Vol 70 - You're the kind of newsletter, make a man reread some things

Happy Friday,

ROSTR introduces 2.0, Avex bets on Bruno, Lorde’s on her own team (and at Lolla) + someone tell us how to pronounce JAŸ-Z.

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 BTS, Luke Combs, underscores, Grace Ives, CA7RIEL & Paco Amoroso, Alessia Cara, Alex Isley, Samara Cyn, Avalon Emerson, Wyatt Waddell…

♪ Notable singles from Niall Horan, Yeat, Latto, MUNA, Chelsea Jordan, Dean Turnley, Miles Caton, Muse, Obed Padilla, Lizzo, Death Cab for Cutie, The Two Lips…

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

#1 - BTS are back with new album ARIRANG, featuring alt-pop NMF track ‘SWIM.’

#3 - RAYE and Hans Zimmer drop collab ‘Click Clack Symphony’ one week out from RAYE’s upcoming album THIS MUSIC MAY CONTAIN HOPE.

#6 - 100%-er April Harper Grey, pka underscores, caps a successful rollout with single ‘Bodyfeeling’ from their new album U, which drops today.

#15 - Recent Arista signee Chelsea Jordan shares EP better late than not at all with ‘if i’m lucky’ landing on the playlist.

#16 - Melbourne-based DJ / producer – and this week’s #1 trending artist on ROSTR – Dean Turnley drops his hotly anticipated track ‘Actin’ Tough,’ which has received cosigns from Cassian & GUDFELLA.

#25 - Sinners breakout star Miles Caton pleads ‘Don’t Hate Me’ for loving you on his newest track released via Columbia.

#35 - Two weeks out from his upcoming album The Weight of the Woods, Dermot Kennedy releases emotional track ‘Honest.’

#45 - Death Cab for Cutie return ahead of their forthcoming album, I Built You a Tower (the most death cab-sounding album name ever) with ‘Riptides.’

⭐ #93 - Adam Klobi turns in his debut EP YESTERDAY, TODAY via Darkroom with ‘A SONG FOR SIENA’ cracking the top 100.

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

The Schedule

Notable upcoming releases

Charlie Puth, RAYE, Yeat, Fcukers, Melanie Martinez, Slayyyter, Tom Misch, Elmiene, Melissa Etheridge, Dermont Kennedy, Snail Mail, NEEDTOBREATHE, Cannons, Flea, Goo Goo Dolls, Loreen, Courtney Barnett, José González all have new projects expected to come out next week.

Kehlani, Latto, Fetty Wap, Myles Smith, Muse, Willie Nelson, All-American Rejects, Kelsey Lu, Death Cab for Cutie, Mau P, Peter Frampton, Budjerah, The Pretty Reckless, Flatland Cavalry, Jo Dee Messina, Mabe Fratti & Bill Orcutt, Ashley McBryde, McCoy Moore, Ed O'Brien, Horse Lords, Modern Woman, Visible Cloaks, JWords, Tank and the Bangas, kuru all announced new albums this week.

ICYMI

Industry news that mattered this week

ROSTR 2.0, the platform’s biggest upgrade yet, is here!

Global music sales grew to $31.7B, U.S. Recorded Music Revenue hit $11.5B and U.S. vinyl sales hit $1B in 2025. BMG sued Anthropic. TikTok Radio left SiriusXM and debuted on iHeartRadio. Apple Music won its legal battle against Musi. Diddy filed another appeal against his prison sentence of 50 months. A fan threw a phone at Riley Green at a recent Melbourne show, causing the singer to need 5 stitches in his ear. KPop Demon Hunters’ ‘Golden’ won an Oscar at the recent awards, with the songwriters rudely getting cut off while giving their speeches. Lorde is now an independent artist.

Will Miley Cyrus play the Super Bowl Halftime Show next year?

The ‘Telekinesis’ copyright lawsuit against Travis Scott, SZA and Future is moving forward. Afroman won the verdict to reject a strange lawsuit filed against him by police officers who raided his Ohio home. Mystikal pled guilty to third-degree rape and now faces 20 years in prison. Gunna sued promoters for allegedly duping him into playing a party for the X Games and then not paying him.

Motörhead guitarist Phil Campbell passed away at 64. Guitarist Wayne Perkins passed away at 74.

small print

Updates on companies, acquisitions, takeovers and more

• Publishing A&R exec Brittany Perry launches GATELESS

• Too Lost secures strategic investment led by GoldState and TA associates

• Ticket Fairy unveils AI-driven operating system for live events

• Universal Music Group invests in prominent Thai record label What The Duck

• Spotify unveils latest personalization tool

• Tidal introduces direct-to-fan sales, 90% goes to the artist

• UMG expands live business with new joint venture, UMusic Beach Clubs & Lifestyle

• Famed synthesizer manufacturer Roland launches AI melody generator

Group Chat

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

Wait all record labels aren’t monolithic??

Liar!

Goshfreakingdarnit

It’s actually pronounced “Jaÿ-Z”

Feel this so deeply

Reason why Morrissey's next show will be canceled

🟨🟨⬜️⬜️⬜️⬜️ Tour bus dumps human waste into local river (15%)
🟨🟨⬜️⬜️⬜️⬜️ Sound guy was being a total dick (15%)
🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩 Just absolutely hates the local culture (46%)
🟨🟨🟨⬜️⬜️⬜️ Caught the on-tour gen-z "sickness" (aka low ticket sales) (23%)

The Live World

Tour, festival and other live news

🎸 Biggest tours announced this week: fakemink, Lil Wayne, Spacey Jane, Chezile, Rawayana

JAŸ-Z (now stylized as such) announced he will play 2 hometown shows at Yankee Stadium to celebrate the 30th anniversary of his album Reasonable Doubt and the 25th anniversary of his album The Blueprint, respectively.

BTS are performing for the first time in the US in 4 years at a private Spotify fan event in New York City next week in support of their upcoming album.

Linkin Park just broke the attendance record at Auckland's Spark Arena with ~13K fans in the venue. The night was the last stop on their AU/NZ run.

Australian entertainment company Noisy Group has added 6 new venues to its umbrella in the east coast of the continent. Continuing its expansion, the live entity will also handle programming for Salty Sounds festival, and has plans to launch a new festival brand next year.

Ben Lovett's (Mumford & Sons) company tvg opened its first Los Angeles space, Pacific Electric. The renovated 750-capacity warehouse debuted on March 19th with a performance from LA-native folk outfit Dawes.

🎟️ Headlines:

• The Lollapalooza lineup is here with Lorde, Charli xcx, Olivia Dean, Tate McRae, JENNIE & more headlining

• JAŸ-Z & The Roots will headline the Roots Picnic this May

• SXSW London confirmed Tiwa Savage, Earl Sweatshirt & Rachel Chinouriri as its first round of performers

• NY's Blue Note Jazz Festival shared its lineup for the month of performances including Ledisi, Durand Bernarr, UMI, DESTIN CONRAD & more

• 7 years later, Brooklyn Electronic Music Festival will return with 5 different stages next Saturday

• Trampled by Turtles & Indigo Girls will headline Evanston Folk Festival in Illinois this September

• Mission Bayfest announced its headliners with Rebelution, Kolohe Kai & The Offspring taking the stage in San Diego this October

❌ Cancellations:

• Australia's Bluesfest cancelled its event before its April 2nd start date citing "rising production, logistics, insurance and touring costs" as the reasons

Fresh Ink

Interesting artist signings

Bruno Mars secured a global publishing admin deal with Avex Music Group, effective upon completion of his current BMG/Warner Chappell contract. The 16-time GRAMMY winner's agreement with the Japanese and LA-based company covers future works and comes on the heels of his newest solo album, The Romantic.

In other publishing admin news, Janet Jackson, a T away from EGOT status, joined Believe’s roster. Under the deal, she brings her entire catalog to the newly-launched publishing division.

After 10 years with the major label, country music’s Kane Brown has re-signed a multi-album deal with Sony Music Entertainment Nashville, marking the extension with new single ‘Woman.’ Brown has been busy starting up his own publishing venture with Sony Music Publishing in addition to starting up his own Nashville bar, Kane’s On Broadway.

Kenny Chesney has left Warner Nashville and the major label system to kickstart new independent label HEY NOW Records alongside longtime manager Clint Higham, former head of Warner Nashville John Esposito, and former Big Machine exec Kris Lamb. The new record home is named after Chesney’s Boat with him also saying that he looks forward to being at a label where “we could have the kind of fun that used to be such a part of our business.”

In other upstart news, Scott Borchetta has launched a management division under Borchetta Entertainment Group, signing GRAMMY/CMA/ACM winner Carly Pearce as inaugural client alongside manager Mike Blong (formerly Starstruck Entertainment). The move follows Borchetta's February HYBE AMERICA departure and Big Machine Records reacquisition, with Pearce releasing Riley Green duet ‘If I Don't Leave I'm Gonna Stay.’

Baltimore synth-pop band Future Islands has signed a global publishing agreement with Universal Music Publishing Group covering their full catalog and future works as the group celebrates its 20th anniversary. The ATC Management client broke through in 2014 with ‘Seasons (Waiting on You)’ and has become a live force headlining & selling out major festivals and venues. The major publisher also added Beabadoobee to the roster, who has accumulated over 5B streams to date.

+225 signings on ROSTR this week

On The Move

New hires, exec moves and other people news

UMG's merchandise and lifestyle arm Bravado has made a series of senior appointments. Matt Young, who joined as President in 2021, has been promoted to CEO. Amy Zaglauer moves up to SVP of Artist Strategy. On the external hire front, Eric Mackay joins as General Manager after stints at Warner Chappell Music, VEVO and Integral Management, while Dan Goldberg comes aboard as SVP of Strategy & New Ventures, having previously built the Music & Entertainment division at Fanatics and served as SVP at Warner Music Artist Services (now WMX).

Former UTA agent Nikos Kazoleas has joined CAA in its Global Touring division, based in London. He spent more than a decade at UTA working with artists including GAYLE, BANKS, Rebecca Black and Trixie Mattel.

Following his exit from HYBE America, Scott Borchetta has launched the Borchetta Entertainment Group, a new management division that will operate alongside the recently reclaimed Big Machine Records. Mike Blong, formerly of Starstruck Entertainment, joins as a manager. Carly Pearce is the division's first client.

Artist management company TMWRK has promoted Renee Brodeur from EVP to General Manager. She co-manages Diplo, Major Lazer and A-Trak alongside CEO and Founder Andrew McInnes, and has been with the company since 2012.

• ATG Entertainment has launched a new music and live events marketing division, appointing Chloe Uppington as Head of Marketing, Music, Comedy and Live Events. Uppington joins from Roundhouse, where she was Head of Marketing for six years, and previously held senior roles at Live Nation and Academy Music Group.

• Lori Feldman, former CMO at Wasserman (now THE·TEAM) and a 25-year Warner Records veteran, has launched consultancy firm Redefine Music Advisors. She previously served as CMO at Paradigm Agency and as EVP of Strategic Marketing at Warner Records.

• Industry veterans Clint Higham, John Esposito and Kris Lamb have launched Nashville-based independent label HEY NOW Records. Lamb, who previously held exec roles at Big Machine Label Group and Disney's Lyric Street Records, will serve as President. Former Warner Music Nashville chairman Esposito joins as co-founder and advisor. Kenny Chesney is the label's first signing.

• Former Warner Chappell and Sony Music Publishing A&R exec Brittany Perry has launched GATELESS, a platform designed to connect artists and A&Rs with unreleased songs from professional songwriters. Its library currently features works by writers with credits on tracks by Ariana Grande, Ed Sheeran, Cardi B and more.

Dope Jobs

Interesting jobs in music

• Director, Live Events (Dirtybird Focus) at EMPIRE in San Francisco, CA

• Marketing Director & Artist Management at Surfdog / DKM in Encinitas, CA

• Director of Marketing & Communications at IEBA in Nashville, TN

• Sponsorship Sales Director at Dynamic Talent International in the U.S.

• Assistant General Manager at The Midway SF in San Francisco, CA

↗ Find these and 290+ open roles at Jobs by ROSTR