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. Spotify is Expanding Wrapped-Style Recaps, Now with Your Entire Listening History

   Spotify ramps up its Wrapped recaps as part of its 20th anniversary celebration, releasing a limited-time look at your entire listening history. As part of Spotify’s 20th anniversary celebration, the streamer has unveiled a limited-time, mobile-only in-app experience giving users a “playful, nostalgia-driven look back at your music listening history.” It contains moments such as […]

2. Thief Who Swiped Beyoncé’s Unreleased Tracks in Brazen Heist Is Going to Prison

   The man accused of stealing hard drives containing unreleased Beyoncé music has avoided a jury trial by pleading guilty and will serve prison time. Kelvin Evans, the 40-year-old man accused of stealing hard drives from Beyoncé’s team containing unreleased music, pleaded guilty in Fulton County Superior Court on Tuesday, thus avoiding a jury trial. Evans […]

3. Apple Music Drops Paywall for Lady Gaga’s Mayhem Requiem Premiere Alongside AMC Screenings

   Apple Music is inviting all of Lady Gaga’s Little Monsters to the final chapter of her Mayhem era with “Apple Music Live: Lady Gaga Mayhem Requiem.” Lady Gaga has teamed up with Apple Music for a special recorded live performance, “Apple Music Live: Lady Gaga Mayhem Requiem.” The show was filmed live in January at […]

4. Michael Jackson’s ‘Secret Family’ Doubles Down on Abuse Accusations After Legal Setbacks

   Amid the success of the new Michael Jackson biopic, four siblings alleging child sex abuse double down on their claims in a new interview. The Cascio family, four siblings who filed a lawsuit against the Michael Jackson estate in February, doubled down on their claims of child sexual abuse in a new interview with “60 […]

5. Samsung Denies ‘Any Allegations of Intentional Misuse’ Amid Dua Lipa Lawsuit, Says It Remains ‘Open to a Constructive Resolution’

   Samsung has officially responded to Dua Lipa’s copyright infringement lawsuit by denying “any allegations of intentional misuse” and underscoring that it’s “open to a constructive resolution with Ms. Lipa’s team.” Samsung addressed the $15 million complaint in response to DMN’s comment request; we previously broke down the straightforward suit in detail. But to recap, the […]

6. Downtown’s CD Baby Unwraps a Full-Service Indie Artist Offering — Powered by the Indie Cred of Molly Neuman

   Downtown’s CD Baby distribution mainstay, now part of Virgin Music Group, is expanding its core distribution know-how to include full-service, hands-on support for select indie artists. Here’s more on the just-unveiled ‘Stages Selects’ offering, spearheaded by CD Baby president (and Riot Grrrl pioneer) Molly Neuman. Distro mainstay CD Baby is now pulling back the curtain […]

7. Sony Music Publishing Makes Its Recognition Music Catalog Acquisition Official — Blackstone Eyes Post-Sale Investments ‘Across the Music Sector Through Recognition’

   Sony Music Publishing (SMP) has made its much-rumored Recognition Music Group catalog acquisition official, thereby securing interests in north of 45,000 high-profile works. SMP and Singapore’s GIC confirmed the deal today, on the heels of not-so-subtle indications that a formal announcement was imminent. Eight years, many song-rights plays, and one rebranding later, Hipgnosis, complete with...

8. Bain-Partnered Warner Music Reportedly Acquires the Red Hot Chili Peppers’ Recorded Catalog In $300 Million+ Deal

   Days after disclosing $650 million in song-rights expenditures, Bain Capital-partnered Warner Music Group (WMG) has reportedly scooped up the Red Hot Chili Peppers’ recorded catalog. Though currently unconfirmed by the involved parties, the reported transaction (complete with a price tag in excess of $300 million) aligns with early 2025 rumblings of the Red Hot Chili […]

9. Kendrick Lamark Scrubs ‘Not Like Us’, ‘Luther’ Videos From YouTube, ‘GNX’ & ‘Euphoria’ from Apple Music—Then Mysteriously Restores Them

   Kendrick Lamar’s album GNX disappeared from Apple Music, while the music videos for “Not Like Us” and “Luther” also mysteriously vanished from YouTube. All were restored hours later. Kendrick Lamar seems to be making moves, but no one is sure what they mean just yet. On Monday, Kendrick Lamar’s 2024 album GNX and track “Euphoria” […]

10. Warner Music and Suno Really, Really Don’t Want You to See Their Licensing Agreement — And They’re Fighting Tooth-and-Nail Against UMG and Sony to Keep It Private

    Suno and Warner Music Group (WMG) really don’t want to reveal the terms of their lawsuit-ending licensing agreement: Now, the AI music generator is aggressively firing back against a demand from Universal Music and Sony Music to produce the deal. We initially covered that demand late last month, not long after Universal Music and Sony […]

11. How A Grassroots Genre from Mexico Is Rewriting the Entire Latin Music Growth Curve

    Mexico’s fastest-growing music genre on streaming is corridos, with recent catalog data from Duetti and Chartmetric showcasing just how deep that momentum runs across platforms and listener behavior. The report analyzes a large catalog of corridos titles to map growth, demographics, platform shares, and engagement patterns inside Mexico’s broader streaming landscape. This research deep-dive was...

12. California Fans First Act Targets Ticket Resale Abuse With Support From Music Artists Coalition, NIVA, SAG-AFTRA, Independent Venues & Artists

    New California legislation aims to fight ticket resale price gouging in the live entertainment industry amid intense scrutiny of ticketing practices. On Monday, California Assemblymember Matt Haney (D-San Francisco) held a press conference outside the Castro Theatre to emphasize the importance of AB-1720, the California Fans First Act. If passed, the bill will curb price […]

13. In Yet Another Ownership Swap, InMusic Acquires Bankrupt Native Instruments

    InMusic has announced signing a definitive agreement to acquire music tech company Native Instruments, as the Berlin-based company changes hands again. On Friday (May 8), inMusic and Native Instruments announced that the former had signed a definitive agreement to acquire the latter, the Berlin-based music technology company behind some of the most widely used creative […]

14. More Than 50 Years Later, The Beatles’ Iconic Rooftop ‘Stage’ Is Being Opened to the Public

    The Beatles’ Apple Corps announces the first-ever official Beatles fan experience at the iconic rooftop stage of 3 Savile Row in London. 3 Savile Row in London is already enshrined in pop culture history as one of the earliest headquarters of the Beatles’ Apple Corps. It was the studio where Let It Be was recorded, […]

15. FKA twigs to Play Josephine Baker In New Biopic Filming This Fall

    FKA twigs will play jazz icon Josephine Baker in a new biopic from filmmaker Maïmouna Doucouré, which starts filming in the fall. Singer FKA twigs will star as the iconic jazz star Josephine Baker in an upcoming biopic by filmmaker Maïmouna Doucouré (“Cuties”), which begins filming in the fall. The film is financed and co-produced […]