Spotify has started offering a music-only subscription plan in the U.K. Called Basic Individual; it’s offered at £10.99 a month.

The tier costs £1 less than the streaming service's Individual premium plan, which also includes 15 hours of audiobook listening per month. Daniel Ek announced the music-only tier on Spotify’s earnings call in April but didn’t say when or where it would roll out.

Spotify has been getting heat from rightsholders over classifying its subscription packages as bundles after adding audiobooks to its premium offering last year.

This move resulted in the DSP paying a lower mechanical royalty rate to publishers and songwriters in the U.S. starting in March, a decision the Mechanical Licensing Collective (MLC) has challenged via a lawsuit.

In May, Sony Music Publishing Chairman/CEO Jon Platt weighed in, saying mechanical royalty payments have reduced by around 20%. “In effect, Spotify is taking the position that all U.S. subscribers are part of a bundle without choosing the bundle option,” he said.

While the Copyright Royalty Board’s rate structure allows for a “discounted bundle rate in certain circumstances,” added Platt, SMP does not believe the offering falls within the parameters that were agreed to in the last U.S. CRB proceeding in 2022.

Sony Music U.K.'s catalog division has promoted Joanna Kalli from Director of Marketing to Managing Director of Sony Music Commercial Group.

In her new role, Kalli will preside over the catalog division, rock and metal label Music for Nations and classical imprint Masterworks.

Kalli joined Sony Music as a Product Manager in 2008, having started her career at independent labels. In her 16 years with the company, she has spearheaded global campaigns for artists including George Michael, The Clash and Judas Priest.

Most recently, Kalli has overseen Natasha Bedingfield’s chart renaissance, which saw her 2004 hit “Unwritten” enter the U.K. Top 15 for the first time in 19 years.

She also led a 2023 Wham! campaign, landing the coveted U.K. Christmas #1 single for “Last Christmas,” 39 years after its release. The track has now amassed more than 1.6b streams worldwide.

AC/DC, Blur and Chaka Khan are among the final winners announced for this year’s annual O2 Silver Clef Awards in London, held in aid of music-therapy charity Nordoff and Robbins.

At the 7/5 ceremony, Blur will be honored with the flagship O2 Silver Clef Award in celebration of the band’s contribution to music during its three-decade-long career. AC/DC will receive the Legend Award, acknowledging five decades of the band, while Khan will get the Global Impact Award in recognition of her 50 years of international influence.

Mark Knopfler is on the winners’ list for the Music Icon Award. British rapper Loyle Carner will take home Best Male and Jacob Collier will pick up the Innovation in Music Award. Scottish group Young Fathers will receive Best Live Act.

Previously announced winners include Jessie Ware, The 1975, Texas, Cat Burns and Ezra Collective.

The artists will receive their awards in person at a music industry lunch and ceremony held at the Grosvenor House Hotel on London’s Park Lane. The exclusive event—now in its 48th year —will raise funds for Nordoff and Robbins to support a wide range of children and adults living with autism, dementia, learning difficulties, brain injuries, life-limiting illnesses, mental health challenges, grief and trauma. In all, the awards have raised nearly £13m. Last year’s event raised more than £612k.

Andrew Howell has a new title as VP of Sync at Warner Chappell Music U.K. starting 6/1. He joined the company in 2016.

In this role, Howell will continue to report to Rich Robinson, EVP and Global Head of Sync at WCM, and Shani Gonzales, MD of WCM U.K. and Head of International A&R at WCM.

Gonzales praised Howell’s “collaborative spirit” as well as his “encyclopedic knowledge of our songbook and an unrivalled instinct as to what placements will work.”

Robinson added, “Andrew embodies Warner Chappell’s proactive approach to sync, with a forward thinking mindset that sees his ideas prevail in an often saturated space.”

Howell joined WCM U.K. after a career at Universal Music Group and Sony/ATV. Since then, he and his team have delivered multiple placements with gaming companies, including EA and Space Ape, as well as successful campaigns with Lexus, Persil, Cruzacampo and other brands. They’ve also contributed works to key film and TV projects, such as One Day, The Crown, Saltburn and Back to Black.

Recent standout wins include working with WCM France to create a Dua Lipa cover of George Michael’s “Freedom! ’90" for Yves Saint Laurent; securing a cover of “It’s a Hard Knock Life” from the musical Annie in Dove’s 2024 Super Bowl spot; and working with David Bowie’s estate to place multiple songs in global Paco Rabanne campaigns.

Warner Chappell Music has inked a global publishing deal with songwriter/producer Toby Daintree.

Having worked with the likes of Devin Workman, FKA Twigs, Jesse Fink, Joy Crookes, Matilda Mann, Two Inch Punch and more, the multi-instrumentalist recently made a name for himself as Artemas’ main collaborator, co-writing and co-producing his #1 hit “i like the way you kiss me,” viral single “if you think I’m pretty” and his mixtape pretty.

Since its March release, “i like the way you kiss me” has amassing 400m+ streams and topped Spotify’s global chart for three weeks. The track hit #1 in Austria, Switzerland and Germany, #3 in Australia, Denmark and the U.K. plus more.

Through this new partnership, Daintree—managed by Virgo Management’s Fin Kemp—will work closely with WCM U.K.’s managing director, Shani Gonzales, and head of A&R, Amber Davis.

“Toby is a world-class songwriter and producer. His recent hits have showcased he can write songs that connect with a global audience, and we want to help replicate this success by partnering him with the world’s biggest artists and writers,” said WCM U.K. A&R Manager George Baker.

“I’m looking forward to working with George and the wider Warner Chappell team who have shown a passionate interest and understanding in the music I’ve been a part of and I'm excited to see what opportunities and new relationships come from the partnership,” added Daintree.

Seen hoping we stay on this side of the pond are (l-r) attorney Sharon-Rose Mensah, Kemp, Daintree, Baker, Davis and WCM U.K. VP, head of legal and business affairs, Darren Young.

We’ve exhausted every possible coffee and caffeine pun, so we’ll just state the fact: Sabrina Carpenter’s “Espresso” is the U.K.’s #1 pop song for the third week.

“Espresso” was streamed 8.5 million times during that week. Carpenter held off a bid by Post Malone and Morgan Wallen, whose multi-genre hit “I Had Some Help” came in at #2 and trailed “Espresso” by less than 2,000 chart units.

“I Had Some Help” is the ninth Top 10 single for Malone and the first for Wallen, who is crossing over in the U.K. much as he has in the U.S.

In other chart action, Kendrick Lamar’s diss track “Not Like Us” moved up four spots to #6, and “Belong Together” by Mark Ambor elevated to #11.

And on the album chart, Kings of Leon’s Can We Please Have Fun rocketed to #2 in its first week, giving the KoL their ninth U.K. Top 10 album.

You’ll never guess who’s #1: Taylor Swift. As the Eras Tour voyages to Europe, THE TORTURED POETS DEPARTMENT rises one spot, spending its third non-consecutive week at the top.

In non-Taylor album action, Gunna’s One of Wun sits at #4, Dua Lipa drops from first to third with Radical Optimism and the 20th anniversary re-release of Keane’s Hopes and Fears lands at #3.

The story of respected British music exec Darcus Beese, formerly president of UMG U.K.’s Island Records, will be told in his upcoming book, Rebel With a Cause.

Rebel With a Cause details how Beese went from apprentice hairdresser to work his way up from being the ‘tea boy’ to the President and first black CEO of a U.K. record company at Island.

The memoir covers him signing and nurturing seminal British artists including Amy Winehouse, Mumford & Sons, Dizzee Rascal and Florence and the Machine, to him moving to New York to run Island in the US but ‘becoming despondent at what he saw and encountered,’ according to a press release.

Beese, who is now EVP at Warner Music U.K. where he runs his own JV label, said: “As a kid I never thought or dreamed that one day I would be writing my story, let alone having it published. But now I think why not me? Growing up in a family of activists, a mother and father who fought to change British society, I’ve always understood the importance of using your voice, always felt a duty to speak my mind and stand up for what was right.

“Writing the book, looking back over my 50-plus years, I really appreciate how blessed I am to have such a strong beautiful family and to have enjoyed the most amazing experiences working alongside some of the greatest musical talents. Hopefully there’s plenty more to come. If this book inspires one kid to believe in themselves, to stay true to themselves, then it’ll be worthwhile.”

Published by Nine Eight Books, Rebel With a Cause will be available in hardback, ebook and audiobook versions from 8/15 in the U.K. It is set to land in the US in due course.