jason hirschhorn's @MusicREDEF: 01/04/2023 - De La Soul Is Not Dead, The DJ & the War Crimes, Ticketmaster's Dark History, Trans Voices...

It almost felt like we were being erased from history, because our music wasn't up [on streaming services].
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Wednesday January 04, 2023
REDEF
Posse consists of three: De La Soul at the Arena, St. Louis, August 1989.
(Raymond Boyd/Michael Ochs Archives/Getty Images)
quote of the day
"It almost felt like we were being erased from history, because our music wasn't up [on streaming services]."
- Posdnuos, De La Soul
rantnrave://
2023, That's the Magic Number

And on the third day of the new year, the three men of DE LA SOUL announced their classic TOMMY BOY albums, long missing from the commercial music universe because old-school samples, because old-school record company contracts and because the universe isn't fair, would be arriving, finally, on (one) SPOTIFY, (two) APPLE, (three) TIDAL and everywhere else on the third day of the third month of the year. (March 3, for anyone who needs it spelled out.) The world has been promised this before: in 2019, when Tommy Boy founder TOMMY SILVERMAN regained control of his own label's catalog and foolishly tried to rerelease it unilaterally, without squaring (or at least triangling) everything that needed to be squared with the group, and in 2021, when RESERVOIR MEDIA acquired the catalog in partnership with the trio. But, as DAVE (aka DAVID JUDE JOLICOEUR aka TRUGOY THE DOVE, for he, too, comes in threes) tells Billboard, "You think that you own your stuff and that now it's on cruise control, waiting for the checks to come in. But it is not that way at all. There's a lot to do." So now in 2023, with samples cleared and publishers negotiated with ("What's great," says POSDNUOS, "is that a lot of these owners, writers, and publishers were De La Soul fans, and they had publicly understood what was going on"), this will be take three, and we're going to take it for granted that the third time is absolutely, positively, undoubtedly the charm for this particular trio and that De La Soul, one of the true miracles of hip-hop's so-called golden age, is not dead. De La Soul is the opposite of dead. De La Soul exists. May this be an omen for this new year, and may your own samples and contracts and loose ends and unfinished business get at least a little sorted out this time around the sun. Happy 2023. Now let's start working on the BIZ.

Rest in Peace

ANITA POINTER, one of the defining voice of '70s and '80s pop as one of the four (and later three) Pointer Sisters, for whom she sang lead on songs including "Fire," "I'm So Excited" and "Slow Hand"... GANGSTA BOO, a key figure in '90s and '00s Southern rap, both as a member of Three 6 Mafia and as a solo artist. Just a month ago, she appeared along with GloRilla on Latto's song "FTCU"... Earth, Wind & Fire drummer FRED WHITE... Modest Mouse drummer JEREMIAH GREEN... ALAN RANKINE, guitarist and co-founder of Scottish post-punk band the Associates... New Orleans guitarist/singer WALTER "WOLFMAN" WASHINGTON... CHRIS LEDESMA, longtime music editor of "The Simpsons"... Metal guitarist SEBASTIAN MARINO, who played with Anvil and Overkill and later ran a live sound company... Metal journalist, publicist and documentarian BOB NALBANDIAN... Music publisher STANLEY MILLS, who played a major role in popularizing "The Chicken Dance."

- Matty Karas, curator
ring ring ring
Rolling Stone
The DJ and the War Crimes
By Sophia Jones, Nidžara Ahmetašević and Milivoje Pantović
Thirty years after a death squad massacred civilians in Bosnia, none of the infamous Arkan's Tigers have stood trial for their alleged part in those crimes. And for the past few decades, one of them has been spinning trance records at European festivals and clubs.
The American Prospect
Ticketmaster's Dark History
By Maureen Tkacik and Krista Brown
A 40-year saga of kickbacks, threats, political maneuvering, and the humiliation of Pearl Jam.
i-D Magazine
How trans singers adapt to their changing voices
By Molly Marsh
Transition is a life-long project, and when it comes to the voice, there are countless routes an artist can take.
The Washington Post
Why mood music playlists are the soundtrack to anxious times
By Jeff Gage
With listeners looking to tune out of the noise of traumatic times and limitless streaming options at their fingertips, this music offers the perfect salve — even as the artists who create it remain largely anonymous.
UPROXX
Music Discovery In 2022: Why Is Reality TV Lagging Behind?
By Courtney E. Smith
With television able to launch new and old songs to hit status, reality TV is happy serving up bland wallpaper for tunes.
Billboard
De La Soul Talk Finally Coming to Streaming and Digital Platforms: 'It Felt Like We Were Being Erased From History'
By William E. Ketchum III
The group's classic catalog is set to arrive on DSPs on March 3, following a 2021 deal with Reservoir Media.
The New York Times
I May Have Started a Rumor About K-Pop, and It May Be Ruining My Life
By Euny Hong
I wrote a book about Korean pop culture, and that's when things started to get crazy.
Quartz
The future of global music is African
By Martin Siele
Africa's music is undeniably global, but how can African artists get a larger chunk of profits in the industry?
The Buffalo News
For rocker Willie Nile and 105 year-old father, a time of bonding while riding out Buffalo blizzard
By Jeff Miers
As he always does for the holidays, Nile came home this year to spend time with the family. But this year wasn't like any other year.
Rolling Stone
The Search for Guns N' Roses' Lost Masterpiece
By David Peisner
How a group of ride-or-die GN'R fans leaked 19 CDs of outtakes from one of the most notorious albums in history -- with painful consequences for one of them.
ha ha hey
Jezebel
Pop Music Finally Broke Us Through the Pandemic Time Loop
By Rich Juzwiak
Time got weird in a new way as Beyoncé, Rosalía, and other artists made albums in 2022 that were about lockdown, even when they weren't.
Vulture
How Music Subverted Gender in 2022
By Jason P. Frank
Some of the most provoking albums of the year reflected their artists' lack of faith in traditional gender dynamics.
Pitchfork
Confronting Music's Mental Health Crisis
By Jenn Pelly
Experts and artists including Santigold, Jeff Tweedy, and Denzel Curry trace a web of pressing issues while imagining the paths forward.
Billboard
Songwriters' New Streaming Royalties Approved Before the New Year
By Kristin Robinson
The Copyright Royalty Board approved a settlement struck by the NMPA, NSAI, and DiMA for streaming royalties owed to songwriters and publishers for the period of 2023-2027.
The New York Times
Kendrick Lamar's Unconstrained Next Chapter
By Mitchell S. Jackson
In partnership with his longtime collaborator, Dave Free, the greatest rapper of his generation is pushing himself - commercially and creatively - onto unexpected terrain.
Los Angeles Times
Column: Megan Thee Stallion was right. But she's one of too many women who aren't believed
By Erika D. Smith
A jury convicted rapper Tory Lanez, whose legal name is Daystar Peterson, of shooting her. But it doesn't make up for the misogyny she endured.
bobdylan.com
Bob Dylan Q&A about "The Philosophy of Modern Song" [Extended Version]
By Jeff Slate
"A great song mutates, makes quantum leaps, turns up again like the prodigal son. It crosses genres. Could be punk rock, ragtime, folk-rock, or zydeco, and can be played in a lot of different styles, multiple styles. Bobby Bland could do it, Gene and Eunice, so could Rod Stewart, even Gene Autrey. Coltrane could do it wordless."
The Opera Queen
Essay: Thoughts On Sound, & An Announcement
By Catherine Kustanczy
An essay on the perceptions of sound as related to the classical world amidst the challenges of post-pandemic life.
The Guardian
Turning tables: the UK's new vinyl manufacturer riding the music revival
By Jessica Murray
For the past year a Middlesbrough pressing plant has been helping artists make records, and there is no sign of demand slowing down.
Global News
Quebecers are listening to less local music, musicians hope federal streaming bill will help
By Jacob Serebrin
On streaming platforms such as Spotify, YouTube and Google Play Music, local artists from Quebec accounted for less than eight per cent of plays.
NewBlackMan (in Exile)
RETRO MUST READ: The Thom Bell Sessions
By Mark Anthony Neal
Thom Bell, a staunchly independent, Caribbean bred musician and producer, always resisted joining the Philly International camp. Freelancing giving him the liberty to work with artists that he wanted to work with. The product of that independence are definitive Soul recordings from The Delfonics, The Stylistics and The Spinners.
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