Legal and Management

2 Men Indicted in 2002 Killing of Run-DMC’s Jam Master Jay

Two men have been indicted in the 2002 slaying of hip hop artist Jam Master Jay, which until now had been one of New York City’s most notorious unsolved killings, three law enforcement officials told the Associated Press on Monday. The officials were not authorized to speak publicly and did so on the condition of anonymity. One of them identified the suspects as Ronald Washington and Karl Jordan. Federal prosecutors were expected to announce the charges at a news conference Monday afternoon. Washington, who had reportedly been living on a couch at Jay’s home in the days before his death, was publicly named as a possible suspect or witness as far back as 2007. He is currently serving a federal prison sentence stemming from a string of robberies he committed while on the run from police afte...

Supreme Court Asked to Review ‘Stairway to Heaven’ Fight

Is the Supreme Court ready to make music history? One petitioner is giving nine justices of the high court such an opportunity while hardly being subtle about it. Here are the opening notes from a new cert petition: “It is fitting, perhaps, that the future of music copyright law be decided by a case about rock ‘n’ roll’s most iconic song, ‘Stairway to Heaven.’” The petition comes from Michael Skidmore, trustee for the Randy Craig Wolfe Trust — which is to say he’s representing an interest once belonging to Randy “California” Wolfe, singer-songwriter for the rock band Spirit. Wolfe authored a song “Taurus,” which many observers see as being extremely similar in structure to the opening of Led Zeppelin’s “Stairway to Heaven.&#...

‘Truth Hurts’ Suit Against Lizzo Dismissed by Judge

Lizzo is most likely feelin’ good as hell after a California federal judge dismissed a lawsuit against her by two songwriters who say they helped create “Truth Hurts.” Lizzo hit first in October 2019, asking the court for a declaration that brothers Justin and Jeremiah Raisen did not co-write her Grammy-winning hit song and therefore aren’t entitled to any of its profits. The songwriters countersued in February, arguing that “Truth Hurts” is a derivative work based on a song called “Healthy” that they created with the artist in early 2017. She maintains the only significant thing to come out of that session was the line “I just did a DNA test turns out I’m a hundred percent that bitch” which was inspired by a viral tweet that anot...

Biggie’s Son CJ Wallace Releases His First Music as He Grows Social Impact Company

Over a Zoom video interview, Christopher “C.J.” Wallace, Jr. holds up his dad’s jersey that almost eclipses Wallace and the entire computer screen. “It’s a 5XXL,” Wallace tells Billboard. On the back of the jersey, ‘POPPA” is stitched in bright yellow letters against the hunter green fabric. The young entrepreneur was only five months old when his father, The Notorious B.I.G., was killed. Now 23, Wallace has finally done something he says he was “very scared of for the longest time”: releasing his own music, inspired by his dad’s. “I just avoided it because you don’t wanna mess up anything great,” says Wallace. Born in New York City and raised in Los Angeles, Wallace has been in the process of building his own legacy with Think BIG — a social impact company that he co-founded with bu...

R. Kelly’s Manager Charged With Placing Threatening Call to Theater Screening Abuse Documentary

The manager of R. Kelly was charged Friday (Aug. 14) for allegedly making a threatening phone call to a Manhattan theater that was screening a docuseries about the sex abuse allegations against the musician. Donnell Russell, 45, was charged in two counts with threatening physical harm by interstate communication, and conspiracy to do the same, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office, Southern District of New York. The charges stem from an alleged Dec. 4, 2018 call Russell made threatening a shooting at NeueHouse, which thereby halted the screening of Surviving R. Kelly, according to authorities. Multiple victims featured in the docuseries were to attend the event. Surviving R. Kelly explores allegations that Kelly engaged in abusive sexual relationships with minor girls and adult women. He...

Spotify Allies With ‘Fortnite’ in Apple App Store Battle

Spotify is backing Fortnite developer Epic Games in its new clash with Apple and the tech giant’s App Store, highlighting its own lawsuit over similar issues. After Apple removed Fortnite from the App Store on Wednesday because Epic Games had introduced a way for players to purchase its virtual “V-bucks” currency outside the payment marketplace, Epic Games filed a lawsuit that could have legal ramifications in the music industry. {“nid”:”9416468″,”type”:”post”,”title”:”Sony Takes Minority Stake in Fortnite Maker With $250 Million Investment”,”relative_path”:”\/articles\/business\/9416468\/sony-minority-stake-fortnite-maker-epic-250-million-investment\/”,”media”:{“width”:&...

Reelz v. Reels: Network Sues Instagram, Facebook for Trademark Infringement

Instagram last week launched a new short-video feature called Reels — capitalizing on demand in the market amid privacy concerns surrounding TikTok and a looming ban of the ByteDance-owned app — and it’s already facing troubles of its own. ReelzChannel says the feature’s name infringes on its longstanding trademark. The network, which launched in 2006, says it reaches more than 50 million homes in the U.S. The suit, which was filed Tuesday in Minnesota federal court, where the network’s parent company Hubbard Broadcasting is based, claims Reels usurps Reelz’ goodwill and is likely to confuse consumers. {“nid”:”9429589″,”type”:”post”,”title”:”Instagram Launches TikTok Competitor Reels”...

Appeal Ruling on Publisher Royalty Rate Hike Looks Like it Favors Digital Services Contentions: Sources

Spotify, Amazon, Pandora and YouTube have been handed a procedural victory on their appeal to a 44% royalty rate increase for songwriters and publishers, sources tell Billboard. The U.S. Court of Appeals in D.C. that reviewed the digital services’ appeal on the Copyright Royalty Board’s (CRB) mechanical rate determination has thrown out the rate structure cobbled together by a majority of the board’s three judges, Billboard has learned. The ruling, which is under seal, could wash away the rate increase that the CRB judges — in a split 2–1 decision — had awarded songwriters and music publishers in January 2018. The CRB ruling was finalized in February 2019 and appealed by digital services a month later on grounds of procedural issues with how the CRB determined...

Digital Services’ Appeal of Publisher Rate Hike Headed Back to Copyright Royalty Board: Sources

The U.S. Court of Appeals reviewing an appeal from Spotify, Amazon, Pandora and YouTube over the Copyright Royalty Board’s mechanical rate determination has remanded the case back to the CRB, sources tell Billboard. At press time the decision was sealed, so industry sources weren’t clear on what issues the Washington, D.C. Circuit Appeals Court had with the CRB rate ruling, other than it apparently was due to procedural issues. But procedural issues were at the heart of the digital services’ appeal and, at its most extreme, this could mean the ruling vacated the process that yielded a 44% rate increase for publisher royalties. {“nid”:”8502707″,”type”:”post”,”title”:”Why Spotify's Appeal of The CRB Rate Decision Is A Hug...

Detail, Producer Who Won Grammy For Beyonce’s ‘Drunk In Love,’ Arrested on Sexual Assault Charges

Detail, the Grammy-winning music producer who worked on records for Beyonce, Drake, Lil Wayne and many more, was arrested Wednesday (Aug. 5) in Los Angeles on multiple sexual assault charges. The producer (real name Noel Fisher) is facing 15 sexual assault charges and five additional felony assault-related charges, relating to incidents dating from 2010 to 2018, reads a statement issued by the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department. The L.A. Angeles County District Attorney’s Office filed the charges July 31, and a warrant was issued for his arrest. Bail was set at $6.29 million, LASD officials said. {“nid”:”8500693″,”type”:”post”,”title”:”When Music Producers Are Accused of Being Predators”,”relative_path”...

For International Artists, US Entry in the Pandemic Comes With New Hurdles

In March, Colombian superstar Carlos Vives was in the midst of filming season 2 of Telemundo’s singing competition series La Voz in Miami when COVID-19 sent most of the U.S. into lockdown. With production on hold, Vives returned to his home country to wait things out. Now, a full four months later, he is back on set. But returning to the U.S. was no easy task. “Colombia’s international borders were shut down,” says Vives’ business manager, Claudia Arcay, who notes that all commercial flights to and from Colombia were suspended, except for humanitarian and repatriation flights. “However, we had a work contract with Telemundo that we had to fulfill.” {“nid”:”9425791″,”type”:”post”,”title”:”What Do Virtual Festivals Pay A...

Warner Music Group Names Head of Global Equity, Diversity and Inclusion

Dr. Maurice Stinnett has joined Warner Music Group as the label’s head of global equity, diversity and inclusion. In his new role, Stinnett will lead the charge on WMG’s equity initiatives and work towards implementing programs to help the company become a more inclusive workplace. He’ll also have a hand in talent recruitment and development, and will assist the company’s Executive Diversity & Inclusion Council. Until recently, Stinnett was vp of diversity, inclusion and culture at BSE Global, operators of Brooklyn’s Barclays Center and two of the arena’s prominent tenants — the Nets (NBA) and the Liberty (WNBA). Prior to BSE, he held senior roles at Cleveland State University and Central State University in Wilberforce, Ohio. He will report to WMG CEO Steve Cooper and be based at the ...