Vivendi Sells 7.1% of Universal Music Group to Bill Ackman’s Pershing Square for $2.8 Billion

Jem Aswad Senior Music EditorRemember those new Abba songs and “virtual tour” that were supposedly on the way three and a half years ago? First it was two new songs, then six new songs, for a “Virtual Abba” experience in collaboration with “American Idol” creator Simon Fuller? Well, finally something is on the way, judging by a vague social media post from the group that appeared in the wee hours of Thursday.Join us at https://t.co/AAFQLIrqJu #ABBAVoyage pic.twitter.com/7LYw3kojzB— ABBA Voyage

Jem Aswad Senior Music EditorLegendary singer-songwriter and eight-time Grammy-winner Joni Mitchell will be honored as the 2022 MusiCares Person of the Year, the Recording Academy announced on Wednesday. She will be the honoree during the 31st annual Person of the Year benefit gala, which will be held at the Los Angeles Convention Center on Saturday, January 29, 2022, two nights before the 64th Annual Grammy Awards.

Jem Aswad Senior Music EditorMiley Cyrus has parted ways with longtime manager Adam Leber and joined the team at Crush Management, two sources confirm to Variety.There, she joins a roster that includes fellow female pop luminaries Sia and Lorde as well as such veteran rock acts as Green Day, Weezer and Fall Out Boy, all three of whom are currently on the Hella Mega stadium tour, which was rescheduled from 2020 (although Fall Out Boy had to sit out a handful of dates due to a positive Covid test

Jem Aswad Senior Music EditorAerosmith and Universal Music Group have announced a new global partnership that will bring the long-running American rock band’s entire discography, merchandise and audio-video projects to the company.UMG will also be the home of future music projects, and will work with the band to develop, produce and distribute new film, television and other audio-visual content projects celebrating Aerosmith’s history and significant cultural impact.

Jem Aswad Senior Music EditorSiriusXM and TikTok launched TikTok Radio (located on channel 4) at noon ET on Friday (August 20), which seems to be a way for people who have satellite radio but can’t figure out TikTok to hear the top songs trending on the wildly popular platform.

Jem Aswad Senior Music EditorAn attorney for R. Kelly attempted to discredit one of the accusers leveling allegations of sexual abuse against the singer on Thursday, after she’d claimed he had slapped and choked her during what she described as their final sexual encounter more than 10 years ago.Jerhonda Johnson Pace, the first witness testifying for prosecutors in Kelly’s long-delayed racketeering trial in New York, is among multiple women leveling claims of sexual abuse against Kelly.

Jem Aswad Senior Music EditorDowntown Music Holdings has announced that its founder and current CEO Justin Kalifowitz will take on a new position as executive chairman, with current COO Andrew Bergman assuming day-to-day responsibilities as the company’s CEO.

Jem Aswad Senior Music EditorIn a major shakeup at the Recording Academy, longtime chief awards officer Bill Freimuth has left the organization, along with VP of communications Lourdes Lopez and chief marketing and innovations officer Lisa Farris, Variety has confirmed. Freimuth had overseen the complex and often controversial nominating and awards process for the Grammy Awards since 2004.Reps for the Recording Academy did not immediately respond to Variety’s requests for comment.

Jem Aswad Senior Music EditorMadonna, the top-selling female artist of all time, will bring her entire catalog of recorded music under the Warner Music umbrella as part of a career-spanning global partnership announced Monday.

Jem Aswad Senior Music EditorUniversal Music Publishing is disputing wording by Hipgnosis Songs in a statement released Monday announcing Hipgnosis’ acquisition of a song catalog from Christine McVie of Fleetwood Mac, one of the most commercially successful groups of the past 50 years.The disagreement stems from Hipgnosis’ unusually worded announcement, which can be seen as implying that Hipgnosis has acquired the entirety of a 115-song catalog from McVie, although that is not the case.In a

Jem Aswad Senior Music EditorLegendary singer Tony Bennett — who celebrated his 95th birthday just last week, performing with Lady Gaga at two-sold out shows at New York’s Radio City Music Hall — has canceled his Fall 2021 tour dates.The tour — consisting of pre-pandemic shows dates had been rescheduled — was slated to begin in September. The affected dates include New York, Maryland and Connecticut as well as Oklahoma and Canada.

Jem Aswad Senior Music EditorIn the wake of reports of widespread sexual harassment at Sony Music Australia, Universal Music has become the second major label in the country to launch an investigation into inappropriate behavior at its offices, according to a report in the Sydney Morning Herald.The allegations surfaced in posts on an Instagram account called Beneath the Glass ceiling, claiming multiple cases of bullying, harassment, racism, homophobia, discrimination, as well as more serious

Jem Aswad Senior Music EditorFleetwood Mac’s Christine McVie has sold her 115-title song catalog to Hipgnosis, the fast-growing music company that has spent more than $2 billion in three years acquiring rights to a vast number of popular songs.McVie, who first joined Fleetwood Mac in 1970, is the writer of many of the long-running group’s biggest hits, including “Don’t Stop,” “You Make Loving Fun,” “Over My Head,” “Songbird,” “Say You Love Me” and others.

Jem Aswad Senior Music EditorMost fans have a favorite Beatle, but there’s not much debate about which Beatles solo album is the best: George Harrison’s epic “All Things Must Pass.”Released in November 1970, just seven months after the group’s breakup was belatedly confirmed, it has become synonymous with the concept of suppressed brilliance.

Jem Aswad Senior Music EditorMike Chester has been upped to the newly created position of Executive Vice President, Promotion & Commerce for Warner Records. According ot eh announcement, in his expanded role, Chester will continue to lead the label’s promotion department while also overseeing its strategy across streaming, digital, and commercial platforms and accounts.

Jem Aswad Senior Music EditorCharlie Watts, the Rolling Stones’ drummer since the group’s inception in 1962, is “unlikely to be available” for the band’s rescheduled U.S.

Jem Aswad Senior Music EditorOlivia Rodrigo, whose ‘Drivers License’ single and ‘Sour’ album have made her the breakout music star of 2021, has signed with Sony Music Publishing, the company announced on Wednesday (August 4).

Jem Aswad Senior Music EditorCraig D’Souza (pictured) has joined WME as a partner, music co-heads Lucy Dickins, Kirk Sommer and Scott Clayton announced today.

Jem Aswad Senior Music EditorA day after DaBaby was dropped from the Lollapalooza lineup for his homophobic comments last week, New York’s Governors Ball canceled his performance at the festival, which takes place in September.In a tweet labeled “Stay tuned for a lineup addition,” the festival’s promoter wrote in a social media message: “Founders Entertainment does not and will not tolerate hate or discrimination of any kind.

Jem Aswad Senior Music EditorThe Weeknd teased new music early Monday morning in a snippet posted on social media called “The Dawn Is Coming” and talked generally about it in a new GQ article, calling it “the album I’ve always wanted to make.”The song has a heavy electronic dance groove reminiscent of “Alive 2007”-era Daft Punk, but with the Weeknd’s haunting, echo-laden melody soaring over it.The Weeknd teased the song with three days of hints (a wiped Instagram account followed by a new post