International
Powderfinger Are Reuniting For a Fundraising Virtual Concert
BRISBANE — They’re back. Powderfinger, arguably Australia’s biggest guitar band of the century, are reuniting for a one-off fundraising virtual concert. Dubbed One Night Lonely, the gig will stream Saturday, May 23 on YouTube and will raise much needed money for Support Act, the national charity that helps artists, roadies and music workers in crisis, and Beyond Blue, an organization that provides advice and support on mental health issues. Rumors of a Powderfinger reunion are as regular as a hot Australian summer. A teaser on social media Wednesday confirmed something was up, and the official announcement dropped early Thursday. Testing… is this thing on? — Powderfinger (@powderfinger_au) May 13, 2020 It’s been a decade since the five-piece from Brisbane were an active outfit....
ASTRO Break Down ‘Gateway’ EP That Is ‘Reintroducing’ the Emerging K-Pop Boy Band
ASTRO returns to the Emerging Artists chart this week with big gains on YouTube and Twitter. Following a busy 2019 that included two album releases and their first-ever U.S. tour, ASTRO is looking to reintroduce themselves with a new EP that looks to transcend their past. Following the release of the K-pop boy band’s Gateway — that ties in everything from surging pop on standouts “Knock” and “Lights On” to playful hip-hop for “When You Call My Name” — ASTRO sees gains across the board to mark a return to Billboard‘s Emerging Artists chart. At No. 49 this week, ASTRO’s re-entry to Emerging Artists can be mostly attributed to their social media presence. Upon the release of Gateway, the sextet gained 75,000 new YouTu...
Tencent Music Revenue Hit New Highs in Q1 as Coronavirus Spread Through China
The Chinese music streaming company took a hit, but still grew earnings 27.4% year-over-year. Tencent Music Entertainment (TME), the Chinese music streaming company with 657 million monthly listeners, took a hit from the coronavirus pandemic in the first quarter but was able to grow both music subscribers and revenue. According to the company’s earnings report released Monday, Q1 music revenues leapt 27.4% year over year to $288 million while monthly average users grew 0.5%. Even though the pandemic led people to spend more time with entertainment, TME’s social media revenue rose just 3.3% even though 256 million people, a 13.3% gain, used its social app, WeSing. Still, music is a relatively low earner for TME; social media delivered an average revenue per media revenue per user of $15.65 ...
Universal Music Publishing Group Names Joe Fang Managing Director In China
Universal Music Publishing Group (UMPG) has named Joe Fang — a longtime media executive with a focus on global markets — its first-ever managing director, China. Based in UMPG China’s new Beijing headquarters, Fang reports to Andrew Jenkins, UMPG president, Australia and Asia Pacific Region. In his new role, Fang will oversee the publishing giant’s Chinese language roster, and lead the development of UMPG Hong Kong, working closely with Universal Music Group in China as well as local partners. UMPG recently joined the Music Copyright Society of China, and is deepening its cooperation with Chinese DSPs, tech companies and content providers. “Continuing with our efforts to be best-in-class around the world, we have put a strong and strategic emphasis on UMPG’s gr...
Hayley Williams Leads Midweek U.K. Chart With Solo Debut ‘Petals For Armor’
Hayley Williams is out front in the race to the U.K. chart title. The Paramore frontwoman’s debut solo album Petals For Armor (Atlantic) leads the midweek chart, with an advantage of 1,100 chart sales over its nearest rival, D-Day Darlings’ I’ll Remember You (Sony Music CG), according to the Official Charts Company. Williams has tasted the high life on two previous occasions with her alternative rock outfit, bagging No. 1 with Brand New Eyes in 2009 and with Paramore’s self-titled 2013 set. Petals For Armor was the best-selling album in the U.K. on CD and vinyl over the weekend, the OCC reports. The most downloaded album at the midweek stage is I’ll Remember You, the debut LP from the Britain’s Got Talent alum D-Day Darlings. The set originally dropped in November 2018, peaking at No....
Real Madrid, Barcelona, Manchester City interested in Kingsley Coman
Getty Images Real Madrid, Barcelona and Manchester City are interested in signing Bayern Munich attacker Kingsley Coman, according to Sky Germany. The Bundesliga club want to keep hold of the France international however, should Leroy Sané join Bayern, Coman will rethink his situation at the club should Sané take his place in the starting XI. Bayern Munich remain hopeful of signing Sané in the summer, with a preference to sign the Germany international over compatriot Timo Werner (RB Leipzig). Get more stories like this on Twitter
Drake Snags No. 1 In Australia With ‘Dark Lane Demo Tapes’
Drake bags his third No. 1 album in Australia, with Dark Lane Demo Tapes (Republic/Universal). The Canadian hip-hop star’s new mixtape bows at No. 1 on the ARIA Albums Chart, equaling the chart peaks of his 2016 release Views and 2018’s Scorpion. Dark Lane becomes Drake’s eighth title to impact the top 10 on the ARIA chart, and it opens at No. 2 in the U.K. and No. 1 in the U.K., where Drizzy does the chart double. The Australian top five is completed by former chart-leaders in Harry Styles’ Fine Line (Columbia/Sony), Dua Lipa’s Future Nostalgia (Warner), Birds Of Tokyo’s Human Design (EMI) and Billie Eilish’s When We All Fall Asleep, Where Do We Go? (Interscope/Universal), respectively. Also new to the chart this week is Elevation Worship’s Graves Into Gardens (Live) (Sony), at ...
Ariana Grande And Justin Bieber Eye U.K. Singles Chart Crown, Dame Vera Lynn Set For Record
Ariana Grande and Justin Bieber’s blockbuster collaboration “Stuck With U” is set to explode atop the U.K. chart. The new single blasts to No. 1 on the Official Singles Chart: First Look, with a lead of 2,500 chart sales over its nearest rival, Drake’s “Toosie Slide”. “Stuck With U” is raising money for First Responders Children’s Foundation, a charity that will underwrite scholarships for children of frontline workers fighting the COVID-19 pandemic. Should it hold on when the Official U.K. Singles Chart is published late Friday, the collab would be Grande’s sixth and Bieber’s eight U.K. No. 1. While the pop duo should claim the title, it won’t be the only feel-good chart story. Dame Vera Lynn is on track to become the oldest living person to score a U.K. top ...
Kylian Mbappe wants to share Ligue 1 golden boot with Wissam Yedder
Ligue 1 Golden Boot winner Kylian Mbappe has said the award should be shared between him and Monaco’s Wissam Ben Yedder as both finished on 18 goals this season. The Paris Saint Germain striker was deemed the sole top scorer on Thursday after the league was ended prematurely as he had more goals from open play. Three of Ben Yedder’s goals came from penalties. Taking to Twitter, Mbappe thanked fans for their messages of support but said that his international teammate should also have received an award. “Thank you for all your messages. I think that Wissam also deserves a trophy, like the Premier League did last season, to reward his year,” he tweeted. Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, Mohamed Salah and Sadio Mane were all awarded the 2018-19 Golden Boot in the Premier League for finishing the sea...
Watch Rising J-Pop Artist Mega Shinnosuke’s Making-of Video for ‘Sports’
Japanese rapper Mega Shinnosuke shared some behind-the-scenes footage from his music video for “Sports,” his latest single released in April. Mega Shinnosuke is a self-produced 19-year-old singer-songwriter and multi-talented artist who handles everything from arranging his own music to creating his artwork and videos. The making-of video was edited remotely with his friends who are all self-isolating at home due to the coronavirus pandemic. Watch the video below:
Which K-Pop EP/LP Release Are You Most Excited For This Month? Vote!
K-pop is officially taking over May, and even some new characters are coming to play. “Who Dis?” Vine Entertainment announced a new five-member girl group called Secret Number will officially debut on May 19 with its new single, while About Entertainment comes out with another all-female squad REDSQUARE on the same day with its new album Prequel. But for those already in the big leagues, NCT 127 plans on releasing the boy band’s deluxe sophomore album The 2nd Album Repackage ‘NCT #127 Neo Zone: The Final Round‘ on May 19 with four new tracks and two physical versions of the LP with special artwork, photos and other goodies for fans. Tomorrow x Together also has a second mini-album on the way on May 18 titled The Dream Chapter...
Ingrooves Expands In Australia and NZ
Ingrooves Music Group, the music marketing services and distribution division of Universal Music Group, is expanding its presence Down Under. Nina Rabe-Cairns is recruited to lead its activities in the region, in the role as Country Manager of Ingrooves Australia and New Zealand, based in Sydney. A former reporter and presenter, Rabe-Cairns joins from Spotify, where she served as market strategy & operations manager for Australia and New Zealand and, earlier, as senior editor/playlist curator. Previously, Rabe-Cairns served in executive roles with Viacom in Berlin, rising to senior brand marketing manager for Nickelodeon. And before that, she was head of content for Viacom’s digital editorial team, working on MTV and Comedy Central. “Nina brings with her a wealth of expertise and deep ...
