Erased Tapes Records // Label & Production Manager (London)

ICE Licensing // Senior DSP Audit & Assurance Manager (London)

ICE Licensing // DSP Audit and Assurance Manager (London)

Nonclassical // Executive Director (London)

IDOL // UK Label Manager (London/Hybrid)

Today's music business news

TOP STORY

Bandcamp union files complaint with federal agency over redundancies

The union of Bandcamp employees, Bandcamp United, has filed a complaint with the US National Labor Relations Board in relation to the job cuts that occurred as the direct-to-fan company was sold by Epic Games to Songtradr. Only about half of the firm’s workforce will stay with the business under its new owner.

Bandcamp workers unionised during the eighteen months that the firm was owned by Epic Games. A team of eight elected members of the union began talks with management about addressing issues raised by employees and those talks were ongoing when the Songtradr acquisition was announced. None of the eight employees involved in those talks were offered jobs by Songtradr.

The complaint filed with the NLRB - an independent federal agency empowered to safeguard employees’ rights - argues that, by declining to hire any of the members of the union's bargaining committee, Songtradr has discriminated against employees on the basis of their union activity.

KQED reports: "Employee union Bandcamp United … has filed a complaint against Songtradr and Epic Games with the National Labor Relations Board for laying off all eight bargaining committee members earlier this month. The union alleges discrimination on the basis of labour activity".

"In a statement", the report continues, "Bandcamp United said that it is calling for employment offers for all workers; equitable voluntary severance offers; and recognition of the union at Songtradr and a return to bargaining".

Neither Songtradr nor Epic have as yet responded to the complaint. However, when asked last month about the fact none of the eight union members leading the bargaining with Epic had been offered jobs, a Songtradr spokesperson told 404: “Songtradr had no access to union membership information and we executed our employment offer process with full consideration of all legal requirements".

“We carried out a comprehensive, full company evaluation that involved a detailed examination of each role", they added. "This evaluation considered several factors such as product groups, job functions, employee tenure, performance evaluations, the importance of roles for smooth business operations, and whether a similar function already existed at Songtradr including our experience of running it and associated requirements”.

Concurrent to the complaint filed with the NLRB, Bandcamp United is due to resume talks with Epic next week to negotiate a redundancy package for those Bandcamp employees who are not moving over to Songtradr.

ONE LINERS

MGMT, DJ Shadow, Quiet Crown + more

DEALS

Artist management company Quiet Crown has announced a partnership with Absolute Label Services. “I’ve been looking for the right label services team to partner with and having already worked closely with Absolute on Cattle & Cane’s latest album alongside Wings Music Group, I couldn’t be happier to be releasing more music with them”, says Quiet Crown founder Henry Carden.

APPOINTMENTS

Kobalt has promoted Sean Dishman to Senior Director, Creative. “Sean is an integral part of the Kobalt Global A&R team, through his hard work and dedication he has earned this promotion and I look forward to watching him continue to reach even greater heights”, says Alison Donald, Head Of Global Creative.

RELEASES

MGMT have announced that they will release their fifth album ‘Loss Of Life’ on 23 Feb. Out now is new single ‘Mother Nature’. The song, say the band, “outlines the archetypical MGMT mythology of one hero attempting to get the other hero to come on the journey that they ‘must’ go on. One part sounds like Oasis”.

Marnie Stern has released new single ‘Til It’s Over’. Her first album in a decade ‘The Comeback Kid’ is out on 3 Nov.

Sen Morimoto has released new single ‘Pressure On The Pulse’. His latest album ‘Diagnosis’ is out this week.

Tusks has released new single ‘Artificial Flame’. “I went down to Devon alone to write”, she explains. “At that point I'd also realised I was no longer in love with my partner at the time and ‘Artificial Flame’ is all about coming to that realisation and processing it. It was really intense”.

GIGS & TOURS

DJ Shadow has announced UK tour dates in March next year, including a performance at HERE At Outernet on 23 Mar. Tickets go on general sale on Friday.

CONFERENCES & EVENTS

V&A East to put the spotlight on black British music

The Victoria & Albert Museum has announced that the first exhibition at its new East London site - due to open in 2025 - will "reveal how black British music has shaped British culture".

Called 'The Music Is Black: A British Story', the exhibition will "celebrate 125 years of black music in Britain, taking visitors into the heart of music making, from Carnival to club nights, recording studios and record shops, MC battles, festivals, and more".

Artists who will be featured in the exhibition - which will also tap into the BBC archives - include Samuel Coleridge-Taylor, Winifred Atwell, Emile Ford, Janet Kay, Joan Armatrading, Eddy Grant, Sade, Soul II Soul, Seal, Fabio & Grooverider, Goldie, Massive Attack and Tricky.

Plus some artists who have broken through more recently, like Shabaka Hutchings, Kano, Little Simz, Jorja Smith, Nubya Garcia and Ezra Collective.

Curator of the exhibition, Jacqueline Springer, says: “Music is the soundtrack to our lives and one of the most powerful tools of unification. It brings collective and individual joy as we recite song lyrics at festivals and gigs, recall dance moves perfected in childhood bedrooms, and mime to guitar breaks, bassline drops and instrumental flourishes with glee".

"Set against a backdrop of British colonialism and evolving social, political and cultural landscapes", she goes on, "we will celebrate the richness and versatility of black and black British music as instruments of protest, affirmation and creativity, and reveal the untold stories behind some of the world’s most popular music of all time".

V&E East is in the Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park in Stratford, and a series of special events and live performances will be staged around the park as part of the 'Music Is Black' programme.

LIVE

1975 incident triggers ‘kill switch’ move by Malaysian government

The Malaysian government's Communications And Digital Ministry has told concert promoters in the country that they need to have a 'kill switch' system in place when staging concerts by foreign artists so that shows can be stopped rapidly if any rules are broken.

The new requirement follows The 1975's performance at the Good Vibes Festival in Kuala Lumpur back in July.

Deputy Minister Teo Nie Ching confirmed that the new kill switch guidelines were in response to that incident, adding: "We hope that, with stricter guidelines, we can ensure that performances by foreign artists can adhere to the culture in Malaysia".

Of course, in the context of this story, adhering to “culture in Malaysia” means declining to comment on or criticise the systematic oppression of LGBTQ+ rights in the country, police assaults on LGBTQ+ people, and the state turning a blind eye to the extrajudicial murder of LGBTQ+ people.

It was Malaysia’s anti-LGBTQ+ laws that The 1975 frontman Matty Healy criticised while headlining the Good Vibes Festival. His on-stage comments violated rules governing performances in the country and resulted in the band's set being cut short, and the following days of the festival being cancelled altogether.

However, it seems that the authorities would have liked The 1975's performance stopped much sooner. Hence the new kill switch system.

The company behind the Good Vibes Festival told CNA that it is already working to meet the new government requirement. It said: “From a technical standpoint, our production team is working on a way to safely put an immediate stop to a show without disrupting the operations or causing any damage to the audiovisual equipment being used for the performance".

“From an operations standpoint", a spokesperson continued, "we are working on streamlining the ‘stop show’ flow and mechanics. [This involves determining] who has the authority to call a show stop, at what point should it be called, and what criteria needs to be met for the show to be stopped".

The promoter also said that it didn't think the new kill switch requirement would deter international artists from playing in Malaysia, adding that The 1975 incident hadn't resulted in any decline in interest among foreign artists regarding performing in the country.

DIGITAL

DistroKid expands TikTok partnership

DIY distributor DistroKid has expanded its licensing partnership with TikTok so that it now includes the new TikTok Music service.

DistroKid first entered into a licensing deal with TikTok in 2019 covering the use of music on the social media firm's main video-sharing platform. The subscription-based TikTok Music went live in Indonesia and Brazil in July, adding Australia, Singapore and Mexico last month.

The partnership between the DIY distributor and TikTok also includes the latter's Commercial Music Library - which is a library of tracks that can be used by brands on the main TikTok platform - and CapCut - the video editing app operated by TikTok owner Bytedance.

Says Tracy Gardner, TikTok's Global Head Of Label Licensing & Partnerships: "Independent music from around the world fuels creativity on TikTok in such a powerful way. Having DistroKid's vast catalogue of music available on TikTok Music, CapCut and in the Commercial Music Library is a great opportunity for our community, a huge asset to brands, and is an unparalleled means of music discovery for these indie artists around the world".

DistroKid boss Philip Kaplan adds: "TikTok is one of the most powerful music discovery platforms in the world. The expansion of this partnership to include CapCut and the Commercial Music Library makes it super easy for millions of musicians to make their music available in even more places, while TikTok's new music streaming service provides further reach as it becomes available in more countries around the world".

LIVE

Liverpool arena admits S Club show evacuation didn’t meet “our high standards”

Liverpool's M&S Bank Arena has issued a statement after a "partial evacuation" occurred during an S Club show at the venue on Monday.

During this week’s show - which had already been rescheduled after a last minute cancellation earlier in October - the venue's lights suddenly went out and an announcement told audience members to leave the building. However, soon after, they were told to move back into the venue and the show resumed.

Yesterday, the CEO of venue operator ACC Liverpool Group, Faye Dyer, explained that the disruption to the performance had been caused when “a back of house sensor was triggered which led to the arena being appropriately evacuated".

On social media, many attendees took issue with how the evacuation was managed, rather than the disruption itself. There were complaints about the lack of lighting, poor communication, issues with some exits, and the fact people were then let back into the building with no security checks.

Dyer's statement yesterday addressed some of those complaints. "Our safety systems are comprehensively tested and fully certified and responded appropriately", she said.

However, she admitted, “for reasons we are yet to fully understand our house lights did not automatically turn on as programmed". She added that “at no point were fire exits blocked”, saying that “due to the location of the activation, our stewards directed individuals away from some arena floor fire exits towards others while the source of the activation was investigated".

While some may have felt that they were let back into the building with no security checks, Dyer insisted that this was not the case, saying that “as customers remained in very close proximity to the arena for a short amount of time, on private land monitored by CCTV and with additional visual checks put in place for re-entry, the decision was made for them to return to the arena so the show could resume".

She then concluded by saying that “we understand the customer experience was not in line with our high standards on this occasion” and thanked “the band and the audience for their patience and cooperation".

The original show was cancelled at the last minute on 13 Oct after a fire in the building knocked out some electrics.

LABELS & PUBLISHERS

Promotions at top of The Orchard in the UK and Europe

Sony Music's label services division The Orchard has announced two promotions at the top of its UK and European business.

Ian Dutt and Chris Manning will continue to head up The Orchard's UK operations, but with the new job titles of President and Managing Director respectively. Manning is also MD for Europe, providing direct leadership to Orchard offices in France, Benelux and Scandinavia.

They continue to report to The Orchard's COO Colleen Theis, who says: “We are proud to elevate these two homegrown executives to greater leadership positions within the company”.

Dutt joined The Orchard in 2016 when it merged with the Sony RED UK division. On his promotion he says: “Even after all this time, it feels like we are only just getting started. I am blessed to work with such a forward thinking, nurturing, and talented senior management team in both New York and London. A company is only as good as its people and our people are the best in the business".

Manning, who has been with The Orchard since 2008, adds: “The passion, vision and relentless dedication remain as strong today as it was when I first joined the company. In this ever-evolving landscape, we see an opportunity to innovate, amplify talent and be the best partner to our artist and label roster. 

We're at a hugely exciting time in the space we operate in, and I look forward to our continuing success with Ian and the fantastic team we have here across the board at The Orchard".

AND FINALLY

There is no swearing in Christian music, says Grammys

Christian singer-songwriter Flamy Grant has had their debut album ‘Bible Belt Baby’ kicked out of the Best Contemporary Christian Album category at the Grammy Awards. The decision was seemingly made because one song on the record contains some rude words. Apparently, Christians do not swear.

Drag queen Grant - real name Matthew Blake - released their album in 2022 and has come in for criticism from the Christian right. This controversy helped to propel ‘Bible Belt Baby’ to the top of the Christian iTunes chart earlier this year, prompting Blake to submit it to the Grammys to be considered for next year’s awards.

The album was selected to be put forward to Grammy voters. However, despite only being submitted for Best Contemporary Christian Album, it has actually been long-listed in the Best Pop Vocal Album category - a move that obviously puts it up against music by much bigger and more well-known artists. Blake feels, they tell Rolling Stone, that this decision has “completely buried” them.

It’s the song ‘Esther, Ruth And Rahab’, that has proven too much for the Christian Grammys. On it, Blake calls for more gender equality in the church, singing at one point that growing up it felt like “God would only hear a prayer / If it came from a person with a cock”. Elsewhere, they sing: “Eve said, ‘Fuck this system, I am chasing after wisdom’”.

In a statement to Rolling Stone, Grammy Awards organiser The Recording Academy denied that there was any homophobia behind its decision. Insisting that it “embraces artists from all backgrounds and genres”, and that moving Christian music with swear words in it to other non-Christian categories has long been “standard practice … given that the Gospel & CCM field consists of lyrics-based categories that reflect a Christian worldview”.

You might think that explicitly Christian songs sung by a Christian would constitute a “Christian worldview” oblivious of the specific words used, but apparently not.

“I was told that screening committees moving you happens, but it’s weird to get moved into pop”, says Blake. “There was nothing within the guide indicating why I would’ve been moved. The ultimate reason I’m coming out to talk about this is because we weren’t told what happened. What do future artists need to know if they want to follow this path?”

“Next time I write a song addressing the oppression of women and LGBTQ+ people in the church”, they add, “I’ll be sure to do it in a way that’s more palatable to those doing the oppressing”.

The latest Flamy Grant single, ‘Fortune Teller’, was released last week. 

Watch the video for that here.