Warner Records Names Ericka Coulter Senior VP of A&R

Jem Aswad Senior Music EditorRev. Moose is the executive director and co-founder of NIVA, the National Independent Venue Association, as well as managing partner at Marauder, the firm that produces Independent Venue Week in the United States.If the American dream is alive and well, then this past year-and-a-half has been a nightmare.

Jem Aswad Senior Music EditorSpotify and New York’s legendary Electric Lady Studios have expanded their partnership to include a series of live EPs, starting later this month.

Jem Aswad Senior Music EditorGrimes and the 1975 are joining Undercurrent, an event for art and music that will “bring together musicians, artists, creatives, and climate experts to present their reactions to the climate crisis through new interactive multimedia installations,” according to the announcement.

Jem Aswad Senior Music EditorRichard Foster has been pro­moted to vice president, marketing at Epic Records, it was announced by Dave Bell, executive VP and head of marketing, to whom Foster reports.The New York-based Foster, who joined the Sony Music label in July 2019, is tasked with all digital marketing initiatives including podcasts, website design and data analysis, in addition to managing marketing budgets and liaising with the creative team.Said Bell: “Rich’s limitless creativity and

Jem Aswad Senior Music EditorAfter a year-plus as one of the most active livestream performers in the music business, Phoebe Bridgers is finally getting to do a proper tour behind her Grammy-nominated “Punisher” album.

Jem Aswad Senior Music EditorSony Music Publishing has struck a worldwide deal to administer the works of the Australian music company Alberts, which owns the complete song catalogs of AC/DC and the songwriting and producing team Vanda, Young and Wright.

Jem Aswad Senior Music EditorAs the battle over Britney Spears’ conservatorship thundered on this week, the singer used her Instagram account late Thursday to post a remarkably unsubtle message to those she considers “haters”: “Kiss my ass.”A post shared by Britney Spears (@britneyspears)To recap, the messaging began on Wednesday when Spears posted a series of photos, including one of her topless in the bathroom, taken from the back.

Jem Aswad Senior Music EditorOlivia Rodrigo and her main collaborator, songwriter-producer Daniel Nigro, have given Taylor Swift, Jack Antonoff and St.

Jem Aswad Senior Music EditorSinger-songwriter Chris Isaak has partnered with Primary Wave in a deal that sees the publishing company acquiring a 50% stake in his master recordings and signing with the legendary Sun Records for future recordings (which was recently acquired by Primary Wave).

Jem Aswad Senior Music EditorLana Del Rey, Janelle Monáe and King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard have pulled out of the Bonnaroo festival, organizers announced over social media on Thursday (July 8), with left-field rock trio Khruangbin and dance music titans Rufus Du Sol added.No reason was given for the cancelations, but it seems likely that Del Rey’s album delay and Janelle Monae’s widely reported appearance in “Knives Out 2” could have played a role.

Jem Aswad Senior Music EditorCreative Artists Agency announced that it has signed all six members of New Edition: Ronnie DeVoe, Bobby Brown, Ricky Bell, Michael Bivins, Ralph Tresvant and Johnny Gill. The company will represent the group in all areas worldwide, including touring, theatre, literature, TV/film, production, composing and others.

Jem Aswad Senior Music EditorBrent Smith has left WME and joined Wasserman Music, the new company formed after Casey Wasserman acquired Paradigm’s North American music representation business, as executive vice present and managing executive, the company announced Tuesday (July 6).“As many of you know, the senior leadership team and I have been spending time with Brent Smith, and today I am pleased to share that he is joining Wasserman Music as EVP and Managing Executive,” Casey Wasserman wrote

Jem Aswad Senior Music EditorFast-rising Hipgnosis Songs spent nearly $1.1 billion on 84 song catalogs over the year ended March 31, and raised another $215 million in its recent stock offering on the London Stock Exchange, according to statements released by the company this week.Those catalogs include half of Neil Young’s song catalog, as well as Lindsey Buckingham, Deborah and Chris Stein of Blondie, Chrissie Hynde, Barry Manilow and many more.

Jem Aswad Senior Music EditorAfter recordings of the remote audio from Britney Spears’ blistering 24-minute statement during her June 23 conservatorship hearing began circulating widely over the web, Los Angeles County courts have decided to end their remote audio attendance program completely.

Jem Aswad Senior Music EditorMotown Records announced that Brian Nolan has been appointed executive vice president of the label and executive VP of marketing, effective immediately. According to the announcement, in this new role, Nolan joins the label’s executive leadership team and will help guide the company as well as oversee Motown’s marketing teams and initiatives.

Jem Aswad Senior Music EditorBessemer Trust, a professional wealth management firm that was poised to take over as co-conservator of Britney Spears’ estate and work with her father, has asked to resign from the arrangement, according to a court document filed Thursday that was cited by the New York Times.The company, which manages more than $100 billion in assets, said it was requesting to withdraw “due to changed circumstances.” In the filing, the firm said it had been told the singer’s

Jem Aswad Senior Music EditorMass Appeal has named two key executive hires —two “trailblazing women who will play a pivotal role in elevating and expanding the entertainment company’s presence,” according to the announcement.Jessica Rivera (pictured above, left) will serve as the General Manager of Music, overseeing the creative and day-to-day operations of Mass Appeal’s music division (label and publishing) and contributing across Mass Appeal’s other two divisions in content and creative

Jem Aswad Senior Music EditorAs Variety’s recent cover star H.E.R. announced during Sunday night’s BET Awards, the artist’s Lights On Festival will return to California’s Bay Area in September.

Jem Aswad Senior Music EditorAfter years of criticism over a lack of female and diverse representation in its membership and the Grammy Awards, the Recording Academy is continuing its efforts to expand its voting body by extending invitations to 2,710 established music professionals “from wide-ranging backgrounds, genres and disciplines,” according to the announcement.It states that the 2021 class of invitees is 48 percent female, 32 percent Black or African American+, 13 percent Hispanic or

Jem Aswad Senior Music EditorThe United States is the only major country in the world where terrestrial radio pays no royalties to performers or recorded-music copyright owners of the songs they play, a situation that is largely due to the powerful radio lobby’s influence in Congress. While the more than 8,300 AM and FM stations across the country pay royalties to songwriters, they have never paid performers or copyright holders, although streaming services do.On Thursday, Reps.