1. Consumer Data Shows Old Ways Still Most Profitable, SXSW Panel Says

    March 14, 2013 10:19 PM EDT 8 34 75 4 0 In a panel led by representatives of EMI’s Global Insights department at SXSW Thursday, researchers poured cold water on what you might call the irrational exuberance of the digital music industry (not to mention SXSW attendants).   Independen ...

  2. SXSW Panel: Pitchfork’s Schreiber, Hollywood Bowl’s Rees, and More on State of Music Curation

    March 14, 2013 10:07 PM EDT With more ways than ever to discover, consume and create music, those who excel at filtering the flood are enjoying increasing amounts of capital -- both cultural and financial. Fenway Recordings founder Mark Kates gathered a team of influential ...

  3. Spotify, Rdio, Xbox Music Reps Debates the Merits of Subscription Music Streaming at SXSW

    March 14, 2013 8:26 PM EDT With the rapid growth of platforms like Spotify and Deezer -- and white hot rumors of competing offerings emanating from the likes of Apple and Google -- it’s no surprise that the rise of music streaming subscription services is some of the most ...

  4. Dave Grohl's SXSW Keynote Urges Artists to Find Their Voice, Chides Negativity

    March 14, 2013 4:33 PM EDT “The musician comes first” was Dave Grohl’s mantra during his keynote speech Thursday at South By Southwest, an engaging and carefully prepared 45 minutes that encouraged up and coming artists to protect their independence and creative visions f ...

  5. Backbeat: Billboard and Spotify's Live Showcase Has 'Harlem Shake' Moneymakers, Kendrick Lamar

    March 14, 2013 3:28 PM EDT Billboard and Spotify presented Spotify Live Wednesday night at the 1100 Warehouse located directly across the street from the Fader Fort. That’s where headliner Kendrick Lamar made a surprise appearance at the end of Ab-Soul and Schoolboy Q’s s ...

  6. Backbeat: Enabler PR, Don Giovanni, Sacred Bones and Suicide Squeeze Team for Holy Mountain Showcase in Austin

    March 14, 2013 1:14 PM EDT Last night, Enabler PR teamed up with indie labels Don Giovanni Records , Suicide Squeeze Records , and Sacred Bones for their official showcase at Holy Mountain. The night's eclectic lineup -- including singer-songwriter Laura Stevenson an ...

  7. Man on 6th St: !K7 Records' Stephen Bowles on the Happenings at SXSW

    March 14, 2013 8:20 AM EDT Billboard.biz sat down for a quick chat with !K7 Records' digital marketing man Stephen Bowles to try and get the word on 6th Street... Billboard.biz: What's the best band/artist you've seen yet?
 
Stepehen Bowles: Dark Sky did su ...

  8. Downtown Music’s Josh Deutsch Talks ‘Harlem Shake’ Success, Future Business Plans at SXSW

    March 13, 2013 9:00 PM EDT Earlier this year, Downtown Music -- which comprises Downtown Records, Downtown Publishing and other businesses -- announced that it was selling its records division to founders Josh Deutsch and Terence Lam, who would run the business independen ...

  9. Five Questions with Live Nation Labs' Eric Garland at SXSW

    March 13, 2013 8:40 PM EDT Eric Garland doesn't attend many industry conferences now that he's GM of Live Nation Labs, but he came to SXSW 2013 to see family and friends, talked on a panel about artist revenue streams and ended with a good story about two indust ...

  10. Amanda Palmer Talks New Business Models, Plays Ukulele at SXSW

    March 13, 2013 8:18 PM EDT 1 0 16 0 0 There's much more to crowdfunding than meets the eye, and that requires partnering with companies for distribution to reach retailers and fans, music Amanda Palmer said at SXSW on Wednesday. But Palmer could not say if this exciting new bu ...

  11. SXSW 2013: Deadmau5, Kat Von D, Surfer Blood at the Sonos Studio

    March 12, 2013 8:51 PM EDT Sonos is getting some attention for putting on one of the coolest experiences at SXSW. Located down an alley near the Convention Center, the Sonos Studio is a large compound that includes a courtyard, a performance stage, two houses and an inter ...

  12. Arhoolie Records' 50 Years of Roots Music Celebrated in Film at SXSW

    March 12, 2013 5:58 PM EDT Arhoolie Records founder Chris Strachwitz built his label by recording blues, conjunto, Cajun music, zydeco and New Orleans brass bands in places where other producers would not go -- so it only made sense to celebrate the film about Strachwitz ...

  13. Billboard.biz Google Hangout From SXSW, With Ted Cohen, Benji Rogers, Glenn Peoples: Thursday 3 p.m. ET!

    March 12, 2013 5:51 PM EDT 3 12 0 0 Want to know what’s buzzing biz-wise at SXSW this year? What are the hot startups, companies, people and technologies? Find out at our Google Hangout, right here, on Thursday (March 14) at 3 p.m. ET when we have TAG Strategic’s Ted Cohen, Pledg ...

  14. 'Muscle Shoals' Documentary Picked Up By Magnolia Pictures During SXSW

    March 12, 2013 5:16 PM EDT "Muscle Shoals," Greg Camalier's documentary on the recording studios and musicians of Muscle Shoals, Ala., became the first music documentary to secure a distribution deal at this year's SXSW Film Festival, with Magnolia Pic ...

  15. 'Wild Ones:' Rockabilly Label Waves the White Flag to Digital at Doc Screening in Austin

    March 12, 2013 4:59 PM EDT "I hate iTunes," Wild Records owner Reb Kennedy said after a Tuesday screening of the film about his label and artists, "Los Wild Ones." "And I hate to compromise. But we lost to iTunes," Kenndy continued. Wild Reco ...

  16. Bubbling Under: B. Smyth Build's 'Leggo' At R&B Radio

    March 08, 2013 10:00 AM EST Each Friday, Billboard presents "Bubbling Under," a weekly look at new and noteworthy acts making their way toward Billboard chart success. Up this week: B. Smyth, Boy, Del Marquis and Brian Weaver . B. Smyth With his debut single &quo ...

  17. Trans World Profits Up in 2012, Company Plans to Open 20 New Stores

    March 07, 2013 8:31 PM EST For the second year in a row, Trans World Entertainment has produced black ink. More importantly, the company says it will return to growth mode, with plans to open 20 stores in the fiscal year. For the fourth quarter ending Feb. 2, 2013, Trans ...

  18. Business Matters: Has Crowdfunding Stolen Direct-to-Fan’s Thunder?

    March 06, 2013 9:12 PM EST Crowdfunding is one of the more dominant topics of this year's South by Southwest conference in Austin, Texas, which takes place March 8 through 17. The SXSW website lists 21 panels just with the word Kickstarter, including one panel with A ...

  19. SXSW: Festival Expects 28,000 Attendees With or Without a 'Highlight'

    March 06, 2013 5:30 PM EST South by Southwest is expecting a crowd of 28,000 for the Interactive portion of its 11-day tech, film and music festival, Adweek reports. That's 3,500 attendees more than in 2012, and 9,000 greater that what showed up two years ago. Whoa, ...

  20. Steve Angello, Junior Sanchez Launch New Size Imprint: Exclusive

    March 05, 2013 5:27 PM EST 17 0 Swedish House Mafia might be through, but its members’ solo careers are moving right along. Today, Steve Angello’s Size Records rolls out its newest project, an alliance with Brobot--the latest label from prolific dance veteran Junior Sanchez. &q ...

  21. A2IM's Trade Mission to Brazil - Applications for Travel Subsidy Due Tomorrow

    March 04, 2013 1:52 PM EST The American Association of Independent Music is heading to Brazil in mid-April as part of its Market Development Cooperator Program, and today is the last day to have your costs halved. This is the second trip planned by A2IM through the MDCP, wh ...

  22. 2:30 Publicity and Grandstand Media Merge

    March 04, 2013 1:06 PM EST Long-established publicity firm 2:30, founded in 1997, and relative newcomer Grandstand Media & Management, founded in 2012, have merged, it was announced today in a statement. "With a combined 50 years of experience…" begins the int ...

  23. Video: Amanda Palmer’s TED Talk: ‘How Do We Let People Pay for Music?’

    March 01, 2013 6:22 PM EST 12 198 92 0 0   Amanda Palmer’s pioneering efforts in the field of crowd-funding have been covered at great length in these pages, most recently in an excellent two-part interview with Glenn Peoples earlier this year, not to mention a widely read intervie ...

  24. Baauer’s ‘Harlem Shake’: The Global Hit That Started With a One-Off Single Deal

    February 28, 2013 7:00 AM EST The Internet is full of free downloads, but most don’t end up topping the charts like Baauer’s “Harlem Shake.” The single was brought to market through a label as uncommon as the track’s quirky success story.   Jeffrees, a sub-label of Diplo’s Mad ...

  25. Simon Darlow, Songwriter for Grace Jones, Shirley Bassey, Named Chairman of U.K. Rights Org BASCA

    February 28, 2013 5:00 AM EST U.K. songwriters’ body BASCA (the British Association of Songwriters, Composers & Authors) has announced the appointment of composer, musician and arranger Simon Darlow as its new chairman. Darlow, 52, has a long list of song credits including ...

  26. Exclusive: Taco Bell Teams With Passion Pit, Twitter For SXSW Showcase, 'Rockumentary'

    February 27, 2013 7:53 PM EST Taco Bell is teaming up with Twitter and filmmaker Sam Jones (Wilco’s “I Am Trying To Break Your Heart”) for a first-of-its-kind “Rockumentary,” “Feed The Beat: SXSW 2013,” at South By Southwest on March 11. The project will feature performances b ...

  27. Kobalt Music Group's Label Services Division Announces Two New Senior-Level Hires

    February 26, 2013 11:56 AM EST Kobalt Music Group's Label Services division, a full-service alternative to labels for rights-retaining artists, has announced the appointment of two senior-level executives, it was announced today. Karen Lieberman has transitioned from her f ...

  28. Piero Giramonti Named GM of Harvest Records

    February 25, 2013 11:48 AM EST Piero Giramonti joins the growing list of recent executive appointees at Capitol Music Group and its subsidiaries; the music industry veteran has been named general manager of the long-standing Harvest Records. Harvest's extensive catalog of ...

  29. Exclusive: Tumblr Gets Into Music Discovery

    February 21, 2013 12:26 PM EST 28 57 250 0 Blogging site Tumblr is getting into music discovery. At the core of the blogging company's strategy will be a select group of editors that share music, video and pictures with the site's 95 million users.   "This is our destina ...

  30. Mike Harris, Veteran EMI Exec, Named EVP and General Manager of Caroline

    February 21, 2013 11:51 AM EST Mike Harris, an executive with and within EMI, most recently CFO at Blue Note, has been named executive vice president and general manager of Capitol Music Group's independent services division Caroline. Harris will be working closely with Ca ...

  31. Baauer's 'Harlem Shake' Debuts Atop Revamped Hot 100

    February 20, 2013 7:15 PM EST 54 94 0 The Billboard Hot 100 undergoes a major shakeup this week, as YouTube streaming data joins the chart's methodology. Fittingly, "Harlem Shake," the viral smash from Brooklyn producer Baauer, roars onto the ranking at No. 1.   As an ...

  32. Thomas Dolby's Second Directorial Effort Garners Fest Awards, Tour Planned

    February 20, 2013 11:31 AM EST 1 0 22 0 Thirty years passed between Thomas Dolby directing a video for his hit “She Blinded Me With Science” and his first proper film, but it has resulted in two awards at the Los Angeles DIY Film Festival. His next step? Take it on the road. Dolby will ...

  33. Pat Egan of Relapse Records Dies

    February 19, 2013 4:50 PM EST 5 287 52 0 Pat Egan of Relapse Records, a longtime veteran of the heavy metal music business, passed over the weekend. The director of retail sales and marketing for the metal indie had been hospitalized due to complications from pneumonia.   In social me ...

  34. Analysis: BMG Poised to Become a Top Indie Catalog Following Sanctuary Acquisition

    February 15, 2013 7:54 PM EST 3 9 13 0 Once completed, the pending acquisition of the Sanctuary Records catalog will catapult BMG Rights Management into one of the industry's top independent catalog labels. Universal Sells Sanctuary Label to BMG The Sanctuary catalog has about 17 ...

  35. Bubbling Under: Milo Greene Looks To The Future With '1957'

    February 15, 2013 1:56 PM EST 1 2 19 0 Each Friday, Billboard presents "Bubbling Under," a weekly look at new and noteworthy acts making their way toward Billboard chart success. Up this week: Milo Greene, Davina Leone, Jenny Simmons and DJ Chino.     Milo Greene Los Angeles ...

  36. 'Harlem Shake': The Making And Monetizing Of The Latest YouTube Dance Craze

    February 14, 2013 6:53 PM EST 8 192 197 0 Baauer’s “Harlem Shake” still has quite a ways to go before it becomes the next “Gangnam Style” in terms of total views, but the Mad Decent track became an unexpected viral smash last week at levels not seen since PSY’s American invasion -- an ...

  37. Backbeat: The Lone Bellow Raise the Roof at Hometown Show

    February 13, 2013 3:12 PM EST 45 6 0 Fast-rising Brooklyn act the Lone Bellow played to an astonishingly packed Bowery Ballroom last week -- astonishing because even though it was a hometown show, their self-titled album had barely been out for three weeks. Check Out All Our Backbea ...

  38. Concord's Glen Barros and Gene Rumsey on Label's 8 Grammy Wins, The ‘Underserved' Adult Market

    February 13, 2013 1:42 PM EST 4 1 8 0 Above: Esperanza Spalding won two of Concord's eight Grammy wins (Photo: FilmMagic) . Concord Records was the Grammy's leading label winner this year, picking up eight nods -- and it wasn't a fluke. Traditionally, Concord is one of ...

  39. Grammy Awards Send Sales Surging on Billboard Charts

    February 13, 2013 12:01 PM EST 4 12 107 0 Though Nielsen SoundScan's latest sales tracking week ended at the close of business on Sunday night, Feb. 10 -- the same day as the Grammy Awards -- the Billboard charts still feel the force of music's biggest night. While we will se ...

  40. Op-Ed: We Wouldn't Mind Getting Less Money From Pandora and Spotify, Indie Musician Says

    February 13, 2013 10:27 AM EST 3 232 51 0 My name is Patrick Laird and I am an independent musician with Break of Reality, an American cello rock band. Recent articles in national newspapers and magazines have focused on how working musicians are being underpaid by Internet radio compa ...

  41. Beats Electronics to Launch Its Curation-Focused Music Service this Summer

    February 12, 2013 9:52 PM EST 34 64 0 Beats Electronics, the maker of high-end headphones, will launch its own on-demand music streaming service this summer, Jimmy Iovine, the chairman of Interscope Geffen A&M and Beats’ co-founder, announced Tuesday at the AllThingsD Dive Into ...

  42. Grammys Spur Early Sales Gains for Mumford & Sons, Lumineers, Frank Ocean

    February 11, 2013 9:40 PM EST 7 14 0 While official numbers aren't in yet, sources suggest that some of the biggest sales winners from the Grammy Awards on Feb. 10 include Mumford & Sons, the Lumineers, Frank Ocean, Rihanna and fun. Music sales for the week ending Feb. 10, ...

  43. Q&A: Glassnote Records' Daniel Glass on Mumford & Sons’ Big Grammy Win

    February 11, 2013 2:30 PM EST 13 12 0 Glassnote Records act Mumford & Sons won the album of the year award for "Babel," which registered the biggest sales week for an album in the first 10 months of 2012, selling 600,000 copies. It has sold 1.7 million total. Mumford&# ...

  44. Chart Alert: 'Les Mis' Soundtrack Takes Top Album Spot in the U.K., Jake Bugg Upends Biffy Clyro

    February 11, 2013 10:25 AM EST 3 19 0 As the “Les Miserables” score album (Polydor/Universal) moved back to the top of the U.K. album chart yesterday,  Macklemore’s current Hot 100 No. 1 “Thrift Shop” (Macklemore), featuring Ryan Lewis and Wanz, mirrored that feat across the Atlantic ...

  45. Concord, Warner Bros. Lead Record Labels With Most Grammy Awards at 2013 Ceremony

    February 11, 2013 3:34 AM EST 2 266 37 0 Concord Records artists scored the most Grammy Awards, picking up eight, followed closely by Warner Bros. Records, which won seven, thanks to the six awards picked up by Nonesuch Records. Concord winners -- either on its label or distributed la ...

  46. Billboard Unveils Power 100 List at L.A. Event, Honors UMG’s Lucian Grainge, Sony Music’s Clive Davis

    February 08, 2013 12:03 AM EST 1 45 31 0 Above:  Universal Music Group chairman Lucian Grainge (left) and Sony Music chief creative officer Clive Davis (Photo credit: Phil McCarten) Billboard honored Universal Music Group chairman Lucian Grainge and Sony Music chief creative officer Cl ...

  47. Beatport’s Matthew Adell on Shazam Deal, Why Music Biz Is a ‘Disaster Model’

    February 07, 2013 12:03 PM EST 14 169 136 0 Yesterday morning, two of electronic music-media’s biggest names -- the online dance retailer Beatport and the multi-format name-that-tune app Shazam -- announced a new partnership, allowing Shazam access to the “imprints” of 1.5 million EDM ...

  48. Drag City Film Distribution to Release ‘The Source Family’ Doc in May

    February 06, 2013 4:13 PM EST 1 16 19 0 Drag City Film Distribution will release Maria Demopoulos and Jodi Wille’s documentary “The Source Family” in May followed by a video-on-demand release through Gravitas Ventures. Drag City Records will also release the film’s soundtrack in May. ...

  49. Postal Service Shipping-Rate Hike Forces Indie Labels to Change Tactics

    February 05, 2013 7:05 AM EST 1 8 27 0 When he started The End Records in the sepia-toned days of 1998, Andreas Katsambas would often ship albums to fans free of charge. He says shipping rates were so low at the time that he didn’t bother to pass the fee on to consumers. “When I start ...

  50. What the Music Business Can Learn From the Gaming and Gambling Industries

    February 04, 2013 10:22 AM EST 81 339 168 0 Hany Nada is founding partner of GGV Capital, a global, expansion–stage venture firm based in Silicon Valley and Shanghai with $1.6B under management. Billboard.biz welcomes responsible content – contact jem.aswad@billboard.com with ideas. Wh ...

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