Vol 78 - Stood on that business, girl, you know what I'm writin'? Yeah

Happy Friday,

World Cup taps headliners, Chris Brown gets his feelings hurt, Spotify celebrates their 20th and ROSTR drops their independent business report.

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 Drake, GIVĒON, Towa Bird, Smerz, Genesis Owusu, Tone Stith, LUCKI, James Savage, Kevin Morby, Shakey Graves…

♪ Notable singles from Gracie Abrams, STELLA LEFTY, Tove Lo, The Strokes, Overmono, Miranda Lambert, Oxis, Wasia Project, Becky G…

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

#1 - Three new albums from Drake. ‘Ran to Atlanta’ off ICEMAN at number one. Future & Molly Santa are featured on the track.

#2 - Gracie Abrams drops new track ‘Hit the Wall,’ co-written with Aaron Dessner, Bryce Dessner and Michael Blasky.

#4 - GIVĒON adds a deluxe version to his BELOVED: ACT II GRAMMY-nominated album, including ‘JEZEBEL.’

#6 - Superstar and World Cup favorite Shakira is back with a new song for this year’s tournament - ‘Dai Dai’ with Burna Boy. Ed Sheeran and Jon Bellion are two of many writers on the track.

#21 - Jorja Smith released new single ‘What’s Done Is Done.’ The track, produced by P2J, marks the beginning of a new creative chapter for the Walsall-born artist.

⭐#39 - Sibling duo Wasia Project drop ‘Bleeding Gold’ which premiered as Hottest Record on BBC Radio 1’s New Music Show.

#67 - Pigeons & Planes drops their third See You Next Year compilation album, with Alemeda claiming a spot on NMF.

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

The Schedule

Notable upcoming releases

fakemink, Bleachers, Future Islands, LE SSERAFIM, 6LACK, The Band CAMINO, Marmozets, The Early Years, PIG, The Cranberries, Hammock, Skylar Grey, Visible Cloaks, Arc Iris, Alela Diane, Ed O'Brien, Thomas Dollbaum, Marisa Anderson, Ecca Vandal all have new projects expected to come out next week.

Gracie Abrams, Luke Bryan, Shania Twain, Elton John, Eartheater, Waylon Wyatt, Tove Lo, Brad Paisley, Hovvdy, Bloc Party, Alex Cameron, The Mountain Goats, Delta Goodrem, Anthrax, Helado Negro & Reyna Tropical, Dionne Warwick, Show Me the Body, Rhea Raj, Kes, Patrick Droney, DJ Plead all announced new albums this week.

ICYMI

Industry news that mattered this week

This year’s World Cup will have three different opening ceremonies in the host countries of Canada, Mexico and the US - here are the performers slotted for each. Powerhouse acts Shakira, Madonna & BTS will headline the World Cup Final Halftime Show in New Jersey this July. Sony topped $3BN in Q1 music revenue, up 19.5% YoY. Spotify expanded Wrapped with users’ all-time listening history. Apple Music teamed with Lady Gaga for the Mayhem Requiem live performance film. RAYE is set to make her big-screen acting debut. The Beatles opened 3 Savile Row as a landmark fan experience in London. Live Nation-Ticketmaster antitrust penalties are not expected before 2027. Red Hot Chili Peppers sold their catalog in a $300M+ deal with Warner. Dua Lipa filed a $15M lawsuit against Samsung, which rejected claims of “intentional misuse.” AIF launched ‘First Festival Week 2026’ to support independent festivals. An Oasis reunion tour documentary is headed to theaters.

Last week after celebrating Independent Business Week, ROSTR dropped the go-to Independent Business Report.

small print

Updates on companies, acquisitions, takeovers and more

• Universal Music India partners with first.wav in global distribution deal

• Warner Music launches Atlantic Records Finland

• Kobalt has entered into a new partnership with LAA Music

• CD Baby unveils ‘Stages Selects’ program to aid independent artists

• BMG acquires the publishing interests of Australian band Jet

• Beatport launches new software designed to identify music played in clubs

• inMusic acquires music production powerhouse Native Instruments

• Sony Music Publishing confirms Recognition Music catalog deal

• Ticketing company Entrio Group acquires Serbia-based Gigs Tix

• City and state governments unite to form Association of Music Offices (AMO)

Group Chat

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

No notes

Slayyyter fans be like

This author is clearly a contrarian

What's causing blue dot fever?

🟨🟨🟨🟨⬜️⬜️ Monopolistic entertainment businesses (27%)
🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩 Capitalism (in general) (38%)
🟨🟨⬜️⬜️⬜️⬜️ Shitty tour marketing (8%)
🟨⬜️⬜️⬜️⬜️⬜️ Rising gas prices (4%)
🟨🟨🟨⬜️⬜️⬜️ People pretending to be fans by streaming music then not buying tickets (23%)

The Live World

Tour, festival and other live news

🎸 Biggest tours announced this week: KATSEYE, MUNA, Madeon, Fetty Wap, Jamiroquai

Powerhouse acts Shakira, Madonna & BTS will headline the World Cup Final Halftime Show in New Jersey this July.

KATSEYE builds on their Coachella momentum with a EU/NA tour, kicking off this September.

Mexico City's Head of Government Clara Brugada invited U2 to perform at the iconic Zócalo venue for free following the band's impromptu music video shoot on the city streets. Bono expressed great interest in kicking off the tour from Mexico City, stating "In our dreams, we could begin our tour here.”

Yesterday, Chance the Rapper announced a 10-year anniversary North American tour for his album Coloring Book.

🎟️ Festival Headlines:

• Buenos Aires & São Paulo's Primavera Sound editions will be headlined by Gorillaz, The Strokes, FKA twigs & Lily Allen this November and December, respectively

• Colombian superstar Juanes announced his debut festival in Chile, Bamba, co-founded with promoter Lotus, the entity behind Lollapalooza Chile; alongside Juanes, Marc Anthony, Elena Rose, Carlos Vives & more will headline

❌ Cancellations:

• One of Psychedelic Furs' band members is undergoing surgery, which prompted the group to cancel their spring and summer dates; they intend to resume their tour in November

• Country artist Meghan Patrick cancelled her remaining 2026 dates as she is expecting her first child with husband Mitchell Tenpenny

Fresh Ink

Interesting artist signings

Roddy Ricch has re-joined Moe Shalizi at The Shalizi Group for management. After a stint with Full Stop, Ricch has come back to the Shalizi firm after previously parting ways in 2020. ‘The Box’ rapper & GRAMMY winner recently appeared on the F1 soundtrack and after a handful of delays, is slated to release The Navy Album soon.

Another week, another big signing for Big Loud Rock - this time with pop-punk artist MOD SUN who released his comeback single 'Mirror' on May 8. It marked his first offering since taking a year-long hiatus focused on sobriety and self-improvement and is set to support mgk on select tour dates, with an album arriving fall 2026.

American singer-songwriter Raveena recently formed a new team with managers Will Frost (House Of Us) & Owen Mallon (Mataderos Projects) alongside touring agents Ayush Arora (Across - INDIA) & Sam Hunt, Mohammad Shah, Michael Harvey-Bray & Clementine Bunel (THE·TEAM - WW (ex-AUS/INDIA)). She became the first woman of Indian descent to perform as a solo artist at Coachella back in 2022.

New York artist This Is Lorelei - the solo project of Nate Amos, who also plays in Water From Your Eyes - has signed with Matador Records. Since 2012, Amos has released two studio albums and over 20 mixtapes and EPs, with 2024's Box For Buddy, Box For Star landing on year-end lists at Rolling Stone, Billboard, and Pitchfork. He also announced new summer and fall tours as well as appearances at Kilby Block Party, Newport Folk and Just Like Heaven Festivals.

After producing for artists like Swedish House Mafia and RL Grime, rising electronic artist Killen. teamed up with Stockholm-based The Very Good, and has now partnered with Nick Mueller & Lil Fogarty of The Golden Kids Group for management. Real name Hannes Torssell, Killen. just dropped his debut album Stay Like This Forever.

+100 signings on ROSTR this week

On The Move

New hires, exec moves and other people news

Björn Bauer serving as CFO at RTL Group, has been named CFO of the combined BMG-Concord entity, where he will oversee finance and M&A. The appointment kicks in once the merger closes.

WME added five agents to its contemporary music department across three offices. In Beverly Hills, Barbara Frum will focus on international touring for electronic, pop and rock acts; in New York, Michelle Martinez will work with established and emerging talent. In London, Jana Recmanikova joins the International Festival team from Festival Republic, while Kath Butler and Giulia Spadaro were promoted internally to Agent, both focusing on international touring.

Jieun Kim has been promoted to President of Warner Music Korea overseeing operations and strategic growth across the local market.

Raw Power Management promoted Matt Ash and Don Jenkins to Joint CEOs as part of a succession plan, with founder Craig Jennings moving to Executive Chairman.

Nancy Matalon, formerly VP and Head of A&R US at Spirit Music Group, joins Bamboo Publishing as their new Head of US Publishing, where she'll bridge the company's European and US operations.

AEG Presents promoted two internal executives to VP of North American Venues — Chelsea Cunningham, who will now focus on efficiency and revenue growth, while Justin Miller takes charge of capital improvements and maintenance nationwide.

Other notable moves…

• Warner Music Finland launched Atlantic Records Finland, a new pop and rap label led by Fredi Lundén, with Kristiina Wheeler (ex-Universal Music Finland) joining as Senior A&R.

• Merlin promoted executive Jim Mahoney to the role of Chief Membership Officer, where he will oversee membership strategy and engagement globally.

• WMG's Armin Zerza is adding COO to his CFO title, less than a year after joining the company. The expanded role broadens his remit beyond finance to include corporate development, central marketing, and business intelligence.

• Riser House Entertainment brought in Shane Allen (EVP, Promotion & Artist Brand Strategy) and promoted three internal execs Megan Stottlemyer to VP of Label Operations, Alex Heimerman to Head of Marketing and Label Strategy and Jason VanAuken to VP of Business Affairs.

• MNRK Music Group promoted Dan Hawie to Managing Director of Last Gang Records, where he'll oversee the full P&L and lead A&R and brand strategy.

Dope Jobs

Interesting jobs in music

• Director, Strategic Initiatives at Warner Music Group in New York, NY / Los Angeles, CA

• Marketing Director at Slacker Media Group, remote

• Ticketing Director at Belly Up Aspen in Aspen, CO, US

• Publishing A&R (Pop) at Platinum Grammar Publishing in Los Angeles, CA

• Senior Commercial Manager (Music) at planet.fans in London, England, UK

↗ Find these and 350+ open roles at ROSTR Jobs