Universal Music Group Uplifts Vivendi During Coronavirus-Hit Quarter

Rebecca Davis editorUniversal Music Group (UMG) has appointed Cindy Gu as head of Astralwerks Asia, the company’s label division focused on electronic and dance music in the region.The label also announced Tuesday its first Asian artist signing: the Indonesian EDM group Weird Genius.

Maren Morris and Ryan Hurd’s son, Hayes, has been a nice “distraction” amid the coronavirus pandemic.“He’s great,” the Grammy winner, 30, said of the 4-month-old on the Friday, August 14, episode of The Bobby Bones Show.

Variety Staff Follow Us on TwitterAs part of its ongoing efforts promoting social justice causes and transformative action, Sony Music Group (SMG) is embarking on a non-partisan civic initiative to get out the vote. Under the banner Your Voice, Your Power, Your Vote, the company will be assisting in education and offering resources ahead of election day.

Ted Johnson Joe Biden and his new running mate Kamala Harris are calling for mask mandates across the country, arguing that state requirements will help save lives.At an event in Wilmington, DE, Biden said that “every single American should be wearing a mask when they’re outside for the next three months at a minimum.” He called on state governors to mandate wearing masks, pointing to estimates that it will save 40,000 lives.“There is overwhelming evidence that the mask and the type of mask you

Rebecca Davis editorUniversal Music Group’s China division on Thursday announced the launch of “Magic Muses,” its first local label in over a decade.It will be focused solely on soundtracks and scores, seeking to work with local artists and composers to create tracks for Chinese film and TV projects.Veteran film marketing executive Kelvin Hou will be the Beijing-based label’s CEO. Hou is the founder and former CEO of Chinese film website Mtime.

Rebecca Davis editorUniversal Music Group (UMG) announced Monday that it has signed multi-year direct licensing agreements in China with both Tencent Music Entertainment (TME) and its competitor NetEase Cloud Music, breaking the past precedent of signing exclusively with the former. The move signals a shake-up in the major labels’ approach to the Chinese market.

Universal Music Group’s Interscope, her record label for nearly a decade, according to reports.The Queen of Pop is considering returning to Warner Music Group, where she launched her self-titled debut album “Madonna” in 1983 and went on to crank out hits including “Like a Virgin” (1984), “True Blue” (1986), and “Ray of Light” (1998).

Idol franchise, and TikTok announced on Friday (Aug. 7) that they will be partnering up in order to find music's next supergroup.The first-of-its-kind global music collective will be found through an in-app audition process on the popular video-sharing platform.

Melissa Rivers insists her late mother Joan Rivers would have loved wearing masks during the coronavirus pandemic.

Also Read: 'Fox & Friends' Derides 'Doctors in Silicon Valley' After Twitter and Facebook Remove Trump Coronavirus VideoThe lieutenant governor, Jon Husted, tested positive ahead of Trump’s visit.Democratic Ohio congressman Tim Ryan and House candidate Kate Schroder were among the politicians to wish the governor well on social media after news broke of his positive test.

London Marathon have announced the mass running event has now been cancelled as a result of the coronavirus pandemic.

Cauty has signed a deal with Universal Music Latin Entertainment, Billboard can exclusively reveal today (Aug. 6).

Variety Staff Follow Us on TwitterWarner Music Group’s third-quarter earnings were revealed today (Aug. 4).

grew subscription revenue 2% and advertising revenue dropped 11.5% from Q1 to Q2, Pandora’s advertising revenue fell 17% from Q1 to Q2, and YouTube’s Q2 revenue -- on all videos, including music -- dropped about 6% from Q1.

Variety Staff Follow Us on TwitterWarner Music Group (WMG) has named Dr. Maurice Stinnett head of global equity, diversity and inclusion.

Variety Staff Follow Us on TwitterUniversal Music Vietnam (UMV), in partnership with Vietnamese independent label Times Records (Hãng Đĩa Thời Đại), has signed Vietnamese pop sensation Phùng Khánh Linh. The announcement comes on the heels of Universal Music Group opening UMV’s offices in Ho Chi Minh City last month.