In today's CMU Daily: Lucian lays it out; Viagogo rapped for misleading paid editorial; SAG-AFTRA does groundbreaking voice clone deal; LA Reid wants Adult Survivors Act lawsuit scaled back.

Plus: FAC's CEO David Martin looks at the year ahead.

CMU's virtual masterclass Music + AI In 2024 takes place on Tuesday 20 Feb. Attendees can access the session live on Zoom and then on-demand via the CMU learning platform. Click here for information on all of the upcoming CMU online masterclasses and to book your place.

Universal “most successful company in the history of the music industry” hoots Grainge in 2024 memo

In his now traditional new year missive to Universal Music staffers, boss Lucian Grainge has proclaimed UMG “the most successful company in the history of the music industry”.

The 2024 memo, which is a triumphantly Gordon Gekko-esque paean to his own genius, exhaustively lists the ways in which his company managed to dominate the music business in 2023, subjugating all those lesser companies that stood in the way of his “clear vision” of how to address the “critically important issues” in the industry. The message: when Lucian Grainge says “jump” merely moderately successful companies in the music industry should scurry to comply.

One aspect of that vision was, of course, Grainge’s plan - laid out in 2023’s memo - to tear up the current streaming model in favour of his new ‘artist-centric model’. That plan, he notes, led to “the world’s largest music platform” joining forces with “the most successful company in the history of music” to enforce a new model. And this was in “just a matter of months”. Cigars all round! Just don’t mention unfair competition.

And on that front there’s still more to come… More platforms will deliver more change to deliver more triumph - because, says Grainge “it’s the right thing to do both for artists and for the wider music ecosystem”.

The “impact will be profound”, reckons Grainge. Music will be “healthier” and the music ecosystem will be “more vibrant” and every artist - “major, indie or DIY” will be rewarded. Whether indie and DIY artists who are being demoted or de-monetised by streaming platforms so that more money can go to the major labels will feel quite as rewarded as Universal and its shareholders is a debate for another day.

Grainge, unsurprisingly, doesn’t acknowledge those criticisms, instead insisting that revising the streaming model entirely to suit the interests of Universal and the other majors is also the “right thing to do both for artists and for the wider music ecosystem”, adding: “In the coming months, I believe you will see more platforms adopting these principles”.

“In the same way”, says Grainge, Universal has been leading the wayward and less successful industry down the path of AI righteousness, slaying dragons, saving maidens and confronting challenges and opportunities - often before breakfast.

In a brusque dismissal of all those less successful people who dare stand in the way of his clear vision, Grainge says that “early on in 2023, many ‘experts’ viewed AI as a looming threat”. Experts! Pfft! What would they know? Not as much as Universal! Universal “rejected” that “short-sighted appraisal” - as, of course, the most successful company in the history of the music industry had done many times before “with so many other proclamations of doom”.

2023 also saw the most successful company in the history of the music industry shuffling up against the most successful company in the history of… well, at one point the world, jumping into bed with Alphabet-owned YouTube in a “groundbreaking private-sector partnership” that - “in a sharp break with the past” - would give “artists a seat at the table… helping to shape AI products’ development”.

Great news for artists! Or, at least, Universal-signed artists. All you artists signed to less successful companies may want to consider what you’re doing with your lives.

Hidden among the chest beating and hooting that dominates the memo there are, however, a few interesting nuggets. One - admittedly somewhat upstaged by Warner Music CEO Robert Kyncl getting his own memo out a day earlier - is confirmation that Universal, like Warner, will be focusing on super-serving superfans.

A priority in 2024, Grainge writes, is “to grow the pie for all artists by strengthening the artist-fan relationship through superfan experiences and products”, And, to that end, he adds, “we are already in advanced discussions with our platform partners” regarding such experiences and products, “and will have more to announce in the coming months”.

Grainge also speaks about how he is “especially passionate” about the “intersection of music and health”, saying that he has “long wanted” for this to be “more than a handful of subjective observations and anecdotes”. To this end, Universal will be “leading the industry in music and health” by “pioneering a new category that we call ‘prescription music’”. This, he says, is “cost-effective, non-invasive and drives truly beneficial results” and will become “an increasingly important component of our strategy”.

The world’s most successful company in the history of music has also been making “efforts to move the industry on issues concerning sustainability and the environment” hosting “the first music industry sustainability summits in LA, London and New York”.

These summits were, of course, different to events previously held by groups like Music Declares Emergency - because they “brought together industry leaders and innovators” - who presumably all walked or cycled to the summit, rather than getting a cab or hopping on a plane.

Back to the core business, and further expansion is on the cards for 2024. Universal will “continue to grow its presence around the world” by gobbling up “local labels, catalogues and artist services businesses” flexing the playbook established in “more established music markets”. The most successful company in the history of music can always be more successful.

“Standing still is never an option”, he ends. “Our vision of the future is filled with possibilities!”

Full Time Hobby Music // D2C Marketing Assistant (London)

terrible* // D2C Customer Service Representative (London)

terrible* // Logistics & Production Assistant (London)

Snapper Music // Press & Promo Coordinator (London)

Como No & La Linea // Director (London/Hybrid)

UK Music // Chief Executive (London/Hybrid)

The Ivors Academy // Chief Executive (London/Hybrid)

Deviate Digital // Digital Marketing Assistant (London)

ONE LINERS

WMG + Red Light, Hang Your Hat Music, Miley Cyrus, Jamie xx, Korn + more

APPOINTMENTS

UK collecting society PRS For Music has appointed Stevie Spring as the new Chair of its board. She replaces Stephen Davidson, who steps down after a decade in the role. The board is separate to the higher profile PRS Members' Council and supervises the operations of the society. Spring is currently also Chair of mental health charity Mind. On her new role, she says: “I love working with creative people and I love music. I’m very excited to be joining the PRS For Music Board at a time of such challenge and such opportunity”.

Deezer has appointed Ivana Kirkbride as Chief Commercial Officer. “Deezer’s partnerships model has unlocked invaluable channels into the music industry for a wide range of companies to achieve sustainable growth”, she says. "As we continue to build on this track record of success, I’m THRILLED to be joining the team in Paris to take Deezer to the next level together and scale globally. We will explore innovative strategic partnerships across new markets and sectors, with the goal of driving profitable revenue growth for the future”.

SoundCloud has appointed Tom Sansone to the roles of CFO and COO. He moves over from Kobalt. “I am passionate about helping businesses realise their potential and am incredibly excited about the opportunities for SoundCloud”, he says. “I’m looking forward to working with an incredible leadership team and board to execute on the strategy to empower artists and fans to share and connect through music and to build on our strong financial footing”.

The Copyright Alliance in the US has appointed Richard James Burgess - CEO of American independent music sector trade group A2IM - as a floating board member. “My dedication to the arts and intellectual property rights is unwavering, and I am committed to protecting the creative works that enrich our culture and to advocating for the fair compensation and rights of authors and creators”, he says.

DIGITAL

Apple’s classical music streaming app Apple Music Classical is set to launch in China, Japan, South Korea, Hong Kong, Taiwan and Macau on 24 Jan, the company has announced. The app - available to any Apple Music subscriber and designed to make the streaming service easier to navigate for classical music fans - first launched in March last year.

MEDIA

Steve Lamacq and Huw Stephens will present their BBC Radio 6 Music shows from different grassroots music venues around the UK during Independent Venue Week, which begins on 29 Jan. “Independent Venue Week is always a great opportunity to spotlight the importance of our smaller venues”, says Lamacq. “But this year, with hundreds of grassroots venues facing [significant] rent increases, rising energy costs and other cost of living pressures, I think it’s even more crucial to celebrate the role they play, not just in nurturing new talent but bringing local musical communities together”.

ARTIST NEWS

Southwark Coroner's Court has ruled that Sinead O’Connor died of natural causes. The musician passed away, aged 56, last July. In a brief statement confirming the cause of death, the court said yesterday that “the coroner has therefore ceased their involvement in her death”.

AWARDS

Alan Moulder is set to receive the Icon Award at this year’s MPG Awards, the Music Producers Guild has announced. “It is such a great honour to be recognised for my contribution to our industry over the last 40 years”, says the record producer and mix engineer. “This award is not just a celebration of my work but a testament to the transformative power of collaboration”. The ceremony itself will take place at Troxy in London on 25 Apr.

RELEASES

21 Savage has announced that he will release his third album ‘American Dream’ this Friday. It serves as the soundtrack to his debut film ‘American Dream: The 21 Savage Story’, the trailer for which you can see here.

The Smile have released new single ‘Friend Of A Friend’ from their upcoming second album ‘Wall Of Eyes’. They have also announced that they will screen the Paul Thomas Anderson directed video for the song in cinemas later this month. The new album will also be played in full at each event. More details here.

Waxahatchee will release new album ‘Tigers Blood’ on 22 Mar - her first under a new deal with Anti-. Out now is new single ‘Right Back To It’.

Torres has released new single ‘Wake To Flowers’. Her new album ‘What An Enormous Room’ is out on 26 Jan.

Yonaka have released new single ‘Predator’, which features on the soundtrack of new video game ‘Valorant’.

Bodega will release new album ‘Our Brand Could Be Your Life’ on 12 Apr. Out now is new single ‘Tarkovski’.

Julia Holter has announced that she will release new album ‘Something In The Room She Moves’ on 22 Mar. Out now is new single ‘Spinning’. She is also set to play London’s EartH on 9 Apr.

Louis Carnell has teamed up with Okkyung Lee for new track ‘Seven’, part of his ‘111’ series of collaborations, which has previously seen him work with artists including Keeley Forsyth, Lee Ranaldo, Coby Sey, KMRU, Ben Vince and Yara Asmar.

Folly Group have released new single ‘Pressure Pad’, taken from their new album ‘Down There!’, which is out on Friday.

Fat Dog have released new single ‘All The Same’. They’ve also announced a show at Electric Brixton in London on 18 Apr.

David Martin, CEO of the Featured Artists Coalition looks back at 2023's campaigns - and the challenges 2024 will bring

As we head into 2024, CMU has been sitting down with the bosses of many of the music industry’s trade organisations to talk about their work, the key challenges faced by their members, and what to expect in the year ahead.

Today, FAC CEO David Martin looks at the campaigns FAC delivered in 2023, and how the organisation will continue to work on behalf of artists going into 2024.

UK’s Advertising Standards Authority raps Viagogo over NME paid editorial

The UK’s Advertising Standards Authority has upheld complaints made against two advertorial pieces produced by secondary ticketing platform Viagogo and published on the NME website.

The regulator said in a ruling this morning that the ads “omitted material information about the validity of tickets purchased through Viagogo and the risk of venues refusing entry to consumers” if they bought tickets from touts. Therefore, the ads were misleading.

The two advertorials - each of which was billed by NME as “a paid-for ad feature for Viagogo” - were published last summer. The first was an overview of bands playing the BST Hyde Park shows and the second was focused on how to get tickets to Taylor Swift’s sold out UK tour. The gist of both articles was that readers should get their tickets from touts on Viagogo.

However, the terms and conditions on tickets for all of the featured shows prohibit resale, meaning that fans who buy those tickets could be refused admission. And this restriction was not mentioned in the articles. It was the anti-touting campaign group FanFair Alliance that made the complaints to the ASA, arguing that the advertorial pieces were misleading.

Viagogo, unsurprisingly, rejected those claims. It argued that the restrictions were listed on its own site where people would actually buy tickets. And the chances of a ticket buyer being refused admission were actually very low - even if the terms of the ticket technically allowed for such a thing - and that it would refund the buyer if they didn’t get access to a show.

In its ruling, the ASA notes that its code states that “marketing communications must not mislead consumers by omitting material information”. But did the fact that tickets bought for the featured shows on the Viagogo site could be cancelled constitute “material information”?

Yes, it did. “We considered that the prohibition of resale tickets, as outlined in both the BST Hyde Park and Taylor Swift Era’s tour terms and conditions, was material information which was likely to affect a consumer’s decision to purchase tickets through Viagogo”, the ruling continues.

And failing to include that information was “misleading”. Meaning Viagogo has been told that the offending ads must not appear again and future ads must not omit material information.

Welcoming the ruling, Adam Webb from the FanFair Alliance told CMU: “This is an important ruling by the ASA, which highlights how websites like Viagogo continue to mislead consumers and mis-sell them touted tickets. British audiences deserve greater protection from these rip-off merchants. It is high time the UK followed the example of countries like Ireland and France and outlawed their parasitical practices”.

CMU GUIDE: AI + MUSIC

Artificial intelligence + the music business: CMU's guide to (nearly) everything that mattered in 2023

There was a lot of discussion in 2023 within the music community about how AI will impact on music creation, music marketing, and the music business more generally.

There are clearly opportunities created by AI, and many ways that AI technologies will enhance the business.

An increasing number of music creators and music companies are exploring and identifying way to capitalise on those opportunities, and figuring out which AI products and services may offer ways to enhance their work.

Read CMU's (very) deep dive guide to the deals, disputes and debates, lawsuits and lobbying, and innovation and exploration that informed the conversation.

SAG-AFTRA hails “groundbreaking” voice clone agreement with AI company Replica

US performer union SAG-AFTRA has announced what it calls “a groundbreaking AI voice agreement” with Replica Studios, a company that says it is “building the world’s greatest library of AI powered voice actors” for use by the gaming and film industries.

“This new agreement”, the union says, “paves the way for professional voice over artists to safely explore new employment opportunities for their digital voice replicas with industry-leading protections tailored to AI technology, allowing … video game studios and other companies working with Replica to access top SAG-AFTRA talent”.

Voice clones have been a big part of the conversation around AI within the music industry as well as the acting profession. Many artists and labels see this as one of the big opportunities presented by AI, with the likes of Grimes already experimenting in this space, and a number of artists signed to Universal Music and Warner Music involved in a pilot with YouTube.

However, artists are also understandably nervous about allowing technology companies, or indeed record companies, to exploit their voice in this way. There has been increasing debate about what legal protections artists and other performers can rely on to protect their voices, while behind the scenes managers and lawyers have become wary of terms in contracts that might allow labels and studios to exploit a performer’s voice without explicit permission.

SAG-AFTRA has been particularly vocal on the rights of performers to protect their voices, likeness and identities in the context of AI, and ensuring those rights was a key part of the dispute that led to last year’s big Hollywood strike.

Expanding on the agreement with Replica Studios, the union says it “sets the basis for fair and equitable employment of voice actors as they explore the new revenue opportunities provided by AI”, especially in the gaming industry. The agreement, it adds, “ensures performer consent and negotiation for uses of their digital voice double and requires that performers have the opportunity to opt out of its continued use in new works”.

Welcoming the deal with Replica Studios, SAG-AFTRA President Fran Dresche says: “Artificial intelligence has dominated the headlines and, for most performers, the best protection against the unauthorised digital simulation of their voice, likeness and/or performance is a SAG-AFTRA contract. We are so happy to partner with Replica Studios, because this is a great example of AI being done right”.

LA Reid wants Adult Survivors Act sexual assault lawsuit against him to be scaled back

Record industry veteran LA Reid has formally responded to the sexual assault lawsuit filed against him last year by a former colleague from his time running Sony Music’s Arista Records.

In a new filing with the courts, Reid confirms that he “contests and denies” all of the allegations made by Drew Dixon in her lawsuit, which was filed under New York’s Adult Survivors Act. Though for now he mainly wants elements of that lawsuit to be dismissed, in part on the basis that some of the claims made in the litigation are barred by the statute of limitations.

The Adult Survivors Act was all about allowing new lawsuits to be filed in relation to sexual assault claims that would usually be barred by the statute of limitations because they happened too long ago. However, Dixon also accuses Reid of false imprisonment and intentional infliction of emotional distress, and those claims - the new legal filing argues - are not covered by the Adult Survivors Act and therefore the statute of limitations still applies.

Reid’s filing concedes that Dixon’s sexual abuse claims may be covered by the Adult Survivors Act, but then states: “Plaintiff is using those laws to springboard claims of career frustration and disappointment for which there are no timely or cognisable causes of action. In doing so, plaintiff takes inappropriate advantage of specially enacted laws as ‘catch-all’ alternatives for causes of action which cannot stand on their own and are too late to assert”.

In her lawsuit, Dixon claims that Reid sexually assaulted her twice in 2001 during her time working as an A&R at Arista. The first alleged assault occurred on a private plane on the way to a company retreat in Puerto Rico, the second in the back of a car in New York.

She says that she knew formally reporting the assaults within the record company at the time would be "career ending", so she simply sought to avoid Reid whenever possible. However, she alleges, he continued to harass her and, when she resisted his advances, started retaliating by de-prioritising her artists, ultimately leading to her quitting her major label job.

Reid had a long career in the major label system, ultimately ending up at Sony Music's Epic Records. However, he exited that role somewhat abruptly in 2017 following allegations of sexual harassment. He subsequently set up new music company HitCo, which he then sold to Concord in 2022.