A Boogie wit da Hoodie Scores No. 1 on the Billboard 200 With Only 823 Digital Album Sales

A Boogie wit da Hoodie’s latest album sales prove digital downloads will soon go the way of the dodo. Last summer, Drake’s latest project, Scorpion, had the honor of becoming the lowest-selling No. 1 album in 27 years. According to Nielsen, the Canadia…

Lady Gaga Issues an Apology to Fans, Pulling Collaboration with R. Kelly from iTunes and Streaming Services

Lady Gaga takes a strong stance against R. Kelly, apologizing for her 2013 collaboration with the beleaguered R&B singer. In the past week, Lifetime aired a six-part documentary on R. Kelly.  Dubbed Surviving R. Kelly, the docuseries centered aroun…

Mobile Music Services Must Now Pay More in Royalties in South Korea

South Korean music fans who love to download music now have to pay a higher price. According to a new report, South Korean mobile music services have raised their subscription fees. The move comes after new copyright royalty regulations went into effec…

Glitter, Mariah Carey’s Worst-Selling Album, Is Surging on iTunes

Mariah Carey’s latest album, Caution, has sparked renewed interest in Glitter. Seventeen years ago, at the height of her fame, Mariah Carey starred in a music romantic comedy. In Glitter, Carey played an up-and-coming club dancer destined for greatness…

Dismissing the Singer’s Sales as ‘Unverified,’ Kris Wu Lands at No. 100 on the Billboard 200

Chinese music fans found a clever way to download Kris Wu’s album.  But it looks like Billboard has disqualified the purchases. Nearly two weeks ago, Kris Wu dropped his latest album. With digital downloads on the decline, Antares took the top seven sp…

How Exactly Did Kris Wu Game iTunes? Simple. He Didn’t.

A simple trick helped Kris Wu reach No. 1 on iTunes. How exactly did a relatively unknown foreign singer manage to reach No. 1? That’s the question of the week. Last Friday, Kris Wu, a Chinese pop star, released his latest album, Antares.  Almost immed…

DistroKid Is Offering ‘Mastered for iTunes’ Certification to Unsigned Artists

Apple’s ‘Mastered for iTunes’ classification has mostly been reserved for big labels due to the expense, with very few indie or unsigned artists obtaining the certification for their iTunes downloads or AAC streams. Bucking that trend…

Sony’s Q1 2018 – 100% Stake in EMI, Spotify Payday, and Surging Streaming Revenue

Streaming revenue continues to climb, while Sony Music confirms hefty Spotify payday and a 100% stake in EMI Music Publishing. Sony Corp. has released its fiscal Q1 / calendar Q2 2018 financial report. Sony Music’s streaming revenue for the first half …

Music Downloads Tank 27.4% as Format Nears Extinction

Song downloads tanked nearly 30% during the first half of this year, according to US-based stats from Nielsen.  So how long does this format last? Hey, the woolly mammoth also had a good run.  But despite a decade of relatively strong sales, the paid d…

Ahead of Trump’s Visit, Green Day’s ‘American Idiot’ Soars in UK Charts

Well, at least with ‘American Idiot,’ we know how UK music fans really feel about President Donald Trump. Green Day’s ‘American Idiot’ has steadily climbed the UK charts ahead of President Donald Trump’s visit. Yesterday, the song became Amazon’s No. 1…