Music Biz Headlines, Nov. 6, 2017
Private investors are buying up music royalties — and many songwriters are eager to sell
Billy Bragg: Music can heal the wounds of Brexit
"Brexit has split the country into warring camps, who seem only able to respond to one another with, at best, indifference and, at worse, outright abuse. How can we overcome our hostility and start rebuilding a society at ease with itself?" — inews.co.uk
Jay-Z's ‘4:44’ tour is a disaster: $6 seats, half-filled stadiums…
Could the career of the hip-hop icon be on the wane? — Paul Resnikoff, Digital Music News
CMA Awards to press: Don't talk about Las Vegas, guns, politics
In their media guidelines, CMA Awards organizers threaten to revoke press credentials for anyone who asks about sensitive subjects — D. Patrick Rodgers, Nashvillescene.com
Kesha's powerful Rainbow tour celebrated a pop survivor
The roar of support from a sold-out crowd at the Hollywood Palladium was proof enough: The past year of reckoning for sexual predators has a soundtrack, and it’s Kesha’s “Rainbow" — Lorraine Ali, LA Times
Icelanders Fufanu break out from post-punk pack
The band’s techno-rock has limber rhythms and a whiff of psychedelia, and they play a free Toronto show on Nov. 11 — Ben Rayner, Toronto Star
Fats Domino second line in New Orleans
The procession was a fitting tribute to a founding father of rock 'n' roll — Keith Spera, The Advocate
A life in music: Robert Plant on Led Zeppelin, Alison Krauss, and his endless wanderlust
How Cheap Trick’s Tom Petersson makes rock music to help autistic kids
Co-founded by Petersson and his wife Alison, Rock Your Speech uses rock music to help children with autism spectrum disorder. It was born out of the couple’s experience with their autistic son Liam who, until the age of five, had difficulty communicating — David Liu, Huff Post
Arcade Fire looks for signs of life on North American tour as venues go unfilled
Blame it on the new album or the marketing campaign for it, or on ticket prices and the popularity of rock music in 2017. Whatever the case, Arcade Fire is struggling to fill arenas on its North American tour — Arik Ligeti, The Globe and Mail
Deep Dark Woods’ fresh blood has psychedelic effect
The frontman Ryan Boldt forged a new lineup around his love of spacey folk — Ben Rayner, Toronto Star
Tegan and Sara achieve a teenage dream by landing in comic-book pages of The Archies
The Archies is the newly launched comic book that chronicles the adventures of the band responsible for the immortal candy-dipped gem “Sugar Sugar” — Mike Usinger, Georgia Straight
Gunner and Smith surrender to uncertainty on new album
Their latest album Byzantium takes its title from a place that was hugely important in its time and, even though it is gone, still affects the way we live today — Stephanie McKay, Edmonton Journal
Why music and corporate restructuring have more in common than you’d think
An influential New York management consultant turns her hand to composing — Kate Mossman, The New Statesman
Hollywood Bowl says it will go vegetarian for Morrissey
The famed LA venue goes meatless to cater to the singer's request — Pete Helman, Stereogum
Kanye or LeBron? Rihanna or Steph Curry? Style wins over function in the sneaker game
Stars like Rihanna, Kanye West and Kendrick Lamar are now involved in the athletic shoe biz — Clarissa Jones, USA Today
Neil Young to auction his model train collection
The rocker is putting more than 230 of his vast collection of Lionel trains up for auction in Los Angeles in December, some with estimated selling prices of up to $9,000 — Reuters
