I.B. weighs in on Chappell and Max's next acts, the incoming regime at Sony Music Nashville and the strength of country music in the live sector.

Ole Obermann, global head of Music Business Development for TikTok, tells our own Craig Marks that he’s been way too busy over the past six months to let the company’s existential uncertainty weigh on him. Obermann has had his own fires to put out. 

Industry machers are working overtime to get everything just right en route to four blessed days of relaxation, feasting, football and a schlep to the cineplex to catch Wicked. Taylor, Brady and Kevin are setting their tables, while Max and Merck gaze fondly at the Colonies, but the members of ATEEZ are sticking with Seoul food. Take HITS List out of the oven.

The beef between Kendrick Lamar and Drake just got a whole lot spicier, with the latter initiating legal action against UMG and Spotify for allegedly colluding to inflate airplay and streaming for the former's diss track "Not Like Us."

I.B. on the Wicked phenomenon (as both box-office giant and musical marvel) and the next chapter for a true disruptor, who is said to have a whole new game plan for 2025.

I.B. assesses the aftermath of the Grammy noms and how they reflect the biggest biz and music stories of 2024.

With Thanksgiving a full week away, all we can think about is turkey and gravy and stuffing and yams and buttered crescent rolls and bottomless tumblers of Beaujolais Nouveau. But we are contractually obligated to feign interest in work, so here's our weekly gallery and its aptly carb-heavy captions for your weekend-adjacent delectation. 

Amy Allen was recently—and fittingly—nominated for the Songwriter of the Year Grammy after a blockbuster 2024 highlighted by her work with Sabrina Carpenter, who is...