In today's CMU Daily: Musical snakes & ladders at Utopia Music as the most recent CEO is moved downwards and sideways to make way for a new one; FKA Twigs hits back at ridiculous Advertising Standards Authority ruling; Bytedance forced to shutter Resso in India; Prince estate dispute goes legal.

Also today: MMF CEO Annabella Coldrick talks streaming reform and AI.

CMU's virtual masterclass Music + AI In 2024 takes place on Tuesday 20 Feb. Attendees can access the session live on Zoom and then on-demand via the CMU learning platform. Click here for information on all of the upcoming CMU online masterclasses and to book your place. 

Utopia Music has a new CEO. Again. In fact, it's now got three CEOs.

Because it’s a Friday, or maybe because it’s a bit windy today, Utopia Music has a new CEO. In what’s becoming a monthly tradition for the beleaguered Swiss music company, they’ve rolled the dice, shuffled the deck, spun the wheel, and flipped a coin. 

The result: the CEO the company appointed a couple of months ago is now deputy CEO, a second deputy CEO has been appointed, the former CEO is also CCO, and there’s a new COO. The CTO and CPO stay the same, and there might be a new CFO. But there’s definitely a new CEO who is not only CEO but Group CEO. For those of you at the back, that’s three CEOs, two of whom are deputies, and one of whom is also CCO.

All clear? Good. Let’s continue.

The lucky man who’s clambered atop the Utopia horse this week is one Michael Stebler, described in a memo to shareholders as coming from “the high end” of the “international banking industry”. Stebler has most recently been Managing Director of Investment Advisors Zug AG, a strategy firm that says of itself: “We carefully and meticulously select companies for investment with the aim of multiplying potential. We collaborate with global, market leading companies with the clear aim of unlocking potential and driving growth”.

His strength, says his IAZ biog, “lies in global restructuring, wealth management, asset management and investment banking”. CMU understands that the shareholder syndicate led by Stebler, which executed the EGM in December, now controls the majority of the shares of the company, and has committed - alongside previous money invested - a significant part of the current financing round to keep the company afloat.

Alain Coutelenc - appointed CEO on 19 Oct 2023 - is shifting sideways to become Chief Commercial Officer and Deputy CEO, while Pedro Lima, formerly SVP Strategy, Corporate Development & Business Transformation at NielsenIQ, joins as Chief Operating Officer. 

Dedicated followers of the Utopia soap opera may recall that the company held an Extraordinary General Meeting a few days before Christmas. At that meeting - in what was described to CMU as a “well orchestrated coup” - a syndicate of investors in Utopia took control of the board, appointing a new interim Chair, Australian John Mitchell, CEO of Mitchell Asset Management. At the same time, sources told CMU that another former Nielsen exec, Fredrik Hedlund, was also joining the business - with the expectation that he may step into a CFO role, having previously held similar positions within the Nielsen portofolio.

With Mitchell - a former Merill Lynch banker - heading up the board, a clutch of Nielsen execs running the actual business and an experienced finance leader in Stebler heading things up as (Group) CEO it finally feels like Utopia might have the adults in the room it needs to be able to execute its strategy. 

What exactly that strategy is, however, remains somewhat fuzzy. In a board memo to shareholders seen by CMU, the board and CEO say that they “see tremendous potential” in Utopia. Stebler, says the memo, “represents the Investor Group that initiated the C-round and will lead Utopia through our transition, giving the shareholder group further operational authority.” No coincidence, perhaps, that the letter C in this instance may also stand for ‘Coup’.

Stebler will, continues the memo, ensure that the company “focuses on targeted sales, structural enhancements and transparency, ensuring the company’s alignment with its goals”. It is Couttelenc who will be ensuring those goals are met, “driving top-line growth” as a “sales lead with vast experience in selling IP products, who knows our clients, to realise our commercial roadmap”.

Riding high on a wave of blockchain hype, Utopia has at times positioned itself as a blockchain solution for the music industry, a data intermediary, and more recently an AI company. 

Quite what the IP products Couttelenc will be selling is unclear - with documents shown to CMU talking about developing “IP to cater to royalty collection organisations and CEOs, CROs, PROs”.

CMU sources who have first hand experience of some of Utopia’s previous IP products have highlighted a number of possible barriers to adoption - or certainly adoption at the scale necessary to bring Utopia to the point it can break even, rather than losing money. 

Also in the shareholder memo is the revelation that the C-round is still open - with investors being offered shares in Utopia at €1.30 per share.

Utopia’s most recent corporate filings with the official company registry in the Swiss Canton of Zug showed 33,780,326 registered shares in the company, meaning that €1.30 per share would equate to a total value of just under €44 million - which at today’s money is around £38 million or $48 million.

Having boasted privately to various music business media of being a “unicorn” with a potential $2.5 billion valuation - which was apparently based on taking hefty commissions on the entire revenues of the music industry on this planet and a couple of others - the company’s current valuation is a far cry from that apparent peak.

In reality, this represents a huge markdown in the valuation of Utopia, and quite possibly values the company at a discount to the jewels in its crown - Proper Distribution and Utopia Distribution Services. As solid companies with a client roster that includes pretty much every significant label out there, the Proper and UDS divisions offer huge value to Utopia.

That value has been recognised with the appointment of Drew Hill, Managing Director of Proper and UDS, as Utopia’s second Deputy CEO. Hill is, of course, a hugely well respected music executive who has successfully navigated the relocation of Proper and UDS to a new purpose-fitted warehouse in Bicester, while delivering growth against a background of challenging circumstances.

Alongside the finance and operational credibility Utopia desperately needed, Hill is one of the most trusted faces in the music business, looking after a critical part of the supply chain, and working hard to reassure customers and stakeholders of the security of that supply chain while Utopia was going through its most chaotic period.

Will Utopia be able to prove greater value than its distribution businesses in the long term? Only time will tell. For the first time it feels like the company may now have the leadership team in place that it needs to at least be able to try. But - just in case - check back next week…

Full Time Hobby Music // D2C Marketing Assistant (London)

terrible* // D2C Customer Service Representative (London)

terrible* // Logistics & Production Assistant (London)

Snapper Music // Press & Promo Coordinator (London)

Como No & La Linea // Director (London/Hybrid)

UK Music // Chief Executive (London/Hybrid)

The Ivors Academy // Chief Executive (London/Hybrid)

Deviate Digital // Digital Marketing Assistant (London)

ONE LINERS

Lil Nas X, Marshmello x Venbee, Hipgnosis + more

DEALS 

Warner Chappell has signed Kenya Grace to a worldwide publishing administration agreement. “I’m delighted to be working with Warner Chappell Music”, she says. “Songwriting is the most important part of my creativity and I’m obsessed with great songs. The process of writing is my joy, art and, at times, therapy. There is so much I want to achieve as a writer and, with the Warner Chappell team behind me, I feel like I can achieve so much”.

Sony Music Masterworks has announced a new strategic partnership with live entertainment company Roast Productions. SMM President Mark Cavell says that Roast’s “creativity and expertise will further support our endeavours in securing and creating new quality and original live productions that will captivate and entertain audiences across the globe, and provide first-class content for our other partners to promote and market”.

APPOINTMENTS

The publicly listed Hipgnosis Songs Fund has announced that independent non-executive board member Sylvia Coleman has resigned and will step down immediately. She has been in the role since 2019. A former EMI exec, she now runs IP rights firm BPureSounds. 

Beatport has promoted Matt Gralen to President and Helen Sartory to Chief Revenue Officer. “Matt and Helen have proven themselves as trusted leaders through building out our product portfolio, supporting our diverse team and culture, and delivering profitable growth”, says CEO Robb McDaniels. 

Distributor DistroKid has announced that founder Philip Kaplan is to move out of his CEO role over to Chair of the company. Taking on the running of the firm will be Phil Bauer, who is being promoted to President. He has been Chief Operating Officer since 2018. 

RELEASES

Lil Nas X is back with new single ‘J Christ’. 

Marshmello and Venbee have released new collaborative track ‘No Man’s Land’. 

Ride have announced that they will release new album ‘Interplay’ on 29 Mar. Out today is first single ‘Peace Sign’. 

Amanda Palmer has released new EP ‘New Zealand Survival Songs’. Hammer those words into your streaming service of choice right now, if you like.

Shabazz Palaces will release new mini-album ‘Exotic Birds Of Prey’ on 29 Mar. Out now is new single ‘Angela’. 

Logic1000 has released new single ‘Every Lil’ featuring DJ Plead and MJ Nebreda. 

Tommy Cash and bbno$ have teamed up for new track ‘Tango’. 

Pecq have announced that they will release their debut EP ‘Red Moon, Rare Light’ in March. Out now is new single ‘Closer’. 

Listen to all the new music we’ve covered this week in our Brand New On CMU playlist - updated every Friday.

Annabella Coldrick, CEO of the MMF, looks ahead at what 2024 will bring

As we head into 2024, CMU has been sitting down with the bosses of many of the music industry’s trade organisations to talk about their work, the key challenges faced by their members, and what to expect in the year ahead. 

Today MMF CEO Annabella Coldrick discusses streaming reform, the impact of AI and challenges in the live sector, as well the MMF’s campaigning and professional development work.

Bytedance to shut down Resso in India following government ban

TikTok owner Bytedance will shutdown its music service Resso in India at the end of the month, it has been confirmed. The news follows the removal of the Resso app from the Google Play and Apple app stores within India last month at the order of the country's government. 

Confirming the shutdown, a spokesperson for Bytedance said: “Unfortunately, owing to local market conditions, we can no longer continue to serve users of Resso in India. We have therefore taken the decision to shut down Resso and its associated operations on 31 Jan. Users will be offered a refund of their remaining subscription fees". 

Resso previously operated in Indonesia and Brazil as well as India. However, in those other two markets it was replaced last year by TikTok Music, which - as the name suggests - is more closely integrated with Bytedance's flagship app. 

But TikTok Music wasn't launched in India, presumably because the main TikTok app is banned there. The Indian government stopped the distribution of TikTok within the country back in 2020 citing concerns that the Chinese government had access to user data on the video sharing platform via China-based Bytedance. 

The ban didn't initially affect Resso, but likely prevented Bytedance from replacing it with TikTok Music in India, given the new music app is more closely connected to and integrated with the main TikTok platform. 

Before the launch of TikTok Music, Resso switched off its ad-funded free-tier. Once TikTok Music went live in Indonesia and Brazil that made sense, given that music platform free tiers are often loss-leader services used to upsell premium subscriptions. And TikTok Music can use TikTok for that purpose. 

Back in India, however, the standalone Resso was faced with the task of signing up new users without having a free tier. Nevertheless, Bytedance seems to have initially been committed to continue operating the music service in India until its app was removed from the app stores last month. That move didn't stop existing Resso users from using the app, but did stop new subscribers from installing it. 

Sources speaking to Moneycontrol confirmed that Bytedance has no plans to launch TikTok Music in India, presumably because if the government is now targeting Resso, it would almost certainly look to block a music service that actually shares the TikTok brand. 

CMU GUIDE: AI + MUSIC

Artificial intelligence + the music business: CMU's guide to (nearly) everything that mattered in 2023

There was a lot of discussion in 2023 within the music community about how AI will impact on music creation, music marketing, and the music business more generally.

There are clearly opportunities created by AI, and many ways that AI technologies will enhance the business.

An increasing number of music creators and music companies are exploring and identifying way to capitalise on those opportunities, and figuring out which AI products and services may offer ways to enhance their work.

Read CMU's (very) deep dive guide to the deals, disputes and debates, lawsuits and lobbying, and innovation and exploration that informed the conversation.

FKA Twigs responds to regulator ruling against her Calvin Klein advert

FKA Twigs has responded to a ruling by the UK’s Advertising Standards Authority which concluded that a Calvin Klein advert she appeared in last year "presented her as a stereotypical sexual object" and was therefore "irresponsible and likely to cause serious offence". 

Sharing the image used in the ad on Instagram, she writes: "I do not see the ‘stereotypical sexual object’ that they have labelled me [as]. I see a beautiful strong woman of colour whose incredible body has overcome more pain than you can imagine". 

Complaints were submitted to the ASA about three ads that appeared as part of the fashion brand's 'Calvins Or Nothing' campaign last April. One featured FKA Twigs and the other two Kendall Jenner. The complaints about the ads featuring Jenner were not upheld. 

In its ruling, the ASA says that the FKA Twigs adverts showed the musician "modelling a denim shirt. FKA Twigs’ buttocks and breast were exposed, and her shirt was draped over one shoulder and drawn halfway across her body. We considered the image’s composition placed viewers’ focus on the model’s body rather than on the clothing being advertised". 

"The ad used nudity and centred on FKA Twig’s physical features rather than the clothing", it goes on, "to the extent that it presented her as a stereotypical sexual object. We therefore concluded [the advert] was irresponsible and likely to cause serious offence". 

In its response to the ASA's inquiry, Calvin Klein said that the three ads being investigated were not vulgar and featured "two confident and empowered women" who had chosen to identify with the Calvin Klein brand, and that the ads contained "a progressive and enlightened message".

It added that it had produced many similar adverts over the years, and that its wider campaign also featured well known men, indicating that its ads were not focused on sexualising women. In her Instagram post, FKA Twigs also notes other Calvin Klein campaigns past and present, and the different responses people have had to them.

"In light of reviewing other campaigns past and current of this nature, I can’t help but feel there are some double standards here", she writes. The current campaign referred to might be that featuring actor Jeremy Allen White, which has got a lot of attention this month. 

"So to be clear", she continues, "I am proud of my physicality and hold the art I create with my vessel to the standards of women like Josephine Baker, Eartha Kitt and Grace Jones, who broke down barriers of what it looks like to be empowered and harness a unique embodied sensuality".

Prince estate dispute goes legal

A dispute within one of the companies that manages the Prince estate has gone legal, putting the spotlight on disagreements between some of the late musician's family members and the two music industry executives involved in the business. 

The lawsuit has been filed with the courts in Delaware by L Londell McMillan and Charles Spicer. Having advised the estate following Prince's death in 2016, both men became shareholders in the company Prince Legacy, alongside a number of the musician's heirs. 

According to Law360, in their lawsuit McMillan and Spicer make allegations against Prince's half-sisters Sharon Nelson and Norrine Nelson, his niece Breanna Nelson and his nephew Allen Nelson. The Nelsons are accused of trying to improperly amend their company's operating agreement in a bid to take complete control of the business, and push McMillan and Spicer out. 

However, McMillan and Spicer claim, the Nelson family members "lack any business and management experience, have no experience in the music and entertainment industries, and have no experience negotiating and managing high-level deals in the entertainment industry", and also "have a documented history of infighting". 

They add that "the individual defendants' actions are contrary to the intent and express terms of the [company] agreement and prior agreements among the parties". The Nelsons, they argue, do not have the "authority or legal basis" to remove McMillan and Spicer from the company or to make any other "material changes" to their company agreement. 

The lawsuit also claims that the conflict with the Nelson family members began when "unreasonable demands" made by Sharon Nelson "regarding management of the company's business" were not implemented. The Nelsons also want to change company rules regarding the sale of shares in the business, reportedly because some of the heirs involved in Prince Legacy want to sell their interests to Primary Wave. 

Primary Wave is already involved in the Prince estate via a subsidiary called Prince Oat Holdings, which did a deal with other heirs who are not part of Prince Legacy. In 2022, after years of legal wrangling caused by Prince not leaving any will, a court signed off on a settlement deal which split the musician's assets between Prince Legacy and Prince Oat Holdings. Primary Wave is not involved in the new lawsuit.

And finally...

CMU's Andy Malt takes a look at this week’s funniest, weirdest or just plain ridiculous music news stories, including Will.i.am’s plan to turn your car to a “virtual instrumental” and make your journeys more “emotional”, James Blunt’s new ‘museum’, and Lil Nas X’s claim that he’s going back to university for a Bible Studies degree...

Will.i.am’s “emotional” car stereo, ‘James Blunt’s ‘museum’, and Lil Nas X’s Bible Studies degree

Life is a journey. It will take you to many different places, afford you all manner of different experiences, and trigger a vast range of emotions. Yes indeed, life is a rich and varied journey.

But you know what else are journeys? Actual journeys, that’s what. And they can also bring you to new places, new experiences and new emotions. Especially when Will.i.am is involved. Well, that’s what he’s hoping with his latest venture as a successful tech entrepreneur.

What’s that? You didn’t realise he was a successful tech entrepreneur? Well what about that time he released a £200 iPhone case that turned your iPhone into - wait for it - a camera? Or his smartwatch? No? OK, what about his other smartwatch?

Right, just because you don’t know anyone who ever bought one of those things doesn’t mean they weren’t successful. I mean, if Will.i.am isn’t a massively successful tech entrepreneur, why would Mercedes have hired him to build its new car stereos? Yeah, that’s right, it wouldn’t. Almost certainly not.

I don’t know actually, but the news here is that Mercedes has indeed hired Will.i.am to come up with a new kind of car stereo. Because you know what you really want to hear when you’re driving? No, not a playlist of your favourite songs, you want the car to generate its own interactive soundtrack thought up by Will.i.am.