International
Kim Jong-un Calls K-Pop a ‘Vicious Cancer’
“To Kim Jong-un, the cultural invasion from South Korea has gone beyond a tolerable level,” Jiro Ishimaru, chief editor of the Japanese website Asia Press International, which monitors North Korea, told the NYT. “If this is left unchecked, he fears that his people might start considering the South an alternative Korea to replace the North.” HYBE, formerly known as Big Hit Entertainment and home to BTS, has done its best to celebrate K-pop and expand its influence globally with a new museum, which opened to the public last month at HYBE’s headquarters in the Yongsan district, and its purchase of Scooter Braun’s Ithaca Holdings, which brings K-pop supergroups such as BTS, Tomorrow X Together and Seventeen under the same roof as U.S. pop superstars Jus...
European Commission Guidance Muddies the Waters for EU Copyright Directive
They include the requirement for platforms that rely on user-generated content — such as YouTube, TikTok or Facebook — to obtain “fair remuneration” license deals with rights holders and to make “best efforts” to remove unlicensed content and, most importantly, ensure that it stays down. But the document also introduces exceptions that music execs say streaming platforms could use to try and avoid liability for hosting unlicensed content — potentially replacing one safe harbor with another. “The guidance risks creating uncertainty and ambiguity by going beyond the scope of the directive,” says European authors group GESAC, which represents the rights of more than one million musicians, creators and rights holders. GESAC notes that while the guidanc...
Dua Lipa, The Weeknd, Led the U.K.’s Airwaves In 2020
She leads Ed Sheeran and Ariana Grande, respectively, to become the first woman to rule PPL’s most-played Top 10 in seven years, since Katy Perry back in 2014. Fueled by Future Nostalgia, Lipa is in the form of her life. In May, she snagged two Brit Awards including the award for female solo artist, as well as album of the year for Future Nostalgia, a chart-topper in her homeland. “Thank you so much to everyone that listened to and loved my music during 2020,” she remarked. “I’m incredibly proud that I was the most-played artist on radio, TV and all across the U.K.” “I so wanted Future Nostalgia to bring some happiness during such a difficult time. Thanks to everyone who supported it and also to PPL, who do important work in making sure artist...
Rolling Stones, Tom Jones, Other Big U.K. Musicians Join Campaign For Larger Streaming Share
The letter’s signatories are calling for a government referral of the multinational corporations that wield “extraordinary power” over the music business to the U.K. competition enforcer, the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA), which can act against businesses engaging in anti-competitive behavior. The U.K. Parliamentary probe has seen major labels’ dominance of the market emerge as a central issue. The first stage of the inquiry concluded with government minister Caroline Dinenage saying she would support a referral of the three biggest music companies — Universal Music, Sony Music and Warner Music — to the CMA. The committee expects to publish their report next month before Parliament breaks for its summer recess, although a date has not been announced. Ministers will then have eigh...
Wolf Alice Leap Into Top Spot on U.K. Midweek Chart With ‘Blue Weekend’
The London band will hope to go one better than their previous albums. Their 2015 freshman set My Love Is Cool and 2017 followup Visions of a Life both reached No. 2 on the Official U.K. Albums Chart, missing out to releases from Florence + The Machine and Shania Twain, respectively, after leading at the hallway mark. Coming in at No. 2 on the Official Chart Update is veteran Manchester band James with All The Colours (Nothing But Love Music), while last week’s leader, Olivia Rodrigo’s Sour (Geffen), dips 1-3. Neil Finn’s reunited Crowded House could snag their highest-charting album in 14 years with Dreamers Are Waiting (EMI), the followup to 2010’s Intriguer. It’s new at No. 4. The ARIA Hall of Fame-inducted band has four U.K. Top 10s, including a No. 1 for 1996’s career retrospective&nb...
Yuuri, SixTONES, and YOASOBI Lead Billboard Japan Mid-Year Charts
At No. 2 is LiSA’s “Homura,” the theme of last year’s blockbuster anime movie Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba the Movie: Mugen Train, and at No. 3 is BTS’s “Dynamite,” the first all English single by the South Korean superstars that became their first No. 1 hit on the Billboard Hot 100. The top three songs on the mid-year tally were long-running favorites in the digital metrics, namely streaming, downloads, and video views. The straightforwardly titled debut album by the six-member Johnny’s group SixTONES — pronounced “Stones” — rules the mid-year Japan Hot Albums chart. In contrast to the top songs on the mid-year song tally, SixTONE’s 1ST hasn’t been released in digital form and took the top spot fueled by physical sales (No. 1, with 572,074 copies sold during the tracking period) and loo...
BTS’ ‘Butter’ Debuts Atop Billboard K-Pop 100
Within just one day of dropping their new release “Butter” on May 21, BTS broke their own record of the ‘Most-Viewed YouTube Music Video in 24 Hours’ while dominating a number of charts including the K-Pop 100, Hot 100 and Billboard’s two other global charts. This week’s No. 2 is enjoyed by OH MY GIRL with “Dun Dun Dance”, which had successfully made it on top 10 last week at No. 3 before climbing up the chart by one with most TV airplay. Brave Girls’ “Rollin” stepped down to No. 3 after spending a sixth week at No. 1 while their other hit “We Ride” joined the fall from No. 5 to No. 9. IU’s “LILAC” also dropped by two sitting at No. 4 this week with “Celebrity” also down by three at No. 7. SM Entertainment’s newest girl group ‘aespa’ is on the rise. The new single “Next Level,” a remake of...
How New Zealand’s Six60 Became the World’s Biggest Live Act This Year
Eden Park capped a string of major open-air shows in New Zealand, Six60’s second lap in support of their 2019 self-titled album. The band grossed $13.7 million and sold 168,761 tickets across seven shows in New Zealand in 2021, according to Billboard Boxscore. (Six60 played to another 10,000 fans at Cardrona Valley in Wanaka on Jan. 1; The pre-bought tickets were not included in official box office reports.) Having conquered their homeland, Six60 are now planning to take their touring juggernaut to audiences in Australia, the U.K. and Europe. “Every month we have a sit-down and try to figure out how to do something really big, to make a difference,” frontman Walters tells Billboard. “We’re continually trying to challenge ourselves.” A travel “bubble” connecting the lands Down Under op...
The Weeknd Sweeps 2021 Juno Awards
The Weeknd is the first artist to sweep the awards for artist, album, single and songwriter of the year twice. The Weeknd is the also first three-time winner for artist of the year, an award that originated in 2003. He previously won it in 2015 and 2016. The Weeknd was famously shut out in the nominations for the 63rd annual Grammy Awards. He fared much better at the awards in his home country. The Weeknd was this year’s only multiple Juno winner out of 43 categories presented over the two nights. These five wins bring his career total of Juno Awards to 15, which puts him in sixth place on the all-time winners list behind Anne Murray (25), Bryan Adams (21), Céline Dion (20), Orchestre symphonique de Montréal (18), and The Tragically Hip (17). Mendes took the fan-voted fan choice award for ...
Olivia Rodrigo Nabs Another U.K. Chart Double
By logging a second week at No. 1, Sour is now the longest-running leader of 2021, ended an unusual, 22-week run of one-week chart-champions. Veteran Scottish band Texas earns a ninth Top 10 title and a highest chart position in more than two decades with Hi (BMG), new at No. 3. Further down the list, Taylor Swift’s former No. 1 Evermore (EMI) blasts 70-4 following its release on vinyl, and Scottish outfit Del Amitri start at No. 5 with Fatal Mistakes (Cooking Vinyl), their first album in 19 years. Meanwhile, “Good 4 U” holds top spot on the Official U.K. Singles Chart with 108,000 chart sales, including 12.6 million streams, according to the OCC. It’s one of three Sour tracks in the Top Ten, as “Déjà vu” dips 4-5, and the global hit “Drivers License” reenters at No. 6. Another...
Twitter pushes back on ban by Nigerian government
Micro blogging social platform, Twitter, has pushed back on ban by the Federal Government. It described it as brazen affront on citizens fundamental human rights and advised its users and other social media platforms in the country to download virtual private networks (VPNs) to enable them continue to use the platforms for their economic survival and social and political engagements while the “push back on this draconian order by the Nigerian government.” In a statement, Twitter said: “Today, the 4th of June 2021, the Federal Government of Nigeria announced its suspension of Twitter operations, that the application can be used as a platform for activities capable of undermining Nigeria’s corporate existence. “Many Nigerians read the announcement of the ban on Twitter as a reflection of the...
The Weeknd Wins Three 2021 Juno Awards on First Night of Ceremony
Kaytranada won dance recording of the year for Bubba. He is the first Black male solo winner in the dance category, which originated in 1992. Bubba won in the equivalent category, best dance/electronic album, at the Grammys on March 14. WondaGurl (Ebony Naomi Oshunrinde) became the first Black woman to win the Jack Richardson producer of the year award. Moreover, WondaGurl is the first female of any race or ethnicity to win in this category who isn’t primarily known as an artist. WondaGurl, a Canadian producer, songwriter and record executive, has worked with such artists as Pop Smoke, JackBoys, Mariah Carey, Travis Scott, Jay-Z, Drake and Kanye West. Harry Styles’ Fine Line won international album of the year. The album has been a global award magnet. Its biggest hit, “Watermelon Sugar,” ...
