Vol 67 - There's nothing I won't do, I'd write it all for you

Happy Friday,

Primary Wave x Kobalt 👀, Metallica enters Sphere & Thee Stallion takes the stage.

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 Bruno Mars, BLACKPINK, Mitski, Gorillaz, Perfume Genius, Joey Valence & Brae, DC THE DON, Ritt Momney, Red Leather, Master Peace…

♪ Notable singles from RAYE, Melanie Martinez, Swae Lee, Yeat & EsDeeKid, Laufey, John Summit & Julia Wolf, doggone, MPH, she’s green, Ava Max, Slayyyter, Jayda G, Towa Bird…

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

#5 - BLACKPINK are back with new EP DEADLINE including NMF track ‘GO,' produced by TEDDY and Cirkut.

#6 - With A Dangerous Lyfe forthcoming, Yeat teams up with buzzy Liverpudlian EsDeeKid for ‘Made It On Your Own.’

#7 - Melanie Martinez drops dark satire ‘DISNEY PRINCESS,’ writing about how the entertainment industry affects young women.

#16 - Swae Lee’s new track is highly ‘FLAMMABLE’ – the rapper & singer just announced his debut album today.

⭐ #21 - Mk.gee-coded newcomer doggone drops their latest single, ‘Imitation (how to become you).’

#49 - ‘Flex It’ – the MPH track that Daft Punk's Thomas Bangalter dropped in his b2b livestreamed set with Fred again.. from Paris – drops today via Chris Lake’s imprint Black Book featuring vocals from Æ.

#67 - Joey Valence & Brae drop the deluxe edition of their album HYPERYOUTH (afterparty) with ‘push the pipe’ landing on NMF, which references the infamous DJ Funk Flex “put your hand in the cash register” meme from 2011.

#83 - Big Family client Master Peace drops his EP Stupid Kids with featured NMF track ‘My Guitar.’

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

The Schedule

Notable upcoming releases

Harry Styles, Charlie Puth, Ty Dolla $ign, Yebba, The Brook & The Bluff, Barry Can’t Swim, Flying Lotus, Gnarls Barkley, Daniel Avery, Juanes, Morrissey, Talking Heads, waterbaby, Willa Ford, GUM, Godsmack, Charlotte Sands, Cobrah, Dutch Interior all have new projects expected to come out next week.

Swae Lee, Gnarls Barkley, Bon Iver (live album), Michael Bublé (live album), Niall Horan, ERNEST, Elmiene, Jamiroquai, Highwomen, Hurray For The Riff Raff (live album), Amy Grant, Big Harp, Wu Lyf, Lebra Jolie, Squarepusher, Armanii, The Claypool Lennon Delirium, girli all announced new albums this week.

ICYMI

Industry news that mattered this week

Block announced that the company cut 40% of staff, over 4K people. Primary Wave is in talks to potentially buy Kobalt Music Group. A producer dropped their lawsuit against KAROL G after accusing her of stealing a beat for 2022’s ‘Gatúbela.’ Live Nation asked to pause its antitrust trial against the DOJ. A collective of artist representatives launched the ‘Say No to Suno’ campaign. Flavor Flav welcomed the U.S. women’s olympic gold medal-winning ice hockey team to a celebration in Vegas. The Rock & Roll Hall of Fame announced its 2026 nominees including Phil Collins, Mariah Carey, Shakira, Wu-Tang Clan and more. Megan Thee Stallion joined the Broadway cast of ‘Moulin Rouge.’ Miley Cyrus moved to dismiss the ‘Flowers' suit before trial. EVEN was hit with a lawsuit over discrimination and labor violation claims. Salt-N-Pepa filed a notice of appeal over the dismissal of their lawsuit against UMG; Salt-N-Pepa and DJ Spinderella will be inducted into the NAACP Image Awards Hall of Fame. Isaac Hayes’ estate reached a private settlement with Donald Trump after Trump’s 2024 campaign used ‘Hold On, I’m Comin’’ without permission.

Salsa music legend Willie Colón passed away at 75. Wu-Tang Clan cofounder Oliver “Power” Grant passed away at 52.

NIVF + NIVA are kicking off their 4-Part Marketing Development Series with Being Your Brand on March 19 at 3:30pm ET — save your spot here.

small print

Updates on companies, acquisitions, takeovers and more

• AXS expands Tickets for Good partnership to the UK

• SACEM inks historic pact with UAE CMO EMRA

• Google acquires AI music platform ProducerAI

• Sony Music Publishing opens branch in the Philippines

• Mogul secures $5M in funding led by Yamaha Innovations Fund

• BSI Merch boosts Berlin hub ahead of EU duty changes

• Animaj signs global deal with Magic Star, Sony Music Publishing

• AI sample startup Just 4 Noise raises $1M

• Apple Music Connect relaunches – with a difference

• Atlantic Music Group enters new partnership with Today Is Vintage

Group Chat

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

They not like us 😤

We should still be in proper therapy, though, probably

Normiemaxxing millennials need to be stopped

What should Billboard do?

🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩 Tackle Spotify’s per stream rates (39%)
🟨⬜️⬜️⬜️⬜️⬜️ Do glam shoots with its playlist editors (11%)
🟨⬜️⬜️⬜️⬜️⬜️ A listening party, obviously (22%)
🟨🟨🟨🟨⬜️⬜️ Start publishing maoist papers in defense of Anna's Archives (28%)

The Live World

Tour, festival and other live news

🎸 Biggest tours announced this week: Mumford & Sons, NAV, Brooks & Dunn, jigitz, Grace Ives

Metallica confirmed the rumors of their Sphere residency with 8 dates lined up this October. The band will continue to uphold their tradition of "no repeat weekends," meaning no songs repeating on each Thursday and Saturday through the duration of their stay.

Brandi Carlile's "Be Human: A Concert for Minneapolis" show last weekend raised >$600K for families affected by ICE and border patrol agents in the city.

Tame Impala extended their tour to their native Australia for four arena shows in October, bringing along special guest and rising Australian electronic act Ninajirachi.

Keeping it down under, Camilo Ippoliti, owner of iconic Melbourne nightclub Revolver, has taken legal action against his former bookkeeper for misappropriating ~$4.5M from the venue over the last 2 years. Ippoliti alleged she had used "fake transaction descriptions" to disguise her theft including fake invoices and staff Christmas party reimbursements.

🎟️ Festival Headlines:

• HARD Summer revealed its stacked lineup with sets from Mau P, Kali Uchis, DJ Snake, Knock2 b2b Zedd, Sammy Virji & many more

• Iron Maiden, My Chemical Romance, Limp Bizkit & Tool are set to headline Kentucky's Louder Than Life this September

• Osheaga's 2026 headliners are Twenty One Pilots, Lorde, Tate McRae, sombr, The xx & Gunna

• Move Forward Music’s debut Brooklyn festival Sounds That Move will feature headlining performances from Saba, Hope Tala, Mark William Lewis & more

• Tim McGraw, new Crush client Keith Urban & Blake Shelton will perform at CMA Fest in Nashville this June amongst others

• Atlanta's Shaky Knees festival will be headlined by Gorillaz, The Strokes & Twenty One Pilots

• Borderland Festival unveiled Jack White, Alabama Shakes & Lord Huron will headline the New York-based event this September

• Starlite Occident Marbella's 2026 lineup includes Maroon 5, Ozuna, Lenny Kravitz & Yandel

• YUNGBLUD's Bludfest will plant its flag in Czechia this June with headliners Biffy Clyro & Primal Scream

❌ Cancellations:

• Rolling Loud Australia has been cancelled a week ahead of its scheduled showtime with the festival blaming local partners for missing deadlines and obligations. Purchased tickets will be fully refunded.

• Tom Morello postponed some solo shows in May to join Bruce Springsteen on his recently announced "Land of Hopes and Dreams" US tour; The Boss previously joined Morello at his “Concert of Solidarity & Resistance to Defend Minnesota!” show last month

• Charley Crockett cancelled concerts in Canada, confirming the country couldn't on account of Crockett's conviction for cannabis possession in Virginia back in 2014. Crazy

Fresh Ink

Interesting artist signings

Country superstar Keith Urban has signed with Crush Music for management following the retirement of his manager of 25 years, Gary Borman, who closed Borman Entertainment after a 50-year run. The four-time GRAMMY winner joins a Crush roster that includes acts like Miley Cyrus, Green Day, Fall Out Boy and Lorde.

After leaving her longtime label home of Atlantic Records, pop powerhouse Ava Max has now signed a new deal with APG. The announcement arrives alongside her new single ‘KiLL iT QUEEN’ and marks a reunion with APG co-founder Mike Caren, who originally signed Max in 2016 and was instrumental in developing her signature theatrical pop sound.

Iconic ska-punk band Sublime has signed with Atlantic Records following an indie run where their single ‘Ensenada’ spent eight weeks atop Billboard's Alternative Airplay chart without major label support. The deal arrives as the trio, featuring Jakob Nowell (son of late frontman Bradley Nowell) alongside original members Bud Gaugh and Eric Wilson, celebrates the 30th anniversary of their 5x Platinum self-titled 1996 album.

After a several-year stint with UTA, Brazilian star Anitta has returned to WME for worldwide representation with Brad Slater, Rob Markus & Ben Totis signing on to her team. The major agency will look to guide the Latin pop artist across music, television, beauty and elsewhere.

GRAMMY-winning artist Shaboozey's EMPIRE partnership now extends to publishing after the massive success of 'A Bar Song (Tipsy),' which has earned Diamond certification. Publishing chief Vinny Kumar worked with Eric Hurt - who brought Shaboozey to EMPIRE's label side in 2021 - to close this portion of the deal.

Canadian EDM duo Loud Luxury have signed with Moe Shalizi and Scott Marcus of The Shalizi Group for management, reuniting with Shalizi who brought them on their first tour with Marshmello. They'll be co-managed alongside Northside Artist Management, joining a roster that includes Marshmello, Alesso, and Afrojack. The group also recently signed with Republic/Casablanca Records.

+240 signings on ROSTR this week

On The Move

New hires, exec moves and other people news

Sony Music Publishing promoted Greg Prata to CFO, effective March 31, succeeding Tom Kelly who is retiring after a 35-year career. Prata has been with Sony since 2012 and will oversee all financial ops globally, reporting to chairman/CEO Jon Platt.

AEG International promoted John Langford to President, APAC, effective April 1, where he'll lead the company's Asia-Pacific venue and real estate expansion. Langford has been with AEG since 2016, most recently serving as EVP of Venues.

David Bradley has jumped from WME to CAA, where he co-led the pop division and built his reputation working with artists including Dua Lipa, LCD Soundsystem, and Carly Rae Jepsen on international touring across Asia, Australia, and Europe.

Suno named former Merlin CEO Jeremy Sirota as Chief Commercial Officer, where he'll lead the AI music company's commercial strategy, industry relationships, and platform partnerships.

GoDigital Music has tapped Lauren Demarte as its first-ever COO. The former Cinq Music Group SVP of Marketing will lead operational strategy across the company's global music and tech businesses.

Tape Room Music has named Alicia Pruitt as CCO/President, A&R, reporting to CEO and Founder Ashley Gorley. Pruitt comes over from Warner Chappell Music, where she spent years as a senior A&R executive.

• Lodovico Pagani appointed Head of A&R at Warner Chappell Italy where the publisher also promoted Francesca Rossi to Head of Legal and brought on Giacomo Domenichelli as A&R Manager.

• Ryan Tedder's Runner Music named Julia Betley as Head of Sync, joining from Warner Records where she served as SVP of Creative Sync Licensing.

• AXS promoted Julie Lamb to Chief Talent Officer and Jason Boxer to CFO.

• Community Music (UNIFIED Music Group) tapped startup investor Matt Allen as Head of Artist Capital to expand the Australian indie's in-house artist funding program.

Dope Jobs

Interesting jobs in music

• Head of Music & Talent at Purple in Los Angeles, CA / New York, NY

• Director of Digital Marketing at Bright Antenna Records in San Francisco, CA

• Associate Director (Insights & Reporting) at Sony Music Entertainment in Los Angeles, CA

• Business Development Manager at GYRO.Group in North America

• Artist Management Coordinator at Good People Only in Canada

↗ Find these and 310+ open roles at Jobs by ROSTR