ASCAP wants money for your ringtone

ASCAP wants money for your ringtone

Angela Gunn
betanews

Not only do people in your vicinity fantasize about smacking you for that annoying “Play The Funky Music” ringtone you’ve been rocking since dirt was invented, ASCAP says that every time your phone rings, you’re executing a public performance of the tune. And they want money.
ASCAP — the American Society of Composers, Authors and [...]

American Idol Record Deals: What's Up With the Others?

American Idol Record Deals: What’s Up With the Others?

Carrie Borzillo-Vrenna
eonline

So far, American Idol winner Kris Allen, runner-up Adam Lambert and fourth-place finisher Allison Iraheta have all inked recording contracts. But what about the others?
We caught up with the top 10 at their tour rehearsals recently to hear the status of their post-Idol plans. And here’s what they have to report…
Danny Gokey: “I’m sitting [...]

Video: Will.i.am talks about performance artist rights.

Video: Will.i.am talks about performance artist rights.

cnn

William J. Adams (born March 15, 1975), better known by his stage name will.i.am (pronounced [wɪlaɪˈam], will-eye-AM), is an American rapper, songwriter, singer, actor, and producer. Will.i.am rose to fame as frontman and founder of the hit hip hop and pop soul group The Black Eyed Peas, with pop singer Fergie, and rappers Taboo and [...]

Hype Machine Outs Artists For Chart Manipulation

Hype Machine Outs Artists For Chart Manipulation

hypebot

Music blog aggregator Hype Machine (no relation) has blacklisted more than 40 artists after discovering that they or their representatives had tried to manipulate it’s “Popular” song ranking page.
“We found several artists and blogs creating fake accounts on the site and favoriting their tracks to get higher visibility in the charts,” Hype Machine editors wrote [...]

The Real Problem For The Music Industry Is... Interest Rates?

The Real Problem For The Music Industry Is… Interest Rates?

billboard

The sudden fall in interest rates has forced the U.K.’s Mechanical Copyright Protection Society (MCPS) to implement a far-reaching review of operations in order to cut costs.
Speaking at the Music Publishers Association (MPA) annual general meeting (AGM) in London, PRS for Music chief executive Steve Porter revealed that what he dubbed the “interest rate meteor” [...]

The Hollywood Reporter/Billboard Film and TV Music Conference

The Hollywood Reporter/Billboard Film and TV Music Conference

hollywoodreporter

Oct 29, 2009 - Oct 30, 2009
The Hollywood Reporter and Billboard join forces for the eighth annual Film and TV Music conference. The conference is a two day seminar that provides attendees with the opportunity to “share their music directly with the best music supervisors, composers, directors, songwriters and producers in the business.”
Speakers include: Ali [...]

NSO seeks prodigies for January concert

NSO seeks prodigies for January concert

thestamfordtimes

The Norwalk Symphony Orchestra is looking for a few young geniuses.6
The NSO is searching for students to be featured in its annual prodigy concert next winter. It is the fourth time the NSO has done the program.
“We’re looking for students that are really above the norm. We’re looking for kids who have that special excitement,” [...]

Does Your Band Need A Manager?

Does Your Band Need A Manager?

live-music-blog

New performers looking to book concert and establish contacts often start looking for a manager to handle the business aspects of their music. This is especially the case in cities with big music scenes, like New York, Los Angeles and Austin.
Before diving into such a relationship, however, performers should consider the pros and cons. Bands [...]

 Judge throws book at Usenet.com in RIAA lawsuit

Judge throws book at Usenet.com in RIAA lawsuit

arstechnica

A federal judge yesterday found Usenet.com liable for just about every copyright infringement claim on the books: direct infringement, inducement of infringement, contributory infringement, and (just for good measure) vicarious infringement. Not content to be loud and proud about its pro-pirate agenda, Usenet.com also resorted to stonewalling legal questionnaires, sending employees to Europe to avoid [...]

KFC Seeks Next 'Hitmaker'

KFC Seeks Next ‘Hitmaker’

adweek

David Banner and MC Lyte are lending their hip-hop skills to a KFC song contest. The rappers will help to select the winners of KFC’s “Hitmaker” contest, which launched this month. It invites aspiring artists to submit songs that offer a positive message for a shot at prizes and national exposure.
Now in its third year, [...]

It's Official: Sony Invests In IODA

It’s Official: Sony Invests In IODA

Hypebot

This time the rumor mill proved correct. Sony Music Entertainment has entered into a global partnership with IODA which includes an investment in the digital distributor. IODA will now provide digital services for Sony’s RED indie label arm, as well as, offer expanded overseas opportunities. In return, IODA can now offer its labels physical [...]

 Musicians and Health Care Reform

Musicians and Health Care Reform

David J. Hahn
musicianwages

Earlier this month President Obama made a speech to the American Medical Association in Chicago regarding health care reform. The speech renewed the debate over his health care reform package and the topic has stayed near the top of the news cycle for several weeks.
Health care and affordable health insurance is a topic [...]

Soulja Boy Explodes Into Racist Tirade On Twitter

Soulja Boy Explodes Into Racist Tirade On Twitter

Jokesta
defsounds

It looks like Atlanta rapper Soulja Boy isn’t very fond of the media lately and this report isn’t going to help much.
The young hitmaker has exploded into a race ridden tirade on his official twitter account–blaming “crackers” for how he is continuously portrayed in the media.
“My music dream was THE SHIT 2 years ago before [...]

Music Company seeking PR/marketing specialist

Music Company seeking PR/marketing specialist

getafreelancer

We are a New York startup that deals with the music industry.
Our site is www.labelwalkup.com
We are basically a group that has extensive contacts in the music industry and have created a site where musicians, producer, and artists can cut out the middle man and set up a meeting with record label A&R’s and Executives to [...]

Preparing for a Vocal Recording Session

Preparing for a Vocal Recording Session

Chris Bracco
musicthinktank
Lets face it — preparation for anything tends to be kind of a bitch. Practicing all the parts of the music to a metronome, setting up microphone stands, setting levels/compressors/effects, laying carpets and other ghetto ways to deaden ugly frequencies. All in hopes that it will make your music sound sexier.
Last summer, while recording [...]

Indie fest hopes to revitalize scene

Indie fest hopes to revitalize scene

theolympian

What: This new free festival celebrates Olympia’s independent music scene.
When: Noon to 8 p.m. Friday
Where: Sylvester Park, Capitol Way, Olympia
Tickets: Free
Schedule
12:30-2:45 p.m. Z Kamp Extravaganza. “Some would compare the compositions to Frank Zappa’s, but we also take the jams into a psychedelic realm of experimentation,” said bandleader Tommy McKaughan, whose musical moniker is Pizza T.
3-3:45 [...]

Dave Wilkes: E1 Music VP of A&R

Dave Wilkes: E1 Music VP of A&R

modernbeats

How does an up-and-coming emcee, producer or rapper stand out starkly on the music industry’s radar? If you think the answer is spending many long hours submitting your material to as many A&R recruiters as you can find, you might be surprised at what an iconic A&R veteran has to say. Dave Wilkes is Vice [...]

Twista Refuses To Play Numbers Game,

Twista Refuses To Play Numbers Game, “I Survive No Matter What My First Week Is”

sohh
Cyrus Langhorne

Twista recently outlined his career plan and why first-week sales and 360 artist deals are irrelevant to an artist with his level of experience.
In addition to stepping away from basing success on record sales, Twista also talked about why a 360 deal, in which artists and labels share in all aspects of artist earnings, [...]

Jayzen Sound announces its HOT New Summer Release: the Legacy GOLD Sound Library Series!

Jayzen Sound announces its HOT New Summer Release: the Legacy GOLD Sound Library Series!

press release
JAYZEN SOUND announced today the release of the first 3 volumes of their Legacy GOLD Series of multi-sampled Sound Libraries in Soundfont and WAV Audio formats. These special collections contain the best of their Legacy Series Soundfonts with many updates, added instruments, new designs, and bonus content. The new libraries have been designed for [...]

Sony struggling as Walkman hits 30th anniversary

Sony struggling as Walkman hits 30th anniversary

yahoo

When the Sony Walkman went on sale 30 years ago, it was shown off by a skateboarder to illustrate how the portable cassette-tape player delivered music on-the-go — a totally innovative idea back in 1979.
Today, Sony Corp. is struggling to reinvent itself and win back its reputation as a pioneer of razzle-dazzle gadgetry once [...]

Opinion: A Verbal Contract Isn't Worth the Paper It Is Written On

Opinion: A Verbal Contract Isn’t Worth the Paper It Is Written On

John P. Strohm
knowthemusicbiz

John P. Strohm is a transactional entertainment and intellectual property attorney with the firm Johnston Barton Proctor & Rose LLP . John’s practice focuses on the representation of musicians, songwriters and independent record labels. Prior to becoming an attorney, John was a professional musician and producer for over a decade. He performed and [...]

How to write a hit house track: 10 top tips

How to write a hit house track: 10 top tips

beatportal

Chocolate Puma stormed into the charts in 2001 with the monumental house hit ‘I Wanna Be U’ and since then Gaston Steenkist and René ter Horst have topped the house charts many times over.
Their latest track ‘Disco Electrique’ is currently sitting at No.5 in the Beatport Top 10, and you can bet their next house [...]

Musician Hit With Swine Flu

Musician Hit With Swine Flu

antimusic

Jens Lekman has broke the news that he’s contracted the H1N1 virus (aka swine flu) while on tour in South American earlier this month. Lekman is back home in Sweden right now recovering, he says on his blog, and by the sounds of things everything is going to be okay.more
In a recent interview, guitarist Johnny [...]

Rascal Flatts and Toby Keith listed on Forbes top-earning musicians list

Rascal Flatts and Toby Keith listed on Forbes top-earning musicians list

newsok.com

Country stars Rascal Flatts, which includes Joe Don Rooney of Picher, and Toby Keith have made the Forbes’ 10 top-earning musicians list.
Rascal Flatts, which also includes Ohio natives Jay DeMarcus and Gary LeVox, is listed at No. 6 after earning $60 million last year. The group is tied for sixth place with British band Coldplay [...]

Jay-Z Clears Air On Roc Nation Deals,

Jay-Z Clears Air On Roc Nation Deals, “I Can’t Just Sit Here & Make Records”

sohh
Cyrus Langhorne
Jay-Z recently revealed the details behind his Roc Nation deal with Sony and Atlantic Records and how he was initially turned down by Def Jam for the same proposal.
“Sony is Roc Nation,” Jay said in an interview. “That’s where Roc Nation’s going through. [With Atlantic,] that’s pretty much just for this specific album. Roc [...]

Cutting Edge Music Business Conference 2009

Cutting Edge Music Business Conference 2009

press release
16 years and still going strong! The Cutting Edge Music Business Conference and Roots Music Gathering is a must attend event for those who want to gain control over their music careers and make money in today’s entertainment business. This year’s 15th Annual Cutting Edge will take place at the Westin New Orleans Canal [...]

LIVE NATION EXTENDS ITS POPULAR NO SERVICE FEE WEDNESDAY AGAIN

LIVE NATION EXTENDS ITS POPULAR NO SERVICE FEE WEDNESDAY AGAIN

press release
Live Nation announced today that its “No Service Fee Wednesday” program for July 1 will continue to give music fans deep discounts on 4-Pack ticket packages and will expand the offer to include 6-Pack tickets as well. These programs already save fans money with lower prices for purchasing a 4 or 6 ticket [...]

Vans Warped Tour’s 15th Anniversary Kick-off Proves an Ongoing Formula for Success with a Mix of Bands

Vans Warped Tour’s 15th Anniversary Kick-off Proves an Ongoing Formula for Success with a Mix of Bands

Kathleen Gasperini
labelnetworks

In its record-breaking 15th year out on the road, the legendary Vans Warped Tour kicked-off its summer season June 26 in Pomona, CA, with a sold-out show of 20,000, young and old music fans. Many people account for the tour’s success to the founder and director, Kevin Lyman, who has an intuitive capability of [...]

Pirate Bay Sold To Global Gaming Factory

Pirate Bay Sold To Global Gaming Factory

techdirt

Details are a bit scarce at this point, but Martin alerts us to the news that The Pirate Bay has apparently been sold to a public company for 60 million SEK (about $8 million US) — at least according to a press release from the supposed buyer, Global Gaming Factory X (GGF). Apparently it’s 30 [...]

BET Awards Viewers Outraged Over Lil Wayne and Drake's Performance

BET Awards Viewers Outraged Over Lil Wayne and Drake’s Performance

Danica Dow
sohh

Many BET Awards viewers were outraged when Lil’ Wayne and Drake were joined on stage by several pre-teen girls during the performance of their hit song “Every Girl”.
Click here to find out more!
Some journalists found the presence of the pre-teens to be a bit strange.
Overrall, the show was a big downer because… many things [...]

Video: PBS' Nova Doc on Auto-Tune Airs Tonight...

Video: PBS’ Nova Doc on Auto-Tune Airs Tonight…

pbs.org

Can’t carry a tune? Andy Hildebrand’s pitch-correction software can help you sing like a star.
Learn what pitch is, then listen in as Auto-Tune corrects the bad pitch of several NOVA staffers.

 Big Music Label Foe LimeWire’s Newest Executive: A Big Music Label Veteran

Big Music Label Foe LimeWire’s Newest Executive: A Big Music Label Veteran

Peter Kafka
mediamemo.allthingsd

What do you do when your job working for a big music label disappears? You go to work for a pirate-friendly file-sharing service that’s being sued by the big music labels.
That’s the path that Jason Herskowitz has chosen. Old job: VP of product management at Total Music, Universal Music and Sony’s (SNE) attempt to [...]

Opinion: Are you indie or independent?

Opinion: Are you indie or independent?

Eryc Eyl

As I’ve mentioned once or twice in this blog, I occasionally DJ around town, under a pseudonym. I use a pseudonym because I want to make it clear that Eryc Eyl, the DJ, operates in a musical universe that is completely different from the one inhabited by Eryc Eyl, the music critic. We are, [...]

Opinion: Damages of $1.9 million could backfire on music industry

Opinion: Damages of $1.9 million could backfire on music industry

reuters

The recording industry secured a resounding victory last week when a Minneapolis jury awarded the four major labels $1.92 million in damages after unanimously finding that a 32-year-old mother had willfully infringed on their copyrights by downloading and sharing 24 songs on the Kazaa peer-to-peer network.
But a question arose after the verdict about whether the [...]

Scott Storch To Sell $20 Mill Publishing Catalog, Has GTA Charges Dropped

Scott Storch To Sell $20 Mill Publishing Catalog, Has GTA Charges Dropped

defsounds

Troubled producer Scott Storch is starting to see better days as he has the Grand Theft Auto charges filed against him dropped.
As we previously reported, Storch was charged with Grand Theft Auto after he allegedly leased a Bentley and failed to return it after the expiration date.
Storch plead not guilty to the charges which were [...]

VIDEO: Tips for Songwriters

VIDEO: Tips for Songwriters

schofieldandcompany

Being a great songwriter and having great recorded versions of your songs is an admirable goal in and of itself. However, as an independent songwriter, having your songs see the light of day can be challenging. Until the people who can actually do something with your song (i.e. music publishers, music industry professionals, established recording [...]

SIMON OFFERED $144 MIL A YEAR TO STAY ON 'IDOL'

SIMON OFFERED $144 MIL A YEAR TO STAY ON ‘IDOL’

NYPost

EARLY salary figures from Simon Cowell’s “American Idol” contract negotiations are leaking out and they’re eye-popping.
Cowell, who reportedly made $36 million last year for judging the hit competition show, has been offered three or four times that amount — between $100 million and $144 million per year — by co-producers Fox and 19 Entertainment to [...]

Vibe magazine shutting down

Vibe magazine shutting down

Jeff Bercovici
dailyfinance

Vibe magazine, the urban-music magazine founded in 1993 by Quincy Jones, is the latest victim of the media recession. Multiple sources both within and outside the magazine confirmed that it is shutting down.
Reached for comment, chief financial officer Angela Zucconi said, “We will be making a statement by the end of the day. That’s [...]

Michael Jackson Radio Play Jumps 1735%

Michael Jackson Radio Play Jumps 1735%

billboard

Airplay for Michael Jackson’s biggest hits, and some of his overlooked gems (including a few dozen spins for some of the Jackson’s Christmas songs), blanketed airwaves from coast to coast immediately after his death on Thursday, and continued throughout the weekend.
According to research provided by Nielsen BDS of monitored airplay from over 1,600 terrestrial and [...]

Local bands needed for RAGBRAI party

Local bands needed for RAGBRAI party

heartlandconnection

Local entertainers and performing artists are being sought to be a part of the lineup for the RAGBRAI® visit to Ottumwa on Thursday, July 23. A performing stage will be set up in the shady park area across the street from Bridge View Center near the vendor area. Shady Grove Stage will provide [...]

90,000 Ravers With Very Few Clothes Break Attendance Record at Electric Daisy Carnival

90,000 Ravers With Very Few Clothes Break Attendance Record at Electric Daisy Carnival

Joshua Glazer

This weekend, I missed Electric Daisy Carnival for the 10th year in a row. But while I’ve never been to EDC, I figured I’d been there. Yet as reports from this year’s fest, allegedly the largest single festival day in America, start to filter in, I’m wondering if maybe I’ve missed out. Where else [...]

 Pretending to be More Than You

Pretending to be More Than You

Loren Weisman
knowthemusicbiz

You need to professionally present yourself, your music and your career.Your recording, promotion, marketing as all your soliciting materials and legal materials need to be done the right way. A strong professional package and promotional presence goes a very long way while a fake or weak presence will hurt you more than you know. [...]

Using Your Strengths

Using Your Strengths

sonicbids

A lot of people are striving for the dream to get out of the day job and move full time into a career in making music. I’ve sure you’ve heard stories of people using wild and crazy marketing ideas to get attention, big name bands breaking away from major labels and weekend warriors leaving [...]