Related

• BMG, Concord Merge to Create ‘Quiet Major’

  BMG and Concord — two of the biggest indie music companies in the business — had been flirting with a merger on and off for several years when the companies announced in April that BMG’s parent company, Bertelsmann, was acquiring Concord. But with the deal now official, the combined companies will reshape the landscape of both the recorded music catalog market and the publishing side of the business, accounting for an estimated $2 billion in annual revenue and creating a sort of “quiet” fourth major in the industry — one that has a modest but growing frontline business and a massive war chest of catalogs under its purview.

  Now the hard work begins: The companies will be reorganized as Concord Records and BMG Publishing, with current BMG CEO Thomas Coesfeld being named chairman and current Concord CEO Bob Valentine becoming CEO of the combined entity. And other dominoes could fall. The companies’ combined might puts them in the running for any catalog deal that comes to market, while they could also be on the hunt for a distribution company to lessen their reliance on Universal Music’s distribution machine, through which both currently distribute records. Ultimately, how they decide to wield that combined power — and how the market responds — could reshape the future of the industry and herald the arrival of a new major player across the board. — Dan Rys

• Primary Wave Buys Kobalt, Creating $7 Billion Behemoth

  Primary Wave, one of the most valuable independent music rights and brand management companies, bought Kobalt, the world’s largest independent music publishing company, in the first half of this year, establishing itself as an indie music powerhouse overseeing more than $7 billion in assets. Primary Wave owns stakes in the estates of iconic artists including Prince, Whitney Houston and Bob Marley, while Kobalt has a worldwide publishing operation, its own catalog of copyrights and the digital collection society AMRA. With support from its investors, including Brookfield Asset Management, Primary Wave acquired Kobalt from Francisco Partners, which had purchased a majority stake in the company in 2022 in a deal valuing it at around $750 million.

  Since that transaction, Kobalt CEO Laurent Hubert launched a joint venture with Morgan Stanley’s Tactical Value group with $700 million to invest in music copyrights and generated around $100 million in earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA) in its most recent fiscal year before the deal went through. Terms of the agreement with Primary Wave were not disclosed, but Billboard estimates Kobalt fetched a sale price north of $1.5 billion. Under the new ownership of Primary Wave, the two companies will operate as standalone firms, with Hubert staying on as head of Kobalt. — Elizabeth Dilts Marshall

• Live Nation, Ticketmaster Lose Antitrust Case

  In the blockbuster antitrust verdict against Live Nation this April, a jury held that the live entertainment giant exercises anticompetitive control over venues, artists and ticketing. The outcome of the two-month trial was an endorsement of monopoly allegations long leveled by Live Nation’s critics, and it could be the first step toward competitor companies achieving greater market share in the live sector.

  That said, the tangible effects of the trial are still very much unknown. Live Nation is in the midst of arguing to overturn the verdict, and it remains to be seen whether state attorneys general will get their wish in forcing the company to sell Ticketmaster. That sort of court-ordered breakup is exceedingly rare, and Live Nation is not backing down from the fight. — Rachel Scharf

• As AI Lawsuits Continue, DSPs Make Their Moves 

  For the last few years, music listening platforms have struggled to figure out how they should deal with AI music flooding onto their services — and French streamer Deezer has claimed the problem is quickly mounting. In January 2025, the service reported that 10% of daily uploads to the platform were now fully AI-generated; by its latest report in April, that figure had jumped to 44%, or 75,000 AI songs a day — not counting AI-assisted works. Still, as Spotify’s global head of policy, music business, Sam Duboff, previously told Billboard, it’s “still early days” for AI music, making policy decisions a significant challenge. UMG is still suing Anthropic and Suno for copyright infringement, and Sony is still pursuing lawsuits against Suno (alongside UMG) and Udio. Still, depending on who you ask, it’s unclear who is responsible for quelling the flood of AI content — or if, in the future, the flood will be considered a problem at all after the music lawsuits resolve and consumers potentially warm up to AI use.

  In the last year, a number of listening platforms have taken action despite the uncertainty ahead. Deezer was first last year, announcing automated tags for AI content and the removal of that content from algorithmic and editorial recommendations. In November, iHeartRadio became the first radio company to ban AI-generated content from its airwaves, and Bandcamp followed in January as the first online music platform to ban music made “wholly or in substantial part” by AI. The biggest players, Spotify and Apple Music, have been more tempered. Apple Music boss Oliver Schusser, for example, has told Billboard he “really need[s] content providers and the labels to take responsibility,” launching a tool for those providers to disclose AI use.

  Meanwhile, Spotify has spent the spring focused on quelling the negative consequences of AI music (streaming fraud, deepfakes, spam), while also warming up to the technology for creative uses. The platform has launched Artist Profile Protection to prevent deepfakes from getting on human artist pages, as well as verification badges and AI credits. And on the company’s Investor Day in May, it shocked the music industry by announcing a new licensing deal with UMG for a forthcoming AI music remixing tool, allowing fans to remix participating artists’ works on the service. — Kristin Robinson

• Indie Distribution Shakeups: Believe Arrives in the US, Warner Buys Revelator, Virgin-Downtown Approved

  In the first half of this year, three long-gestating moves in the indie distribution world finally went through, setting up a new paradigm that could realign the industry and give artists more options, more flexibility — and also more decisions to make.

  The first was one that had been widely expected to go through: Virgin Music officially acquired Downtown Music. That brought FUGA, CD Baby, Songtrust and more under the Universal Music Group umbrella and strengthened Virgin’s position as it attempts to compete with industry leader The Orchard as a major force in distribution. The second was slightly more of a surprise, but not fully unexpected: Warner Music Group made its own long-gestating move to bolster its indie distribution wing ADA, acquiring Israeli digital distributor Revelator after years of speculation that the company would acquire, or build, the infrastructure that ADA so desperately needed. The third such development was the launch of U.S. distribution and label services divisions at French label group Believe, one of the most significant players in the world and the owner of DIY distributor TuneCore. By so doing, it looks to fill the indie void left by Downtown’s acquisition and plant its own flag on the record business landscape.

  While all three moves will take some time to manifest — Virgin and ADA are just in the beginning phases of integrating their new acquisitions, while Believe has reputational work to do in establishing itself in the world’s biggest market — they could significantly strengthen each respective company if handled correctly, and reshape the market for indie labels and artists alike. There’s more to come here, for sure. —Dan Rys

• Casey Wasserman Steps Down and Sells Agency Amid Epstein Ties

  After the Department of Justice released a trove of documents related to Jeffrey Epstein as part of the Epstein Files Transparency Act on Jan. 30, artists booked by Casey Wasserman’s agency, Wasserman Music, began calling for the founder and CEO to step down due to his ties to imprisoned Epstein associate Ghislaine Maxwell. While no documents implicated Wasserman in a crime, he did exchange risqué emails with Maxwell, who is currently serving prison time for having trafficked underage girls on Epstein’s behalf.

  Chappell Roan, Orville Peck and Chelsea Cutler were among the artists who announced on social media they were departing the agency in the aftermath. As the company began to lose major clients, Casey Wasserman announced in a company-wide memo on Feb. 13 that he was selling his shares of the company and stepping down as CEO. The agency was subsequently renamed THE•TEAM and closed bids on potential new investors in June. Possible buyers include United Talent Agency (which hopes to become more competitive among the other major booking agencies, CAA and WME) with backing from private equity firm EQT; Patrick Whitesell’s WIM and Excel Sports Management with Goldman Sachs; and Providence Equity Partners, which currently owns 60% of the company and is expected to remain the majority shareholder, though who else ultimately comes in is an open question. — Ariel King

• Bill Ackman Tries to Buy UMG, Then Sells Stake Entirely

  The five-year financial relationship between Universal Music Group (UMG) and Bill Ackman, one of Wall Street’s best-known activist investors and the founder of the investment firm Pershing Square, ended in June, two months after Pershing put in a bid to take over the company through a financial merger. Ackman, who spent three years on UMG’s board and once said he invested in UMG because it was “love at first sight,” submitted a non-binding offer on April 7 to merge UMG with a Pershing vehicle in a transaction Pershing proposed would increase UMG’s worth to 55.55 billion euros ($64 billion). In a letter detailing its proposal, Ackman said Pershing would increase UMG’s share price by selling its 2.7-billion-euro ($3.1 billion) stake in Spotify, improving communication and education for UMG investors, publicly disclosing a capital allocation plan, and moving the company’s listing to a U.S. stock exchange, something Ackman had pushed for since 2024.

  Ultimately, UMG’s board rejected the bid following comments from its largest investor, Bolloré Group CEO Cyrille Bolloré, that said the offer undervalued the company and would “not deliver superior value creation.” Pershing sold its entire 80-million-share stake in UMG in the days after the board’s announcement, some of which was bought back by UMG as part of its share buyback program, which as of July 6 totaled 486 million euros ($555 million).

  While their relationship may have ended, UMG appears to have taken many of Pershing’s recommendations on board. The company has said it will provide greater financial detail to investors and will price 1 billion euros in bonds in June. — Elizabeth Dilts Marshall

• Sony Buys Recognition, Ending Hipgnosis Journey

  In May, Sony Music Publishing, with backing from Singapore sovereign wealth fund GIC, bought Recognition Music Group from private equity firm Blackstone in a deal reportedly worth more than $3.5 billion. Recognition’s portfolio of publishing and master recording rights to some 45,000 songs — including Shakira‘s “Whenever, Wherever,” The B-52s’ “Love Shack,” Fleetwood Mac‘s “Go Your Own Way” and Diana Ross‘ “I’m Coming Out” — represents part of what had been the Hipgnosis catalog.

  Hipgnosis and its founder, Merck Mercuriadis, are frequently credited with bringing mainstream attention to the niche music catalog investment market through headline-making acquisitions of songs by Justin Bieber, Journey, Red Hot Chili Peppers, Eurythmics and more. Blackstone, which had funded a privately held catalog fund and Mercuriadis’ investment management arm, acquired Hipgnosis’ public fund for $1.47 billion in 2024, combining all three under the name Recognition a year later. Sony previously bought Hipgnosis Songs Management’s administration business and a portion of the old Hipgnosis catalog portfolio from Blackstone, with the May deal completing the buyout. Private equity funds typically exit investments within five to seven years, but Blackstone’s sale of Recognition was a milestone for the nascent market of catalog investing, as it was one of the most valuable independent portfolios ever amassed. — Elizabeth Dilts Marshall

• Major Labels Ask Supreme Court to Review Global Copyright Termination Ruling

  A “game-changer” legal battle over copyright termination reached the U.S. Supreme Court in June, when major music companies filed a hotly anticipated petition asking the justices to overturn a ruling they said would cause “chaos” for the music business.

  The decision, won in January by songwriter Cyril Vetter, said that artists could use termination rights to regain not only their American copyrights, but also overseas rights to the same songs — overturning decades of precedent and industry practice. It was a boon to songwriters and artists, but a massive blow to publishers, labels and investors that stand to lose what they believed was a perpetual global revenue stream from song catalogs.

  In a strongly worded petition written by SCOTUS vet Paul Clement, the majors said the Vetter ruling was “profoundly wrong” and would destabilize numerous entertainment industries: “In a single stroke, the decision below unsettled 50 years of industry practice,” Clement wrote. “[It] immediately calls into question the scope and meaning of countless negotiated agreements backed by billions of dollars.”

  Vetter’s lawyers will have a chance to respond soon, and a decision on whether the court will take the case is expected in the fall. — Bill Donahue

• Legendary Music Executive Clive Davis Dies

  Clive Davis died on June 22 after a record industry career that spanned 60 years. After getting his start as a lawyer at Columbia Records, Davis went on to form both Arista and J Records and became a household name (one of the few music execs ever to attain that status) for discovering and cultivating artists such as Janis Joplin, Whitney Houston and Alicia Keys, as well as resurrecting the careers of acts like Aretha Franklin, Carlos Santana and Rod Stewart. Among the other artists he worked closely with were Bruce Springsteen, Billy Joel, Chicago, Barry Manilow, Kenny G and Earth, Wind & Fire.

  The multiple Grammy winner was renowned for his A&R prowess that relied on instinct more than metrics and a strong guiding hand, especially when it came to selecting hit songs. But he was the first to admit the process was as much a mystery to him as anyone else, telling 60 Minutes, “It’s your gut. It’s the tingle up your spine. It’s your ears. Whatever the anatomy part that it is, I found that it is a natural gift.” He was also known for his famous pre-Grammy galas that brought together not only the biggest names in music but also in sports, politics and overall celebrity, making the annual event one of the most sought-after invitations during awards season for 50 years. — Melinda Newman

• As NO FAKES Act Advances, Artists Move to Trademark Their Voices

  Federal legislation to protect Americans from deepfakes and voice cloning cleared a key threshold in Congress in June, but music stars like Taylor Swift, Lionel Richie and Backstreet Boys aren’t waiting around to see if lawmakers pass the bill.

  If enacted, the NO FAKES Act would ban digital replicas of a person’s voice or visual likeness, a sweeping new federal prohibition aimed at a spike in online fakes made far easier by the rise of artificial intelligence. The bill would also require internet platforms to quickly remove such material and hold them liable if they don’t.

  After passing the Senate Judiciary Committee, NO FAKES is headed for the full Senate for more debate and a potential vote. It’s supported by music companies, movie studios, tech giants and entertainment unions, but has drawn pushback from the powerful video game industry, as well as criticism from rights groups who fear it could harm free speech.

  In the absence of such clear safeguards, stars sought out imperfect solutions to guard their identities online. In April, Swift applied for trademarks on the sound of her voice, a move that was quickly mimicked by Richie and the Backstreet Boys. It’s unclear if such efforts will be effective, but it’s a low-cost measure that celebrities are hoping will give them some additional legal firepower to protect themselves from bad actors online. — Bill Donahue

• Gas Prices Soar Due to War in Iran, Roiling the Touring Market Further

  When the U.S. and Israel began bombing Iran on Feb. 28 and the Iranian government shut down the Strait of Hormuz — a key shipping route responsible for nearly 20% of the world’s oil flow — fuel prices started to skyrocket. Prices for gas rose roughly 50% from the start of the year to May, while in the same period, domestic flights increased by around 13% and international flights rose by about 50%. For touring artists, some of whom were already facing challenges due to the increased costs from the post-pandemic touring landscape, the ability to tour became significantly more difficult.

  Budgets plotted out months in advance increased dramatically. Bus tours — already a large expense for burgeoning artists — became out of reach due for some to surcharges on higher fuel prices, with fly dates typically considered the most affordable option. Generators that rely on fuel, a necessity for any outdoor show or music festival, also saw a dramatic increase in costs. And with no end to the war in sight, these increased costs don’t show signs of abating any time in the near future. — Ariel King