Innholdsfortegnelse for October 26, 2013 i Billboard Magazine

TELEFONICA TEAMS WITH RHAPSODY Streaming service Rhapsody is poised to make a significant expansion overseas with international telecommunications provider Telefonica’s purchase of a minority stake in the company. Based in Spain, Telefonica is the world’s fifth-largest mobile provider, with operations in Europe, Latin America, North America and Asia. As part of the deal, Rhapsody’s service, available internationally under the Napster name, will be bundled into Telefonica’s mobile data plans. Telefonica has 200 million subscribers in Latin America and 100 million in Europe. VAN HALEN SUES EX Representatives of rock band Van Halen are suing the former wife of drummer Alex Van Halen for what the group says is an infringement on its trademark. Alex’s ex of 17 years, Kelly Van Halen, is using the famous last name in association with…

.biz The New York Stock Exchange has beaten its techheavy rival in the quest for the biggest stock debut of the year: Twitter will list its shares on the NYSE when the company goes public later this year, choosing it over the traditionally tech-friendly Nasdaq Stock Exchange. Proof of the record industry’s life after near-death can be seen in the trend of payouts from SoundExchange, the Washington D.C.-based not-for-profit that collects and distributes digital performance royalties from noninteractive webcasters and satellite and cable radio broadcasters. From almost nothing, new digital platforms have grown to become a vital part of the new music business. It started with a trickle. SoundExchange paid out just $3 million to rights owners and performers in 2003, the same year the iTunes store launched in the…

As co-owner/co-president of London’s Rough Trade Retail Group, Stephen Godfroy is steering one of the retail industry’s most closely watched success stories. On the back of a 25% sales jump in first-quarter 2013, the storied chain will expand to U.S. shores with a 15,000-square-foot megastore in Brooklyn on Nov. 25. The store will sell new music—not used—in multiple formats and offer a sizable performance venue for free in-stores and after-hours ticketed concerts. 6.00 AM I go for a run. I run about a six-kilometer circuit through Oxford, down deserted, historic streets, many of which have hardly changed in centuries. 7.00 AM wake up my three children and get the youngest ready for school. 8.30 AM I catch the train to London. I spend the hour drafting and replying to emails…

Digital distributor TuneCore says its artists have earned $330 million in sales revenue since the company’s 2006 launch, with more than 4 billion cumulative streams and downloads. TuneCore also reports artist earnings grew 20% between January and September against the same period in 2012, and that TuneCore artists experienced a 135% increase in music downloads and streams during the same time frame. A string of new product and service enhancements launched in recent months helped spur the spike. TuneCore identifies new store partnerships, including Grace note and Shazam, along with Juke and 7digital international streaming services, as providing further worldwide exposure. TuneCore pays revenue it collects from digital services directly to artists and charges those clients an introductory album fee of $29.99 for the first year and $49.99 each following…

While hip-hop touring has historically not equaled the relative success the genre has seen at retail and as a force in popular culture at large, the story the past couple of years has been one of general uptick driven by artist development and a cadre of hard-touring young artists. So the cancellation of two East Coast stops on this year’s 10thanniversary tour of Rock the Bells, produced by Guerilla Union and the most well- established brand in hiphop touring, would seem contrary to the trend. And it is. The 2013 Rock the Bells lineup—including Kid Cudi, Wu-Tang Clan, Wale, Chief Keef, J. Cole and Kendrick Lamar—seemed solid. But producer Chang Weisberg, founder of Guerilla Union, pulled the plug Sept. 26 for shows Sept. 28-29 in Washington, D.C., and Oct. 2-3…

1 The CBGB Music & Film Festival, held Oct. 8-13 in New York, drew Warner Music Group VP/Sire Records co-founder Seymour Stein (left), who celebrated his Icon Award at the Bowery Hotel on Oct. 8 with former WMG CEO Edgar Bronfman Jr. Stein boosted New York punk to the national stage when he signed the Ramones, Talking Heads and the Dead Boys to Sire. Stein’s daughter, Mandy, shared a note from fellow Sire signee Madonna, who couldn’t attend: “Seymour believed in me when everyone else was closing the door in my face or writing me off as a one-hit wonder.” 2 The bash brought a taste of downtown to midtown as My Morning Jacket, Grizzly Bear, the Wallflowers, Lisa Loeb and a DJ set by James Murphy of LCD Soundsystem…

Cradling a cherry red guitar and decked in a tartan plaid dress, poinsettia jacket and matching studded, strappy heels, Kelly Clarkson isn’t exactly soft-pedaling her upcoming holiday album, Wrapped in Red. And it hardly matters that Halloween is still weeks away. For the past year, Clarkson has had Christmas on her mind. Conversations about Clarkson’s sixth studio effort being a Christmas album started last December, and recording with Greg Kurstin—who produced Clarkson’s 1.1 million-selling Billboard Hot 100 No. 1 “Stronger (What Doesn’t Kill You)” and the four hits on P!nk’s The Truth About Love, which has sold 1.8 million, according to Nielsen SoundScan—began in May. RCA is shipping a half-million total units for pre-order on Amazon.com and Target.com. For Clarkson, the disc represented a chance to break free of expectations.…

“If we don’t break new artists, if we don’t eat where we kill, it’s a very tough year.” —CHARLIE WALK KEY EXECUTIVES Charlie Walk, executive VP of Republic; Michael Horton, senior VP of urban promotion; Tom MacKay, executive VP of Republic; Rob Stevenson, executive VP of A&; Wendy Goldstein, senior VP of A&; Jim Roppo, executive VP of marketing; Pat Monaco, executive VP of sales and production; Cynthia Sexton, executive VP of brand partnerships and licensing; Steve Gawley, executive VP of business and legal affairs of Universal Music Group East Coast labels TOP RELEASES YTD Florida Georgia Line Here’s to the Good Times SALES 970,000 (496,000 TEA) PEAK 4 WEEKS ON CHART 45 Drake Nothing Was the Same SALES 889,000 (383,000 TEA) PEAK 1 WEEKS ON CHART 3 BIG RELEASES…

CHAIRMAN/CEOSteve Barnett“We’re 10 months into the story of rebuilding this company, and confidence is contagious.” —STEVE BARNETT KEY EXECUTIVES Michelle Jubelirer and Greg Thompson, executive VPs, Capitol Music Group; Dan McCarroll, president, CMGVIRGIN RECORDS Ron Fair, chief creative officer/executive VPBLUE NOTE RECORDS Don Was, president; Todd von Mende, CFO, CMG; Bill Hearn, president/CEO, Capitol Christian Music GroupCAROLINE Dominic Pandiscia, president TOP RELEASES YTD Various Artists Now 45 SALES 475,000 (0 TEA) PEAK 3 WEEKS ON CHART 28 Various Artists Now 47 SALES 273,000 (163,000 TEA) PEAK 2 WEEKS ON CHART 10 BIG RELEASES Q4 Katy Perry PRISM RELEASE DAT E 10/22 SHIPMENTS 1M PROJECTED FIRST WEEK 450,000 Arcade Fire Reflektor RELEASE DATE 10/29 SHIPMENTS 250,000 PROJECTED FIRST WEEK 225,000 BastilleBad Blood THE DARK HORSE The U.K. rock band has already…

There are two ways of viewing label market share: by distribution ownership and by label ownership. The above graphic reflects distribution ownership whereby the independent labels distributed by Alternative Distribution Alliance, Caroline, RED and INgrooves are included within the major labels that own those distributors. But twice a year, Billboard calculates market by label ownership, and at midyear 2013, that view put the indies’ market share at 34.5%, almost three times the number reflected above. (Billboard will revisit these numbers in January, after the close of the fourth quarter.) Why is this important? There’s a matter of contention between the major and indie communities when it comes to market share and advances from digital service providers. The majors—through ownership of indie distributors like RED (Sony), ADA (Warner Bros.), Caroline (Capitol)…

ARTIST: Cut Copy ALBUM: Free Your Mind LABEL: Loma Vista/Modular/Republic RELEASE DATE: Nov. 5 MANAGEMENT: Punkdafunk PRODUCER: Dan Whitford PUBLISHER: Kobalt BOOKING AGENT: Windish Agency CHART HISTORY: In Ghost Colours (2008), No. 167 Billboard 200, 95,000; Zonoscope (2011), No. 46 Billboard 200, 61,000 TWITTER: @cutcopy In early September, six mysterious billboards reading “Free Your Mind” appeared in various locations around the world, including Mexico City, Detroit and Australia. Using location-based technology, visitors could open their phone’s Web browser to Cut Copy’s website and stream the Australian band’s new song. That innovative marketing effort is just one in a series behind the group’s fourth album, Free Your Mind, due Nov. 5 on Loma Vista in North America and Modular Recordings worldwide. For lead single “Let Me Show You,” Cut Copy enlisted…

Jake Bugg “What Doesn’t Kill You” (2:04) PRODUCER: Rick Rubin WRITERS: Jake Bugg, Iain Archer PUBLISHERS: Soul Kitchen Music/Kobalt Music LABEL: Island Records Jake Bugg has the songwriting chops to pivot toward the mainstream rock scene in the United States, but the 19-year-old U.K. artist has instead chosen to lead his sophomore album, Shangri La, with a pissed-off, wiry whirl that just barely crosses the two-minute mark. “What Doesn’t Kill You” evokes the angular punk of the mid-’00s, with Bugg packaging his tales of woe in slippery verses and letting his wounds fester during a searingly bluesy electric solo. The song’s opening plot of a friend getting sucker-punched and robbed during a night out is devastatingly detailed, and while the track loses some momentum during a comparatively vague breakup story,…

“I’d like thum cocaine and thum puthy!” shouts wideeyed manager Russell “Rush” Simmons, who can barely believe the perks of his first European tour with rapper Kurtis Blow after “Christmas Rappin’” becomes an unexpected hit in 1979. Scholars and serious fans may already know much about how hip-hop emerged from the streets of the Bronx in the ’70s, but Ed Piskor’s graphic novel history of the culture’s early years captures the personalities, imagery and milestones with a hilarity and efficiency that no other medium could. Beginning with DJ Kool Herc’s recroom parties and ending with the 1981 “20/20” segment that introduced hip-hop to much of mainstream America, the first of hopefully more volumes of “Hip Hop Family Tree” is thoroughly researched. But it also uses just enough narrative license to…

Justin Bieber’s new “Heartbreaker,” which leaps 77-13 on the Billboard Hot 100, is a moody, downtempo R&B ballad that doesn’t sound like any of his previous lead singles. That’s partly because “Heartbreaker,” which hit iTunes Oct. 7, doesn’t precede a traditional full-length, but instead kicked off a series of 10 singles dubbed “Music Mondays,” with a new song dropping each week through mid-December. The series will lead directly into the Christmas Day release of “Believe 3D,” the follow-up to the 2011 concert film “Justin Bieber: Never Say Never.” “Heartbreaker” has rabid fan support to thank for its chart success, selling 182,000 downloads to date, according to Nielsen SoundScan, and jumping 22-5 on Hot Digital Songs. There aren’t any plans to work “Music Mondays” songs to radio, according to Bieber’s longtime…

Hard rock band Korn reunited with guitarist Brian Welch for its 11th album, The Paradigm Shift, which debuts at No. 8 on the Billboard 200. 7 MONTHS AGO Korn released its last two albums on Roadrunner, but turned to longtime management Prospect Park to release the new set in partnership with Caroline. Prospect Park partner/senior VP of music Peter Katsis, who also manages Korn, and label head Jeremy Summer first heard new tracks in March. Around the same time, in the wake of 2011’s dubstepleaning The Path of Totality, which featured Skrillex and Kill the Noise, Korn’s social media clout was expanding. “Over the last cycle their Facebook grew from 4 million to 11 million likes. A lot of that was younger curiosity-seekers—70% was 18-24,” Katsis says. The band announced…

LEGEND Bullets indicate titles with greatest weekly gains. Album Charts ● Recording Industry Assn. of America (RIAA) certification for physical shipments & digital downloads of 500,000 albums (Gold). ▲ RIAA certification for physical shipments & digital downloads of 1 million units (Platinum). Numeral noted with Platinum symbol indicates album’s multiplatinum level. ♦ RIAA certification for physical shipments & digital downloads of 10 million units (Diamond). Numeral noted with Diamond symbol indicates album’s multiplatinum level. ○ Latin albums certification for physical shipments & digital downloads of 50,000 units (Oro). ∆ Latin albums certification for physical shipments & digital downloads of 100,000 units (Platino). Numeral noted with Platinum symbol indicates album’s multi-platinum level. Digital Songs Charts ● RIAA certification for 500,000 paid downloads (Gold). ▲ RIAA certification for 1 million paid downloads…

Downtown Music Publishing now has another trophy in its portfolio: It just acquired five songs from the Beatles, the most storied name in rock’n’roll history. ¶ In a deal with the estate of John Lennon, Downtown will now serve as North American administrator for the first two Beatles singles, which consisted of four songs: “Please Please Me,” “Ask Me Why,” “Love Me Do” and “P.S. I Love You.” The deal also includes the band’s lone post-breakup song, “Free as a Bird.” ¶ The acquired Beatles copyrights were previously with Universal Music Publishing Group, but the Lennon estate recovered those songs through copyright termination and reversions procedure as laid out by U.S. copyright law. The songs remained at UMPG for awhile through an administration deal, and after that ended, Downtown cut…

When Paris-based graphic artist Victor Louzon created his Wize & Ope characters five years ago for a comic book, he had no idea it would have the potential to become a global brand name fronted by one of the world’s biggest hip-hop stars. By 2012, Louzon had already surpassed his own expectations by using the characters as the face for trendy sports watches his company designed in the style of a Swatch or G-Shock timepiece. Its early success in Europe and Asia already had more established rivals and suppliers making enquiries for equity stakes, according to Louzon. By 2012, Louzon had already surpassed his own expectations by using the characters as the face for trendy sports watches his company designed in the style of a Swatch or G-Shock timepiece. Its…

WHAT: T-Mobile, the fourth-largest U.S. phone carrier, has enlisted Shakira to be a global “collaborator” in a multi-year partnership that will make the Colombian pop star a key face of T-Mobile’s Simple Global. The new initiative offers T-Mobile U.S. customers unlimited data coverage to more than 100 countries as part of its existing Simple Choice plan, beginning Oct. 31, with a global flat rate of 20 cents per minute for roaming voice calls. Look for a significant marketing push, too, from TMobile— according to the Ad Age Data Center, the phone carrier is one of the fastest-growing U.S. ad spenders for 2012, with a measured ad budget of $1.1 billion, up 27% versus 2011. WHY: In an age where Alicia Keys (BlackBerry), Justin Timberlake (Bud Light Platinum) and Taylor Swift…

In launching its 14th annual Pinktober campaign, Hard Rock International has named Paramore vocalist Hayley Williams as this year’s artist ambassador. To further build local awareness of the breast cancer campaign, Paramore and Hard Rock will provide the Breast Cancer Research Foundation with tickets to Paramore’s Self-Titled tour, which began Oct. 15 in Seattle and runs through November. BCRF will receive 10 tickets to each show on the trek, giving survivors the opportunity to watch the performance and meet the band. The 27-city North American tour includes stops in San Diego, Houston, New Orleans, New York and Chicago. The campaign kicked off Oct. 10 at Hollywood’s Hard Rock Cafe with Williams donating an outfit and one of the bicycles from Paramore’s “Still Into You” music video. The donation will become…

.biz Global advertising spending rose 2.8% in the first half, according to Nielsen. Gains in Latin America and the Asia Pacific region drove worldwide growth, but European ad spending continued to decline amid economic challenges. For a company that does $1 billion in annual revenue, Zappos spends very little money promoting itself. In fact, the online retailer shelled out just $6 million in measured marketing outlays in 2012, according to Kantar Media, a mere pittance compared with the $1.1 billion spent by its parent company, Amazon. So Zappos’ platinum sponsorship of the inaugural Life Is Beautiful festival in Las Vegas, set for Oct. 26-27, is notable for two reasons—not only is it a marketing milestone for the popular company, it’s part of a $350 million investment that Zappos founder Tony…

“He really advanced the culture—and a lot of babies were made.” —L.A. Reid, on Babyface 1 Kenny “Babyface” Edmonds (second from right) was awarded the 2,508th star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame on Oct. 10. “It was surreal,” said the singer/producer, who cofounded LaFace Records with Epic Records chairman/CEO Antonio “L.A.” Reid (right), pictured here with Usher (left) and Bad Boy Records founder Sean “Diddy” Combs. 2 Art heals: “Making music is a process that is a wonderful endeavor,” said Sony Music Entertainment chief creative officer Clive Davis (right), honoring Spotify founder/CEO Daniel Ek (center) at T.J. Martell’s third Artworks for the Cure and Spirit of Excellence awards dinner on Oct. 12. “But the point is to listen to it and bring it into our lives.” Joining them is…

Every quarter, Billboard analyzes Nielsen SoundScan sales data, in order to present a picture of current industry trends. This year we’re prognosticating a bit, using estimates provided by retailers as to the expected biggest hits of the fourth quarter. Also for the first time, we are breaking out individual label market share for the top major labels as viewed through a number of different approaches. We have filtered SoundScan data in ways that are both familiar and new to industry watchers in order to look at total and current album share, with and without track equivalent albums (TEA). There’s an old saying in the newspaper business: If you’ve made everyone a little unhappy, you’ve probably presented every viewpoint. We’re pretty sure we’ve got those bases covered. Just how important is…

“We always lead with hits. If you want to have success, you have to be riding a hit.” —TOM CORSON KEY EXECUTIVES Joe Riccitelli, GM/executive VP of promotion; Geo Bivins, GM of RCA Inspiration/senior VP of urban promotion; Mark Pitts, president of urban music/CEO of Bystorm Entertainment; Keith Naftaly, executive VP/head of A&; Dan Zucker, executive VP of business and legal affairs; John Fleckenstein, executive VP of international, Sony Music Entertainment; Rani Hancock, executive VP of A&; Mika El-Baz, executive VP of publicity; David Wolter, senior VP of A&; Aaron Borns, head of pop and rock marketing; Lisa Cambridge-Mitchell and Carolyn Williams, senior VPs of urban marketing TOP REEASES YTD Justin Timberlake The 20/20 Experience SALES 2.3M (623,000 TEA) PEAK 1 WEEKS ON CHART P!nk The Truth About Love SALES…

KEY EXECUTIVES David Saslow, GM; FUE LE D BY R AMEN/ROADRUNNER Mike Easterlin, GM; Michael Kyser, president of black music, Atlantic; ELEKTRA Jeff Castelaz, president; MAYBACH MUSIC GROUP Rick Ross, founder; Mike Caren, president of worldwide A&R, Atlantic TOP RELEASES YTD Bruno Mars Unorthodox Jukebox SALES 1.3M (848,000 TEA) PEAK 1 WEEKS ON CHART 44 fun. Some Nights SALES 579,000 (335,000 TEA) PEAK 3 WEEKS ON CHART 86 BIG RELEASES Q4 James Blunt Moon Landing RELEASE DATE 11/5 SHIPMENTS 40,000 PROJECTED FIRST WEEK 40,000 B.o.B Underground Luxury RELEASE DAT E 11/5 SHIPMENTS 50,000 PROJECTED FIRST WEEK 70,000 K. MichelleRebellious Soul THE DARK HORSE The album made a surprise No. 2 debut on the Billboard 200 in August, and the artist just hit the top 10 on R&B/Hip-Hop Airplay with “V.S.O.P.”…

Florida Georgia Line had a date promoted directly by venue management company SMG on its current tour, and SMG arenas landed four other shows by the band. These days, if venues want the date, they’re often finding it necessary to pony up to book the show. Increasingly, buildings are taking on the promoter or co-promoter risk, communicating directly with agents to stay on the radar when tours are being booked. The math is simple: There are more buildings than there are tours to fill them. The impact of festivals buying loads of talent and “major market only” touring exacerbate the situation. “Just about every one of our arenas can co-promote or take risk in some form or fashion,” says Andrew Prince, executive VP of Venue Coalition, which provides agents and…

ARTIST: Erasure ALBUM: Snow Globe LABEL: Mute RELEASE DATE: Nov. 11 MANAGEMENT: Michael Pagnotta PRODUCERS: Erasure, Gareth Jones PUBLISHERS: Musical Moments (Europe)/Minotaur Music/Sony-ATV Music Publishing BOOKING AGENT: Johnny Podell CHART HISTORY: Fifteen albums on the Billboard 200, 23 entries on Dance Club Songs; Tomorrow’s World (2011), No. 61 Billboard 200, 15,000 TWITTER: @erasureinfo “Everything about Christmas has been written already,” Erasure synth master Vince Clarke says. “We thought it would be more interesting to look into the darker side of the season. For a lot of people, Christmas is not a happy time.” So says Clarke of Erasure’s Snow Globe, which arrives Nov. 11 on Mute, the act’s 27-year label partner. The album contains new original songs with a seasonal twist, while also giving Erasure vocalist Andy Bell the highly…

Looking for a mobile photo app that diversifies the effect of music performance shots? Popkick offers a unique way to differentiate photos by giving users an array of bright, pop-art filters. Available for $2.99 in the App Store, Popkick offers more than 10 types of filters and enhancements that provide hundreds of ways to create interesting photos that apps like Instagram currently don’t offer. Popkick’s filters work best with well-lit, high-contrast photos, and once users are finished, they can easily save and share their new creations. For those willing to spend a few dollars to enhance their mobile photos, Popkick can become an artist’s new best friend. LEGEND & CREDITS Edited by Evie Nagy (albums) and Jason Lipshutz (singles) CONTRIBUTORS: Judy Cantor-Navas, William Gruger, Dan Hyman, Kathy Iandoli, Jason Lipshutz,…

Katy Perry’s sophomore album, Teenage Dream, which spawned five Billboard Hot 100 No. 1 hits, pristinely captured the buoyancy of youth through gooey synth-pop. She’s still championing optimism with super-producers Max Martin, Lukasz “Dr. Luke” Gottwald and Cirkut as her sonic guides, but the album is also a well-executed step toward adulthood. “Unconditionally” trades in the “Teenage Dream” idealism for a more reliable romance. Elsewhere, Perry evokes her recent divorce (“Ghost”) with slowed-down guitar hooks. The best moments are when the singer translates her maturity into new genre stylings, such as on the Bloodshy-produced self- empowerment stunner “Love Me.”PRISM has its share of candy-colored fun, but also something else: more detail in its tempered shades. —JL Katy Perry PRISM PRODUCERS: various LABEL: Capitol Records RELEASE DATE: Oct. 22…

The third annual Billboard Mexican Music Awards are making their impact on the charts this week, following their Oct. 9 broadcast on Telemundo. The biggest winner was the late Jenni Rivera, who was honored with seven awards, including artist of the year. The show also included performances from multiple-winner Gerardo Ortiz, Joan Sebastian and Los Tigres del Norte. 11% Seventy-three thousand regional Mexican song downloads were sold in the week ending Oct. 13, according to Nielsen SoundScan—a gain of 4.3% compared with the previous week. Among only the top 100 sellers, sales rose by 11%. On the 25-position Regional Mexican Digital Songs chart, all but four titles have gains. 2% With 777,000 viewers among adults 18-49, the show garnered a 2% rise in that demographic compared with last year. In…

Rivera Reaches Rhythmic Actress/singer Naya Rivera scores her first Billboard airplay chart appearance, as “Sorry” (Columbia) debuts at No. 37 on Rhythmic. Enlisting her fiancé, rapper Big Sean, for the song’s feature, Rivera boastfully sings that she isn’t sorry for landing her man. Rivera is best-known for her role as Santana Lopez on Fox’s “Glee” but has been working on her debut album for more than two years. Tricky Stewart is at the production helm of the set. Dan + Shay Debut Singer/songwriters Dan + Shay (Dan Smyers and Shay Mooney) snare the Hot Shot Debut at No. 55 on the Nielsen BDS-based Country Airplay chart with their first single, “19 You + Me,” the lead track from the twosome’s Warner Bros. debut album, due early next year. The set…

Streaming data courtesy of Nielsen BDS 1 SELENA GOMEZ This week: 1.1 million Last week: 912,000 Two weeks ago: 900,000 “Slow Down” rises 45-36 on the Billboard Hot 100 to become Gomez’s second top 40 hit from her No. 1 Billboard 200 album Stars Dance; “Come & Get It” reached No. 6 in May. Radio accounts for the largest share of her current hit’s Hot 100 points total (43%; with sales at 32% and streaming 25%), as it also enters the top 40 (41-34) on Hot 100 Airplay. 2 SEVYN STREETER This week: 565,000 Last week: 450,000 Two weeks ago: 386,000 Chris Brown’s protégé reaches a new peak of No. 8 on R&B Songs thanks primarily to the 26% lift in domestic streams for “It Won’t Stop.” The gain can…

.biz Myspace has unveiled its first major product update for artists and creators since its official relaunch in June. Called Portfolio, the new feature will allow users to promote 10-31 items of their original work, be it a photo, video, animated GIF or song, in one horizontal page. Though digital pipelines continue to put downward pressure on the price of music, rapper Nipsey Hussle (aka Ermias Asghedom) has market evidence that his songs are worth a premium. Hussle’s latest mixtape, Crenshaw, stunned some skeptical observers on Oct. 15 when an initial pressing of 1,000 CDs priced at $100 each sold out in 24 hours. The tape was sold at a pop-up shop in Los Angeles, where Hussle appeared in person, and on the rapper’s website—12 hours before a free, sanctioned,…

.biz Sony/ATV Music Publishing Nashville president/CEO Troy Tomlinson was named chairman of the Tennessee Film, Entertainment & Music Commission by Tennessee Gov. Bill Haslam and economic and community development commissioner Bill Hagerty. Curb Records founder Mike Curb will step down from chairing the commission and serve as chairman emeritus. As digital natives increasingly dominate its core audience and a credible new competitor steps up, Radio Disney is doubling down on digital, staging more live events and expanding internationally to maintain its dominant position in the kids’ radio market. The moves are affording labels and acts more and bigger opportunities to hitch a ride with the world’s biggest entertainment brand. They also give the radio network more tools to grab a larger share of ad budgets when marketers increasingly want more…

T-MOBILE BY THE NUMBERS 44m Number of T-Mobile subscribers as of second-quarter 2013 72.5m Number of Shakira’s Facebook fans $1.1b T-Mobile’s 2013 ad budget, according to Kantar Media BRANDING The Cornerstone Agency adds five new hires to handle its growing list of clients, which include Converse, Diageo, Microsoft and Pepsi. Andy McGrath and Seth Prelesnik become account directors, and Monika Julien, Adam Cohen and Dustin Wilson are named account coordinators. “We found people who are right for the culture of who we are—people who understand strategy and how to apply strategic focus to brands, but are also participants in the culture and pushing it forward,” Cornerstone executive VP of creative and strategy Jeff Tammes says. Mc-Grath previously served as GM at White Iris/Black Iris Music, and Prelesnik was senior integrated…

NARM, the National Assn. of Recording Merchandisers, has changed its name. It is now called the Music Business Assn., which some might think is “MBA” for short. But that’s not so. For brevity, the organization is staking the name the Music Biz. I already miss NARM, just like I miss the old music industry, when U.S. sales were $14 billion, according to Nielsen SoundScan. But just because I miss the way something used to be doesn’t mean I’m not embracing how the organization is evolving. In fact, NARM has changed dramatically in the last five years, paralleling the transformation within the music industry. But not everyone can see that. To some in the mainstream media and, yes, even some in the music industry, NARM carried a stigma. It represents the…

What did you wake up thinking about this morning? Whether that last tequila was really necessary last night. And then it was, “What can I do differently for breakfast that will get the boys out of bed?” That’s my job in the morning, because it’s really the only time I get with them on weekdays. At work, we had a meeting scheduled with our international marketing teams. Describe a lesson you’ve learned from a failure. There have been times when I’ve felt like we may have either spent too long on something or unintentionally misled somebody about our ability to meet their expectations. We were hoping or having an optimistic view as opposed to being as realistic as we probably should have been. So I’ve learned how important it is…

Getting inked: With writing credits on last summer’s “Cruise” mega-smash by Florida Georgia Line, and a new EP that’s set to debut in the top 20 on the Billboard 200, we’re not surprised to hear there’s a bidding war going on for country artist Chase Rice (above). The EP’s title track, “Ready, Set, Roll,” is No. 27 on the Hot Country Songs chart without any terrestrial radio play, Rice’s manager George Couri says. “It’s sold 42,000 copies in less than two weeks, largely thanks to SiriusXM.” The EP, which arrived last week, is the top digital download on iTunes. Rice, who’s selling out 1,400-capacity venues on his cross-country tour, has a distribution deal with Thirty Tigers through RED, but it’s short-lived and not binding, says his publicist, Ebie McFarland. Taking…

“We do artist cycles, not record cycles.” —JOHN JANICK KEY EXECUTIVES Jimmy Iovine, chairman/CEO, Interscope; Steve Berman, vice chairman; Brenda Romano, president of promotion; Joie Manda, president of urban music; Dennis Dennehy, head of artist strategy and media; Mark Flaherty, head of marketing; Jennifer Frommer, senior VP of branded content; Jurgen Grebner, head of international; Rand Hoffman, head of business affairs; Larry Jackson, executive VP of A&; Gary Kelly, head of sales; Larry Khan, VP of urban promotion; Martin Kierszenbaum, chairman/CEO of Cherrytree Records and senior A&R executive; Brooke Michael, head of digital marketing; Tony Seyler, head of film and TV licensing; Ike Youssef, CFO TOP RELEASES YTD Imagine Dragons Night Visions SALES 1.1M (849,000 TEA) PEAK 2 WEEKS ON CHART 58 Robin Thicke Blurred Lines SALES 632,000 (650,000 TEA)…

“It’s all about what kids are interested in when they use those iTunes gift cards on Christmas Day.” —ROB STRINGER KEY EXECUTIVES Joel Klaiman, executive VP/GM; Lee Leipsner, executive VP of promotion; Doneen Lombardi, Scott Greer and Greg Lynn, senior VPs of marketingSONY M U S I C Steve Kennedy, senior VP of salesCOLUMB IA R ECORDS CRE AT IVE AGENCY Lee Stimmel, head TOP RELEASES YTD Daft Punk Random Access Memories SALES 804,000 (270,000 TEA) PEAK 1 WEEKS ON CHART 21 J. Cole Born Sinner SALES 617,000 (164,000 TEA) PEAK 1 WEEKS ON CHART 17 BIG RELEASES Q4 Celine Dion Loved Me Back to Life RELEASE DAT E 11/5 SHIPMENTS 275,000 PROJECTED FIRST WEEK 160,000 One Direction Midnight Memories RELEASE DAT E 11/19 SHIPMENTS 750,000 PROJECTED FIRST WEEK 500,000…

For the first time in the decade since Apple’s iTunes store started selling downloads, both digital track and album sales are under pressure. But the real story is streaming from Spotify and YouTube already offsetting that drop on a revenue and volume basis. While the decline of U.S. digital track sales continued to accelerate, for the first time since Nielsen SoundScan started tracking digital album sales in second-quarter 2004, the category posted a negative quarter when compared with the year-earlier span. For the first nine months of 2013, digital track sales were down 3.4% to 974.6 million from the slightly more than 1 billion scans in the corresponding period of 2012, according to Nielsen SoundScan. But in the third quarter, the decline was nearly 6% to 292.4 million units from…

James Blunt toured arenas after his third album, 2010’s Some Kind of Trouble, but when it came to the sound of his new record, Moon Landing (due Nov. 5 on Custard/Atlantic), he wanted to go in the opposite direction. Looking to recapture the intimate vibe that led to his biggest hit by far, 2005’s “You’re Beautiful,” the British singer/ songwriter returned to the studio of Los Angeles producer Tom Rothrock (Moby, Foo Fighters), who produced Blunt’s heartfelt 2005 debut, Back to Bedlam, and 2007 follow-up All Lost Souls. “As things have gotten more global and my audience has gotten bigger, and I’ve been recording songs in expensive studios, it was such a great moment to go back to where it started,” Blunt says. With Rothrock, Blunt played almost all of…

GOLD PANDA U.K. electronic artist Gold Panda recently completed a two-month fall tour in support of Half of Where You Live (June, Ghostly International) and new EP Reprise (Nov. 11), thanks to booking agent Jay Moss of Flower Booking. “There was actually a lot of strategy behind this,” Moss says. “In May we did a short major-market underplay tour to support the LP, and also served as a setup for this current fall tour.” Routing: With the May tour selling out in nearly every market, Moss was able to strategize for major- and lower-end markets for the larger fall swing. “It’s roughly 400- to 1,400-cap venues,” he says. “The higher end in the major markets and the lower end in secondaries, and it’s selling very well across the board.” Audience:…

ROCK KEANE “Higher Than the Sun” (3:21) PRODUCER: Dan Grech-Marguerat WRITERS: Tim Rice-Oxley, Tom Chaplin, Richa PUBLISHER: Universal Music Publishing LABELS: Cherrytree/Interscope Records A colossal chorus anchors this highwattage, world-uniting anthem off the British rockers’ first best-of retrospective. “Higher Than the Sun” is “a song to take you far from here,” belts lead singer Tom Chaplin, doing his best Bono impression as swirling synths and high-glossed production help launch his vocals into the stratosphere. —DH ALTERNATIVE AMERICAN AUTHORS “Best Day of My Life” (3:14) PRODUCERS: Shep Goodman, Aaron Accetta WRITERS: various PUBLISHERS: various “This is gonna be the best day of my life,” Zac Barnett sings on American Authors’ new single, backed by bouncy banjo licks and celebratory gang shouts. The band’s poprock is so squeaky-clean that it makes Paramore…

ALTERNATIVE BEST COAST Fade Away PRODUCER: Wally Gagel LABEL: Jewel City RELEASE DATE: Oct. 22 Bethany Cosentino could probably write a mean pop-punk or alt-country record (there are hints of those styles here), but on her first self-released EP, she’s content to stay the course of 2012’s The Only Place. The choice for more mid-tempo, sentimental guitar-anddrums tunes about loneliness and heartbreak is a bit of a downer, but her hooks are as sharp as ever. —CP POP ACTIVE CHILD Rapor PRODUCERS: Kevin Seaton, Nick Ruth LABEL: Vagrant Records RELEASE DATE: Oct. 22 Pat Grossi’s strongest asset is his falsetto, which is nothing short of beautiful when paired with Ellie Goulding on “Silhouette.” Elsewhere, R&B touches, courtesy of Mikky Ekko, liven up “Subtle,” while “Calling in the Name of Love”…

At 6 foot 3 inches, British soul singer John Newman has a bit of trouble squeezing himself into long international flights. “It’s so bad,” the 23-year-old says. “I’m not at the level yet where I’m in first class—I’m stuck in standard.” Newman may have more legroom soon enough, however. His lead single “Love Me Again,” from the just-released EP of the same name, debuts at No. 35 on Billboard’s Adult Top 40 chart. The song was selected as iTunes’ Single of the Week on Oct. 15, the week of the EP’s stateside release, after months of international success, which saw it hit No. 1 on iTunes in 20 countries and amass 37.6 million YouTube/Vevo views since May 8. A U.S. version of his full-length debut, Tribute—just out in the United…

Cue the “she came in like a wrecking ball!” jokes. Miley Cyrus’Bangerz debuts at No. 1 on the Billboard 200, selling 270,000 copies in its first week, according to Nielsen SoundScan. Believe it or not, that’s the largest sales week this year for an album by a solo female artist. And, it’s 2013’s second-biggest week for a pop album—only the arrival of Daft Punk’s Random Access Memories had a larger frame when it debuted with 339,000. Somewhat incredibly, the largest week for a female artist this year had been the bow of Ariana Grande’s Yours Truly, which started with 138,000. Proving that 2013 has been one for the boys, of the 50 weeks where an album has sold more than 100,000 copies, only five were by solo women, and all…