September 28, 2016 Page 1 of 13

Lyor Cohen has been named global head of music at YouTube, the company has announced.

Cohen is the founder and current CEO of 300, which has Fetty Wap, Young Thug and more signed to the label, Cohen had previously headed up Warner Music Group as its chairman/CEO of recorded music until 2012.

According to a YouTube spokeperson, Cohen will continue as CEO of 300 until December 5 of this year, after which that company’s management “will transition Lyor’s day-to-day responsibilities to the leadership team within the company.”

“Lyor is a lion of the music industry,” says YouTube’s Chief Business Officer Robert Kyncl in a statement. “From Rush to Def Jam to Island Def Jam to WMG then 300, he has consistently been a pioneer, charting the course for where music is heading. As we enter the growth era of the music industry, Lyor is in a position to make tremendous difference in accelerating that growth in a fair way for everyone. We are thrilled to welcome him to YouTube.”

Cohen has his work cut out for him at YouTube, particularly in repairing the company’s relationship

with the music business. For the past year Kyncl has, effectively, been serving as the video streaming giant’s interim head of music 0- which has been a rough one for the company’s relationship with the music industry. Beginning in April of this year, music stakeholders began pressuring YouTube over what they dubbed “the value gap” -- that YouTube, despite being one of the most common digital destinations for music listening, was not paying rates on par with services like Spotify or Apple Music.

This pushback came in the wake of the company’s introduction of its YouTube Red subscription tier, and the YouTube Music app.

In addition to the unrelenting pressure placed on it by the music industry, also faces an uphill battle in Brussels. The European Commission recently announced plans to overhaul the concept of “safe harbor,” a legal provision designed to protect user-generated sites like YouTube from being liable for copyrighted material that is uploaded to their platforms.

Cohen also penned a letter about his appointment and plans for his new position, which he says

INSIDE Lyor Cohen Named YouTube’s Global Head of MusicBY DAN RYS

Congress Members Send Attorney General Letter Urging Dept. of Justice to Reverse Songwriting Decision: Exclusive

Record Labels Move to Dismiss Lawsuit Over 50 Cent’s ‘P.I.M.P.’

Promoter of Steve Aoki Show That Ended in Deadly Stampede Sentenced to Four Years

Britney Spears’ ‘Toxic’: How Much Does the Enduring Smash Hit Make for Its Songwriters Each Year?

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[In Brief]will focus on bridging the gap between technology and music. Read the full letter, which was sent to the YouTube music team, below.

From: Lyor CohenTo: YouTube Music TeamHi everyone,It’s an incredible time to be in the music

business. Back in 2006, as an executive at Warner Music Group, I worked closely with a fledgling video site to sign its first big record licensing deal. That site was YouTube. Over the next decade, I watched as your work transformed YouTube into an incredibly powerful platform that connects artists with fans all over the world.

Throughout my career in the music industry, I have strived to stay on the forefront of new technologies and cultural movements. And since starting in the industry over thirty years ago, I’ve always sought to be an advocate for artists and do everything possible to shine a light on the great talent I’ve been lucky enough to work with, including Jay Z, Run-DMC, DMX, Public Enemy, Kanye West, The Killers, Bruno Mars, Ed Sheeran, Young Thug, Fetty Wap, and Highly Suspect among others. Bringing attention to the often overlooked, but talented communities has been a huge part of my life’s work and I’ve seen how music can truly bring people together.

Over the last two decades we have seen dramatic shifts, both to the inherent value of music and the literal value that people are willing to pay. Technology and new business models have completely changed the established distribution channels that have long-served the recorded music industry. And while change has been met with understandable resistance, I strongly believe that this transformation provides opportunities that will be larger and more rewarding for both artists and the music industry.

That’s why I am excited to join this incredible team as Global Head of Music. I look forward to working together with all of you on three things. First, helping the music community embrace the technological shifts we’re seeing in music today so we can help take the confusion and distrust out of the equation. Second, building on the great work you all have done to help the music industry and creative community break new songs and artists to YouTube’s audience of over 1 billion fans. From building on the success of the YouTube Music app, to shining a light on emerging artists, I believe our potential to strengthen the industry is massive. And third, I hope that together we can move towards a more collaborative relationship between the music industry and the technologies that are shaping the

future of the business.I’m confident that we can bridge the

worlds of technology and music in ways that benefit everyone, instead of the zero-sum mentality that exists today. I’m proud to be a music man, and hope that the perspective I bring from both the creative community and the music business at large will help us, our music partners and artists grow and thrive together.

Congress Members Send Attorney General Letter Urging Dept. of Justice to Reverse Songwriting Decision: ExclusiveBY ANDY GENSLER

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members Rep. Doug Collins (R-GA) and Rep. Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY), have sent a joint letter to Attorney General Loretta E. Lynch this afternoon, calling for the Dept. of Justice to reconsider its decision on 100%, or ‘full-works,’ licensing, which it pushed through in an August 4th closing statement by its antitrust division.

The letter comes on the heels of a ruling by U.S. District Judge Lewis L. Stanton, who last rejected the DoJ’s decision. Stanton wrote that “the consent decree [which governs how BMI can interact with the composition licensing marketplace] neither bars fractional licensing nor requires full-works licensing.”

The DoJ’s decision declared the opposite: that the consent decrees mandate full-works licensing, meaning that any songwriter who worked on a song, whether there are two or twenty, can license that song. The industry has operated under fractional, wherein all songwriters’ assent is required to license a composition, for some time.

“We believe a well-functioning music marketplace benefits America’s music-loving public, businesses that use music to connect with their customers,” the Congress members’ letter begins, “and, especially, more than one million songwriters and composers whose creative work is the lifeblood of the entire American music economy.”

The letter also cites the U.S. Copyright Office’s opposition to the DoJ’s decision, concluding that “the DoJ can no longer maintain that the language of the ASCAP and BMI consent decrees clearly prohibits fractional licensing” and that “the DoJ should take prompt action to limit the confusion and chaos the closing statement creates in the market.”

The DoJ’s decision was roundly criticized by the publishing industry. Both BMI and ASCAP announced their intentions to fight the DoJ’s ruling, and the Songwriters of North America (SONA), a grassroots advocacy organization of 200 working songwriters and composers, filed a lawsuit on Sept. 13 against the U.S. Department of Justice over the same issue.

Other Congressional signatories

to the letter include Rep. John Conyers (D-Michigan), Rep. Jerrold Nadler (D-New York), Rep. Marsha Blackburn (R-Tennessee), Rep. Trent Franks (R-Arizona), Rep. Steve Cohen (D-Tennessee), Rep. Louise Slaughter (D-Kentucky), Rep. Adam Schiff (D-California), Rep. Ted Lieu (D-California), Rep. Jim Cooper (D-Tennessee), Rep. Tony Cardenas (D-California), Rep. Judy Chu (D-California), Rep. Joe Crowley (D-New York), Rep. Kevin Cramer (R-North Dakota), Rep. David Cicilline (D-Rhode Island), Rep. Karen Bass (D-California) and Rep. Henry C. Johnson (D.-Georgia).

Record Labels Move to Dismiss Lawsuit Over 50 Cent’s ‘P.I.M.P.’BY ASHLEY CULLINS

If 50 Cent were to rewrite the lyrics to his 2003 hit “P.I.M.P.” today, they’d probably go a little something like this: “I don’t know what you heard about me / but a plaintiff can’t get a dollar out of me.”

The popular rap track is at the center of a legal battle, but in a Monday filing attorneys for the labels described the suit as nothing more than a misguided attempt to turn a royalty dispute into a federal copyright case.

Brandon Parrott sued Curtis Jackson, better known as 50 Cent, in June, claiming “P.I.M.P.” infringes on his composition “BAMBA.” Parrott is suing for copyright infringement, unjust enrichment and fraud and is asking the court to order an accounting of profits from the song and related albums and an injunction to keep defendants from exploiting “P.I.M.P.” until Parrott receives proper credit and consideration. Producer Denaun Porter, Attorney Zach Katz, UMG Recordngs, Interscope, Aftermath Records, Shady

Records and EMI Music Publishing are also named as defendants.

Attorneys for the labels, Andrew Bart and Daniel Rozanski, argue their clients should be dismissed “because Parrott has not pled a single factual allegation that would support a finding that the UMG Defendants ever communicated with Parrott, let alone acted fraudulently toward him.”

Parrott says in 2001 he sent a CD containing 10 of his tracks, including two co-produced with Porter, to Dr. Dre (Andre Young) at Aftermath Records. Two years later, he says Porter told him “BAMBA” was used to create “P.I.M.P.” and they had mistakenly failed to credit him or obtain his permission. In March 2003, according to the complaint, they tricked him into entering a settlement and mutual release agreement. “Defendants were well aware that Defendant Porter was not the sole author of these tracks and intentionally released the tracks without providing credit or proper compensation to Brandon Parrott,” writes Parrot, who is representing himself in the lawsuit.

The labels argue these issues were resolved by the settlement and Parrott has been collecting royalties for more than a decade.

“In the Co-Producer Agreement, the parties agreed, inter alia, that they had co-produced the 50 Cent Track, that Parrott’s contributions to the 50 Cent Track were now the property of Porter who was free to use them as he saw fit and to authorize others to do so, and that Parrott licensed the use of any of his musical compositions that were embodied in the 50 Cent Track,” Bart writes. “In exchange, Parrott received a monetary advance, an ownership share in the copyrighted musical composition underlying the 50 Cent Track, as well as 65% of Porter’s producer royalties on income derived from the exploitation of the 50 Cent Track.”

Further the labels claim the terms of that settlement dictate Parrott can’t sue. “Parrott did more than simply release all claims,” Bart writes. “He expressly acknowledged and represented ‘that no promise, representation, or inducement

[In Brief]

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not expressed herein has been made in connection with this Agreement.’”

Jackson’s attorneys in August requested a stay in light of his ongoing chapter 11 bankruptcy proceedings.

Erica Tucker, Parrott’s business manager, is named as a co-plaintiff in the suit. Bart has asked the court to dismiss her from the case for lack of standing as she is not a party to any of the agreements at issue.

A hearing is currently set for Oct. 31.

Promoter of Steve Aoki Show That Ended in Deadly Stampede Sentenced to Four YearsBY BILLBOARD STAFF

Spanish concert promoter Miguel Ángel Flores has been sentenced to four years in prison for the deaths of five women during a Halloween 2012 event headlined by EDM star Steve Aoki. Local media is reporting that fourteen others were given varying sentences from 30 months to three years for their roles in the event, which broke out into a deadly stampede as the panicked crowd rushed the exits at Thriller Music Park at the Madrid Arena.

Investigators found that organizers sold 17,000 tickets for the event, even though the arena’s capacity is 10,600. According to witnesses, a group of ticketed partygoers were in a parking lot adjacent to the arena when the doors of one exit were opened. As many in that group rushed into the overflowing venue, fans inside attempted to leave but found the other exits blocked, creating a bottleneck at the opening. Hundreds were injured and five were killed (two on the scene, three at hospital) during the panic.

There were also reports that a flare went off inside the venue, which led to concertgoers trying to leave. Following the tragedy, Aoki released a statement, saying “had I known that there was any distress putting people in jeopardy within the venue I would have ended my show immediately.”

As the lead promoter of the event, Flores was convicted of five counts of negligent homicide and 29 counts of causing harm through serious negligence. He plans to appeal the sentence. Other sentences handed down include three years for Francisco del Amo, who managed the company that ran the arena, and two-and-a-half years for head of security Carlo Manzanares.

The deceased women were identified as Cristina Arce, Katia Esteban, Rocia On a, Belen Langdon and Teresa Alonso. Their families were awarded €350,000 ($392,600) each.

Britney Spears’ ‘Toxic’: How Much Does the Enduring Smash Hit Make for Its Songwriters Each Year?BY ED CHRISTMAN

Britney Spears’ smash hit “Toxic” – from her 2003 album In the Zone – remains one of her best-known and most beloved songs, even years after descending from its No. 9 peak on the Billboard Hot 100. Fans keep returning to the song year after year, and the songwriters reap the financial returns to the tune of about $48,000 a year, if you are just looking at U.S. sales, streaming, and radio airplay. Billboard estimates that the song generated about $40,000 collec-tively for the songwriters in 2013, nearly $60,000 for the songwriters in 2015 and,

this year as of Sept. 2016, about $45,000.In the last almost three years -- two

years, 8 months and three weeks, to be exact -- its combined U.S. publishing total for radio, sales, and streaming comes to about $145,000.

The song has four songwriters, Cathy Dennis, who has this song with Sony/ATV via a deal she did with EMI Music Publishing, who has a 50 percent writer’s share; Christian Karlsson (Bloodshy), with a 22.5 percent writer’s share; Pontus Winnberg (Avant) with a 22.5 percent writer’s share, and Henrik Jonback with a 5 percent writer’s share, all with BMG. Dennis has a traditional publishing deal on this song, which suggests a 50/50 split with the publisher; while the other three are believed to have co-publishing deals, via contracts they acquired with a Swedish publisher, which was acquired by one of the many publishing companies that BMG has gobbled up since it re-launched its music business in 2008. Since Billboard is not privy to what kind of co-publishing deal the three writers have, we are assuming each has a 2/3s split with the publishing company getting 1/3 split.

So based on those estimates and those splits, Billboard concludes that Cathy Dennis made about $36,000 over the last two years and almost 9 months; Winnberg and Karlsson each almost made $22,000; Jonbak made nearly $5,000; BMG garnered about $24,000 and Sony/ATV about $36,000.

Those numbers are based on track sales of 239,000; album sales of 177,000; radio plays of 65,000; on-demand audio streams of 37 million; on-demand video streams of 32 million, and nearly 2 million in programmed streams.

[In Brief]

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Kellie Pickler, John Rich and Others Talk ‘Badass Women,’ Copyright Battles at 2016 Radio ShowBY PHYLLIS STARK

With the annual Radio Show taking place in Nashville in 2016, it’s little surprise country stars took center stage. Some — including Kellie Pickler, Big & Rich and Wynonna — appeared on panels at the convention, held Sept. 21-23 at the Omni Hotel. Others filled out performance slots, including LoCash, who played the kickoff party, and Jennifer Nettles, who headlined the Marconi Radio Awards, where KKBQ Houston was named country station of the year. Newcomer Adam Craig performed at the post-Marconi party, and Danielle Bradbery and Matt Gary entertained at the show’s final session, where Big & Rich also played a pair of songs.

The convention, jointly produced by the Radio Advertising Bureau and the National Association of Broadcasters, drew nearly 2,300 attendees.

In a candid conversation with America’s Morning Show co-host Kelly Ford, Pickler inspired the mostly female audience to form a “sisterhood” or support network. “It’s all about women supporting women and just people supporting people,” said Pickler in the uplifting Q&A, noting that she draws strength from “looking forward and counting [my] blessings.”

She added, “It’s easy to get lost in this business, and the world, so the company you keep will keep your feet on solid ground when you start to drift off.”

Ford noted that Nashville is an easy place to find that sisterhood, saying, “Of all the places I’ve lived, Nashville seems to have

the most badass women. Something about this town brings women together.” She called her own close friends her “board of directors.”

The two also discussed pay equality for women, with Ford confessing that at one point in her career, a manager said during a contract negotiation, “Your husband does well,” as justification for not paying her more.

Said Pickler, “If you feel like you’re not being treated fairly, stand up for yourself. There’s always a classy way of doing it.” She also noted, “There’s a difference between confidence and conceit,” while encouraging the women present not to be ashamed of being good at their jobs.

As an artist, however, she cautioned against developing a “sense of entitlement. That’s when you start to get jaded, and I’ve seen that.” Pickler, who is currently between record deals, also warned that artists can’t get caught up in worrying about why radio stations are playing other artists instead of them. “When your song tanks at radio the first day, take another swing. Write another song.”

That’s not to say compromise isn’t sometimes necessary. As someone who was raised on classic female country artists, Pickler says when she first moved to Nashville she just wanted to make a “die-hard country record,” but soon realized “there’s a lot of suits and ties to please” in the business.

Ford noted that she raised her three children while hosting a morning radio show, then joked that she’s not even saving for college because the money goes directly to therapy. She then asked Pickler if motherhood is on the horizon for her and songwriter husband Kyle Jacobs. The singer took a moment to compose herself before responding, “No. We’re happy … Right now that’s just not in the cards for us.” She then joked that because she travels with an all-male band, it’s “the best birth control in the world” because it makes her feel like she already has children.

During his well-attended keynote session, financial guru and radio talk show host Dave Ramsey brought out good friend John Rich of Big & Rich to talk about his

role as an entrepreneur. Ramsey, who is based in the Nashville area, observed that there are two kinds of county stars: “Ones that are really smart and can play music, and ones that can play music.” He put Rich in the former category.

Calling himself a “two-time loser” after being kicked out of the band Lonestar, then failing at a solo deal, Rich said, “I realized the one thing I could control was a pen and a piece of paper.” That realization led to a career resurgence as a hit songwriter, soon followed by the success of Big & Rich.

More recently, Rich has launched a line of Redneck Riviera-branded merchandise and later in 2016 will open nightclubs bearing that name in Nashville and Las Vegas. Rich spoke about how he fought to trademark the words “Redneck Riviera” after visiting Gulf Shores, Ala., and seeing it on T-shirts and other merchandise, then discovering that nobody had ever trademarked the term, which had been in use for decades. After first being told he couldn’t trademark a geographical location, Rich ultimately prevailed by convincing a court that the term referred to a state of mind.

While he declined to confirm Ramsey’s assertion that the brand now rakes in “millions of dollars,” Rich said only, “It’s doing very well.”

Rich also revealed how he won Donald Trump’s show The Celebrity Apprentice in 2011. After exhausting all of his other potential donors in charity fundraising competitions during the show’s season, he called Trump and asked him for $100,000. While Trump didn’t give him the money, he told Rich at the time, “Look at the balls on you,” and was apparently impressed enough by the stunt to ultimately hand Rich the victory.

During the seminar’s final session, country radio legend Bob Kingsley interviewed Big & Rich, as well as Wynonna and her drummer/husband Cactus Moser. Rich called the recent hit resurgence of Big & Rich on their own independent label, Big & Rich Records, “a great surprise … American dream kind of stuff ” and joked that the label “consists of a P.O. box and a bunch of hard-working

[In Brief]

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people.”Wynonna and Moser talked about

how they reached for a different sound with their current album, Wynonna and the Big Noise, after Moser convinced his powerhouse singer wife that “every vocal didn’t need to be American Idol.”

Still adjusting from her years as half of five-time Grammy-winning duo The Judds, Wynonna confessed, “I’m in a program learning how to live with not everything being extra large,” which includes stepping away from a mentality of chasing radio adds and “another million dollars.”

Responding to a question from a young broadcaster in the audience about how he can make a connection with his listeners, Wynonna shared a story that, she said, dramatically illustrated the power of radio to do just that. She related that she once heard from a woman who told her she had been sitting in a car with a gun to her head, then heard the Judds’ song “Guardian Angels” on the radio and decided not to end her life.

Musical.ly Star Baby Ariel Signs With CAABY NATALIE JARVEY

CAA has signed one of the internet’s big-gest new stars.

The agency has inked a deal with Ariel Martin, who in less than a year captured audiences on lip-synch app Musical.ly to become the most followed person on the platform. Fifteen-year-old Martin, who goes by the online named Baby Ariel, has 13 million subscribers on the popular app. She has also expanded her fan base to YouTube, where she has nearly 2 million subscribers, and Instagram, where she has more than 4 million followers.

Martin’s Musical.ly videos, in which she sings and dances along to popular songs, regularly receive hundreds of thousands of hearts, the app’s equivalent of likes,

and thousands of comments. She has also begun to give fans a glimpse into her life, including a recent video in which her dad teaches her how to drive. Her YouTube channel, meanwhile, features vlogs and comedy videos.

Martin recently headlined DigiTour Summer’s 28-city U.S. tour. She received a 2016 Teen Choice Award in the choice muser category and is nominated for two Streamy Awards, winners of which will be handed out Oct. 4.

CAA will represent Martin in all areas. She continues to be repped by Patrick Zielinski and Jessica Kelm at Collab and attorney Charlotte Towne at Charlotte Towne P.A.

Kevin Hart Tops Forbes’ List of Highest-Paid ComediansBY ASSOCIATED PRESS

Kevin Hart is literally laughing all the way to the bank. The funnyman tops the Forbes magazine list of the highest-paid comedi-ans with earnings of $87.5 million.

Hart, who had roles in the films Central Intelligence and Secret Life of Pets as well as his lucrative “What Now?” comedy tour, dethrones longtime earnings leader Jerry Seinfeld, who made $43.5 million.

The magazine compiled the estimated income from June 2015 to June 2016.

Amy Schumer made her list debut, landing in fourth place behind Terry Fator with earnings of $17 million. Schumer is the only woman to ever make the highest-paid comedians list.

Jeff Dunham was in fifth with $13.5 million, Dave Chappelle was next with $13 million and Jim Gaffigan earned $12.5 million for seventh place.

Open Music Initiative Adds Intel Technology to Help Simplify How Creators Are Identified, PaidBY BILLBOARD STAFF

The Open Music Initiative (OMI), an open-source framework for music rights and licensing, has announced that Intel’s block-chain technology, Sawtooth Lake, will be its reference platform open source ledger for tracking, managing and protecting use of rights holders’ intellectual property.

Announced in June as a partnership between Berklee Institute of Creative Entrepreneurship and the MIT Media Lab, OMI focuses on rights management and organization in the digital era.

Blockchain is the decentralized system that acts as a tamper-proof ledger of records and is increasingly being used to secure and verify various forms of digital transactions, including the distribution of music files. (Even Goldman Sachs is looking into it.) OMI will use Sawtooth as the foundational technology for a ledger to facilitate transparency and seamless payment flows within the industry. The goal, put plainly, is to simplify the way music creators and rights holders are identified and paid.

“Capitalizing on blockchain technology via Sawtooth Lake will help us address the music industry’s most vexing challenge -- protecting creative rights, intellectual property and the livelihood of the artists, entertainers and music owners who enrich our lives,” said Dan Harple, OMI’s co-founder and technology lead.

Intel will also join the OMI consortium, which already includes heavy hitters like Universal Music Group, Sony Music Entertainment, Warner Music Group, BMG, Spotify, YouTube, SoundCloud, SiriusXM and Netflix.

[In Brief]

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Cheat Codes Joins Young Thug, Fetty Wap on 300 Entertainment RosterBY KAT BEIN

It can be hard for a hip-hop label to break into the pop world, but 300 Entertainment just got the Cheat Codes.

Yup, one of dance-pop’s biggest independent steam rollers rolled over and signed a contract, but it’s not with just anyone. It’s with the guys at 300 Entertainment, which means they join the ranks of Fetty Wap, Young Thug and Migos. It’s all part of the label’s effort to reach into other markets, which isn’t that far-fetched considering the pop appeal of many of its existing signees.

“We started this company based on a theory that there was an opportunity for something in between a major label and a typical indie,” says 300 Entertainment co-founder and CEO Lyor Cohen, the former Warner Music Group recorded music chief. “We are fortunate to have had success with artists in urban and rock genres, but we also have been looking to set our sites on the broader pop market. Now, we have the opportunity to work with Cheat Codes -- the biggest independent/unsigned artist in dance/pop music globally. This is so exciting for us at 300, as we continue to expand our base to include all styles of artists, so we can help them to fulfill their dreams.”

“Cheat Codes together with their amazing team have created a meaningful brand in the pop/dance music space,” continues 300 Entertainment co-founder Roger Gold. “In a very short period of time they have amassed a significant global fanbase and are regularly one of the top 30 artists on Spotify. Their last two singles “Sex” and “Let Me Hold You (Turn Me On)” have streamed over 300 million

and 100 million streams, respectively, and growing fast. We admire their talent and musical point of view greatly and the business they have built. We are thrilled to have the opportunity to partner with them and their incredible team worldwide.”

It’s easy to see why 300 Entertainment would see Cheat Codes as an asset, but it was a move the musical group had to give a lot of thought. They would only sign with a label if they felt a complete synergy of vision and respect, and 300 Entertainment has proven itself to be that extended family.

“When we met with 300, it immediately felt different,” says Cheat Codes’ Trevor Dahl. “We all have the same vision, which is what we were waiting for. We are beyond stoked to have started a partnership with them and can’t wait to see it grow.”

The trio gains a lot of opportunity with the venture, a chance to work with new collaborators as well as the guidance of 300 Entertainment’s dedicated and knowledgeable team, so that the Los Angeles trio can expand its own sonic palette.

“This is the next chapter of Cheat Codes,” says the group’s Kevin Ford. “This is the future of our music. I’m excited to be partnering with people like Lyor, Roger, Pete, Todd, Kevin and the rest of the team at 300 who share the same vision and mindset as us, and who understand where the future of music and the business is going. I can’t wait for the fans to hear this new music we’ve been working so hard on.”

Cinematic Music Group’s Jonny Shipes on Developing Artists and the Beauty of Staying IndependentBY CARL LAMARRE

In 2007, the thought of being independent in the music business excited a then-27-year-old Jonny Shipes. So when the New York native launched a new record label, Cinematic Music Group, with Harlem rapper Smoke DZA serving as his flagship artist, he was aware of the obstacles in his path, that major label conglomerates often reveled in the thought of trouncing small-time indie companies.

So instead of delving into a full-fledged bout against these major label titans, he built momentum slowly. That same year, Shipes watched his label’s stock crescendo when Sean Kingston inked a deal with Cinematic and blossomed into a mainstream darling with a slew of radio friendly hits, most notably his Billboard Hot 100 No. 1 single “Beautiful Girls.” A few years later in 2010, Shipes’ eye for talent only grew stronger, when he added Nipsey Hu$$le, Big K.R.I.T. and a fresh-faced Joey Bada$$ to bolster his rap imprint.

Fast forward to 2016 and Shipes is no longer the guy with the small-time indie label. Last year, his prize signee Joey Bada$$ quashed all doubts about his abilities with an impressive debut album in B4.Da.$$, which bowed at No. 5 on the Billboard 200 albums chart, moving 58,000 units in its opening week. Cinematic’s 2014 addition, Mick Jenkins, wowed rap junkies with his blistering mixtape The Water[s] and just released his debut album, The Healing Component,

[In Brief]

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last week (Sept. 23). Shipes’ semi-annual Smokers Club Tour is considered a fan favorite, and has featured the likes of Curren$y, Wiz Khalifa, Juicy J, Cam’ron, Method Man and more over the years. Earlier this year, he diversified his rap-centric roster by signing rock bands Public Access TV and Caveman. With the tide of the music industry shifting towards the beauty of independence, Jonny Shipes has beaten them all to the punch.

Billboard sat down with the CEO and founder of Cinematic Music Group to speak about his label’s success, developing artists like Joey Bada$$ and Mick Jenkins, and what fans can expect from Cam’ron’s new album.

It’s been nearly 10 years since you started Cinematic in 2007. What would you consider to be your biggest accomplishment to date?

Jonny Shipes: Honestly, I think my biggest accomplishment to date would be what I’ve gone through this past year. I’m 36. I started doing this when I was 18. From 18 to 28, I really operated with maybe my assistant and like two of my homies that would help me out. I was working with a very small group of people that didn’t really have any music experience, besides from me.

Then in the past year, or maybe the last 18 months, I built a whole staff of 15 people that I deal with daily, because the company finally got to this level. We’re still fully independent, but we’ve gotten some success. Building a team and actually having to be the leader and [be] responsible for not only your clients, but how the ecosystem of your company works, and getting the right employees and staff, and treating everybody with respect and how you wanted to be treated, is my biggest accomplishment.

There’s a lot of good artists out there. The hardest thing for me isn’t developing the artists or finding the artists. It was really trying to build a team that could help me compete with the 300’s, the Def Jam’s, or whatever.

Are you surprised that Cinematic is being mentioned in the same breath as a Def Jam, or as an Atlantic, especially

with you guys being an independent conglomerate?

I’m definitely not surprised. Humbly speaking, I feel like I’m one of the best at what I do. I think all the different people in the music industry that are playing at a certain level are good at certain things. I never went to school, so I might not be as good as whoever is book smart, but there’re other things that I’m better at than them. I feel like me, personally, and the team that I have, are ready to compete with anybody. So I’m not surprised on that tip.

You definitely have an eye for great lyricists, as you have both Joey Bada$$ and Mick Jenkins on your roster. What is it about those two artists that you love and how do you plan on helping them achieve longevity?

I just loved how good their music was when I found them, the potential and just what they represented. I like real music. I grew up on ’Pac, Biggie, Jay, OutKast, Nas, Geto Boys, Scarface, Snoop Dogg. The best, the prime. In my opinion, the real, real golden era of hip-hop. So I look for artists like that to sign. You know, things that I can relate to. I really lived those years. In ’94, ’95, ’96, I was 14, 15, 16. I was that kid who was literally entrenched in music. So it’s not really that hard to hear great music.

The harder part is how do I plan on making their careers 10-year careers, 15-year careers. And that really just comes with seeing the temperature of the artist once you put them out, and then kind of strategizing what lane they fit into, where the biggest fan bases are, and just being creative.

You played a huge part in jump-starting the career of Big K.R.I.T. Earlier this year, he left Def Jam to go indie. How do you feel he’ll transition from a major label artist to an independent one?

I’m super happy for him. I felt that he didn’t belong on a major because they don’t know what to do with artists that might not make a hit record, but make amazing bodies of work and have huge core fan bases. You know, those kinds of artists that aren’t necessarily interested in making a hit record or appeasing the

executives -- and I lived this with K.R.I.T. -- that are down his throat to make X, Y, Z-sounding records. It’ll be better for him because he’ll be able to go his own way. He’ll probably get a great split and a great deal and be able to do exactly what he wants as an artist. That’s always what’s important. I know he was held over at Def Jam.

This year, you’ve made some new acquisitions when you picked up Public Access TV and Caveman. How important is it to create diversity within your label?

Super. I grew up on all music. Obviously, hip-hop predominantly, and that’s my favorite music. Actually, it’s not even my favorite -- I love all music. Hip-hop is what’s in my soul, if you will, first and foremost. I live that culture. But in addition to that, growing up, I loved Guns N’ Roses. All music to me is important because I do this for the love of music.

I think when you look at a label like Columbia or Interscope, that’s where I’d really love to be one day. They have Adele, Daft Punk, Pharrell, Dr. Dre, Snoop, all different kinds of amazing artists. I don’t feel like being pigeonholed to one [genre] was ever my game plan, you know what I mean? But I’ll start and always live in hip-hop.

We’ve seen a lot of artists like Frank Ocean, Chance The Rapper and Travi$ Scott link up with Apple to release their albums exclusively through Apple Music. How long do you see that trend being successful?

I think that all new platforms to release music in new, innovative ways are dope. I think that as long as it makes sense for the industry in general, why not do it? I just read something today that said music revenues are up like 8 or 9 percent this year. So you know, the music industry is evolving and making a comeback in the sense of learning how to not cannibalize itself based on us just trying to sell records physically. That model is broken. I think people like [Apple Music Head of Content] Larry Jackson; he’s very into the culture. He’s providing opportunities for artists and I think it’s cool. There’re all different types of ways to premiere your music these days,

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but yeah, I’m into the Apple thing.You have a playlist with Spotify set

to come out titled 4 Eva Timeless, and from the looks of it, it’s pretty diverse. You have Tupac, Biggie, Joey Bada$$, OutKast, Kendrick Lamar. It’s a dope mix of artists.

I started off DJ’ing back in the day. So I always really understood music. How old are you? 27? So we’re kind of in the same range. You’re nine years younger than me, but we almost kind of grew up together in the golden era with Snoop, Biggie, Nas, Jay and so on and so forth. I think that to me, I’ve always been good at knowing what timeless music is because when I was maybe like 10 years old and on, I’ve been listening to things that are relevant and still hold true now, whether it was Nas, Big, whoever.

I just think that in this day in age where you’re able to share your love for music with the whole world way easier than five years ago, why not share what I feel will be forever timeless? So the concept of the playlist is all the shit that is already timeless, like Nas’ Illmatic, or Biggie’s “Juicy,” or whatever my joints were. But then, I really wanted to push myself to share with people what I think will be forever timeless. It might not be timeless in today’s day and age, meaning like, you might not think that a K.R.I.T. song from 2013 is timeless yet. But if my playlist stands true, and would stand the test of time, then maybe in 2020, people will look back and see a song from a few years ago that’s just undeniably timeless.

Mick Jenkins’ debut album, The Healing Component dropped last week. How do you feel about the release?

I mean, Mick is a great artist. I think he represents something that I feel super strongly about. Even that video, that visual he just shot for “Drowning,” it really says something. Mick is a great artist that embodies a lot of the same things that I feel. I know the album is great. I know he’s going to be a timeless artist.

You’ve been working with Cam’ron and putting the final touches on his new album under Cinematic. What can the fans expect from him his next go-

around?Cam just did a one-off [deal] for this

album right here. He was my favorite artist growing up in New York. There was a bunch of great artists that came out around the same time, and he happened to really be my favorite artist. We all grew up looking up to him. So the past few years, [he and I] built a really good relationship. I’m just excited to put the music out. The music sounds great. It sounds like some vintage Cam sh--. It’s hard.

Country Music Festival Superfest Moves to New Orleans & Might Stay ThereBY ASSOCIATED PRESS

An official says New Orleans could become the permanent home of a country music festival bumped from LSU’s Tiger Stadium for two years by offseason renovations.

Organizer Quint Davis says that if the Country Music Superfest is a success in the Superdome next May, it could stay there rather than returning to Baton Rouge in 2019.

But he’s quick to note that it’s too early to say where the 2018 festival will be, let alone the one in 2019.

In his words, “If people don’t come, it’s like the world’s greatest country music sound-check.”

Davis says next year’s festival will include something new: a free outdoor concert Friday evening, May 26. The festival within the stadium will be May 27-28 — returning to the two-day format of its first four years, rather than the three-day event it’s been since 2014.

It has been held at the 102,000-seat stadium in Baton Rouge since it started in 2010. It expanded from two nights to three in 2014.

That year, George Strait and Reba McEntire helped draw a record 135,000 fans. Attendance fell to 125,000 in 2015 and 100,000 last year.

LSU said in August that it will renovate bathrooms and concession stands and make other stadium improvements after the 2016 and 2017 football seasons.

Keith Urban Scores 37th Consecutive Top 10 Single on Hot Country SongsBY GARY TRUST

Keith Urban continues his decade-plus streak of success on Billboard’s Hot Coun-try Songs chart, as “Blue Ain’t Your Color” enters the top 10 (12-8) on the list dated Oct. 8.

The song bullets at No. 3 on Country Digital Song Sales (30,000 downloads sold in the week ending Sept. 22, up 3 percent, according to Nielsen Music) and debuts at No. 9 on Country Streaming Songs (2.3 million U.S. streams, up 46 percent) following the Sept. 15 premiere of its official video. On Country Airplay, “Blue” bumps 21-20 (16 million in audience, up 22 percent).

“Blue” becomes Urban’s 37th Hot Country Songs top 10, all achieved consecutively (counting songs in lead roles officially promoted to country radio, excluding holiday fare), extending his streak that started with the No. 4-peaking “Your Everything” in 2000. His roll is the longest since Alabama linked 41 straight top 10 singles in 1980-94, from “Tennessee River” through “T.L.C. A.S.A.P.”

Just before Alabama’s streak wrapped, Ronnie Milsap also completed a run of 41 consecutive Hot Country Songs top 10 singles in 1976-92, from “(I’m A) Stand by My Woman Man” through “Turn That Radio On.”

“Blue” is only part of Urban’s big week

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on Hot Country Songs. As previously reported, “Forever Country,” the all-star ode to country’s past, present and future, billed as by Artists of Then, Now & Forever, blasts in at No. 1 It also debuts at No. 21 on the all-genre Billboard Hot 100. Urban is the second vocalist heard on “Forever.”

MORGAN MEETS THE TOP 10: Also new to the Hot Country Songs top 10 is William Michael Morgan’s debut hit, “I Met a Girl.” The track rises 11-10 in its 39th week on the ranking, led by its 7-3 jump on Country Airplay (39 million, up 12 percent), where it logs its 51st week.

DNCE’s ‘Cake by the Ocean’ Dances to No. 1 on THR’s Top TV Songs ChartBY XANDER ZELLNER

DNCE leads THR’s Top TV Songs chart for August with its hit song “Cake by the Ocean,” thanks to a synch on NBC’s Amer-ica’s Got Talent.

Rankings for the Top TV Songs chart are based on cumulative monthly Shazam tags, as well as sales and streaming information tracked by Nielsen Music during the same period.

“Cake by the Ocean,” which was featured on America’s Got Talent on Aug. 23, leads with 34,000 Shazam tags in August, as well as 13.4 million U.S. streams and 60,000 downloads, according to Nielsen Music. Of those downloads, 16,000 occurred in the first tracking week after the episode aired (tracking week ending Sept. 1), marking a 125 percent gain from the previous week.

The song was featured in a ballroom dance performance by mother-son duo Alla and Daniel Novikov. The pair was eliminated from the competition at the end of the episode. “Cake” originally peaked

at No. 9 on the Billboard Hot 100 on the March 12-dated chart.

“Rise Up” by Andra Day lands at No. 3 thanks to another dance performance—this time in So You Think You Can Dance: The Next Generation. The track earns its spot with 14,000 Shazam tags, 4.2 million U.S. streams and 25,000 downloads in August. The song was featured in a contemporary dance performance by contestant Tate McRae and professional dancer and actress Kathryn McCormick.

Additionally, Gloria Gaynor lands at No. 8 with “I Will Survive.” The song was featured in the seventh episode of HBO’s new hit miniseries The Night Of, which first aired that penultimate installment on August 21. The song earns its spot with 4,000 Shazam tags, 2.2 million U.S. streams and 5,000 downloads in August.

Other than its regular appearances on Billboard’s Dance/Electronic Digital Song Sales chart, “I Will Survive” hadn’t placed on a Billboard chart since 1979, when it hit No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 and Dance Club Songs chart (charts dated March 10 and Jan. 27, respectively). The song also peaked at No. 4 on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart the same year (chart dated March 17).

Here is the full Top TV Songs chart for August:

Rank, Title, Artist, TV Show (Network)1. “Cake By The Ocean,” DNCE,

America’s Got Talent (NBC)2. “No,” Meghan Trainor, Superstore

(NBC)3. “Rise Up,” Andra Day, So You Think

You Can Dance? (Fox)4. “New Level,” A$AP Ferg feat. Future,

Ballers (HBO)5. “Circles,” MDWS, Ray Donovan

(Showtime)6. “Thought It Was A Drought,” Future,

Ballers (HBO)7. “I Will Survive,” Gloria Gaynor, The

Night Of (HBO)8. “End Of The Affair,” Ben Howard,

Power (Starz)9. “Hard As Nails,” Peter Wolf Crier,

Fear The Walking Dead (AMC)10. “In Too Deep,” The Sweeplings,

Pretty Little Liars (Freeform)

Shawn Mendes on Track for Second No. 1 Album on Billboard 200 ChartBY KEITH CAULFIELD

Shawn Mendes’ new Illuminate album is set to light up the No. 1 slot on next week’s Billboard 200 chart, according to industry forecasters.

Sources suggest the singer/songwriter’s latest effort -- which was released Sept. 23 through Island Records -- may earn over 135,000 equivalent album units in the week ending Sept. 29. Of that sum, over 110,000 could be from traditional album sales -- which would mark Mendes’ best sales week yet.

If the set enters at No. 1, it will mark Mendes’ second leader, following his full-length debut Handwritten in 2015.

The Billboard 200 chart ranks the most popular albums of the week based on multi-metric consumption, which includes traditional album sales, track equivalent albums (TEA) and streaming equivalent albums (SEA). The top 10 of the new Oct. 15-dated Billboard 200 chart -- where Illuminate may bow at No. 1 -- is scheduled to be revealed on Billboard’s websites on Sunday, Oct. 2.

The new album was led by the single “Treat You Better,” which hits a new peak on the latest Billboard Hot 100 chart, as the tune rises 8-6 on the Oct. 8-dated list. The song also climbs 4-3 on the Pop Songs airplay chart.

Elsewhere on the upcoming Billboard 200 chart, watch for Luke Bryan’s new EP, Here’s to the Farmer, to potentially bow in the top five (with perhaps 30,000-plus units). Outside the top 10, Bruce Springsteen’s new Chapter and Verse may bow in the top 15 with around 20,000 units. The compilation set is a companion piece to Springsteen’s new autobiography Born

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to Run. The 18-track album features five previously unreleased songs, along with familiar favorites like “Badlands,” “The River,” “Born to Run” and “Born in the U.S.A.”

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