In today's CMU Daily: By this time next year we need to have seen “tangible steps to improve musicians’ remuneration and performer rights”, MPs on UK Parliament’s Culture, Media & Sport Select Committee in a new report

One Liners: UMG x TF Entertainment; RoEx hires Jason Reed; Music Canada streaming report; King Street Sounds relaunches; Benga cancels US shows; Glastonbury ticket resale dates; Crux AV music festival; new music from Noga Erez, Girl Ultra, Camera Obscura, Lemon Twigs, Dea Matrona, HighSchool, Douglas Dare, O

Also today: WIN updates its core principles; Music industry welcomes proposed US legislation on AI training transparency

Plus: Duetti CEO and co-founder Lior Tibon on how AI will shift to personalised discovery of music

“Fundamental reform of music streaming” must come soon, say MPs

MPs on the UK Parliament’s Culture, Media & Sport Select Committee have said that they expect to see “tangible steps to improve musicians’ remuneration and performer rights in the next twelve months”. This comes ahead of the first meeting next week of a working group of music industry stakeholders that will discuss creator remuneration in streaming, an initiative first announced last May in response to an earlier request by the same MPs.

The statement comes in a new report from the select committee which looks at creator remuneration across all of the cretoative industries. “Culture creates meaningful moments in people’s lives, but many creators struggle to make a living”, the new report begins. “Short-term project-based employment, precarious public and private funding, and technological disruption have all contributed to poor rates of remuneration”. 

As a result, it adds, “many skilled, successful professional creators are now holding down multiple jobs, reliant on family support or leaving the profession altogether, which in the long-term may be to the detriment of our creative economy”. 

It's a wide-ranging report which, among other things, looks at the challenges of being freelance, the lack of a private copy levy in the UK and the ongoing debate around the copyright obligations of AI companies. It also considers specific issues faced by musicians and songwriters, citing the committee's earlier inquiry into the economics of music streaming. 

That streaming inquiry prompted a number of government-led initiatives to address issues around transparency and data, as well as the commissioning of research on some of the copyright law reforms that MPs proposed that would change the way artists and songwriters are remunerated. That research will now inform the new creator remuneration working group. 

Welcoming all that work, the CMS Select Committee says in its new report that the government “must now maintain this momentum”, “take stock of the results of the extensive research it has commissioned” and “look at how it can drive fundamental reform of music streaming with a package of measures designed to make streaming work for all”. 

The starting point for the remuneration working group is the argument that artists and songwriters have not fully benefited from the streaming boom and the surging record industry revenues it has generated. 

Record labels counter that artists command higher royalty rates today than in the past, and can also opt to release music in partnership with distributors and get an even bigger share of streaming income. Meanwhile, the commercial challenges artists face are in part the result of the streaming market being so competitive, with unprecedented amounts of music being released, and new music competing head on with decades worth of catalogue. 

The music-maker community doesn't deny any of that, but argues that there is nevertheless a large group of artists whose music is streaming well, but who see a small share of the money generated because they are locked into old record deals that pay lower royalty rates, or they are session musicians who currently earn nothing from streams. The copyright reforms proposed by MPs would give those musicians extra rights to enable them to demand a bigger cut of the revenue their tracks generate. 

Songwriters have also criticised the fact that, of total streaming revenues, up to 55% flow to the record industry, while only 15% flow through to music publishers and songwriters. That's because the starting point with digital music was the CD model, where a single figure percent went to the song. Music publishers and collecting societies have since pushed the rate up, but many writers argue it should still be higher. 

That's something the MPs specifically hone in on in their new report, stating, “The revenue split between recording and publishing rights does not reflect the importance of songwriters, composers and publishers in the music streaming process. We recommend that the government bring forward measures for consultation with fans, music-makers and other stakeholders to incentivise an optimal rate for publishing rights in order to fairly remunerate creators for their work”. 

Responding to the new report, Jo Twist - CEO of record industry trade group BPI - says that MPs "fail to recognise that, with the support of their labels, more UK artists are succeeding in the streaming economy than ever before and that the real challenge facing all of us is how we can enable continued growth so even more creators stand to benefit”. 

It's no secret that most record labels oppose the copyright law reforms MPs have proposed. Alluding to that, Twist continues, “In an increasingly competitive global industry, [the committee's] approach risks limiting investment and harming the UK talent of the future, when what we need is a supportive regulatory environment in which British recorded music can thrive”. 

That said, she concludes, “We’ve engaged fully with the streaming inquiry and the ensuing working groups from the start, and we will now actively contribute to the Creator Remuneration Working Group also”. 

The Council Of Music Makers, which brings together organisations representing artists, musicians, songwriters, studio producers and their managers, says, “We welcome this new report from the Culture, Media & Sport Select Committee, which is timely given that next week the government convened Creator Remuneration Working Group will meet for the first time. It's almost three years since the Committee called for a "complete reset" of streaming, and yet none of the issues around music-maker remuneration have been discussed, let alone addressed”. 

Noting that MPs “expect to see tangible steps to improve musicians’ remuneration and performer rights in the next twelve months”, CMM adds, “For this to happen we need stakeholders from across the music industry to stop denying reality and to, instead, come to the table with solutions, whether that’s the copyright reforms proposed by MPs or a negotiated agreement. We look forward to discussing those proposals next week”. 

There are other interesting topics covered in the new report.

FKP Scorpio Entertainment // Head of Marketing (London)

FKP Scorpio Entertainment // Ticketing Manager (London)

FKP Scorpio Entertainment // Social Media Manager (London)

foundation.fm // Account Manager (London)

Horizon is CMU's new weekly newsletter - published each Friday - that brings you a hand-picked selection of early-stage career opportunities from across the music industry.

Whether you're looking for your first job in music or you're ready to take a step up, Horizon is here to help you find your dream job faster.

👉 Click through to see the current selection.

ONE LINERS

Glastonbury, Benga, TF Entertainment + more

DEALS

Universal Music has agreed a partnership with Chinese pop music company TF Entertainment which will see the major label handle global distribution for the firm. “We're THRILLED to embark on this partnership with TF Entertainment, paving the way for iconic C-pop groups like TFBOYS and Teens In Times to captivate audiences worldwide”, says Universal Music Greater China CEO Timothy Xu. “This alliance underscores our dedication to elevating Chinese pop music to global acclaim, both culturally and commercially. It also provides a unique opportunity to advance our superfan strategy, offering fans around the world access to distinctive cultural experiences”.

APPOINTMENTS

AI mixing and mastering startup RoEx has appointed Jason Reed to the newly created role of Head Of Growth And Operations. He joins from the Roundhouse Trust. “I'm excited to be joining RoEx to spearhead a new chapter of growth, working within a team that has profound expertise in audio engineering and machine learning research”, says Reed. “Intelligent audio production tools such as Automix can serve as collaborators to support and enrich musicians’ and producers’ creative processes”.

LABELS 

Music Canada has published a new report on the Canadian music streaming market, authored by economist Will Page - in particular looking at the popularity of homegrown artists on streaming platforms. The report will be used to inform Music Canada’s lobbying around the implementation of the Online Streaming Act in the country. “In a world where fans can listen to any artist, from any country in the world, and with nearly every recorded song at their fingertips, listeners are choosing Canadian music”, says Music Canada CEO Patrick Rogers. “Our regulatory framework should build on streaming’s ability to connect Canadian and indigenous artists with fans at home and abroad”. Download the report here. 

LABELS

Armada Music has relaunched King Street Sounds following its recent acquisition of the dance music label. As well as a new visual identity, the refreshed label also offers a new package of remixes and a documentary on its history. 

ARTIST NEWS

British producer Benga has announced that he has had to pull out of planned tour dates with Skream in the US due to a “snag” with his visa. This includes a performance at this weekend’s Coachella festival. Skream will play the dates solo.

GIGS & FESTIVALS

Glastonbury has announced the resale dates for the “very limited” number of returned tickets for this year’s festival. Ticket and coach travel bundles will go on sale on Thursday 18 Apr at 6pm, while general admission tickets will be resold on 21 Apr at 9am. More info here. 

Crux will host its first AV music festival at London’s Rich Mix this weekend. There will be performances from The Light Surgeons, AJA, Waterflower and Parallel Action, as well as panels, workshops and jam sessions. More info here.

RELEASES

Noga Erez has released her second new track of the year, ‘Vandalism’. 

Girl Ultra has put out new track ‘Rimel’, her first for Big Dada. 

‘Liberty Print’ is the latest single from Camera Obscura. It’s taken from upcoming album ‘Look To The East, Look To The West’, which is out on 3 May. 

The Lemon Twigs have shared new single ‘How Can I Love Her More?’ Their latest album ‘A Dream Is All We Know’ is out on 3 May. 

Dea Matrona have offered up ‘Every Night I Want You’, the third single from their debut album ‘For Your Sins’. That album’s out on 3 May. 

HighSchool have released new single ‘She Took You To Narnia’. Their second EP ‘Accelerator’ is out on 19 Apr. 

Ahead of the release of new album ‘Omni’ on 3 May, Douglas Dare has released its latest single ‘Three Roads’. 

O. have released new single ‘176’. Their debut album ‘WeirdOs’ is out on 21 Jun. 

Op-ed: Forget AI vocal clones - the real impact of AI in music is personalised discovery

AI is already changing the music industry - but those changes are not being driven by fakes and cloned voices says Duetti CEO and co-founder Lior Tibon. The real impacts are coming as turbo-charged AI assisted algorithm-driven personalised discovery changes the way people find and consume music.

According to proprietary research conducted by catalogue acquisition company Duetti, which recently raised $90 million of new funding, show that over the last six months algorithmically originated streaming on Spotify grew by over 10%, while editorial driven streams are down by over 20%.

For over a year the music industry has been engaged in a very public, vocal and often polarising debate on the implications AI might have on music. In April 2023, a “fake Drake” track started trending around the world, becoming headline news before being swiftly taken down by streaming services. The focus of that debate was multifaceted and complex, encompassing copyright infringement, the moral ethical and legal implications of cloning an artist’s voice and musical style, and more. While all of these topics are clearly important, the current debate is not focused on the more important and immediate impacts of AI on music. 

In fact, AI’s most significant impact on music in the foreseeable future will be less in terms of changing the fundamentals of music creation. Instead - AI will hyper-accelerate the ongoing gradual shift to more personalised discovery of music by fans, by making the existing discovery algorithms of the various platforms much more sophisticated and much more customised to the tastes of individual listeners.

WIN renews shared values of the independent music community

The World Independent Network - which brings together organisations representing independent music companies around the world - has updated its ten core principles, setting out demands, ambitions and objectives for stakeholders across the music industry, as well as for governments and lawmakers. 

Ensuring “full market access and the best terms available” for all independent music businesses is a key priority, alongside calls for strong copyright protection, effective collective licensing, fair deals between labels and artists, and ongoing work to facilitate a diverse and sustainable sector.   

First published in 2012, the Global Independent Values have been renewed following consultation with the organisation's member trade bodies from around the world and the independent music companies they represent. 

“Grounded in principles of fairness, transparency and innovation, these values underscore WIN’s unwavering commitment to upholding what it means to be independent and what we defend as a sector”, says WIN CEO Noemí Planas. “Through cooperation and unity, we are ready to overcome the challenges and seize the many opportunities that lie ahead”.

Previously known as the Global Independent Standard, several of the stated values remain the same, although a number have been removed or consolidated, while there are new additions too. 

Among the changes, pledges to provide and call for transparency in different areas of the industry now make up one single point on the list. Support for the “creation of a worldwide track-level sound recording rights database” has also been removed. This makes way for stronger pledges on ethics, diversity and sustainability. 

WIN’s Chair Zena White says, "Our sector is diverse and dynamic in how it does business, yet connected by its purposeful investment in music. WIN's Global Independent Values are the standards that unite our members, which they hold themselves to whilst working together for a stronger, more level playing field”.

Setlist Podcast: Make big shows fund grassroots music, politicians told

Chris Cooke and Andy Malt discuss UK Parliament's Culture, Media & Sport Select Committee's hearing on the grassroots live music crisis, the Nirvana logo legal battle's return to court, and more. 

🎧 Click here to listen - or search for 'Setlist Podcast'

Transparency obligation for AI companies proposed in US Congress

US Congress member Adam Schiff has proposed a new law that would force AI companies to disclose what copyright protected works they have used to train their generative AI models. The obligation would apply to existing and future models, and failure to comply would result in fines. The proposals have been widely welcomed by the music industry, with the RIAA applauding what it sees as a solution to an “urgent and foundational issue”.

“AI has the disruptive potential of changing our economy, our political system, and our day-to-day lives”, says Schiff, a Democrat member of the House Of Representatives. "We must balance the immense potential of AI with the crucial need for ethical guidelines and protections”. 

“My Generative AI Copyright Disclosure Act is a pivotal step in this direction”, he adds. “It champions innovation while safeguarding the rights and contributions of creators, ensuring they are aware when their work contributes to AI training datasets. This is about respecting creativity in the age of AI and marrying technological progress with fairness”. 

There is an ongoing dispute over the obligations of AI companies that use existing content to train their models which has resulted in lots of litigation and lobbying. 

The creative industries - including the music industry - have two main demands, that AI companies must get permission before using any content as part of their training processes, and that they must also declare what content and data has been used. Obviously, without the transparency obligation, copyright owners wouldn't know which AI companies require a licence. 

The creative industries insist that current copyright law obliges AI companies to get permission to train their models with copyright protected works. Many AI companies do not agree and various lawsuits are underway which will see the courts interpret what the law says in this domain. However, regarding the transparency obligations, that will probably require new rules. For example, the recently passed EU AI Act does include some transparency provisions. 

Schiff's proposals would insert a transparency obligation into US law. AI companies would be obliged to submit a full list of all copyright protected works used to train an AI model with the US Copyright Office no later than 30 days before making the model available to the public. 

A wide assortment of organisations representing the creative and copyright industries are backing the proposals, including - in music - the Recording Industry Association Of America, Society Of Composers And Lyricists, National Music Publishers Association, Recording Academy, Nashville Songwriters Association International, Songwriters Of North America, Black Music Action Coalition, Music Artist Coalition, the American Association Of Independent Music, and collecting society ASCAP. 

Says RIAA Chief Legal Officer Ken Doroshow, “Any effective regulatory regime for AI must start with one of the most fundamental building blocks of effective enforcement of creators’ rights - comprehensive and transparent record-keeping. RIAA applauds Congressman Schiff for leading on this urgent and foundational issue”.