswad Senior Music EditorWhile multiple outlets, including Variety, reported last April that Live Nation CEO Michael Rapino was foregoing his $3 million salary for all of 2020 due to the pandemic and its devastating effect on the live-entertainment industry and the company, according to SEC filings, he did so for less than two months. His salary was reinstated at 50% as of June 1, and boosted to 60% on Sept.