Warner Music Group Set to Go Public With a Board Lacking in Diversity

Travis Tritt has signed a record deal with Big Noise Music Group, Billboard has exclusively learned. The country singer has teamed up with the Los Angeles-based label for the release of his forthcoming full-length album due out later this year.“We get to work with a lot of great artists at Big Noise, but truthfully I never thought we’d have the honor of working with someone of Travis’ stature,” Jon Cohen, president of Big Noise Music Group, tells Billboard.

Warner Music Group is continuing its global expansion with the launch of a new affiliate in India. Warner Music India will be headed up by music executive Jay

Warner Music India officially launched today, as the company announced its newest affiliate with former Sony Music India executive Jay Mehta as managing director. His purview will also cover the other markets in the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation: Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, the Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan and Sri Lanka.

Sony, Universal and Warner Music are asking their employees not to attend the upcoming 2020 South By Southwest Festival.

Universal Music Group has advised its employees not to attend the upcoming South By Southwest music festival and conference in Austin, Texas, due to the growing concern over the caronavirus, a source close to the situation confirms to Variety.

The Mexican label Casete Digital Agriculture has signed an exclusive global distribution deal with Ingrooves Music Group.

Warner Music Group is putting its plans to go public on hold while the stock markets shake from fears of a pandemic, according to a report by Reuters on Monday (March 2). Parent company Access Industries had planned to raise $100 million through a public s

Warner Music Group has delayed a plan to kick off its IPO this week due to concerns over the coronavirus, according to Reuters, which cites “people familiar with the matter.” Fashion company Cole Haan also postponed its plans, according to the report. The companies made the decision after the S&P 500 Index lost close to 12% of its value last week, although stocks resurged on Monday.

A California federal judge is declining to certify a class action that contends that Warner Music Group has cheated musicians of a fair share of royalties from digital streaming platforms. In an order Friday, U.S.

Pusha T is looking to take on a new challenge in the music industry. As HipHopNMore notes, he announced on Monday, February 25 that he’s launching a new label, titled Heir Wave Music Group, and has already signed Petersburg, Va. rapper Kahri 1k.

Entertainment executive Jovan Dawkins is announcing the launch of inspirational label Legacy Music Group. Heading the label’s A&R division as president is Grammy Award-nominated singer-songwriter and Dawkins’ cousin Eric Dawkins.

David Stouck has been named regional director, A&R at Warner Music Asia, the company was announced Friday (Feb. 21). In his new role, he will oversee A&R operations in 10 markets: China, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Japan, Korea, Malaysia, Philippines, Singapore, Taiwan and Thailand.  

Newly formed publishing company Endurance Music Group acquired Wide Open Music from owner Ash Bowers, adding singer-songwriters Jimmie Allen and Matt Stell to the Endurance roster, Billboard Country Update learned exclusively.The deal doubles the Endurance writing staff to 10 composers and brings in a catalog that includes the hits "Best Shot," "Prayed for You," "In Case You Didn’t Know" and "Close Your Eyes." The agreement frees Wide Open to focus on its management functions for clients Allen,

On Feb. 6, in a move that took both Wall Street and the music business by surprise, Warner Music Group filed plans to make a public stock offering underwritten by Morgan Stanley, Credit Suisse and Goldman Sachs. The news came just over a month after WMG competitor Universal Music Group (UMG) finalized plans to sell 10% of its equity to a group led by Tencent Holdings, in a deal that valued the music company at $33.6 billion. WMG

Vivendi saw its annual revenues jump by 14% to €15.8 billion ($17 billion) in 2019, driven once again by the performance of Universal Music Group which had a record year, and to a lesser extent by Canal Plus Group.

Buried in Vivendi’s earnings report released today is the blockbuster news that its subsidiary Universal Music Group is planning an IPO within the next three years. Vivendi recently sold 10% of UMG to a consortium led by Tencent Holdings Ltd for $3.3  billion, a sum that values the company at a whopping $33 billion.