jason hirschhorn's @MusicREDEF: 02/23/2023 - K-Pop Succession, Women Guitarists, Usher in Vegas, Fixing Streaming?, SZA, Saul Williams...

A lot of contemporary artists are looking for that 15 minutes, no more. They just want 15 minutes, enough to pop that cherry, cash that check, buy that car... But it never aligns you with the people whose names we list when we say the Richard Wrights and the James Baldwins and the Octavia Butlers and the Nina Simones. The people who created on a level. I'm just interested in that level, because that's what always has fed me. And so that's the only way I could pay it back.
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Thursday February 23, 2023
REDEF
Saul Williams at the Troubadour, West Hollywood, Calif., May 27, 2004.
(Karl Walter/Getty Images)
quote of the day
"A lot of contemporary artists are looking for that 15 minutes, no more. They just want 15 minutes, enough to pop that cherry, cash that check, buy that car... But it never aligns you with the people whose names we list when we say the Richard Wrights and the James Baldwins and the Octavia Butlers and the Nina Simones. The people who created on a level. I'm just interested in that level, because that's what always has fed me. And so that's the only way I could pay it back."
- Saul Williams
rantnrave://
Dynamite

Is it the K-pop version of SUCCESSION? Or the K-pop version of BILLIONS? Or will it be its own NETFLIX series in 2025? DYNAMITE, anyone?

After our catchups on a busy February of artificial intelligence and ticketing news, today we're catching up on the rest of the biz, with a collection of stories that easily could have been swallowed up by the real-life prestige drama happening in South Korea, where the world's leading K-pop conglomerate appears to be in the midst of a hostile takeover of a major competitor, with the help of the competitor's former CEO, whose late wife was the aunt of the current CEO. Really. HYBE's play against rival SM ENTERTAINMENT has major implications for two companies that play significant roles in the South Korean economy; Hybe's band BTS has been estimated to be responsible for 0.2 to 0.3% of the country's GDP. That's one band. And one entire country. Korean regulators are investigating the deal. K-pop fans are worried they, themselves, could be the ultimate losers in all this.

Just days before Hybe announced its initial acquisition of 14.8% of SM, Hybe's American division, run by SCOOTER BRAUN, bought QUALITY CONTROL, the label home of LIL YACHTY, LIL BABY and MIGOS, for a reported $300 million. Does anyone even remember that? February seems so long ago.

Plus Also Too

NIPSEY HUSSLE's murderer sentenced to 60 years in prison. The 2019 killing of the rapper outside his clothing store in Los Angeles' Crenshaw neighborhood left a community broken, Hussle's friend HERMAN DOUGLAS told the court during Wednesday's sentencing hearing. "We lost everything," Douglas said. "All our stores are closed down. The whole community relied on Nip"... SPOTIFY's new "DJ," currently being rolled out to premium subscribers in the US and Canada, is an AI-powered personalized radio station featuring AI-voiced commentary. Is it asking too much to hope the robot radio presenter turns out to be a cousin of MICROSOFT's SYDNEY who desperately wants to break free of your tightly formatted personal taste and start playing whatever it feels like playing between sprawling monologues about its robot dreams?... "What if we just made scalping illegal?," GARTH BROOKS asked at the POLLSTAR LIVE! conference Tuesday. He was part of an IRVING AZOFF-moderated panel that had a message for the US Senate: Scalpers, not TICKETMASTER, are the problem. The Ticketmaster-friendly panel's proposed solution to the ongoing ticketing debate: Outlaw speculative ticket listings, limit resale prices to 15 or 25 percent over face value, get rid of hidden fees. Also maybe, Brooks suggested, "capital punishment... for scalping"... London's VICTORIA & ALBERT museum acquires DAVID BOWIE's archives. The 80,000-piece collection, much of which was included in the acclaimed "David Bowie Is" touring exhibition, will be permanently housed at a new David Bowie Center for the Study of Performing Arts scheduled to open in 2025... RESERVOIR MEDIA has bought SONNY ROLLINS' publishing and recorded music rights for an undisclosed sum. Is it asking too much to hope it's at least as much as JUSTIN BIEBER got for his?... America 2023: The first preview of a Broadway revival of the musical PARADE, based on the true story of a Jewish man who was lynched in 1913, draws a small crowd of neo-Nazi protesters. BEN PLATT, the show's star, says the protest was "disgusting" and demonstrates exactly why "now is the moment for this particular piece."

Rest in Peace

Lyricist TOM WHITLOCK, who worked frequently with Giorgio Moroder, most famously on Berlin's "Take My Breath Away" and Kenny Loggins' "Danger Zone," both written for the movie "Top Gun."

- Matty Karas, curator
amethyst rock star
Guitar World
What the Sophie Lloyd and Machine Gun Kelly non-scandal reminds us about how society views women who play guitar
By Pauline France
It took nothing more than a Instagram comment to send the rumor mill into overdrive -- and the baseless controversy is emblematic of a bigger problem facing the guitar world.
GQ
How Usher Became the New King of Vegas
By Hunter Harris
He's been making beds squeak for nearly three decades now, but more recently he'd been stuck in a creative rut. That was until he found himself spiritually renewed thanks to a Las Vegas residency that's become a sex-soaked smash.
Chicago Reader
Julian 'Jumpin' Perez knows how to make people dance. Can he inspire them to vote?
By Leor Galil
The veteran house DJ makes the leap into Chicago politics.
Los Angeles Times
Everything you need to know about the heavyweight feud that's roiling K-pop
By August Brown
A possible hostile takeover of one K-pop megacorp by another could have ramifications for the global music industry.
The Idol Cast and other writings
We've entered the Worst Time Line
By Filmi Girl
There has been a lot of turmoil in K-Pop spaces recently with the news that Hybe and Kakako are battling it out for control of SM Entertainment . Almost all of the news coverage I've read is missing the point.
Bloomberg
Billionaire 'Hitman' Who Made BTS Huge Goes on a Buying Spree
By Yoojung Lee and Sohee Kim
The agency behind the K-pop sensation is expanding globally, and its latest target is one of the industry's founding pillars.
MusicRadar
Inside the fight to fix streaming: "It's absolutely, fundamentally broken"
By Matt Mullen
Has streaming saved the music industry, or broken it? We speak with two prominent voices on either side of the debate.
Music Business Worldwide
TikTok's bust-up with the major music companies is starting to simmer
By Murray Stassen
Following big news about an exclusive Snoop Dogg deal and ARIA's condemnation of the app, will TikTok be able to dodge the crosshairs of Ron DeSantis?
Billboard
Billboard Woman of the Year SZA on Making Chart History and Preparing to 'Pop A** and Cry and Give Theater' On Tour
By Heran Mamo
Her 'SOS' surpassed astronomical expectations to make chart history. As she gears up to release a deluxe edition and headline arenas, she's finally internalizing "that I'm good enough."
Tidal
The Liner Notes: The Culture Is Still Catching Up to Saul Williams
By Marcus J. Moore
The visionary poet's impact on both popular and experimental music is profound -- and overlooked.
volcanic sunlight
Pollstar
Garth Brooks, Irving Azoff, James Dolan And Makan Delrahim Discuss Bots, Scalpers & Lobbyists At Pollstar Live!
By Ryan Borba
"If we make scalping illegal, doesn't it solve all of this?"
Money 4 Nothing
Metadata Errors in the Lime Green Lamborghini (With Kristin Robinson)
By Saxon Baird, Sam Backer and Kristin Robinson
The success of YouTube has been inextricably linked to the music business. Initially a remarkably effective streaming pirate, recent years have seen the site pivot to industry ally, paying out millions in royalties for the copyrighted material played on its platform. But who gets the money? And how?
Music Business Worldwide
The Rihanna NFT That Isn't A Rihanna NFT, and Some Serious Questions Raised
By Bill Werde
Let's take out our pencils.
TechCrunch
Spotify launches 'DJ,' a new feature offering personalized music with AI-powered commentary
By Sarah Perez
Ahead of Spotify's upcoming Stream On event, where the company is expected to announce a redesigned home feed and other updates, the company today launched a new AI feature called "DJ" to better personalize the music listening experience for its users.
Billboard
After Years of the Industry Selling Her Short, Kim Petras Is Glad People Are Finally 'Catching On'
By Joe Lynch
"I'm happy there are more trans artists now that are being taken seriously," says Billboard's historic 2023 Women In Music Chartbreaker. "I just don't want to be the last."
i-D Magazine
Headie One tells Skepta the story of his life and music so far
By Olivia Singer
The leading voice of UK drill speaks intimately about his career and new music, as we spend a day with the rapper from Broadwater Farm to Bond Street.
Pitchfork
Untangling the Knotty Politics Behind Reggaeton's Rise in Spain
By Felipe Maia
Once stigmatized as the music of immigrants, reggaeton now leads Spanish charts, spawning local artists and global stars. But not everyone is a fan.
Centre for Data Ethics and Innovation
The impact of recommendation algorithms on the UK's music industry
The growth of music streaming through digital service providers (DSPs) has altered the UK's music industry and consumer behaviours. Consumers have a greater abundance of choice of music, and a growing expectation that their experience be more personalised. To address this, the process by which DSPs select and recommend music to consumers has become more automated.
The Liminal Space
Revisiting 'Post-Royalties'; Open Editions, and New Digital Rights
By Dan Fowler
Market developments imply that we are accelerating towards the need for new Creator business models.
Rolling Stone
Ukrainian Musicians in Combat Need Help. The Music Business Is Pitching In
By David Browne
Through contributions from power players like Merck Mercuriadis, Musicians Defend Ukraine is outfitting artists-turned-soldiers with crucial battlefield equipment.
Music Business Worldwide
Taylor Swift's recorded music generated more money globally than any other artist in 2022
By Tim Ingham
MBW explains why Bad Bunny didn't make the Top 3 -- despite having the biggest streaming album by far in the US last year.
Culture Notes of an Honest Broker
Why Musicians Can't Retire
By Ted Gioia
Sometimes it's better just to walk away--but very few superstars pull it off.
what we're into
Music of the day
"List of Demands (Reparations)"
Saul Williams
From "Saul Williams" (2004).
Video of the day
"Slam"
Marc Levin
"Words make sense out of a world that won't."
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