In today's CMU Daily: Manchester’s Night Time Economy Advisor and Parklife Festival founder Sacha Lord recently threatened to sue online publication The Manchester Mill after they alleged wrongdoing relating to an Arts Council funding application. He’s now withdrawn that threat - for now at least - while he “fully cooperates” with Arts Council and GMCA investigations into the funding bid

One Liners: Kavi publishing deal; Tokischa launches label; EMMA + beatBread; Runway and GESAC appointments; Ivors winners; new music from Skrillex, Eli & Fur, Melt-Banana, Maxïmo Park, Don Toliver and Moby

Also today: Live Nation has now settled all ten of the Astroworld wrongful death lawsuits; AIF warns 100 festivals could disappear without VAT cut on tickets; Leadmill operators claim legal win after eviction hearing is adjourned

Parklife founder Sacha Lord under pressure as Arts Council and GMCA launch investigations into COVID funding

Sacha Lord, Greater Manchester’s Night Time Economy Advisor, Chair of the Night Time Industries Association, and founder of Manchester’s Warehouse Project and Parklife Festival (both now majority owned by Live Nation), has announced that he has withdrawn his threat to sue the Manchester Mill for defamation following a series of damning allegations by the publication. 

The allegations - which were first published on 16 May - relate to a COVID Culture Recovery Fund application submitted by a company called Primary Event Solutions Limited, of which Lord was a director and shareholder. 

In a document sent to and published by The Mill last week, solicitors acting for Lord note that they are “instructed by our client in respect of a claim against you for libel arising from the publication of an article on The Mill website dated 16 May 2024 entitled: ‘Exclusive Did Sacha Lord cheat his way to £400,000 of public money during the pandemic?’” That evening Lord pulled out of a keynote address that he was due to deliver at The Great Escape in Brighton. 

The law firm acting for Lord demanded that The Mill remove its article and publish an apology by 4pm on Tuesday 21 May. 

The Mill refused - and instead doubled down on its investigation, making a call for its readers to engage in a “community fact check” of the Arts Council application from Primary Event Solutions, which it had obtained as part of a freedom of information request, publishing the document on its website for people to scrutinise. 

By 2pm the following day - Wednesday 22 May - Arts Council England contacted The Mill to confirm that it would be “conducting additional checks on the application from Primary Event Solutions”. This was fairly quickly followed by a statement from the Greater Manchester Combined Authority which said that, “based on new information” that it had received, it would also begin its own “factfinding exercise”. The GMCA is headed up by mayor Andy Burnham, who appointed Lord as Night Time Economy Advisor.

By this morning Lord had withdrawn his threat to sue The Mill for libel and said that he will “fully cooperate” with the Arts Council and GMCA investigations. 

In his lengthy 1500 word statement saying that he would not, after all, be suing The Mill, Lord said that the publication had “alleged that Primary Event Solutions Limited deliberately lied in its Culture Recovery Fund application, that I am a dishonest person, and that I have misused over £400,000 of public money”. Those allegations, Lord continued, “are all false”, going on to say that he believes that The Mill’s allegations are “based on a misunderstanding as to the nature of the Culture Recovery Fund”.

A key part of the Culture Recovery Fund was to safeguard not only public and audience facing companies in the cultural sector, but also the crucial supply chain on which those companies rely. Indeed, in its own guidance, the Arts Council made the point that a “supply chain haulage company is unlikely to undertake substantial audience facing activity” but might, nonetheless, be eligible for CRF funding. 

Primary Event Solutions Limited had changed its name from Primary Security Limited on Monday 19 Oct 2020. Notably this was the first working day after the date Arts Council had said that it would let applications for the second round of its first Culture Recovery Fund grants programme know if their application had succeeded. 

The Warehouse Project (Manchester) Limited - another company associated with Lord, though majority owned by Live Nation - had successfully been awarded £340,381 as part of the first round of CRF funding.

In its application, PES said, “Our request to CRF is only £480,072” which would allow it to “bridge” the period April to June 2021 (the specific period set by Arts Council and the government for CRF funding) as well as allowing it to “pay debts and invest in means to generate income”.

Those debts - according to details in the ACE application - may have included a Bounce Back Loan of £50,000 and deferred VAT of £85,000, as well as £36,000 in deferred rent owed to its landlord. Though, on that one, The Mill has some interesting points to make.

In December 2022 the company extended its accounting period, meaning that the accounts for the year ending 31 Mar 2022 - which would have been due on 31 Dec 2022 - would cover the period up to 30 Sep 2022, the eighteen month maximum allowed under company regulations in the UK, and an extraordinary measure that is only permitted under company law once every five years. 

With that set of accounts due to be filed no later than nine months following the end of the accounting period, accounts should have been filed with Companies House on 30 Jun 2023. That didn’t happen, and on 29 Aug last year the Registrar Of Companies made an application to strike the company off the register. By 11 Sep 2023 liquidators were appointed to wind up the company, and a couple of weeks later they published a statement of affairs showing that the company had just £1000 in its bank account but owed just under £67,000 in VAT and had a balance of £32,253 remaining on its Bounce Back Loan. 

Concluding his three page “public statement” on his decision not to sue The Mill, Lord says that despite the “very serious and damaging allegations” made by the publication he has “decided not to pursue legal action for the time being” but that he will “review that position on an ongoing basis”. 

This decision, says Lord, is partly motivated by the knowledge that taking legal action would be a “major distraction” from his “work and family life” but also - apparently very graciously - that he does not wish to “stifle The Mill’s freedom of expression”. Instead, he says, he’s decided that he needs to “move on” and dedicate “time and resources to support the cultural life of Greater Manchester”. 

Quite how much of his time will be required in that respect is uncertain. Two Lib Dem councillors on an important GMCA “overview and scrutiny” committee, and “ten Conservative group leaders across Great Manchester”, have now called for suspension of Lord from his unpaid Night Time Economy advisory role, while the ACE and GMCA investigations run their course. 

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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.

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ONE LINERS

Ivors Awards, Skrillex, Melt-Banana + more

DEALS 

Brandon Silverstein’s S10 Publishing in partnership with Avex USA has signed a worldwide publishing deal with Kavi, a producer on Tommy Richman’s hit ‘Million Dollar Baby’. The producer’s management team, Alix and Benny Negrin of OneWonder, are “THRILLED” about the deal. “We're looking forward to building long-lasting success for Kavi’s career and creating many hits together”, say they.

Warner Music Latina has partnered with Dominican artist Tokischa to launch new record label SOL. The venture will be run by the artist and her manager Angelica Piche within the Warner group. Tokischa will release her own music through the label and also sign other artists. Piche - who is “THRILLED” about the partnership - says the new label “will be a home for misunderstood artists. It’s very important for us to give a voice and a space to people who, like us, started from scratch”. 

The European Music Managers Alliance has announced a new partnership with music funding platform beatBread. EMMA Executive Director Jess Partridge notes the organisation’s recent report that “clearly identified funding and access to finance as one of the most significant barriers facing our sector. It remains vital for Europe’s music entrepreneurs and business builders to be able to unlock new non-traditional sources of finance in order to support the artists, songwriters and talent that they work for. By utilising beatBread’s experience and insights, this partnership marks a significant step to empowering managers and realising that goal”. 

APPOINTMENTS 

Booking agent Louise McGovern has joined the Runway agency, having previously been a senior agent at Midnight Mango. Runway co-founder Matt Hanner says, “We're incredibly excited to have the opportunity to add Louise to our team. She has a real passion for her artists, works incredibly hard for her roster and is evidently a hugely talented agent. Going forward, we’re looking forward to helping Louise continue to grow into the role, as well as having her contribute to Runway’s broader plans around diversity and inclusion”.

David El Sayegh, Deputy CEO of French song rights collecting society SACEM, has been elected as President of GESAC, the organisation that represents songwriter societies across Europe. He is “THRILLED” about the appointment, obviously. He adds, “Our duty is first and foremost to ensure that authors’ rights get the protection they need and European culture continues to flourish regardless of the technology and the business model. For this, we very much rely on the commitment and dedication of EU policy-makers to uphold European rules and values”. 

AWARDS 

The Ivors took place in London yesterday celebrating songwriters and songwriting. Bruce Springsteen was in attendance to receive Fellowship of The Ivors Academy, which was presented to him by previous Fellow Paul McCartney. Other highlights from the full list of winners: Raye won Songwriter Of The Year and the Album Of The Year prize went to Yussef Dayes for ‘Black Classical Music’. 

NEW RELEASES

Skrillex has released new single ‘Push’, featuring Hamdi and Taichu. 

Eli & Fur have announced that they will release their second album ‘Dreamscapes’ via [PIAS] Électronique on 27 Sep. Here is new single ‘Golden Eyes and Tears’.

Melt-Banana will release new album ‘3 + 5’ on 23 Aug. An album announcement says that, while there is no official explanation of the record’s title, you should note that three and five are both prime numbers, and “prime numbers symbolise mathematical integrity and independence, which could represent Melt-Banana’s uniqueness and freedom. Why ‘3 + 5’ and not ‘1 + 7’? That's left for you to ponder”. Maybe it’s because mathematicians these days don’t generally consider one to be a prime number. I don’t know. Either way, here's a promo video for the album to watch while you do your own mathematical pondering. 

Maxïmo Park will release new album ‘Stream Of Life’ on 27 Sep via Lower Third. Here’s lead single ‘Your Own Worst Enemy’.

Don Toliver has a new single featuring Charlie Wilson and Cash Cobain, it’s called ‘Attitude’ and is out in advance of his album Hardstone Psycho, due 14 Jun. 

Moby has posted a video for ‘Where Is Your Pride?’, a collaboration with the late Benjamin Zephaniah. The video, which has been approved by Zephaniah’s family, is a celebration of his life’s work. The track appears on Moby’s new album ‘Always Centered At Night’, out on 14 Jun.

Live Nation settles final Astroworld wrongful death lawsuit, thousands of injury claims remain

Live Nation has now settled all ten of the wrongful death lawsuits that were filed in the wake of the 2021 Astroworld tragedy. The final settlement was announced yesterday. Terms of the settlement deals are not known, although - in an Astroworld litigation update contained in an SEC filing earlier this month - Live Nation listed $186 million in “estimated probable losses in excess of our expected probable insurance recoveries”. 

The final wrongful death lawsuit to be settled involved the family of Ezra Blount, who was just nine years old when he was killed in the fatal crowd surge that occurred during the headline set of festival founder Travis Scott. The family’s lawyer, Alex Hilliard, announced that a settlement deal had been reached, telling Law360, “The parties will cooperate in the future to honour Ezra Blount’s legacy and promote improvement in concert safety”. 

Live Nation, Travis Scott and various other entities involved in Astroworld were sued in the wake of the crowd surge tragedy, both by the families of the ten festival-goers who died, and by thousands more people who were injured during the incident. The lawsuits claimed that failings by those involved in organising the festival, both before and during the event, contributed to the crowd control issues that resulted in the fatal surge. 

Settling the wrongful death lawsuits was obviously a priority for Live Nation’s lawyers, with the first two settlements being confirmed in October 2022. Then, in an SEC filing earlier this year, Live Nation said six of those cases had been settled. 

One of the remaining four cases, involving the family of Madison Dubiski, was due to reach trial earlier this month, but was delayed because of legal wrangling by Apple. It was named as a defendant because it livestreamed Scott's Astroworld set, but presented various arguments as to why it should be removed from the lawsuit. When the judge overseeing the case rejected those arguments, Apple took the matter to appeal, putting the whole trial on hold. 

Before a new trial date could be set, it was announced that more settlements had been agreed, including with the Dubiski family. That put the spotlight very much on the Blount family’s lawsuit. The court then said that case should get to trial in September. But not now it’s been settled. 

With all the wrongful death lawsuits now dealt with, there remains the matter of the injury claims. About 2400 of those are still reportedly pending. Lawyers working on those lawsuits previously said they were prepared to take a group of their cases to trial later this year if the Blount wrongful death action was settled. 

Live Nation has been providing brief updates for investors on the Astroworld litigation in its filings with the US Securities & Exchange Commission, including providing estimates on any potential costs in relation to the lawsuits that are not covered by the live giant’s insurance. 

In its most recent filing on 2 May, reporting figures for the first quarter of 2024, it stated, “During the three month period ending, and subsequent to, 31 Mar 2024, we settled certain lawsuits and began settlement discussions in earnest with certain remaining parties”. 

“As a result”, it added, “we have recognised $186 million in the first quarter within selling, general and administrative expenses for the estimated probable losses in excess of our expected probable insurance recoveries”.

That estimate, it added, “may prove to be incomplete or inaccurate”, or “unanticipated events and circumstances” might require the company “to change those estimates and assumptions or recognise additional losses". With that in mind, it concluded, “The amount of additional liability, if any, that may result from these or related matters cannot be estimated at this time”. 

100 festivals will close without VAT cut warns AIF

The UK’s Association Of Independent Festivals is now predicting that over 100 festivals will disappear this year unless the government introduces additional support via VAT relief.

The trade body made that prediction yesterday as the number of UK events to postpone, cancel or close down this year reached 40. 

The latest to cancel is the El Dorado Festival inHerefordshire. It announced its cancellation earlier this week citing “a dramatic rise in operational costs… compounded by the impact of the increased cost of living on the festival industry and our community”.

AIF has repeatedly called on the UK government to cut the VAT on tickets from 20% to 5% in order to provide a buffer for festival promoters who have been dealing with surging production costs and the cost of living crisis ever since the end of the COVID lockdowns.

In a new statement yesterday, AIF said, “With 96 events lost to COVID, 36 in 2023 and 40 to date in 2024, the total number of UK festivals to have disappeared since 2019 is 172. Without having had a single steady season since the pandemic in which to recover, the country’s festivals are under more financial strain than ever”.

The organisation’s CEO John Rostron added: “We are witnessing the steady erosion of one of the UK’s most successful and culturally significant industries not because of a lack of demand from the public but because of unpredictable, unsustainable supply chain costs and market fluctuations”.

Repeating AIF’s request for government support, he continued, “In asking for a temporary reduction in VAT related to ticket sales, we have provided government with a considered, targeted and sensible solution, which would save this important sector. We need action now”.

The Leadmill team claim legal win following adjournment of eviction case

The management team at Sheffield venue The Leadmill posted an update yesterday on their legal battle with their landlords The Electric Group. The dispute reached Leeds Business & Property Court earlier this week, but was adjourned at the request of lawyers working for the current management team. 

Taking that adjournment as a win, the venue posted on social media, “We have won our first battle in court and taken one step closer in our bid for survival in the eviction battle against the landlord, with the judge saying he believed we had ‘a real prospect of success’”. 

The Electric Group - which runs a small network of venues around the UK - wants to take over the direct management of The Leadmill, having acquired the building that houses the venue in 2016. The current management team, headed up by Phil Mills, have refused to leave, despite their lease expiring, resulting in the eviction proceedings that reached court this week. 

At the very least, the adjournment of the eviction case means Mills can continue operating the venue in the short term. Had there been a ruling in The Electric Group's favour this week, it could have had control of the building within three months. 

When discussing the proposed adjournment - justified on the basis that the dispute needed more court time than originally scheduled - lawyers for The Electric Group said that that could push the whole thing back to summer 2025. 

However, the judge, when granting the adjournment, said that he wanted the case to be heard as quickly as possible, and later this year is seemingly now an option. 

The social media post from Mills’ team also compares statements shared with the court by The Electric Group and its CEO Dominic Madden to previous comments made in the media. 

It claims that, while Madden has previously stated that - once in control of the building - he intends to retain the venue’s current staff and continue to support various community projects that utilise the venue, a witness statement says otherwise. 

“Our staff were at the hearing”, the post states, “and were shocked to hear the news that Dominic Madden is intending to destroy their livelihoods”. 

“Madden also confirmed”, it goes on, “that he would be evicting our upstairs studio workshop users if he succeeds, putting an end to the tenancies of those still working from The Leadmill, including the artist who has been in residence for 38 years, as well as the charitable and socially beneficial organisations and start-up businesses, which The Leadmill has nurtured throughout our time at the premises”.

The Electric Group is in a somewhat tricky position, being simultaneously criticised by Mills of threatening the future of an important grassroots music venue, but also of unfairly exploiting goodwill built up by Mills and his team by continuing to operate a grassroots music venue in the Leadmill building. 

The unfair exploitation of goodwill was a key part of the legal arguments presented by Mills’ lawyers earlier this week, who claimed that that unfair exploitation breaches human rights law.

If The Electric Group successfully evicts Mills, an entirely new business will take over the management of the building, which would also undergo a refurbishment. And that would definitely have an impact on staff and users of the studio workshop. 

However, it’s thought that the intent remains for The Electric Group to run a venue with a similar ethos to the current Leadmill operation, and that it would ultimately seek to reemploy current staff and reengage the community groups currently connected to the venue. 

Either way, in the months ahead, Mills and his team intend to continue their fight to stay in the building. Their social media post continues, “In light of the human rights arguments that are now being considered, this case does not just involve The Leadmill. There are one and a half million business tenants in the UK who are at risk of having the goodwill of their business expropriated, their employees’ livelihoods terminated”. 

It concludes, “The Leadmill intends to ensure that the law recognises such actions are not only a violation of the well-established principles of human rights law, but that the next government takes steps to prevent such morally bankrupt business methods from occurring in the future”.