NEAR TRUTHS: A TOUR OF '24 (PART TWO)
INDEPENDENT SPIRIT: The top-streamed song of 2024 was not on a major label; EMPIRE’s Shaboozey (who’s managed by Range and repped for live by CAA) conquered all formats and demos with the irresistible country jam “A Bar Song (Tipsy)” on the way to a fleet of Grammy noms (including SOTY and BNA). It’s racked up 844m+ U.S. streams YTD. Meanwhile, PULSE’s first release on its new label, Tommy Richman’s “MILLION DOLLAR BABY” (issued as a JV with ISO Supremacy), was a smash out of the gate and is Top 10 for the year with 692m+ U.S. streams. Human Re Sources’ RAYE, having swept the BRITs, earned BNA and Songwriter of the Year Grammy noms.
A BRIEF PUB CRAWL: The 2024 of Jon Platt’s market-share leader Sony Publishing was highlighted by the chart and Grammy action of Beyoncé, Chappell Roan, Charli xcx and Lady Gaga, among others. Platt and team presently resemble kids in a candy store as they romp around SMP’s shiny new Hollywood complex, replete with gorgeous studios, cozy listening rooms and luxe lounges.
Guy Moot, Carianne Marshall, Ryan Press and their Warner Chappell crew, who’ve enjoyed the huge success of Zach Bryan, Shaboozey, Benson Boone, ROSÉ and Teddy Swims, have three writers vying for the Songwriter of the Year Grammy: Sabrina Carpenter’s ace collaborator Amy Allen, top country tunesmith Jessi Alexander and RAYE. Their year includes inking Dua Lipa, Patrice Rushen, Mon Laferte and The Red Clay Strays and closing big catalog deals for the works of Tom Petty and David Bowie.
Jody Gerson’s UMPG is celebrating a banner year for Taylor Swift, Kendrick Lamar, Billie Eilish, Sabrina Carpenter and countless other top writers, not to mention the success of Wicked (penned by Evan Lamberg-inked Stephen Schwartz). The pubbery’s top A&R hitters moved up this year—David Gray to head of the U.K. office and Jen Knoepfle to head of U.S. A&R.
Overall, publishing-catalog sales cooled considerably after a red-hot run, in part because of the acquisition of Hipgnosis Songs Fund by Blackstone for $1.6b after the exit of Merck Mercuriadis, whose efforts truly helped transform the outlook for copyright valuation. What might Merck’s next act look like?
PLATFORMING: Spotify is on track to its first full year of profitability, with subs and revenue climbing and its share price spiking. The company’s charts remain the leading indicator of success in the marketplace. The pending exit of Jeremy Erlich (who is due to announce his next venture soon) as global head of music has sparked much chatter about his possible successor. The company has an exceptionally deep bench, so there are several strong candidates.
The importance of TikTok to breaking records cannot be overstated, but it’s had a challenging year. After a battle with UMG over royalties that saw the label giant pull its music from the Chinese-owned platform, a reconciliation resulted in what seemed a vastly improved relationship between the company and rightsholders as Global Head of Music Business Development Ole Obermann pushed an array of artist-friendly campaigns. But TikTok faces a greater obstacle at press time: A panel of federal judges has upheld a law demanding that owner ByteDance sell the service to a non-Chinese entity or face closure in the U.S. Will Trump, who has promised action on behalf of the hugely popular platform, be able to intervene?
MUSIC CITIES: The coastal labels’ aggressive forays into country are changing the landscape. In addition to its huge success with the likes of Big Loud’s Morgan Wallen, Mercury's Post Malone and BBR’s Grammy darling Jelly Roll, Republic now has its own outpost in Music City, while Warner’s Zach Bryan is one of the genre’s top earners (and a gargantuan live act, as the folks at WME hasten to reiterate). How much more of the Nashville companies’ candy will they take?
We must also point out that after complete turnovers there in management during the past couple of years, all three Nashville majors are now led by women: UMGN’s Cindy Mabe (at the moment savoring Grammy love for Chris Stapleton, who’s currently selling out arenas, and building up Back Blocks’ Tucker Wetmore); newly anointed Sony Nashville boss Taylor Lindsey (who has true genre megastars in Luke Combs, another multiple Grammy nominee, and Kane Brown); and Warner Music Nashville’s Cris Lacy (whose roster includes trophy magnet Cody Johnson, Ashley McBryde and big-streaming Bailey Zimmerman). As part of WMG’s reorg, it should be noted, Lacy’s WMN now reports to Warner’s Bay-Schuck and Corson. Scott Borchetta's BMLG, meanwhile, recently saw artist Riley Green nab a Country #1 duet with Columbia's Ella Langley.
