Music Biz Headlines, July 17, 2017
Anatomy of a music festival’s death
According to a preliminary bankruptcy report prepared by Ernst & Young in June, Huka projected a profit of $2.4-million (U.S.) – approximately $2.64-million (Canadian) at the time – for that first year but instead the Pemberton Music Festival lost almost $17-million (Canadian). In 2015, the festival was projected to lose about $4-million (U.S.) – approximately $4.9-million (Canadian) at the time – but instead lost $16.8-million — Andrea Woo, Globe & Mail
Billboard’s top money makers of 2016
Drake and Justin Bieber placed 4th and 7th respectively in the cash countdown that’s crowded with acts padding their retirement funds and crowned by queen Beyonce who the trade mag figures earned US$62.1M last year – $20M more than Guns N’ Roses who place 2nd.
6 Arabs who are quietly dominating the music industry
Meet the behind-the-scene Arab producers and entrepreneurs who are behind Drake, The Weeknd, Kendrick Lamar and other top guns in music today — Noor Kalouti, step Feed
Are major record labels passing up profits by playing into racial stereotypes?
UCLA-led study of hip-hop lyrics shows that 'prosocial' messages are popular with fans — Jessica Wolf, UCLA Newsroom
How one woman helped bring hip hop to Canadian audiences
Michele Geister translated her passion for hip hop into a TV show that broke new talent and set the stage for Canadian acts to dominate the international market — Nam Kiwanuka, TVO
Michael Cohl’s name appears in new Clinton e-mail scandal
Judicial Watch released 448 pages of documents Friday showing further incidences that Huma Abedin, 2016 Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton’s former deputy chief of staff in the State Department, gave special treatment to Clinton Foundation donors while Clinton served as Secretary of State — Polizette
Kid Rock’s R&R swindle
Kid Rock For Senate
That’s what I don’t get about the libtards, THEY TAKE THE BAIT! Kid Rock is not playing to you, he doesn’t care about you, and neither does his audience. You’ve got your knickers in a twist, saying the country’s going to hell in a handbasket, you’re denigrating Rock’s looks, age, and music and he’s laughing — The Lefsetz Letter
The Hawk has Hawkstone Manor on the block…again!
Canada's Graceland on Stoney Lake! Home of the Legendary music star “Ronnie Hawkins, this one of a kind waterfront estate and farm property in the heart of the Kawarthas. Over 3300 feet of lakefront shoreline on the south east shore of Stoney Lake with 175 acres of total privacy. Features 5,600 plus feet, 5 bedrooms, 3 bathrooms in the main house plus 2 guest cottages at the shore and a large special events barn. Level grassy and treed lot to shore with breathtaking sunset views of lake — Sotheby’s
What is blockchain?
You’ve heard about it, maybe in relation to a digital currency like Bitcoin — but what is blockchain and how does it work? On the latest episode of Too Embarrassed to Ask, Circle CEO Jeremy Allaire answered all our questions and yours — Recode
Clean raving: how club culture went wild for wellness
With non-alcoholic raves thriving and nightclubs serving up meditation and hip-hop yoga, a new breed of promoter is bringing mindfulness to the masses — Harriet Gibsone, The Guardian
The potential death of SoundCloud should scare music lovers
The website’s demise would mean the end of a scene — Brian Feldman, New York Magazine
Songkick sells concert-recommending service to Warner
Songkick’s concert-recommendation platform attracts 15 million people a month. The company’s ticketing business will continue on its own, under a new name TBA -- Ben Sisario, New York Times
Rap’s biggest stars are depressed & so are their fans
The music we listen to affects us, especially when we let it passively sink into our brains — Morgan Olson, djbooth.net
Sex with your ex: the perils of getting the band back together
Spandau Ballet is the latest band to reunite then combust again. So, why does it keep happening? — Peter Robinson, The Guardian
Former voice of Kermit of the Frog pens blog post after firing, says he’s ‘devastated.'
The puppeteer fired after 27 years as Kermit the Frog says he was let go against his will, and would never have left voluntarily —Andrew Dalton, AP
El Mocambo's neon palm sign is being entirely rebuilt
The new version will be re-installed this fall, and the famed Toronto nightclub will be ready to dance again — John Lorinc, Toronto Star
No novelty, the B-52s may be the most subversive band America ever gave us
Campy? Yes. Colorful? Yes. Fun? Very much so. But none of this should take away from their value as vanguards — Annie Zaleski, Salon
Toronto-made ‘Apprehension Engine’ scores the stuff of nightmares
Guitar-maker and former Pukka Orchestra member Tony Duggan-Smith has built an instrument specifically for horror films — Brad Wheeler, Globe and Mail
Welcome back to the jungle: the 1992 Metallica/Guns N' Roses debacle
25 years after the concert riot, both bands will play Montreal soon — Mark Lepage, Montreal Gazette
Under the Radar’s Top 50 Albums of 2017 so far
List includes Feist, BSS, Mac DeMarco and The New Pornographers — UndertheRadar
Sure, we have OVO Fest — but no Toronto hip hop event is quite like this one
Unity Festival returned this past weekend, and organizers reflect on its history — Amanda Parris, CBC Arts
k.d. lang collection finds a home in Alberta
Big, Big Love, an exhibit featuring some items donated by the musician, has just opened at Calgary’s National Music Centre — Marsha Lederman, Globe and Mail
Ed Sheeran just got served with a second multi-million dollar lawsuit
Chart-topping singer is now facing damages as high as $20 million. And a seriously derailed career in the process — Paul Resnikoff, Digital Music News
