Splice Launches Global Music Council, Chaired by Caron Veazey

Jem Aswad Senior Music EditorBMG has promoted U.S. frontline recorded-music execs Angela Barkan and Cyndi Lynott to senior vice presidents, the company announced on Monday.On the East Coast, Barkan, who is currently overseeing new releases from Duran Duran, Bryan Adams and Kelis, has been promoted to SVP of marketing and will report to EVP Jason Hradil.

Jem Aswad Senior Music EditorKanye West made a surprise performance at a wedding in Venice, Italy, on Saturday, performing two of his classics as well as the live debut of two songs from his recent “Donda” album, along with some other songs. According to social media reports, he wore a creepy, almost Michael Myers-like mask that muffled his vocals.

Jem Aswad Senior Music EditorLong-running footwear brand Dr. Martens has announced their 2021 “Dr.

Jem Aswad Senior Music EditorTo judge by the first footage to be aired from the Beatles’ forthcoming “Get Back” documentary — created by “Lord of the Rings” director Peter Jackson from the 50-year-old footage from the group’s swan-song “Let It Be” movie — it would be a counter-narrative to the depressing “Let It Be” film.

Jem Aswad Senior Music EditorLava for Good, the multimedia platform founded by Lava Records’ Jason Flom and Jeff Kempler, has announced a new slate of advocacy-oriented podcasts with the goal of “revealing underlying truths and amplifying the voices of contemporary social justice champions to inspire action towards a more informed, empathic and just society.”Founded and led by Flom and Kempler in association with Signal Co.

Jem Aswad Senior Music EditorBread Charity, a non-profit founded by Mustafa Sheikh (a.k.a. rapper Lil Mussie) with a mission to aid children living in poverty, has launched Bread Studios in Nipsey Hussle’s former middle school, Edwin Markham Middle School, in the Watts area of Los Angeles.

Jem Aswad Senior Music EditorSony Music’s top executives were informed of abusive behavior by the company’s long-running Australian chief, Dennis Handlin, more than two decades before he stepped down earlier this year, according to a detailed report by the country’s Australian Broadcasting Corporation that aired Sunday.Handlin — one of the most powerful executives in the country’s music business, who was also chairman of the Australian Recording Industry Association and an Officer of the Order

EXCLUSIVE: Mischa Barton has been tapped to lead crime thriller Invitation To A Murder, which is being directed by Stephen Shimek (The Adventure of A.R.I.: My Robot Friend).

Jem Aswad Senior Music EditorWhile there was no official announcement, Sony Music is expanding its “Artists Forward” program with the opening of Artist Assistance, a service offering access to free, confidential counseling services to address stress, anxiety, depression, grief, family and relationship issues.Active-roster artists around the world will now be able connect with a dedicated, licensed therapist at no cost. Participation is completely confidential, according to a letter the company

Jem Aswad Senior Music EditorSenators John Cornyn (R-TX) and Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) today introduced the 
“SOS Extension Act,” which would extend the timeline for using Small Business Administration Shuttered Venue Operators Grants, created by his bipartisan Save Our Stages Act, from the end of 2021 to spring of 2023.The move is largely inspired by the six-month-plus delay between the $16 billion “Save Our Stages” Covid relief act being passed into law in December and independent venues and

Jem Aswad Senior Music EditorPioneering Puerto Rican reggaetón artist Daddy Yankee has signed with WME in all areas. Among many other feats since he first emerged in the 1990s, he recently became the only Latin artist to log over one billion Spotify streams on three tracks, and also has racked up more than 7 billion streams in the last 12 months alone on YouTube — due only in part to “Despacito,” his collaboration with Luis Fonsi.

Jem Aswad Senior Music EditorAfter more than twenty years of horrifying and damning accusations, as of today R.

Jem Aswad Senior Music EditorTicketing platform Dice has raised up to to $122 million in Series C funding in a round was led by new investor, SoftBank Vision Fund 2, with follow on investments from Tony Fadell’s Future Shape, Blisce, French entrepreneur Xavier Niel, Mirabaud Private Equity, Cassius and Evolution.“We believe DICE’s technology has the capacity to transform the future of live entertainment,” said Yanni Pipilis, Managing Partner for SoftBank Investment Advisers.

Jem Aswad Senior Music EditorRoblox and the National Music Publishers’ Association today announced an agreement that “settles any previous claims against Roblox and sets the foundation for future partnerships with global publishers that will unlock new creative and commercial opportunities on its platform,” according to the announcement.In June, a group of music publishers sued Roblox through the NMPA for $200 million-plus, claiming copyright infringement by the company.The agreement settles

Jem Aswad Senior Music EditorAtlanta rapper 21 Savage, the British born-artist who was arrested by ICE in 2019 for overstaying his visa, turned himself in to authorities on Thursday night on drug and weapons possession charges stemming from his earlier arrest. He was released on bond, his attorney confirmed to Variety.Savage (real name: She’yaa Bin Abraham-Joseph) was taken into custody by ICE during Grammy Week in February of 2019, which amplified awareness of his immigration status.

Jem Aswad Senior Music EditorEvery person who worked on Nirvana’s “Nevermind,” released 30 years ago today, says that the album basically broke itself, almost immediately taking on a life of its own in a way that could never have been planned — “Get out of the way and duck” was a phrase that record company executives said often at the time.

Jem Aswad Senior Music EditorOn Thursday, just 15 months after it was formed, the Black Music Action Coalition will host its inaugural Music in Action Awards gala in Los Angeles, honoring musicians, executives, businesses, entrepreneurs, and activists who have made significant contributions to social justice, change, and/or equity over the preceding year.BMAC, which was formed after the transformative yet all-too-familiar events leading up to the Black Lives Matter protests last spring, will

Jem Aswad Senior Music EditorOn a day that has been remarkably good for music companies on stock markets, Warner Music Group — which saw its stock climb thanks in part to Universal Music’s lofty IPO — on Tuesday announced the sale of an aggregate of 2,340,000 shares of the company’s common stock by affiliates of Access Industries to Morgan Stanley & Co. as the sole underwriter in the registered public offering of those shares.

Jem Aswad Senior Music EditorAfter months of strong words, the National Music Publishers’ Association and livestreaming platform Twitch have announced an agreement to work together “to build productive partnerships between the service and music publishers,” according to the announcement.The deal follows months of animosity toward the Amazon-owned streaming platform, from the NMPA along with other industry trade groups, including the RIAA and the Recording Academy, over what they deemed its

Jem Aswad Senior Music EditorBjorn Ulvaeus, co-founder of ABBA and president of CISAC, unveiled a new global initiative called “Credits Due” on Tuesday that is intended to upgrade the music industry’s payment processes.