Latest news with #UniversalMusic
LeMonde
15 hours ago
- Entertainment
- LeMonde
Taylor Swift buying back rights to her first albums: 'A triumph of labor over capital'
Glamour, sexism and backstabbing – American singer Taylor Swift's battle to reclaim ownership of her earliest works had all the ingredients of a gripping TV series. And the enticing summary? A triumph of labor over capital. On Friday, May 30, the superstar announced she had bought back the masters, or original recordings, of her first six albums from investment fund Shamrock Capital. The amount of the transaction was not disclosed, but it gives her full control over the albums Taylor Swift (2006) through Reputation (2017), including rights for physical sales, streaming and licensing to films. The artist now controls her entire discography. In 2004, as a teenager, she signed a standard industry contract with record label Big Machine, giving its founder, Scott Borchetta, the exploitation rights to six albums. In 2018, Swift joined Universal Music, where she retained the masters of her future albums. However, her first six albums remained the property of Borchetta until he sold his label in 2019 to celebrity agent Scooter Braun for $300 million (€263 million). The buyer, a close associate of the rapper Kanye West – Swift's longtime public adversary – made the acquisition without consulting her, according to the singer. At an awards ceremony in December 2019, Swift accused Braun and his backers of representing "toxic male privilege" in the music industry and criticized the investment funds that financed the purchase, comparing the deal to buying "a shoe line," never once considering the artist's feelings.
Scotsman
3 days ago
- Entertainment
- Scotsman
Keeping up with the art and science of music marketing
Jacob Alon We are getting an increasing number of visitors looking for local artist recommendations, so much so that we have just created three racks of vinyl opposite our counter for people to look through all the Scottish artists we stock. Sign up to our daily newsletter Sign up Thank you for signing up! Did you know with a Digital Subscription to Edinburgh News, you can get unlimited access to the website including our premium content, as well as benefiting from fewer ads, loyalty rewards and much more. Learn More Sorry, there seem to be some issues. Please try again later. Submitting... Often we are just given the names of other bands the person likes and asked if there is a Scottish equivalent. Up until now we have just given a few suggestions and left customers to look through the racks but it has certainly made things easier having all the vinyl in one place. There is a Scottish section for each letter of the alphabet in our CD racks and customers do spend time going through the racks, asking us about the various bands highlighted under each letter. Given the success with the vinyl we may move them all together as well. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad Unfortunately we don't really get many new local bands bringing in their albums these days, so we mainly sell albums by older artists. Some of the more active local bands will look towards trying to get a high Scottish chart placing on week of release for their album, as this can be achieved often by not even reaching three figures in sales and look for a shop to help with that which is something others specialise in. As a shop we have often sold hundreds of albums by a local artists over time but it appears these days bands prefer to sell a relatively small number quickly in the first week and then see their album disappear. This mentality now appears to be the case. whether it is a small band on a small label or an artist who has signed to a major label with distribution through a huge record company like Universal Music. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad We actually still get bands from all over the world who will bring in their album if they are in Edinburgh or a band member is on holiday here, just so they can say we have it on sale in the shop. However, at best a local band will often sell all they can to fans directly and then expect the shops to try and sell more copies which of course is a tough ask. As I have said this is indeed something we can do but there is little incentive if a band does not bring an album in until their sales have dried up online and at gigs. Our policy has always been that so long as we have an album on the release date and can sell it at the same price, then if fans want to buy directly that is fine but they should at least have the option of going into a shop. We have also always believed in getting as many shops as possible to stock an album and have never gone down the route of asking for any sort of exclusivity. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad The most recent example of all this is the Jacob Alon album In Limerence which came out yesterday through Universal Music. We have had no contact at all from the record company asking us to support the album, though we did receive out of the blue a batch of posters. We will do our best, but I suspect fans will have pre-ordered the album already.
NZ Herald
5 days ago
- Entertainment
- NZ Herald
Lorde lays herself bare, literally, in video for new single Man Of The Year
The music video for Man Of The Year features Lorde binding her chest and dancing in mounded soil. Photo / Universal Music New Zealand Lorde has released Man of the Year, the second single off her new album, and a revealing music video to accompany. At 4pm NZT the song was released on music streaming platforms with the track appearing to detail the experience of re-establishing her independence and beginning to move on after
TimesLIVE
6 days ago
- Entertainment
- TimesLIVE
Big Zulu gives update on his celebrity soccer tournament and shop
Multi award-winning rapper Big Zulu's celebrity soccer tournament is to move to a bigger venue. Big Zulu, whose real name is Siyabonga Nene, rose to fame after releasing the single Donsa Nkabi in 2016. He signed a record deal with Universal Music in 2015 and released his debut album Ushun Wenkabi and then Ungqongqoshe Wongqongqoshe. It is believed Big Zulu is in talks with the Moses Mabhida Stadium to host his celebrity soccer tournament in July and a source close to him suggests the talks are at an advanced stage. TshisaLIVE contacted the Inkabi Nation founder. 'We were looking at hosting this year's tournament at Moses Mabhida, but the talks haven't been concluded yet. If we get an approval that would be great for us members of the creative arts,' he said. During a recent Podcast and Chill interview with Mac G, Big Zulu alluded that he'll be venturing into the clothing business. 'The plans for opening in September are in place, as it'll be heritage month and that's also what [I'm] excited about, but just looking at getting the best location for my shop so we can get the business up and running,' Big Zulu told TshisaLIVE.
Yahoo
19-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Joyce Cheng rumoured to sign with Universal Music
19 May - While Joyce Cheng continues to keep mum about her next project, a new rumour has emerged that she is inking a deal with Universal Music. As reported on Mingpao, sources are claiming that the singer is set to make her music comeback by signing with the record label, which houses superstars like Jacky Cheung and Eason Chan. The singer reportedly will be releasing new songs in June. Joyce has already sparked comeback rumours recently by wiping out all posts from her Instagram account. She was also reported to have ended her contract with Media Asia Music. While the singer released no statement regarding the end of her contract, Media Asia responded by sending their "blessings to Joyce", confirming that the two parties have parted ways. Joyce has been MIA since her concert in March 2023, appearing only to promote her voice acting work for Disney's "Wish" in late 2023 and making a guest appearance in Alfred Hui's music video last year. (Photo Source: am730, CNA)
