Sibling duo Mau y Ricky launched their new independent label, Why Club Records, in partnership with Warner Music Latina. According to a press release, the new imprint will not only act as a home for the duo — who were previously signed to Sony Music Latin — but will also “look to impact culture through music with a purpose, supporting artists who have something to say and want to break through the mold.” About Why Club Records, Mau y Ricky said: “We trust [Alejandro] Duque and [Roberto] Andrade as the ideal partners for this new stage. We are working on the most important album of our career so far.” The Miami-based duo’s first single under the new label, “Vas a Destrozarme,” will drop Oct. 5. – Griselda Flores
Round Hill Music acquired Austin-based neighboring rights agency Rident Royalties, which deals with film/TV composers and production music. With the acquisition, Round Hill’s existing neighboring rights platform, Sound Hill, expands to more than 1,200 performers and 120 record labels. The deal also allows it to tap the production music and TV/film score neighboring rights markets and expand into additional territories. Rident Royalties owner/president Chris Kennedy will serve as co-head of Sound Hill alongside Róisín Brophy.
Virgin Music partnered with independent publisher, record label and management firm Position Music, which boasts a catalog of more than 35,000 songs. Under the deal, Virgin Music will distribute Position Music’s new releases and existing catalog while helping to market, promote and develop Position’s frontline label roster, which includes artists, songwriters and producers such as Judah & the Lion, Kyle Dion, Ryan Oakes, Kid Bloom, Layto and Fantastic Negrito.
Atlanta-based management company Crown World Entertainment, founded by CEO Vincent Searcy, acquired Indie Distro and, with the purchase, launched Crown World’s new independent distribution arm, CWE Distro. The company will now offer music distribution to all streaming platforms as well as data insights, brand strategy, digital marketing, synch licensing, neighboring rights and content monetizations. For $29.99 a year, emerging artists who sign up for CWE Distro will keep 100% of their royalties, receive guaranteed distribution to more than 50 digital service providers and more. Plans for established artists are available by invitation and require no subscription fee. The first releases from CWE Distro are “Find Someone” by singer-songwriter Eric Bellinger and WifeyBaby’s “Stingy.”
Independent podcast company Acast partnered with royalty-free music platform Slip.Stream in a deal that will allow Acast podcasters to access more than 70,000 songs for use in their content. All 100,000 Acast podcasters will receive “Pro Level” access to Slip.Stream free for six months and a discount offer to upgrade to an annual Pro plan after that.
In other Acast news, the company partnered with podcast network Luminary to expand the reach of selected Luminary Original podcasts. Under the agreement, five shows — including Joking Not Joking with Mo Amer and Azhar Usman and How I Masaba with Masaba Gupta — will be made available to listeners across all platforms via Acast. Additionally, Acast will serve as Luminary’s exclusive monetization partner for these podcasts across all platforms. Luminary will also utilize Acasts’s recently launched Acast+ Access capability to allow listeners to access exclusive content on the listening app of their choice.
ASM Global will operate the new, 185,000-square-foot Henrico Sports & Events Center slated to open at Virginia Center Common in Glen Allen, Va. in October. The Henrico Sports & Entertainment Authority board of directors, which oversees the center, approved an initial five-year contract in July, with the option to extend it annually for up to five additional years. Under the deal, ASM Global will provide staff and oversee the venue’s day-to-day affairs, including managing the box office, contracting with vendors, handling maintenance, event management, food and beverage concessions and licensing and permits. The Henrico Sports & Entertainment Authority will continue leading on scheduling to make sure the venue, which boasts a capacity of 3,500, is available for county events including high school graduations and tournaments. ASM Global will help to fill off-peak times with local programming including sports clinics, leagues and camps.
Also in ASM Global news, the company secured venue operations and management rights for Connect Conference Centre (known as C3 and formerly known as Opportunity Pavilion) in its second Dubai-based deal after the Coca-Cola Arena. Located in Expo City Dubai, C3 will host a number of events for the upcoming United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP28) which runs from Nov. 30-Dec. 12.
Lastly at ASM Global, the company renewed its management deal with the 475,000-square-foot Huntington Convention Center of Cleveland for five years. Forthcoming plans at the venue include the creation of a Sky Lounge with a view of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Lake Erie.
Dreamus, a Korean entertainment company and subsidiary of Korean multinational SK Planet that handles distribution and events for K-pop artists including Twice, Psy and MissA, is now using the cryptocurrency and blockchain platform Avalanche. Under the partnership, users of Dreamus’ ticketing app OK Cashbag can now buy Avalanche-backed tickets, allowing Dreamus “to build a ‘Blockchain Ticket Total Solution Service,’” according to a press release. The company will use Avalanche to enable easy digital transactions, get around scalpers, stop secondary market abuse and address issues around counterfeit tickets. Dreamus plans to launch a secondary ticketing marketplace later this year.
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House music label Defected Records partnered with demo submission platform LabelRadar, which is under the umbrella of The Beatport Group’s music services division. Under the deal, Defected and its sub-labels (including D4Dance, DFTD, Glitterbox, Big Love, Soulfuric, Nu Groove, Classic, 4TTF, DVINE Sounds, Stay True Sounds and The Remedy Project) will now field demo submissions from artists around the world via LabelRadar’s streamlined process. This marks the first time in Defected’s history that the label has allowed demo submissions.
Amazon Music is the exclusive livestream partner of this year’s Life is Beautiful Music and Art Festival, which returns to Downtown Las Vegas for its 10th anniversary Sept. 22-24. Sponsored by JBL and Boost Infinite, the livestream will be available on Prime Video and the Amazon Music channel on Twitch starting at 5 p.m. PT each day of the festival.
Afterparty, a platform that scales one-to-one fan interactions for creators, has raised $5 million in funding in a round led by Blockchange Ventures with participation from existing investors Acrew Capital, Act One Ventures and Tamarack Global along with new investors Wilson Sonsini and Vinny Lingham. Afterparty will use the funding for product development, including AI voice, photo and video messaging. The new AI platform, dubbed Afterparty AI, will give fans “24/7 on-demand access to conversations with their favorite creator’s AI,” with images and videos created with the platform becoming “one-of-a-kind collectibles unique to each fan who generates them – all of which are verified on the blockchain and can easily be shared on social platforms,” according to a press release. Each interaction and piece of content fans share becomes a “point of access” to exclusive experiences allowing them to connect with creators one-to-one.
Live Music Society, a non-profit that has given over $3 million in grant funding to small venues and listening rooms across the United States since 2020, has partnered with international music residency The House of Songs to reestablish the latter’s presence in Austin. Under the deal, House of Songs — which has brought together artists from over 30 countries for songwriting sessions — will establish a new hub in Austin after pulling out of the city during the pandemic.
Levellr, a company that helps artists use messaging tools like Discord to reach fans, raised a $1 million pre-seed round led by Crush Ventures. The company’s clients include Fred again.., Pink Pantheress, Gorillaz, Swedish House Mafia and Maisie Peters. The money will be used to hire additional employees and grow into new verticals including sports and gaming.
Music rights and metadata management software platform Orfium signed an agreement with Japanese entertainment company Avex to manage its music catalog on YouTube. Under the deal, Orfium will work to maximize the monetization of Avex’s repertoire using its AI-based matching technology.
Music financing service RoyFi teamed with earthprogram, a quasi-record label and provider of business development solutions for the music industry. Under the partnership, artists can apply to access funds directly through RoyFi via the new earthprogram website, allowing a “consistent through line of support and career development from the beginning of consultancy with earthprogram through capital provision and financial literacy education with RoyFi,” according to a press release.
Instrument brand Gibson and its charitable foundation, Gibson Gives, partnered with Purdue Polytechnic Institute’s School of Mechanical Engineering Technology (MET) program that will provide experiential learning to students in MET’s guitar lab. Via Gibson Gives, Gibson will gift guitars from its collection to be showcased in the class’ lab; provide direct monetary support to the Purdue guitar lab to ensure it remains operational throughout the year and facilitate the hiring of undergraduate teaching assistants; assist in providing essential lab supplies and materials required to design and manufacture stringed instruments; and provide insights and experiences from Gibson’s trained luthiers and executives throughout the semester. Support will extend at least through the 2023-24 academic year.
