In today's CMU Daily: Warner Music boss Robert Kyncl wants to increase his company’s market share through acquisition and has hired a new executive, Michael Ryan-Southern from Goldman Sachs, to oversee that work. Finding a distribution business to buy is part of the plan, following Warner’s unsuccessful bid for Believe, and that could include a DIY distributor like CD Baby or Distrokid

One Liners: CTS Eventim, DDEX deals; CAA, PRS Foundation, Concord, Gamma appointments; CMRRA royalties; Black Keys management split; Idles scholarship; Rick Ross, Aurora live dates; new releases from Billie Eilish, Raye, Noga Erez, Taahliah, Isabella Lovestory, Big Woes

Also today: Universal Music wants to dismiss a lawsuit over who wrote Tupac’s ‘Dear Mama’, claiming that the producer who filed the litigation is being unreasonable; Twitch unveils its new licensed DJ streaming programme

Warner hires new acquisitions chief, looking for distributors to buy

Warner Music is now looking for another music distribution company to buy, having failed in its bid to acquire Believe earlier this year. So if you happen to have a music distribution company sitting in the back of your cupboard, now might be the time to dust it off. The major has even hired itself a dashing banker to engineer a deal. 

Sources who have spoken to Billboard say that DIY distributors CD Baby and Distrokid are on the official consideration list. Both Universal Music and Sony Music previously backed away from offering basic digital distribution to any grassroots artist that wants it, and Warner - despite having invested in building its own platform a few years back - never really promoted the service. 

Meanwhile, the majors have recently been pushing changes that demote and demonetise grassroots artists on the streaming platforms. And those artists make up a decent portion of the client base of distributors like CD Baby and Distrokid. 

The banker hired by Warner to lead a proactive acquisition strategy is Michael Ryan-Southern, most recently Global Head Of Music & Live Entertainment Investment Banking at Goldman Sachs. Ryan-Southern will join the major in August as EVP Corporate Development, reporting directly into boss man Robert Kyncl. 

“The market is filled with opportunities, in both recorded music and music publishing, and across different geographies”, says Kyncl. “We’re bullish on the long-term value of music, and having someone with Michael’s domain expertise and wide-ranging network run point on mergers and acquisitions will supercharge our efforts”.

Ryan-Southern - or ‘MRS’ as he’s referred to in the official statement, in weirdly informal finance bro-ese - is “excited by Robert and the team’s vision for the company”. Warner's “entrepreneurial spirit and tech-forward approach make it a tremendously welcoming environment for both artistic creativity and business innovation”, he adds. 

Since becoming Warner Music CEO at the start of 2023, Kyncl has often talked up the value, for artists, of working with a major player that can use its market power to pursue and secure the best deals and opportunities in an always evolving music market. 

Though Warner is, of course, considerably smaller than main rivals Universal and Sony in terms of market share, so an aggressive acquisition strategy makes sense. With Sony Music boss Rob Stringer talking up his company’s own M&A ambitions in a recent session with investors, a strong M&A strategy is not only sensible for Warner, but something that may be essential for it to keep pace and maintain its market share.

The most recent big bid as part of that strategy, to acquire French distribution and artist services company Believe, was bombastic if ambitious. Warner went up against Believe founder Denis Ladegaillerie and his private equity backers, who had already announced a plan to take the Paris stock exchange listed company back into private ownership. 

Given the control Ladegaillerie and his backers have over Believe, a hostile takeover by Warner would always have been tricky, and - as CMU noted at the time - a Believe acquisition would have wiped out the major’s cash reserves. Plus a combination of Warner and Believe may also have raised regulatory issues in France because of competition concerns. Concerns that indie label trade group UPFI raised when the bid was still on the table. 

Ryan-Southern’s remit in his new job is to “identify and acquire companies and catalogues that can enhance Warner Music's growth and earnings”. In a recent investor call, Kyncl confirmed that growing Warner’s distribution and artist services business - currently mainly ADA - remains part of the plan, despite the Believe bid failing. 

Though, does that mean buying distribution businesses that mainly work with indie labels or a DIY distributor that sells services to self-releasing artists? The Believe deal would have brought with it a leading DIY distributor in the shape of Tunecore. Both CD Baby, currently owned by Downtown, and Distrokid are also big players in the DIY distribution space. 

The majors have been involved in DIY distribution in the past. For a time, Universal Music operated a service called Spinnup, which was also meant to be a talent scouting platform for the major’s A&R teams. But that was shut down in 2022. 

In 2021, Sony Music acquired AWAL, which was slightly different, in that artists had to go through an application process, though at times it worked with large numbers of grassroots artists. AWAL does still have an application form any artist can fill out, but it seems to mainly now work with more established acts. 

Warner also plotted a move into DIY distribution, building its own platform called Level, which it quietly launched in 2018. It also had a talent scouting element to it. Level is still operational but has never been particularly promoted by its major label owner. 

Buying CD Baby or Distrokid - if their current owners would consider a sale - would give Warner an immediate sizeable share of the DIY distribution market. There would be logic to such a deal, in terms of overall market share, especially in developing markets, as well as access to data and new talent. Although is DIY distribution where Warner wants to be a dominant player? 

Although Universal has led the charge, all three majors have played their role in pressuring the streaming services to downgrade music uploaded by grassroots artists who are crucial to the success of companies like Distrokid. Meanwhile, as the majors put more pressure on the streaming services to do a better job of tackling streaming fraud, the services pass most of that pressure onto the DIY distributors. Which isn’t necessarily pressure Warner wants to deal with. 

That said, when it comes to higher level distributors - working with more established artists or indie labels - Warner would probably need to undertake a number of smaller standalone acquisitions to boost its market share. Which is more hassle. But surely once super-charged by Ryan-Southern’s “domain expertise and wide-ranging network”, that'll be no problem for the mini-major. 

Solar // Finance Manager (London/Hybrid)

PPL // Events Manager (London Hybrid)

BSI Merch // Digital Content & Campaign Manager (London)

terrible* // Finance Assistant/Bookkeeper (London)

Secretly Distribution // UK Account Relations Director (London)

Republic of Music // Label Manager (Brighton Hybrid)

All Flowers Group // Project 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

CAA, The Black Keys, Raye + more

DEALS

CTS Eventim’s acquisition of Vivendi’s festivals business and See Tickets has completed. The deal - which was originally announced in April - is worth around €300 million. Vivendi’s venues, See Tickets France and the Brive Festival are not part of the deal. 

Music industry data standards organisation DDEX has signed a liaison agreement with US indie label trade body A2IM. It already has similar agreements with AIM in the UK, the Independent Music Coalition Japan and the Worldwide Independent Network. “Our liaison organisations are a vital part of DDEX, providing access to music industry companies that may not wish to become members of DDEX”, says the organisation’s Secretariat Mark Isherwood. “A2IM will be an incredibly valuable asset to our existing members and help advance DDEX standard adoption throughout the music value chain, particularly in the independent music sector”.

Music university BIMM has partnered with Idles to launch the Idles Future Talent Scholarship, covering three years of tuition fees for one student. “We're THRILLED to be a part of this scholarship”, says the band’s drummer Jon Beavis, a former BIMM student himself. “We hope this scholarship allows someone to truly focus on honing their craft. Investing in the next generation of artists is important”.

APPOINTMENTS

Booking agency CAA have promoted Emma Banks, Darryl Eaton and Rick Roskin to become co-Heads of Global Touring. “With the most talented team of agents ever at one agency, and serving the most influential artists in the world, we see unlimited opportunities ahead”, say the trio. “The live business has never been stronger nor had more momentum, and artists have never had more ways to express themselves and grow their careers, making this an absolutely incredible time to help chart CAA’s path for the future”.

The PRS Foundation has appointed Susannah Simons as its interim Chair. “Susannah has always been a huge advocate for the Foundation even before joining the board officially and her experience and understanding of the sector has made a huge contribution to steering the charity already”, says CEO Joe Frankland. “I very much look forward to working with Susannah in her new role over the coming months and as we look to recruit a permanent Chair”.

The Edinburgh International Festival has appointed Nicolas Zekulin as Head Of Music Programme and Paul Sharp as Head Of Artistic Management ahead of this year’s event. “I am delighted”, says Sharp. “I am THRILLED”, says Zekulin. 

Concord Music Publishing has hired Adam Salomon as Senior Director of A&R. He joins from Chosen Music. “I feel THRILLED and privileged to become a part of the Concord family”, he says. “Concord's roster is one of the most dynamic and exciting in the industry, and I am eager to contribute to their ongoing success and legacy”.

Gamma has named Lionel Ridenour as EVP Promotion. He joins from his own Anchor Promotions company, which has worked with the music and content company for a number of years. “Early into the formation of Gamma, we oftentimes heard the critique that one of the things we would be challenged to deliver on is radio promotion, for any artist at the highest level. So we challenged ourselves to roll up our sleeves and debunk that theory”, says CEO Larry Jackson. “And it's because of Lionel, his staff and our efficient spend in this area that we now have such an unbelievably strong radio market share for a company that’s only a year old”.

MUSIC PUBLISHING 

The Canadian Musical Reproduction Rights Agency,or CMRRA to its friends, has announced that it distributed more than $78 million in 2023. The agency represents the mechanical rights of music publishers in Canada. “We’re THRILLED to have processed and distributed over $78 million dollars of mechanical royalties to our music publisher and self-published songwriter clients last year”, says President Paul Shaver. “We are witnessing a significant uptick in music consumption, a trend that highlights the vibrancy and vitality of the industry, and which also emphasises the growing demand for music across global audiences”.

ARTIST NEWS 

The Black Keys have split from their managers Irving Azoff and Steve Moir of Full Stop Management. A spokesperson for Azoff told Rolling Stone that it was an “amicable parting”. Last week, the duo cancelled US tour dates set to begin in September.

LIVE

Rick Ross will play IndigO2 in London on 4 Aug. Tickets go on general sale on 14 Jun. 

Aurora has announced that she will play Wembley Arena on 3 May 2025. Tickets go on general sale on 12 Jun. Her new album ‘What Happened To The Heart?’ is out today. 

RELEASES

Billie Eilish has released the video for ‘Chihiro’ from her latest album ‘Hit Me Hard And Soft’. 

Raye has released new single ‘Genesis’. 

Noga Erez will release her third album ‘The Vandalist’ on 20 Sep. Out now is new single ‘PC People’.

Taahliah has released new single ‘Boys’. 

Isabella Lovestory has released new single ‘VIP’. 

Big Woes have released their debut single ‘Small Business Man’.

Check out all the new music we covered this week on this Spotify playlist.

Universal wants Tupac ‘Dear Mama’ rights dispute dismissed

Universal Music has begun the process of seeking dismissal of a lawsuit filed over who wrote and controls the publishing in the 1995 Tupac Shakur track ‘Dear Mama’. 

The litigation had been paused to allow mediation. However, the major says the producer behind the lawsuit - Terence Thomas aka Master Tee - is now being unreasonable in his demands, so it wants to restart the proceedings so it can file a formal motion for dismissal. 

Universal record label Interscope and Universal Music Publishing are named as defendants in the case, alongside some other music publishers, various media companies involved in the 2023 ‘Dear Mama’ documentary TV series, and producer Tony D Pizzaro. The dispute is really a beef between Thomas and Pizzaro relating to events that allegedly happened in the 1990s. 

In a new letter to the court, Universal says that it agreed to take the dispute to mediation after Thomas’s lawyer said his client simply wanted “formal credit” for his involvement in writing and producing ‘Dear Mama’ and “a modest writer’s royalty”. But then an email arrived proposing either a “$1.6 million cash settlement” or “a $200,000 cash settlement, an award of a 15% writer’s royalty for ‘Dear Mama’ and a doubling of his producer royalty”. 

That proposal, insists Universal, is “pure fantasy”, adding that “a 15% writer’s royalty would be nearly twice the Shakur estate’s 8.33% royalty”. 

Thomas claims that he “co-wrote, produced and published” the music in ‘Dear Mama’ in 1993, which then prompted Shakur to write the lyrics in “a single one hour epiphany”. His lawsuit, filed last year, includes a note allegedly handwritten by Shakur at the end of his 1993 recording sessions which lists Thomas as producer of the track. 

However, Thomas says, he was never properly credited because Pizarro - then an “upstart music producer” - “conspired with executives at Interscope Records and Universal Music” to hide his involvement, allowing Pizarro to claim the credit and glory. 

Then, the lawsuit continues, “having stolen from Master Tee the provenance of what became one of the most iconic pieces of hip hop culture”, Pizarro “catapulted himself and engineered his grand reputation” within the music business. 

Core to Universal’s motion for dismissal - when it is filed - will be the argument that Thomas has left it far too long to start squabbling over his role in creating a track that was released in 1995. 

Thomas claims that all the devious stuff involving Pizarro and Interscope happened while Shakur was in jail and he had no knowledge of what was going on. It was only after watching the ‘Dear Mama’ documentary series that he discovered what had happened. 

He also says he was receiving royalties from collecting society BMI in relation to his work with Shakur and, being a “relatively unsophisticated producer”, didn't realise that he had been frozen out of other income generated by ‘Dear Mama’. 

But Universal argues that, by Thomas’s own admission, “Pizarro has touted himself as the writer of ‘Dear Mama’ for years”. Indeed, Thomas’s lawsuit notes how “Pizarro took every opportunity possible in public forums, websites, social media, Pizarro’s own public relations forums and interviews to lay claim to every aspect of the written creative work associated with ‘Dear Mama’”. Therefore Thomas should have been aware of and dealt with this dispute decades ago. 

Universal’s letter also says that the mediation process will be more expensive than simply filing a motion for dismissal, and it doesn’t want to incur those costs given Thomas’s unreasonable demands. Plus Pizarro himself has not yet been involved in the legal back and forth, and it’s not even clear that he has been served legal papers. Given Thomas says Pizarro is “the real wrongdoer”, it's hard to see how the case can be settled without his involvement. 

To that end, Universal asks the court to “vacate the standstill order” that paused Thomas’s litigation, so it can file its motion for dismissal. 

Setlist Podcast: It’s been a bad week to be Live Nation

In this week's Setlist Podcast: Chris Cooke and Andy Malt discuss the US government’s legal action against Live Nation that seeks to force it to sell off Ticketmaster, ticket touts’ plans to fight the Labour Party’s proposed 10% price cap on the resale of tickets, and more.

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

Twitch launches licensed DJ Program 

Amazon-owned livestreaming platform Twitch has announced the launch of a new scheme for DJs backed by the major record companies and hundreds of indie labels. It means DJs will be able to livestream sets via the platform featuring “the vast majority of popular music” without running into copyright issues with the record industry. 

“DJs have a special place on Twitch”, says an official blog post, which reveals that - since the surge in livestreamed DJ sets during the COVID pandemic in 2020 - the number of DJs on the platform has “more than quadrupled, and tens of thousands have been able to build and monetise communities of music fans here”. 

However, DJs are obviously playing other people’s music and licences are required to do that. “DJs have historically faced serious challenges on the internet”, the blog post notes, and the new Twitch DJ Program is the way to address those challenges, it adds. 

For a time Twitch found itself at the top of the record industry’s gripe list because of all the unlicensed music included in livestreams on the platform. The record companies started issuing a flood of takedown notices, forcing Twitch to act, which in turn negatively impacted on its creators. Which successfully got the Amazon company to the negotiating table. 

The flood of takedown notices was paused while licensing talks proceeded, with CEO Dan Clancy indicating that deals were close to being done in a recent interview. The DJ Program is part of all that. 

Although the blog post doesn't provide many specifics, Twitch’s deals with the record companies will basically see a share of any revenue generated by any one DJ channel paid over to the music industry. Both Twitch and the DJ will contribute.

“For most streamers”, the post continues, “Twitch will be splitting these costs 50/50 with the streamer, although initially Twitch will absorb more of the cost”. Where DJs are not monetising their Twitch streams, the platform will cover any licensing costs. 

Twitch says that its DJ users have told the company that they want the artists whose music they play to get paid, but that previously there has been no easy licensing option when DJ sets are streamed. Although, for any DJs not happy about now having to share some of their Twitch income with the music industry, the livestreaming platform has a pretty stern message. 

“It’s crucial that DJs understand the status quo on Twitch was not sustainable”, it writes. Without the new scheme, DJs using the platform to play third party music would risk receiving takedown notices and “copyright penalties” which “could restrict their ability to stream on Twitch”.