Vol 47 - I'm feelin' right at home, baby, come read me now

Happy Friday,

Sabrina keeps her Coachella word, Fyre Fest has a new home, and someone needs to ‘eat a Snickers bro.’

Have thoughts on this week’s news? Just hit reply.

New Music Friday

What you need to know about today’s new releases

🎶 New albums and EPs from Cardi B, Lola Young, Wednesday, Sammy Virji, The Favors, Josh Ross, Bakar, Reggie Becton, The Paradox, Evan Honer…

♪ Notable singles from RAYE, Madison Beer, Lewis Capaldi, Junior H, Thundercat, Paris Paloma, XG, Samia, Claire Rosinkranz, The Chainsmokers…

Each week, we go through Spotify’s New Music Friday playlists to highlight releases you should know about…

#1 - Cardi B drops news album AM I THE DRAMA? with NMF track ‘Safe’ featuring Kehlani.

#3 - Miley Cyrus teams up with Lindsey Buckingham and Mick Fleetwood on ‘Secrets,’ written for her dad Billy Ray.

#5 - Madison Beer releases her first single of the year ‘yes baby’ - Justin Herbert is that you?

#7 - Ahead of his upcoming sold out UK tour, Lewis Capaldi drops ‘Something in the Heavens,’ co-written with Connor and Riley McDonough. These songwriting brothers have 2 other tracks on this week’s NMF - #33 Julia Michaels ‘No Heartbreak’s Killed Me Yet’ and #41 Carly Rae Jepsen ‘Guardian Angel.’

#21 - Dasha shares ‘Train,’ a new cut from her upcoming Anna EP arriving Oct. 10.

#29 - Coming off their MTV VMA Ozzy tribute, Aerosmith and YUNGBLUD drop ‘My Only Angel,’ the lead single from their joint EP One More Time out Nov. 21.

#42 - Coachella 2026 artist Labrinth drops a fresh new EP Prelude with ‘Pull Me In’ featured on NMF.

#90 - His first solo release post-GODMODE, PawPaw Rod releases ‘Safe Spaces’ (produced by Solomonophonic) via Independent Co..

#97 - Wyclef Jean draws attention to social and political issues on ‘Back From Abu Dhabi’ with French Montana and Rick Ross.

⭐ #99 - Fresh Finds approved artist Maeve prepares for her NYC show in a few weeks with new single ‘Favor.’

⭐ = our pick of the week. Usually an under the radar artist to keep an eye on.

The Schedule

Notable upcoming releases

Young Thug, Olivia Dean, glaive, Geese, Mariah Carey, Doja Cat, Zara Larsson, Bright Eyes, Cate Le Bon, Cameron Whitcomb, Purity Ring, Night Tapes, Princess Nokia, Rainbow Kitten Surprise, Joy Crookes & more all have new projects expected to come out next week.

Demi Lovato, Miley Cyrus (deluxe), Mobb Deep, Helado Negro, Illenium, Pink Floyd (anniversary), The Avett Brothers and Mike Patton, Vincent Mason, Drive-By Truckers, KeiyaA all announced new albums this week.

ICYMI

Industry news that mattered this week

U.S. officials announced a framework for a deal with China to stop the ban of TikTok. DIMA (Digital Media Association) revealed the streaming and spending habits of Americana fans. LimeWire acquired Fyre Festival. LA-based luxury goods company Chrome Hearts filed a lawsuit against Neil Young over the name of his backing band. Deezer says that nearly 1/3 of all tracks on the platform are now completely AI-generated. An arrest was made in connection to the car robbery of Beyoncé’s unreleased music. After a dead body was found in the trunk of d4vd’s towed Tesla, it was revealed to be the body of a dismembered 15 year-old girl who had the same tattoo on her finger as the singer. The FTC is investigating whether Ticketmaster is doing enough to stop bots on the platform. The Latin Grammy nominations are here!

Calvin Harris accused his financial advisor of stealing over $22M. The BBC will launch its first new radio stations in 23 years. Last week, the David Bowie Center opened in London, displaying 200 items from the artist’s collection, with 90K items available to view by advance order. Spanish footballer Sergio Ramos launched his music career with a single release. Lil Nas X is in treatment at an undisclosed facility after his recent arrest and felony charges. The feud between artists Zach Bryan and Gavin Adcock escalated at the Born & Raised Festival this weekend. Elton John turned his old removed kneecaps into jewelry.

The proposed Roc Nation-backed casino in the heart of NYC’s Times Square will not be moving forward. Isabella Ladera officially sued ex Beéle for allegedly leaking their sex tape. Reba McEntire announced her engagement to Rex Linn at the Emmys on Sunday night. Ozzy Osbourne doc “No Escape From Now“ will release in October on Paramount+. Plan B optioned the rights to Mark Ronson’s new memoir ‘Night People’ with plans to turn it into a feature film. Thirty musicians and singers collaborated on an epic ‘Bohemian Rhapsody’ flash mob on the streets of Paris. The trailer for Victoria Beckham’s upcoming Netflix documentary has dropped.

small print

Updates on companies, acquisitions, takeovers and more

• Major labels resolve copyright dispute with Internet Archive

• Introducing Sonsy, Mongolia’s first world-class DSP

• Finnish firm Backbone Management launches in the UK

• Musiversal secures $6M to grow global music collab platform

• Germany’s Bamboo Artists enters US market with new in-house brand partnerships division

• Music Story secures new metadata partnerships with Avex and KKBox

• New AI tool from Epidemic Sound transforms human-made tracks

• Four firms join Music Fights Fraud Alliance’s new partner program

• Airbuds reaches 1.5M daily users with $5M backing

• OpenPlay secures new multi-million dollar funding round

• Pacha Foundation announces €500K support for 2025 projects

Group Chat

The section that’ll probably get us in trouble one of these days

manifested

eeek.

standing on business

lmfao

What are dreams made of?

🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩 Naming your indie label “Post Atlantic” after a 20+ year contract (your name starts with “H”) (73%)

🟨⬜️⬜️⬜️⬜️⬜️ Signing with major label Atlantic Records after a 10+ year hiatus from music (your name also starts with “H”) (9%)

🟨🟨🟨⬜️⬜️⬜️ Getting revenge on your summer fling in Rome (18%)

⬜️⬜️⬜️⬜️⬜️⬜️ Your DSP announcing lossless audio streaming (0%)

Fresh Ink

Interesting artist signings

Previous Super Bowl halftime performer, USHER, has found a new touring home in CAA with agent Christian Carino representing. The 8-time GRAMMY winner finished up a 62-date U.S. run, followed by a 10-night residency at London’s O2 Arena earlier this year.

New country voice Cameron Whitcomb signed with Simon Tikhman & Kevin “Chief” Zaruk at The Core Entertainment for management. He’s already amassed more than 400M global streams and his debut album The Hard Way comes out next week. 

Originally starting as Pharrell’s protege as a 16-year-old kid from Compton, rapper Buddy has now found a new management home with Kei Henderson at Third & Hayden. The independent artist has recently dropped tracks with Guapdad 4000, Kalan.FrFr & others.

Producer & singer-songwriter Helado Negro joined the Big Dada label family this week alongside the announcement of his new EP The Last Sound On Earth, dropping in November. The new project is initially inspired by the question ‘what will the last sound I hear before I die will be?’ - take that as you will.

11-time Latin GRAMMY-winning singer-songwriter Julieta Venegas signed with Jacob Fox & Richard Lom of WME for touring. The Mexican artist performed for 90K fans in Mexico City last year and is in the process of recording her new album.

Space Colonel, the Nashville-based mgmt & publishing company announced they have merged with Elliptic Management. Elliptic launches into Space with Brian Ross joining as Senior Manager and Partner bringing over his roster, including Thievery Corporation, Blackalicious, Paul McDonald, City of the Sun & more.

+170 signings on ROSTR this week

The Live World

Tour, festival and other live news

🎸 Biggest tours announced this week: Ed Sheeran, Cardi B, Ski Mask The Slump God, Mariah The Scientist, Ashnikko, Riley Green

ROSTR & New Industry Focus shared their 6th annual Who Booked Coachella report, sharing key insights and breakdowns of genre, gender, representation & more.

Brian Eno’s Together For Palestine benefit concert raised >$2M and featured performances from Damon Albarn, PinkPantheress, Saint Levant & more.

Rapper Cardi B announced dates for her Little Miss Drama Tour upon release of her new album Am I The Drama? out today. It will be her first tour in six years and run for 30+ dates starting in February. She just announced her pregnancy, too.

A new electronic act will enter Vegas’ Sphere next year, this time with Illenium locking in six dates in March supporting his upcoming album Odyssey.

Paul McCartney unveiled plans for a phone-free Santa Barbara Bowl underplay next week to kick off his Got Back Tour.

Mariah Carey is getting ready for the holidays (as always), now debuting a new 10-show run in Vegas celebrating Christmas from November to December.

Foo Fighters took the stage for the first time in a year for a surprise appearance in California and unveiled their new drummer, Ilan Rubin. The newly-appointed member has performed with Nine Inch Nails, Paramore & others.

🎟️ Festival Headlines:

• Coachella 2026 lineup dropped with Sabrina Carpenter, Justin Bieber & KAROL G set to headline

• Traveling AU/NZ festival Laneway announced Chappell Roan as its headliner; Alex G, PinkPantheress, ROLE MODEL & more are slated to perform

• Brandi Carlile’s Girls Just Wanna Weekend unveiled its lineup with performances from The Chicks, Sam Smith & more

❌ Cancellations:

• LA labelmates X and Los Lobos cancelled their 99 Years of Rock ’N' Roll tour just two days before it was slated to begin

On The Move

New hires, exec moves and other people news

Fred Gillham steps into the newly created COO role at Concord Label Group, taking charge of label services and reporting to CEO Tom Becci. Mira Chatt has been named IFPI’s Regional Director, Asia, taking on a newly expanded role coordinating the Asia-Pacific network and advancing industry growth. Ian Holder and Tariq Stewart have been elevated to Sr. Vice Presidents of A&R at Capitol Records, leading the company’s Urban A&R team. Day After Day Productions elevates Director of Touring Jordan Dempsey to Head of Touring. Jody Gerson, Chair and CEO of UMPG, has joined Gap Inc.’s Board of Directors, taking her seat immediately. Michelle Jubelirer and Arjun Pulijal launch new management and media collective venture, Soft Shock. Dave Ayers named EVP of A&R at Peermusic.

Primary Wave Music has expanded its brand partnerships team under Chief Brand Officer Jeffrey Straughn, appointing Camille Hackney as Head of Brand Partnerships, Bart Saunt as Sr. VP, and promoting Sam Sklover to VP. National Public Radio appoints Sonali Mehta to lead NPR Music as Executive Director. Marathon Live has added veteran music executive Tammy Hurt to its board of directors. Athena Puharic has joined Underscore Works as Head of Digital.

SAG-AFTRA announces Sean Astin as President and Michelle Hurd as Secretary-Treasurer. Ailie Birchfield joins MCA as VP, Media Strategy & Communications, with Connor Hunt coming aboard as Sr. Director, Media. Capitol Christian Music Group has elevated David Sylvester to GM, Kenny Rodgers to SVP, Garrett Davis to VP of A&R, Cole Linebarger and Becca Redl to VPs of Marketing, and Patrick Ogilvy to VP of Business & Legal Affairs. Adam Duvendeck named GM of AEG’s Dignity Health Sports Park.

Dope Jobs

Interesting jobs in music

• Vice President, Business Affairs at UMG in LA / Santa Monica

• Content Marketing Manager at Bandsintown in Miami

• Senior Manager, Pricing & Ticketing at Wasserman in London

• International Marketing and Promotion Manager at [PIAS] in London

↗ Find these and 320+ open roles at Jobs by ROSTR