Music Industry Moves: Tems Signs With CAA in All Areas; Fadia Kader Joins Venice Music

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.”

BreAnna Bell Kamie Crawford has signed with CAA for representation. She continues to be represented by Range Media Partners and Brecheen, Feldman, Breimer, Silver, and Thompson. Perhaps most known for her role as a host on MTV’s “Catfish: The TV Show” (which she’s hosted since 2018), Crawford recently inked an overall deal with MTV Entertainment Studios in January and has since been named as the host of Paramount+’s “Are You The One?” and MTV’s “Ex on the Beach.” The former series, which ran for 8 seasons on MTV before jumping to the streamer, returned after three years off the air in January. She also hosted HBO Max’s “Sweet Life: Los Angeles” reunion special.

EXCLUSIVE: CAA has signed Hacks actor Johnny Sibilly for representation.

Ed Meza @edmezavar Paramount+ is launching its first-ever mobile-only streaming subscription plan in Mexico and Brazil. Paramount+’s Basic Plan, described as “competitively priced,” will be available from April 18. It will allow subscribers to stream content on one mobile device or tablet at a time, uninterrupted and without ads. “This new offering is part of our broader strategy to scale Paramount+,” said Marco Nobili, executive vice president and international general manager for Paramount+. “With multi-tier pricing options, Paramount+ will reach even more subscribers by fitting diverse customer choices and grow our global direct-to-consumer distribution. With mobile entertainment consumption increasing around the world, a mobile-only option will make our slate of programming more accessible to our audiences in mobile-first countries.”

BreAnna Bell Jerah Milligan has signed with CAA for representation. A multi-hyphenate creative artist, Milligan co-created and starred in Netflix’s “Astronomy Club,” which was executive produced by Kenya Barris and Dan Powell, and co-wrote, executive produced, and starred in an original presentation of “Sherlock Homies” for HBO Max. As a director, he recently directed the sketch segments of Yvonne Orji’s latest HBO Special “A Whole Me.” Milligan’s short film “Mahogany Drive,” which he directed and co-wrote, was recently screened at the Slamdance Film Festival. His additional directing credits include Showtime’s “Desus & Mero” and MTV’s “Wild ‘N Out.” Milligan is a product of Viacom’s Viewfinder: Emerging Directors Program.

EXCLUSIVE: Writer, producer and director Florian Sigl, the filmmaker behind the recent movie version of Mozart’s The Magic Flute, has signed with CAA for representation.

EXCLUSIVE: CAA on Tuesday announced its signing of Allison Janney — the Academy Award-winning actress who has also been recognized over the course of her career with six Emmys, a Golden Globe, 7 SAG Awards, 2 Critics’ Choice Awards, a BAFTA, an Independent Spirit Award and other accolades.

Thania Garcia Warner Records today announced the launch of its first-ever flagship electronic dance music label, Major Recordings. Headed by Sam Mobarek, the label’s first signing is duo the duo Parisi, in partnership with Parlophone’s FFRR imprint. Mobarek will report to Warner Records’ co-chairman/ COO Tom Corson and co-chairman/ CEO Aaron Bay-Schuck. Mobarek has nearly two decades of experience in branding and marketing, most recently running Mob Creative, which she also founded. Prior to Mob, Mobarek led the marketing department at Ultra Music, working with Calvin Harris, Steve Aoki, Pitbull, and deadmau5; she also ran the pop imprint Lefthook under Sony Music while still a student at New York University’s Stern School of Business, and held posts at live music company SFX (now Lifestyle) as well as Beatport. In recent months, she and her team have been working with Warner’s partners on such acts as the Blessed Madonna, Eliza Rose, Luude, Skin on Skin and more.

Patrick Frater Asia Bureau Chief Despite a barnstorming address celebrating the re-opening of Hong Kong and China by Bona Film Group COO Jiang De Fu, it is clear that the film industry in China is still suffering its own version of long-COVID, with box office tracking at around half of 2018 levels. “The Chinese box office was RMB60.7 billion ($8.89 billion at current rates of exchange) in 2018. And 83 films made over RMB100 million. 16 films that made over RMB1 billion. Post-pandemic, in 2022, China’s box office was RMB29.9 billion. [Just] 41 films made over RMB100 million. [And] 8 films made over RMB1 billion. We are now only at 50% of the level in 2018,” said Jiang aty a presentation on the first day of Hong Kong’s FilMart.

Reese Witherspoon and Kacey Musgraves comes a new music reality competition called, which they promise is a «fresh take on» the TV genre as it «breaks down barriers in country music by providing an extraordinary opportunity to diverse artists from around the world.»  Ahead of the eight-part competition's debut on Apple TV+, the streaming platform released a trailer, offering the first look at what's to come from this one-of-a-kind experience.  On the show, three groundbreaking country artists and scouts -- Jimmie Allen, Mickey Guyton and Orville Peck -- have each handpicked a roster of what they consider to be «exceptional up-and-coming talent» and invited them to live together in a house in Nashville, Tennessee, where they'll showcase their unique sound and style for the judges.While there, the twelve contestants will vye for the chance to win «a life-changing experience from Apple, including global exposure across the Apple TV+ and Apple Music platforms.»In addition to watching the extended preview for the reality series, check out the three scout's full roster of competing artists below:    Chihuahua, Mexico Ale infuses herself into her music and bilingual lyrics with the mariachi, norteño, banda and other sounds she heard growing up in Mexico. At the age of 16 she taught herself how to play the guitar, and is now on the way to establishing herself as an independent singer-songwriter with a loyal following she’s gained from her popular YouTube channel.    New Delhi, India Dhruv, a multi-instrumentalist, composer, singer-songwriter and producer, started his musical journey at the age of seven.

Angelique Jackson Emma D’Arcy, star of HBO’s “House of the Dragon,” has signed with CAA for representation. D’Arcy stars in HBO’s “Game of Thrones” prequel series as Rhaenyra Targaryen, the firstborn child of the king and his heir apparent. The show follows the events leading to the war of succession, known as the “Dance of the Dragons,” which begins the fall of House Targaryen. “House of the Dragon” has been a massive success for HBO, with 9.3 million viewers watching the Season 1 finale, marking the network’s biggest audience since “Game of Thrones.” The series has also garnered critical acclaim, winning best drama series at the 2023 Golden Globes. For their commanding performance, D’Arcy was singled out with a nomination for best actress in a drama series. According to HBO and HBO Max content CEO Casey Bloys, Season 2 is expected in 2024.

Jem Aswad Senior Music Editor Spotify announced Wednesday that its all-time payouts to music-rights holders are approaching $40 billion. The company said it pays out nearly 70% of every dollar it generates from music back to the industry, the announcement continues. It generates its music revenue from two sources: subscription fees from its Premium platform paying subscribers, and fees from advertisings on music on its Free tier. These rights holders include record labels, publishers, independent distributors, performance rights organizations and collecting societies, the announcement detailed. It is important to note that the payments go to rights holders first — which is rarely the artist or songwriter —which then take their fee or percentage and pay the creators their share.

Have you ever wondered how much money it actually costs to be a famous actor, actress, entertainer or other big-time celebrity?

Thania Garcia Producer Metro Boomin has sold a portion of his publishing catalog to Shamrock Capital for close to $70 million, Variety can confirm. News of the hip-hop acquisition was first published by Billboard on Tuesday morning and arrives as Shamrock continues to forge major investments in catalog sales, expanding a portfolio that includes the master recordings for Taylor Swift’s first six albums, which it acquired in 2020 from Scooter Braun’s Ithaca Holdings. Metro Boomin is riding high on the streaming and sales success of his second full-length album, “Heroes & Villains.” The R&B and hip-hop set was released last December and was the St. Louis artist’s biggest album in terms of first-week sales. It was also his second record to debut at No. 1 on the all-genre inclusive albums chart.

Kardinal Offishall still remembers a time when nobody wanted to hire him. And he means nobody.

Bebe Rexha has no interest in dating someone who works in the music industry, and explained why during a recent interview with ET Canada’s Keshia Chanté.

Michael Schneider Variety Editor at Large As former The CW chairman and CEO Mark Pedowitz gets back into the production business, he has sign on with CAA for representation, the tenpercentary announced on Thursday. Pedowitz has revived his shingle, Pine Street Entertainment, which is represented by CAA as part of the arrangement. Pedowitz announced his departure from The CW in October, following Nexstar Media Group’s acquisition of the network from its previous joint operators CBS and Warner Bros. (Those two entities maintain minority stakes in The CW, but Nexstar is now the majority owner and operator.) In reviving Pine Street Entertainment, Pedowitz is bringing back his independent production company that produced CBS’ “The Crazy Ones” (starring Sarah Michelle Gellar and Robin Williams), as well as a number of development projects.

Elon Musk continues to be the richest person in the world, despite briefly losing the No. 1 spot for over two months.

Steve Boom — who, as MusiCares chair, also played a huge role in the organization’s distribution of more than $25 million in pandemic relief to the music community — will be honored as the UJA’s Music Visionary of the Year with a luncheon on June 7 at New York’s Ziegfield Ballroom. He will be saluted for his professional and philanthropic leadership, and the UJA will amplify its substantial efforts in confronting antisemitism and helping those in need. Previous recipients have included SiriusXM’s Scott Greenstein, Sony Music Group CEO Rob Stringer, Republic Records co-founders Avery and Monte Lipman, iHeartMedia chief Bob Pittman, Spotify co-founder Daniel Ek, Warner Records co-chairman and COO Tom Corson and Atlantic Records co-chairman and COO Julie Greenwald.

Adam B. Vary Senior Entertainment Writer In the Season 2 finale of “The Mandalorian” — which first streamed on Disney+ on Dec. 18, 2020, over two years ago — Mando (Pedro Pascal) bid a moving farewell to Grogu, handing over his adorably wee ward to Grogu’s new Jedi master, Luke Skywalker (played by a digitally de-aged Mark Hamill). The wrenching final scene culminated in Mando removing his helmet — violating the core precept of Mandalorian doctrine — so Grogu could see his face for the first time. It felt like the definitive end of a two-season journey, one painstakingly crafted by executive producers Jon Favreau and Dave Filoni to reset the show and send it into a new storytelling galaxy. As the trailers for Season 3 of “The Mandalorian” have already made clear, however, the new season will begin on March 1 with Mando and Grogu back together. It’s almost as if the events of the Season 2 finale hadn’t happened.