Universal Music Group Showbiz and Celebrity Breaking News

Universal Music Group has denied reports that it requested that Kendrick Lamar and Drake end their much-publicised feud.Over the past month, Lamar and Drake have been trading blows over a constant back-and-forth of diss tracks. Earlier this week, Drake dropped his new diss track ‘The Heart Part 6’, on which the Canadian rapper suggested that Lamar’s disses are based on false information fed to him by Drake’s team. He also denied allegations of paedophilia lobbied against him by Kendrick Lamar on ‘Meet The Grahams’.The feud stems from Lamar’s verse on Future and Metro Boomin’s ‘Like That‘ back in March.

TikTok and Universal Music Group (UMG) have announced that they have come to a new licensing agreement.Today (May 2), the social media platform and music label issued a press release announcing the new agreement. It comes after TikTok’s and UMG’s previous agreement expired in late January, with the latter withdrawing its artists’ music from the platform as a result of both parties’ inability to work out a new deal.In late January, UMG claimed that “TikTok proposed paying our artists and songwriters at a rate that is a fraction of the rate that similarly situated major social platforms pay”, which it says accounts for one per cent of its revenue.Now, however, UMG’s new agreement with TikTok will reportedly “deliver improved remuneration for UMG’s songwriters and artists, new promotional and engagement opportunities for their recordings and songs and industry-leading protections with respect to generative AI”, per a press release.Lucian Grainge, Chairman and CEO of UMG, said of their new partnership: “This new chapter in our relationship with TikTok focuses on the value of music, the primacy of human artistry and the welfare of the creative community.

Taylor Swift’s music has returned to TikTok, after her label Universal withdrew all of their artists from the platform earlier this year.In January, Universal Music Group (UMG) announced that it would withdraw its artists’ songs from the platform, citing unfair compensation for the artists and the harmful effects of AI.But now, as reported by Variety, Swift’s catalogue has returned to the site, which may be a consequence of the fact that the singer now owns the masters to her recordings.Other artists signed to the label continue to be absent from TikTok, including Bad Bunny, The Weeknd, Drake, Billie Eilish, Justin Bieber, Adele, Coldplay, J Balvin, Post Malone and Sophie Ellis-Bextor.The timing is opportune, as Swift’s latest album ‘The Tortured Poets Department’ is released next Friday (April 19).At the time, UMG explained that its licensing agreement with TikTok expired on January 31, and that negotiations to renew the contract had fallen short.“In our contract renewal discussions, we have been pressing [TikTok] on three critical issues—appropriate compensation for our artists and songwriters, protecting human artists from the harmful effects of AI, and online safety for TikTok’s users.”“TikTok proposed paying our artists and songwriters at a rate that is a fraction of the rate that similarly situated major social platforms pay”, which it says accounts for one per cent of its revenue.

Universal Music Group and Republic Records have announced the launch of Boombox, a new product being integrated into Roblox to allow players to stream in-game music that artists can monetise and have count toward Billboard charts.This collaboration will start in the Twice Square experience, a level in Roblox where players can leave messages for the K-pop girl group, play minigames, and collect virtual items. With Boombox, players will be able to “share and collectively enjoy” Twice‘s music, with each playback being monetisable, as well as counting toward Billboard charts.Boombox is apparently the first “scaled music product across the Roblox platform”.

TikTok has confirmed that it has begun to remove Universal Music Publishing Group (UMPG) songs from its platform.The app has already removed tracks by artists who are signed to the label and will be doing the same with songwriters. The removal of the UMPG tracks comes three days before the UMPG catalogue becomes unlicensed for use on the social media platform.Per Music Business Worldwide, “Any recording of a song currently available on TikTok that has been co-written by a songwriter signed to Universal Music Publishing will also need to come down in the event of UMPG’s license expiring.According to BBC, TikTok has shared that up to 30 per cent of the platform’s “popular songs” could be lost, with some industry estimates revealing that up to 80 per cent of all music on TikTok could be muted.A short list of UMG artists whose music is expected to vanish from the platform is Taylor Swift, Bad Bunny, The Weeknd, Drake, Billie Eilish, Justin Bieber, Adele, Coldplay, J Balvin, Post Malone and Sophie Ellis-Bextor – whose 2001 track ‘Murder On The Dancefloor’ has gone particularly viral through TikTok following the release of Saltburn.Last month, UMG published an open letter announcing its intention to withdraw music from artists signed to the publisher and label from TikTok.In its statement, UMG announced that its licensing agreement with TikTok expired on January 31 and that negotiations to renew the contract have fallen short.

Store.TaylorSwift.com — which sells gifts, CDs and vinyl, as well as T-shirts and sweaters from her record-breaking Eras Tour — has been dogged with complaints on social media of goods that have arrived either late, or damaged, or not at all.The Post spoke with multiple customers who claim they waited months for goods from the site — which promises many items “ship in 1 week” — with little to no response from UMG’s customer service. Ditto for requests for a refund.Grace Green, a 32-year-old Swiftie living in Arizona who has been a fan since Swift’s debut album came out in 2006, placed orders for 22 items on the site last year, collectively totaling $1,044.75, she told The Post.Green defended the splurge as “a desperate, mad attempt to get everything at once,” noting that products across the site quickly sell out.

Universal Music Group (UMG) has announced their plans for 2024, including job cuts and an “artist-centric” streaming model.A report by Bloomberg alleged that the company was planning to lay off hundreds of jobs within the first quarter. Anonymous sources claimed that the recorded music department would suffer the most cuts.

Universal Music Group over unpaid Spotify royalties has been dismissed. In January, it was confirmed that the duo had sued Universal Music Group (UMG) in a class action lawsuit. They were claiming that UMG owed them and other artists the sum in unpaid royalties.

revenue at Universal Music Group in the third quarter, the world’s largest record label said Wednesday.Total revenue was 2.75 billion euros ($2.9 billion) in the quarter, up 3.3%. Adjusted earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA) stood at 581 million euros ($612 million), up 5.1%, the company reported.When adjusting for constant currency, revenue was up nearly 10% in the quarter and adjusted EBITDA rose 11.3%.EBITDA for the quarter fell 11.3% to 478 million euros, reflecting the impact of non-cash share-based compensation expenses of 103 million euros during the quarter.Recorded music sales totaled 2 billion euros, down 1.1% from a year ago.

“Eras Tour” has attracted enough fans to help boost hotel and restaurant revenue in cities across the world, and even contribute to concert ticket inflation, a phenomenon that some economists have termed “Swiftflation.”“Recently, Taylor Swift became the very first woman in history to have four albums in the top 10 simultaneously, including this week’s number one,” the company’s chief executive, Lucian Grainge, told analysts on a conference call.Universal Music’s merchandising revenue grew 12% to 157 million euros ($173.77 million) in the April-June period, also fueled by a strong performance from Swift, the group said.This more than offset a decline in Universal Music Group’s touring revenue from the outsized growth recorded in 2022 as COVID-19 touring bans were lifted, it added.Total revenue was 2.7 billion euros in the quarter, while its margin on adjusted earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA) stood at 21.9%, the company reported.Universal Music expects recent price increases at Spotify to boost revenue starting from the fourth quarter and into 2024, its chief financial officer, Boyd Muir, said on the conference call.Spotify had on Monday raised prices for its premium plans across several countries including the US and Britain.Major labels like Universal Music grab the overwhelming majority of Spotify’s revenue and are the main beneficiaries of the streaming firm’s strong user growth.Apart from Swift, other top sellers in the second quarter were South Korean boy band Seventeen, King & Prince, Morgan Wallen, and Stray Kids, Universal Music said.

At a Wednesday hearing in the U.S. Capital, Universal Music Group petitioned the Senate’s intellectual property subcommittee to enact legislature protecting artists and rights holders against AI copyright infringement, Music Business Worldwide reports.

video on TikTok, which has garnered 4.1 million views and 464,400 likes.Turns out, a small batch of the vinyl LPs were “incorrectly pressed.” Fans who’d purchased the duds got quite the scare when they heard British electronica rather than the hits of the 33-year-old singer-songwriter.And, in a darker twist, lyrics about “flakes of flesh” and “endless rows of sardines” accompanied the music.“At first, I thought maybe the vinyl had a secret message from Taylor. But when I flipped to the B-side, it started saying ‘There’s 70 billion people on earth, where are they hiding?’ I started to get a little scared,” TikToker Rachel Hunter — @mischief_marauder on TikTok — told the BBC.

WHITE MUSIC EXECS LEFT IN A ROOM, UNSUPERVISED:let's create an artificial rapper who says the n word & simulates our deepest fetishes & fantasies about blackness & materialism & he will never get arrested unless we want him to which is a fun storyline let's try that pic.twitter.com/9nDdqXdpbw“We find fault in the lack of awareness in how offensive this caricature is,” music non-profit Industry Blackout wrote on Tuesday. “It is a direct insult to the black community and our culture.

which manages BTS, did not disclose the financial terms of the deal but said Universal and its American record label Interscope would distribute and market BTS’ music in the United States and other regions.The deal expands the entertainment company’s existing partnership with Universal, as it seeks to boost the popularity of K-pop music globally.BTS, which shot to global fame after the release of its English songs such as “Butter” and “Permission to Dance,” is the first K-pop group to ever

Fortnite has partnered up with O2 and Universal Music to bring an interactive live music experience to fans in a week-long celebration.The iconic London O2 building has been recreated in Fortnite Creative, packed with secret rooms and a few exclusive items.

#BTSArmy hear about this: Boy band hopefuls are gearing up for a battle to become the next BTS.Big Hit Entertainment, the label behind the K-pop sensation, and Universal Music Group will develop the new band, according to a joint statement on Wednesday.“I strongly believe that UMG and Big Hit will create a synergy that will rewrite the global music history,” said Bang Si-Hyuk, the chief executive of Big Hit.

told Bloomberg the songs are worth more than $200 million, with others telling the New York Times that it could be more than $300 million.That would make it likely the biggest acquisition ever of the music publishing rights of a single act, the paper said.Dylan — who had previously controlled most of his own songwriting copyrights — sold more than 600 copyrights spanning 60 years, Universal said.That includes classics that made him an icon from his time in New York in the early 1960s — such as

Kanye West has promised to help Taylor Swift acquire control of her master recordings, as he continues to speak out against what he descries as unfair deals for artists in the music industry.

Universal Music Group’s Interscope, her record label for nearly a decade, according to reports.The Queen of Pop is considering returning to Warner Music Group, where she launched her self-titled debut album “Madonna” in 1983 and went on to crank out hits including “Like a Virgin” (1984), “True Blue” (1986), and “Ray of Light” (1998).

A judge has dismissed a class action lawsuit against Universal Music Group (UMG) originally brought by several artists and estates over a 2008 vault fire.

Vivendi has closed the sale of 10% of its subsidiary Universal Music Group to a consortium led by the Chinese powerhouse Tencent. The deal, which was signed three months ago, values UMG for €30 billion.

Universal Music Group today announced several initiatives to bring relief to musicians, its employees and the music industry in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic that in a short time has devastated so much of the global economy. It also pledged to assist its artists in their charitable efforts

Steve Earle has pulled out of a lawsuit against Universal Music Group that was filed by five artists last year over damage the artists’ musical recordings suffered in a 2008 fire that destroyed many assets in the company’s vaults. With the withdrawal from the lawsuit earlier this month of the Tupac Estate and Soundgarden, and withdrawal last year of the group Hole, this leaves only the contested estate of Tom Petty.

Tencent Music Entertainment, China’s leading online music conglomerate, increased revenues and profits in its 2019 financial year. That follows growth in the number of paying subscribers and their average spend with the company.

Tencent Music Entertainment, China’s leading online music conglomerate, increased revenues and profits in its 2019 financial year. That follows growth in the number of paying subscribers and their average spend with the company.

Universal Music Chairman and CEO Lucian Grainge has been hospitalized after testing positive for coronavirus, multiple sources exclusively told Variety. He is currently receiving treatment at Los Angeles’ UCLA Medical Center, sources said.

Universal Music Group’s home offices in Santa Monica, Calif., were evacuated Friday after an employee tested positive for the coronavirus. All staffers were directed to leave the buildings “in an orderly manner,” although the discovery was made toward the end of the day and a source tells Variety that most of the staff had either left or were already working from home.

The Tupac Estate and Soundgarden have pulled out of a lawsuit against Universal Music Group that was filed by five artists last year over damage the artists’ musical recordings suffered in a 2008 fire that destroyed many assets in the company’s vaults.

Apple Music has inked new, multi-year licenses with the three major music companies — Universal Music Group, Sony Music and Warner Music Group — in recent months, according to the Financial Times, although the deals do not extend to the company’s planned bundles with Apple TV or Apple Arcade.