Live Nation has amended its court disclosure about negotiations with the DOJ, confirming a brief appearance by President Trump at the March 5 meeting in which the two parties finalized the terms of their antitrust settlement.
Catching lightning in a tech support bottle
You can buy the airplay. You can’t buy the hit. Elon Musk has reportedly spent approximately $366 million on political efforts during the current election cycle, including $276 million since July, much of it directed toward helping Republicans retain control of Congress.
Here's everything you missed from the blue carpet livestream.
Check out the must-hear releases of the week.
The pop icon also performed at the Thursday (Oct. 22) ceremony, broadcasted live on Telemundo.
Directed by James Mackel, the visual is three-and-a-half minutes of spy stuff, as LISA makes short work of the many villains who lurk in her hotel.
The ceremony was broadcasted live on Telemundo from the James L. Knight Center in Miami.
The global diva returns, relaxed and razor-sharp. Hit play, and a six-scene movie unfolds in your ears and behind your eyes.
In addition to a cover of the traditional "Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas," the mini-album features three originals.
A former Eminem employee has pleaded guilty to a copyright infringement charge related to the reproduction and sale of unreleased tracks by the artist. Joseph Strange, a 48-year-old man who was formerly employed by celebrated rapper Eminem (real name Marshall Mathers), has pleaded guilty in the...
Santos Bravos chatted with Billboard’s Ingrid Fajardo & Jessica Roiz on the red carpet of 2026 Billboard’s Latin Music Awards.
Rosalía chatted with Billboard’s Ingrid Fajardo & Jessica Roiz on the red carpet of 2026 Billboard’s Latin Music Awards.
Fuerza Regida chatted with Billboard’s Ingrid Fajardo & Jessica Roiz on the red carpet of 2026 Billboard’s Latin Music Awards.
The winners of annual awards given out by ASCAP for the year’s most outstanding music writing and broadcasts include biographies of film composers John Williams and Bernard Herrmann, as well as a documentary about cult R&B artist Swamp Dogg, liner notes for an archival release from Frank Zappa,...
Spotify has reported double-digit year-over-year (YoY) user growth – and subscriber-base expansions “across all regions” – for Q3 2026, when its revenue jumped 16% YoY. Meanwhile, the company’s stock (NYSE: SPOT) is up about 9% from yesterday’s close.
We’ve heard plenty about Suno the defendant. But what about Suno the filing party? As it grapples with high-stakes infringement complaints from UMG, Sony Music, and a slew of others, the AI music platform is now demanding a trove of streaming-data documents, pertaining to several DSPs, from the...
The artist will feature in the gothic film based on Peter Cameron's novel, What Happens at Night
The rights to Damon Dash’s life story have been auctioned off for just $550,000, with the money set to go to his creditors amid bankruptcy proceedings. Music mogul Damon Dash’s bankruptcy proceedings continue with the auctioning off of the rights to his life story, which sold for $550,000.
Another log on the litigation fire: Suno is now facing a nearly $200 million copyright infringement and DMCA complaint from Reservoir Media, which has also fired off a similar action against Anthropic. Richard S. Busch-repped Reservoir submitted both suits to the U.S.
Singer-songwriter and Variety Hitmakers 2024 honoree Raye has won the 2026 Mercury prize for her epic second studio album, “This Music May Contain Hope,” beating out Olivia Dean, Paul McCartney and others for the prize. The Mercury Prize has no real equivalent in the U.S., and is intended to...
The rapper and social media personality is allegedly connected to over 500 EBT fraud incidents in Georgia
John Mayer has had his hands full with what felt like a hundred projects over the past few years — with putting out new music not among them. It takes a stretch of the memory to even recall that he announced a parting of ways with Sony Music back in 2022, with no followup revelation […]
AI audio company Sonilo announces an $11 million funding round led by B Capital with participation from Redpoint. The funds will help scale operations. Sonilo, a generative audio company that builds proprietary video-native music and sound models, has announced an $11 million funding round led by B...
John Mayer is launching his own record label in a partnership with Universal Music Group’s Mercury Records, bringing him back to the major label fold. John Mayer has announced the launch of his own record label, Sob Rock Records, in a partnership with Universal Music Group’s Mercury Records.
Chaka Khan will receive the Classic Soul Honor at the 2026 Soul Train Awards, celebrating the singer-songwriter’s influence on R&B. Across her career, which spans more than five decades, Khan helped shape the sound of soul, funk and R&B with her music, including hits like “Tell Me Something Good,”...
“Adversaries are clearly spending time (and tokens) on this bug,” researcher says.
Veteran communications exec Liz Morentin has launched Greenvalley Media & Marketing, focusing on entertainment, media and technology companies and their leaders.
The LEGO Group and Daft Punk ink a partnership that brings the iconic duo’s robot alter egos to the LEGO universe, building on the success of a fan project.
Not to kill the human, of course – to kill the antibiotic-resistant bacteria causing their infection
Legendary bassist. You know, the guy with the long beard who’s played with seemingly EVERYBODY! Video: https://music.youtube.com/watch?v=r9cRgq4WQLs&si=S67aBYnuLybzXuPZ&drli=1 Audio: Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/leland-sklar/id1316200737?i=1000797598116...
I asked Ellen Burstyn where a Grammy would go, if she ever won one. She stands up to show me. “I wonder if I took my iPad off the stand and walked you into my office, where they all are,” she says, immediately reaching for it over a video Zoom. Her assistant, Caitlin, gets the […]
Musician will release “Tom and Jerry,” his first single since his 2021’s Sob Rock, on the his new label
Charli xcx and Martin Scorsese’s collaboration is extending beyond the cover for her new album “Music, Fashion, Film.” Sources tell Variety that the pop star has a cameo in the Oscar-winning director’s upcoming movie “What Happens at Night” alongside Leonardo DiCaprio and Jennifer Lawrence.
Spotify's Q3 2026 shareholder deck shows that Latin America accounted for 24% of the company's 306 million Premium subscribers at the end of September. Source
No actual digits or cats were harmed beyond the number crunching that went into this LLM poisoning experiment
Rep. Robert Garcia (D-CA) demands answers from StubHub CEO Eric Baker amid allegations of his hedge fund making millions in reselling tickets on the platform. California Rep.
When BTS opted out of the 2027 Grammys, it raised a question that goes beyond one band: can a category built to celebrate Asian music also end up setting it apart? Artists, executives, and the data weigh in on what recognition should look like for a global sound.
DEAG acquires the remaining 25.1% stake in handwerker promotion from its founder, Fred Handwerker, becoming the sole shareholder of the company. Deutsche Entertainment AG (DEAG) is acquiring the remaining 25.1% stake in handwerker promotion e.
The new label, Crime & Punishment Records, has signed singer-songwriter Elle Bramhall as its first artist. Source
Aaron Carter’s estate has reached a settlement with two pharmacies, including Walgreens, that supplied the singer with Xanax prior to his death. The estate of Aaron Carter has reached a settlement with Walgreens and Santa Monica Medical Plaza Pharmacy, both pharmacies that supplied the singer with...
Joseph Strange, who worked for rapper for 14 years, faces five years in prison on charge of criminal infringement of a copyright
It’s hard to single out any one song as the “secret weapon” of Chappell Roan’s “The Rise and Fall of a Midwest Princess”; as the best pop debut of the 2020s, the entire album was pretty weaponized. But the ballad “Coffee” certainly counts as a sleeper — and Roan was not sleeping on it when […]
Vendor 'strongly recommends' upgrading to a fixed version 'as soon as possible'
A man who was charged with stealing and selling unreleased Eminem music that leaked to the web last year has pleaded guilty to criminal infringement of copyright.
New York is getting a Halloween double bill: on October 31, Harry Styles’ final night at Madison Square Garden will be paired with an electric disco dance party for fans across the city.
We didn't want to issue SSL/TLS certs anyway, Indian firm suggests after one private key turns out to be the number 4
A musical based on Amy Winehouse is officially in development, Variety has exclusively learned. The project is in early days although legendary Broadway producer Catherine Schreiber, who has produced shows including “Cabaret,” “Rent” and the stage adaptation of “High School Musical,” is understood...
“I do not support genocide, the killing of innocent people, or the suffering of women, children, and families,” singer writes
Flex denied being assaulted, accusing Shadow Stokes of attempting to “bait” him into a lawsuit
From Bad Bunny to Ricky Martin, Puerto Rican artists have made an indelible mark on music worldwide. And while the island’s talent continues to reach global audiences, Spotify is committed to expand access to the resources and spaces the next generation of Puerto Rican creators need to pursue their...
Frank Marshall’s Fleetwood Mac: The Chain arrives in January on Apple TV
Morentin most recently served as Senior Vice President and Head of Global Communications and Brand Strategy at Virgin Music Group, Universal Music Group's global independent music division. Source
Ministers report 32 unavailable and four partly disrupted, but no confirmed compromise
Twentieth-anniversary celebration of Back to Black in London also featured Salaam Remi, Yebba, Lianne La Havas, the Amy Winehouse Band and more
Spotify told investors its rollout of QR code verification to ensure Family Plan members live in the same household is not a "crackdown," just a routine improvement.
Apple log jam? Apple fast lane pie-lup? We're here all week, on stage... sweeping it
SPONSORED FEATURE: AI makes phishing easier than ever
Fandom is not “one-size-fits-all”, but rather an amalgamation of different engagement types and levels of activity. In last year’s Defining entertainment superfans report, MIDiA began to demystify engagement by creating four core fan archetypes according to how fans engage with their favourite...
One more tile, we're gonna celebrate! We're up all night to get blocky! Yes, the Daft Punk / Lego crossover is finally here. The post is from Music Ally.
Dowell will look to sign digital creators, multi-hyphenate creatives, and IP-based projects, according to the company. Source
Hugo's lawyers accuse Williams of an "effort to rewrite history and turn The Neptunes' success into the work of only one person." Source
The 44-page answer was filed on Tuesday (October 20) in the US District Court for the District of Massachusetts, and reviewed by MBW. Source
Simon Dunmore, the founder of UK house music label Defected Records, has acquired a majority shareholding in House Culture, a media brand that started life as an Instagram page.
Spotify discontinued Car Thing in 2022, taking a one-time charge of EUR €31 million (around USD $31.4 million) on the device in Q2 2022. Source
Supply Chain has also hired Craig May as SVP, Marketing, and Kristy May as SVP, Business Affairs. Source
Select recordings and songs from UMG's recorded music and publishing catalogs will become available on TYGER's paid, on-demand subscription service. Source
French duo drop teaser video ahead of 2027 collaboration with toymakers
For those who find taking a phone out of their pocket just so last century
GPU chief doesn't want to hear about job losses or the end of human civilization
AI-music startup Moises has inked its latest partnership, with SoundCloud. It’s a promotional deal that includes a technical integration, with artists on SoundCloud able to export their tracks into Moises for mixing, mastering and stem separation. The post is from Music Ally.
There has been speculation for months that Meta’s Threads social network was about to overtake its arch-rival X (formerly Twitter) for monthly users. Now – at least according to Meta boss Mark Zuckerberg – it has happened. The post is from Music Ally.
Hive has helped its 1,600-plus venue, promoter and festival clients to sell more than $1bn of tickets using its event-marketing platform. Now it’s raised some money of its own to continue growing. The post is from Music Ally.
Cloudflare reports millions of exploit attempts, while Amazon spotted attackers trying their luck four days before patches landed
It’s a strange moment for AI and humanity. Lots of headlines about how unregulated frontier-models could kill us all in the next decade – but of course, the big AI firms have some ideas on how that regulation should work – and growing unrest around the impact of the data centres those companies...
AI agents did the dirty work, with hackers gaining privileged access in some environments in under three hours
Hindi film and Punjabi-language music are the two most-streamed categories on Indian DSPs and now the highest-played artists in those segments, Arijit Singh and Karan Aujla, will co-headline a music […] The post is from Music Ally.
Universal Music India has launched IndiLat, a new cross-cultural act made up of composer-producers Siddhant Bhatia and Raghav Mehta from India, Cristóbal “Tibo” Gajardo from Chile, and Raniero Palm from […] The post is from Music Ally.
Mars Express could support MMX's 2027 arrival as another 'last ever' extension keeps old spacecraft in flight
Spotify is closing in on the milestone of 800 million active users this side of Christmas, based on its Q3 2026 financial results. The post is from Music Ally.
Under tredje kvartalet 2026 växte vi till 306 miljoner premiumanvändare, med tillväxt i samtliga regioner, och nådde 788 miljoner månatliga aktiva användare. Samtidigt blev både bruttomarginalen och rörelseresultatet bättre än väntat.
In Q3 2026, we grew to 306 million Premium Subscribers, with growth across every region, and reached 788 million Monthly Active Users, while our Gross Margin and Operating Income came in ahead of expectations.
Misaligned incentives led to an intractable argument
Years of promises, but officials unable to put a figure on investment
They might earn more than $200k but who do they work for? Tech buyers need to put some checks in place on FDEs
Tips Music’s revenue from operations rose 34.5% year-on-year to Rs120.1 crore (approx. $12.7 million) during Q2 FY2027 when profit after tax increased 23.5% to Rs65.7 crore (approx. $6.9 million). The […] The post is from Music Ally.
PARTNER CONTENT: AI is driving liquid cooling adoption, but hybrid architectures will help operators balance density, flexibility, and operational realities
Chaos AI, a space for music creators to collaborate, has announced a $1.4 million pre-seed fundraising round led by Bridford Group and Amuse. Chaos AI, an app providing a “unified space” for music creators to collaborate, has announced a £1 million ($1.4 million) pre-seed fundraising round led by...
Says it passed audits and made just a minor mystery error
Country star John Anderson, a Country Music Hall of Fame member and singer of hits like “Straight Tequila Night” and “Seminole Wind,” has passed away. John Anderson, the Country Music Hall of Fame member known for hits like “Straight Tequila Night” and “Seminole Wind,” has passed away at age 71.
90 percent of the performance at ten percent of the price, in just two or three racks, is hard to beat
Shortly after announcing a Halloween-inspired event in California on October 30, Galaxy Corporation’s humanoid robot performance has been canceled. Galaxy Corporation has abruptly canceled its Halloween-inspired humanoid robot performance, originally set for October 30 in Saratoga, California.
The Why Don’t We singer took the stand for the first time to testify about an alleged dark-web murder-for-hire plot targeting him
The reorganisations continue in major label-land, with Warner Music Group announcing that it is merging its recorded-music and publishing sync divisions. The post is from Music Ally.
The Chad Hugo v. Pharrell Williams legal battle just got even uglier: Now, Team Hugo is aggressively pushing back against Williams’ dismissal motion and alleged effort to “turn The Neptunes’ success into the work of only one person.” Hugo just recently urged the court to reject Williams’ dismissal...
Canberra, Australia – Today a group of 63 international media organizations led by the News/Media Alliance delivered a letter to senior Australian politicians asking them to reject proposed changes to the country’s copyright laws that would allow artificial intelligence companies to use copyrighted...
Reservoir Media has taken a stake in the recorded catalog and all-important name, image, and likeness rights of “Feliz Navidad” singer-songwriter José Feliciano. New York City-based Reservoir and Lares, Puerto Rico-born Feliciano disclosed their partnership agreement today.
Live event sales API platform Tickitto teams up with Google to place its live-event inventory in the Events section of relevant Google search listings. Tickitto, the API platform powering live-event sales for travel and tech companies, has announced a partnership with Google to place Tickitto’s...
Spotify and Audi launch a next-gen native in-car app built on Google’s Android Automotive operating system, available now in select Audi models. On Wednesday, Spotify and Audi announced the launch of a new native in-car app built using Google’s Android Automotive operating system.
Apple is officially launching a rebrand of Apple Music. Following the appearance of a redesigned wordmark in a video and an updated app icon in an iOS 27.2 beta, Apple introduced the new "identity" for Apple Music today.
Every October, Spotify’s RADAR Creators program taps a new class of podcast creators who stand out with fresh voices and perspectives. The podcast arm of our RADAR program, which champions emerging artists and songwriters, RADAR Creators offers marketing, editorial, and promotional support to help...
Serato DJ for iOS is finally bringing the company's pro-level DJ suite to the iPhone and iPad. Until now, the company had only dipped its toes into mobile software, with apps like Pyro that basically just added some autofades between songs in a playlist.
Will Spotify’s upcoming fan-remixes tool launch by the end of 2026? That’s still unclear, but the company does have a new licensing partner for its GenAI plans: Believe. The post is from Music Ally.
Today brings news of two promising music-tech startups raising early funding: music-education firm ArtMaster and collaboration platform Chaos. The post is from Music Ally.
It’s a busy day for news from the UK music industry, with four stories from various parts of the ecosystem. Starting with a campaign from industry body UK Music to support public broadcaster the BBC. The post is from Music Ally.
Fancy a drink? Forget picking your poison though: today you can pick your pop star depending on whether you’re more interested in vodka or, er, mango coconut sticky rice beverages. The post is from Music Ally.
Spotify is rolling out the ‘Memberships’ subscriptions that it trailed earlier this year at its Investor Day event. However, as announced, they are just for podcasters… for now, at least. The post is from Music Ally.
The right song sounds even better on the open road. Today, Spotify is introducing a new way to listen while driving: our next-generation in-car app, launching first across Audi’s current lineup.
Sequential recommendation benchmarks are widely used to evaluate models that predict what a user will... The post Do Sequential Recommendation Benchmarks Require Higher-Order Sequence Modelling? appeared first on Spotify Engineering.
With Meta in the regulatory hotseat and western “social” apps becoming increasingly entertainment-first, a natural question arises: is the opportunity ripe for a new competitor? Few saw TikTok coming, but the short-form video app –boosted by the Covid pandemic – has reshaped the social media...
The most successful creators no longer look like online personalities. They now operate as fully-fledged media businesses with capital, networks, and business expertise – and they’re using these attributes to help nurture the next generation. Source
Arturia is adding to its Freak line of proudly weird digital synths with the MiniFreak 49. Under the hood, it's almost identical to the current MiniFreak, but it adds a number of more professional features and some interface improvements.
Spotify says it has removed more than 50 million songs considered AI-generated slop or spam from user recommendations over the past year. That's according to an announcement on Tuesday that says Spotify has also made changes to its recommendation system to highlight more music made by human...
Believe and Spotify have signed a licensing agreement for Spotify’s upcoming tool, allowing Believe and TuneCore’s participating artists and labels to benefit from new creative and revenue opportunities, while enabling fans to create remixes of their songs.
A year ago, we laid out our plans to protect artists and listeners from spam, impersonation, and deception in the age of AI. One core idea drives this work: human artistry comes first. Here’s what we’ve done, and what’s next.
Anyone who has a favorite podcast knows fandom goes beyond listening and watching. It’s about the connections fans build with creators and the ways they show their support. At Spotify, we’re always thinking about new ways to deepen those connections and help creators grow sustainable businesses.
Demystifying the 6 degrees of Kevin Bacon: the past, present, and future center of Hollywood.
The Copyright Act of 1976 was enacted as Public Law 94-553 on October 19, 1976, signed by President Gerald Ford, which makes it fifty years old today. It has governed over an era of significant technological advances, including the rise of home video, satellite communications, digital content, the...
If you spend any time on r/synthesizers or watch a lot of synth videos on YouTube, you've probably noticed the explosion of custom firmware for hardware synthesizers, samplers, and grooveboxes.
J Mascis on stage during Dinosaur Jr.’s Baby’s Alright show in NYC. | Photo: Terrence O’Brien Dinosaur Jr. frontman J Mascis is known as something of a slacker guitar god. He stands stoically onstage, barely moving, as he seemingly effortlessly works through deft guitar solos and lopsided riffs.
Wu-Tang Clan member Method Man, who got to hear the album for the first time thanks to Pablo Torre Finds Out. | Getty Images Wu-Tang's Once Upon A Time in Shaolin album has, for the most part, been extremely difficult to listen to, but you can now hear two snippets of the album thanks to the...
So, tune in Saturday October 17h to Faction Talk, channel 137, at 4 PM East, 1 PM West. If you miss the episode, you can hear it on demand on the SiriusXM app. Search: Lefsetz
‘Legitimising larceny’: Global music giants blast Albanese AI copyright plan — “ICMP director general John Phelan told The Australian Financial Review that Australia was just the latest in a series of countries in the ‘crosshairs’ of OpenAI chief executive Sam Altman and his arch rival at...