Digital Music News – studio recording, publishing, streaming, live concerts, talent development

The latest music news from Digital Music News, affecting recording industry, music publishing, mp3 streaming, concert industry, talent development, venture capital, and music technology, with reporting on artists new releases and where to get new mp3 songs.

1. Warner Music Unveils Lawsuit-Settling Suno Licensing Deal, Says the ‘Groundbreaking Partnership’ Will ‘Open New Frontiers in Music Creation, Interaction, and Discovery’

   After 17 months of litigation – and following AI licensing deals with Udio, Stability, and more – Warner Music Group (WMG) has finalized a “groundbreaking partnership” with Suno. The major label and the music generator disclosed their blockbuster pact this afternoon, just five days after WMG head Robert Kyncl laid out his AI strategy. Evidently, […]

2. Nicki Minaj Faces Seizure of $20 Million Home to Cover Security Guard Damages Payment

   A judge is ready to force the sale of Nicki Minaj’s $20 million mansion to pay a former security guard the $500,000 judgement he is owed. Judge Cindy Pánuco is tired of waiting for Nicki Minaj to cut a check for her former security guard, to whom she owes $500,000 for the broken jaw and […]

3. Reservoir Unveils Reggae Catalog JV With Cordell ‘Skatta’ Burrell and Abood Music, Sets Sights on ‘Further Advancing the New Generation of Jamaica’s Music Scene’

   With an eye on scooping up reggae catalogs and signing talent, Reservoir Media (NASDAQ: RSVR) has unveiled a joint venture with artist Cordell “Skatta” Burrell and publisher Abood Music. Reservoir formally disclosed the multifaceted JV – and underscored its aggressive IP-purchase plans – today. On the opposite side of the tie-up, Jamdown Records founder Othman […]

4. JLo, Tiesto Collect Massive Paychecks for Lavish Indian Billionaire Wedding Gig — Great Work If You Can Get It

   Jennifer Lopez headlined an extravagant Indian billionaire wedding this week, turning heads and securing a monster paycheck. A lavish Indian wedding this week saw a headline performance from Jennifer Lopez alongside a welcome party set from DJ Tiesto. The three-day celebration, held between November 21 and 23, took place across Udaipur to honor the wedding […]

5. LAPD Seals All Medical Examiner Records in d4vd-Celeste Rivas Hernandez Investigation

   Records about the death of Celeste Rivas Hernandez, the teen whose body was found in singer d4vd’s car, have been sealed from the public. The Los Angeles County medical examiner’s office revealed it received a court order imposing a security hold on the case, meaning no details about the death of teenager Celeste Rivas Hernandez […]

6. TikTok Hires New Public Policy Chief for the Americas — As ‘TikTok USA’ Edges Oh-So-Close to Reality

   TikTok names former Boeing vice president of government affairs Ziad Ojakli as the platform’s head of public policy for the Americas. As TikTok’s Chinese parent company ByteDance works to complete the deal to separate its U.S. assets, TikTok has named former Boeing government affairs vice president Ziad Ojakli as its head of public policy for […]

7. Warner Music’s India Expansion Continues With Ultra Music Distribution Deal — ‘One of the Indian Music Industry’s Most Significant Catalogs’

   Three months removed from Universal Music’s Maddock partnership announcement, Warner Music has inked an exclusive distribution deal with Ultra Music India. Warner Music India unveiled the worldwide distribution pact today, amid continued music-space growth (and streaming price increases) in the nation of nearly 1.5 billion. On the opposite side of the tie-up, Mumbai-headquartered Ultra Music...

8. Red Bull Records Is Shutting Down—Label’s Wings Are Getting Clipped by the End of the Year

   After an 18-year run, Red Bull Records will shut down by Christmas. The label was distributed through the Sony Music network via RED and The Orchard. Red Bull Records has announced it will wind down operations by the end of the year. The label ran for 18 years, distributed through Sony Music Entertainment imprints RED […]

9. European Commission Confirms Universal Music-Downtown Deal ‘Statement of Objections’ — UMG Doubles Down on Plans for ‘A Successful Conclusion of This Process’

   The European Commission has issued a “statement of objections” concerning Virgin Music Group’s proposed Downtown Music buyout, which the EU executive branch believes “may restrict competition in the market for the wholesale distribution of recorded music.” The EC just recently made that statement official, days after evidently well-placed sources pointed to an imminent development in […]

10. Spotify’s US Price Hike Awaits—Financial Times Predicts a Q1 2026 Bump Following a Rash of Global Price Increases In 2025

    A new report from the Financial Times reveals that Spotify is prepping to announce a new US price hike in Q1 2026. This report cites three sources dialed into Spotify’s thinking. The streaming giant has already raised prices in markets including South Asia, the Middle East, Africa, Europe, and Latin America. If Spotify raises prices […]

11. Rumblings of a Spotify US Price Increase Intensify — But Maybe This Isn’t the Best Idea?

    At this point, a Spotify price hike in the US isn’t an ‘if,’ it’s a ‘when’. But what if hiking the price on price-sensitive Americans is a costly mistake? Spotify’s been blasting price increases across dozens of countries this year. Now, it’s America’s turn. For months, rumblings of a stateside increase have shifted into a […]

12. Kevin Liles, Def Jam Prevail Against ‘Jane Doe’ Sexual Assault Claims—Federal Judge Fully Dismisses Case

    A judge has tossed a civil sexual assault complaint brought against Kevin Liles by a former Def Jam executive assistant. An anonymous woman filed a sexual assault claim against legendary record executive Kevin Liles back in February. The suit alleged that Liles, who was the woman’s boss and the president of Def Jam at the […]

13. Seventeen Plays Tiny Desk, A Big First for a K-Pop Artist

    K-pop group Seventeen made their Tiny Desk debut, becoming the first K-pop act to play a Tiny Desk concert from NPR’s office in Washington, D.C. K-pop group Seventeen made their Tiny Desk debut on Monday, performing reimagined versions of nine tracks spanning their decade-long career, backed by a live band. The set is historic , […]

14. Suno Goes for the Jugular In Artist-Led Copyright Suit, Strategically Moves to Isolate ‘Core’ Fair Use Training Question

    Suno has doubled down on calls to toss most of the infringement lawsuit filed by artists including Tony Justice. The way the AI music generator sees things, partial dismissal will allow the litigants to focus on the “core question” of whether training on protected works sans permission is fair use. The cash-flush defendant just recently […]

15. Music Industry Funding Has Already Topped $1 Billion in Q4 2025 — Massive Raises Continue Despite Overall Volume Slowdown

    With more than a month remaining in 2025, fourth-quarter music industry funding has already blown past the $1 billion mark – a massive sum that actually represents a double-digit decrease from the same period in 2024. These and other valuable data points are made possible by DMN Pro’s Music Industry Funding Tracker. In keeping with […]