Radio
R.I.P. Fez Whatley, One-Half of Beloved Radio Duo Ron & Fez Dead at 57
Fez Whatley, one-half of the beloved radio duo Ron & Fez, has died at the age of 57. Whatley’s longtime partner, Ron Bennington, shared the news to his social media on Saturday. “We lost our sweet Fez Whatley last night. His heart finally gave out,” said Bennington. “We are devastated, but we will always remember the laughter through our tears. Our thoughts are with his family who loved him the most and with the people who knew him as a voice on the radio.” Whatley had long battled health issues, having suffered at least six heart attacks since 2005. He suffered his most recent heart attack in March of this year and spent several days on a ventilator. A native of Florida, Whatley came to fame as co-host of the popular radio show Ron & Fez. After getting their start in Daytona Beach...
iHeartMedia Stock Drops 21%, Even as Radio Recovers
But iHeartMedia’s net loss per share was $0.22 compared to the $0.14 loss per share expected by analysts polled by FactSet, according to DowJones Newswire, and investors were clearly hesitant about the company’s future. iHeartMedia shares began Friday at $26.49 — 415% above its pandemic-era low of $4.31 — but fell by 17% on the day and another 4.9% on Monday (Aug. 9), bringing the two-day drop to 21.1%. Investors have also continued to hammer Audacy, the country’s third-largest radio company, after its $0.01 earnings per share on Friday fell well below the $0.09 consensus estimate. Audacy’s forecasted 10% revenue growth from the second to the third quarter was lackluster compared to iHeart (20%), and investors reacted accordingly. Audacy shares dropped 10....
Liberty Media Revenue Gains on SiriusXM Strength
In terms of operating income, SiriusXM posted a 66 percent gain to $634 million and the Braves swung from a $33 million loss to a $31 million profit. Formula One’s operating loss narrowed from $136 million to $43 million. Liberty Media, led by CEO Greg Maffei, saw its total operating income hit $622 million for the three months ending June 30, compared with $214 million in the year-ago period. Revenue rose from $1.91 billion to $2.88 billion. Said Maffei: “SiriusXM executed well, produced outstanding results and recently increased their 2021 guidance. They continue to repurchase stock, and Liberty’s ownership is now over 78 percent. He added: “Formula 1 is delivering across the board — on the track, for our fans, teams, partners and investors — and has done an impressive job steering throu...
iHeartMedia Strikes Multiyear Deal With NBA for 20 Podcasts
iHeartMedia has reached a multiyear podcast deal with the NBA that will result in more than 20 podcasts over the next four years, the audio giant said on Wednesday. The podcast deal comes three months after iHeartMedia announced it was creating a podcast network for the NFL as part of a multiyear, exclusive partnership. The NBA’s podcasts, which will be co-produced by iHeartRadio and the NBA, will include a mix of content from the NBA’s archives, player commentary, league news and insider analyses. The first show is expected to premiere this fall, iHeartMedia said. It’s not immediately clear which athletes will participate in the podcasts. You Deserve to Make Money Even When you are looking for Dates Online. So we reimagined what a datin...
‘Billboard Top 500 Summer Hits’ Show Coming to SiriusXM
The new SiriusXM show Billboard Top 500 Summer Hits will highlight the biggest all-time songs of the summer. The show will celebrate the hottest summer hits from 1958 through 2020 based on the Billboard Hot 100 chart, featuring artists such as The Beatles, Mariah Carey, Bee Gees, Drake, Elton John, Madonna, Katy Perry, Elvis Presley, Rihanna, Rolling Stones, Usher and Donna Summer. From Friday through July 30, SiriusXM channel 104 and the SiriusXM app will count down the songs that made the warm weather worth it over the past six decades and will eventually announce the most popular song of the summer over the last 62 years of the Hot 100 chart’s history. The countdown will be available on demand in the SiriusXM app from July 30 to Aug. 13, with the full charts be...
Makin’ Tracks: Acoustic Party Song Slaps Fresh New Paint On Old Dominion
If Tursi and his four bandmates operated in the mindset of the “Boat” protagonist, they wouldn’t give a flip about anyone’s opinion. The singer broke up with his girlfriend, tossed his cellphone in the water, set out to sea and dug into the cooler. If yogis are trying to convince their followers to live in the moment, this guy has reached nirvana. The thing is, it required an eight-year journey. Old Dominion first addressed the title, “I Was on a Boat That Day,” in the same general time frame in which the band wrote “Break Up With Him,” its inaugural 2015 hit. “We didn’t set out to write a beach song or a water song,” lead singer Matthew Ramsey says. “That was just a title and an idea that we had. We never wrote it, but it’s come up a l...
Shaggy Launching ‘Yaad’ Show For SiriusXM’s Fly Channel: Exclusive
Get ready to celebrate the 4th of July in style next week with “Mr. Boombastic” himself. SiriusXM announced on Monday (June 28) that Grammy-winning reggae singer Shaggy will launch a new weekly music show called “Shaggy’s Yaad” on the Fly channel on Independence Day. According to a statement, the show will “feature a wide range of contemporary, rare and classic tracks spanning the hip-hop, dancehall and reggae genres, with insights from Shaggy about the musical history of his Jamaican homeland and its global impact.” In an exclusive quote to Billboard about the venture, Shaggy says, “I am so excited to have the opportunity to host my own radio show on SiriusXM FLY. Shaggy’s Yaad gives me the opportunity to take listeners on a cultural journey ...
Congressional Bill Renews Effort to Get Artists, Labels Paid for Radio Airplay
Unlike satellite/online radio and streaming services, AM/FM stations pay only songwriter royalties on the music they broadcast. To rectify that, the AMFA legislation would establish fair market value for radio performance royalties in the same way it has been for those other platforms. The bipartisan bill is in part a response to the Local Radio Freedom Act, a non-binding resolution introduced last month by Rep. Steve Womack (R-AR) and Rep. Kathy Castor (D-FL) that opposes the imposition of a performance royalty, which proponents argue would be financially devastating for broadcasters. A companion resolution was introduced in the Senate by Martin Heinrich (D-NM) and John Barrasso (R-WY). Both resolutions are backed by the National Association of Broadcasters (NAB), which has long been oppo...
Assessing the Music Industry’s Progress 1 Year After Blackout Tuesday: ‘We Need to Build a Bigger Table’
#TheShowMustBePaused and other principals working to achieve sustainable diversity, equity and inclusion assess the industry’s progress so far. A year ago Wednesday (June 2), Brianna Agyemang and Jamila Thomas brought the music industry to a standstill. In the wake of George Floyd’s murder and the global protests it spurred, the pair called for a day of racial reckoning — dubbed Blackout Tuesday by supporters — and simultaneously launched #TheShowMustBePaused to hold the industry accountable for its own systemic bias. “Our mission,” stated Agyemang and Thomas at the time, “is to hold the industry at large, including major corporations + their partners who benefit from the efforts, struggles and successes of Black people, accountable … it is the obligation of these entities to protect and e...
Ex-Fiorentina defender: Victor Osimhen will perform under new boss
Former Fiorentina defender, Vittorio Tosto, is convinced that Nigerian striker Victor Osimhen can power Napoli to glory under newly appointed manager Luciano Spalletti. Spalletti, a former Inter Milan coach, was named the boss of the Parthenopeans, days after Gennaro Gattuso left the role following a disappointing end to the campaign. Gattuso was a key factor behind Osimhen’s decision to quit Lille for the Stadio Diego Armando Maradona last summer, with the club parting with a club-record fee of over €70 million. But injuries and coronavirus-related problems limited the attacker to 30 games across all competitions. The Super Eagles forward managed to find the back of the net ten times and provided three assists as Napoli missed out on Champions League qualification on the final day of the ...
Andy Cohen Launching New SiriusXM Music Channel: Exclusive
Andy Cohen’s Kiki Lounge began to take shape after the success of Cohen’s Pride Radio takeover in June 2020, which lead to SiriusXM president/COO Scott Greenstein approaching Cohen with the idea for an all-music channel. The Watch What Happens Live host jumped at the opportunity, one he’s been preparing for since his teens: “I’ve been creating mixtapes, mix CDs, and playlists as each of the mediums have changed since high school, basically. I love sharing music and making playlists.” While Cohen is the channel’s primary programming force, it will also feature blocks from his celebrity friends and trusted DJs. “During the day is music I curated and every night we’ll have DJ sets from a different DJ I love,” Cohen says, name checkin...
Hamas official predicts ceasefire soon in Israel-Gaza conflict
A senior Hamas official predicted a ceasefire within days in the Israel-Gaza conflict, after U.S. President Joe Biden urged Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to seek a “de-escalation” in the fighting. Rocket fire into Israel died down overnight, a lull that stretched into Thursday morning. Israel was launching new air strikes in Gaza after daybreak, but, Israeli media said, at a slower pace than in past days. An Egyptian security source said the sides had agreed in principle to a ceasefire after help from mediators but details were still being negotiated in secret. “I think that the ongoing efforts regarding the ceasefire will succeed,” the Hamas political official, Moussa Abu Marzouk, told Lebanon’s al-Mayadeen TV. “I expect a ceasefire to be reached within a day or two, and the c...
