Downtown Music Publishing Inks a Global Deal for the Entire Miles Davis Catalog

Downtown Music Publishing has inked an agreement with the Miles Davis Estate to represent the complete catalog of late jazz musician and songwriter on a global scale. The agreement includes more than 250 Miles Davis compositions, and it adds another bi…

Various Artists Inks Publishing Joint Venture With Kobalt Music

Various Artists, which is a London-based artist management company, announced that it was launching a new music publishing division through a joint venture with Kobalt Music. Running the division will be George Shepherd, who has considerable experience…

Primary Wave Acquires the Catalog of Super-Producer Bob Ezrin

Primary Wave Music Publishing has recently acquired Bob Ezrin’s music publishing rights, along with other IP. Behind the scenes as a storied music producer, Bob Ezrin has worked for some of music’s greatest stars, including Jane’s Add…

QUICK HITS: AWAL Promotes 2 • Empire +1 Records • FADER Label • Spirit Music Group

AWAL Promotes Two: Aaron Bogucki has been upped to Vice President, Marketing at AWAL based in the UK. Over the past 18 months, Bogucki has been building up AWAL’s global digital marketing and creative content team and forging strategic partnerships with third-party tech platforms. Bogucki joined AWAL in February 2018…

As Music Publishers Rattle TikTok’s Cage, Insiders Say NMPA Can’t Afford Another Peloton

As litigation against Peloton lumbers on, insiders say the National Music Publishers’ Association (NMPA) is overextending its budget. Earlier this week, the NMPA’s hard-fighting CEO, David Israelite, seized on a new enemy: TikTok.  In a let…

Hipgnosis Raises Another $295 Million — Bringing the Grand Total to Nearly $800 Million

Merck Mercuriadis’ gargantuan bet on music IP continues. Hot on the heels of an enormous acquisition of Timbaland’s catalog, Hipgnosis Songs is hitting you with another big announcement.  The music IP aggregation play has now rallied anothe…

Artist Activist David Lowery Quits the Mechanical Licensing Collective After Just 4 Months

David Lowery, a longtime champion for artists and outspoken critic of major streaming platforms, has abruptly departed the Mechanical Licensing Collective’s Unclaimed Royalties Oversight Committee. The news comes as the paint is still drying on t…

Merck Mercuriadis’ Hipgnosis Acquires Timbaland Catalog

The Merck Mercuriadis’ Hipgnosis Songs Fund buying spree continues with the acquisition of the catalog of Grammy-winning producer, rapper, singer, songwriter and DJ, Timbaland. The catalog included 108 albums and songs performed by the likes of Missy Elliot (“Get Your Freak On,” “One Minute Man”); Justin Timberlake (“SexyBack,” “My Love”…

Pedophile Gary Glitter Isn’t Earning a Dime from ‘Joker,’ Universal Music Insists

People were understandably upset that film director Todd Phillips chose Gary Glitter’s “Rock and Roll Part 2” in his movie “Joker,” considering that Glitter is serving a 16-year sentence for child sex abuse. But those who currently own the rights to th…

Why the Best Singer Does Not (Always) Sing the Pop Hit

My friend texted me the New York Times’ 6-minute ‘Watch How a Pop Hit Is Made’ doc about Zedd, Maren Morris and Grey’s “The Middle.” This is an excerpt from Ari Herstand’s new book How to Make It in the New Music Business (Second Edit…