| CMU Daily - on the inside 24 Jan 2003 |
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In today's CMU Daily:
• Global changes at BMG,
• Petition grows over new live licencing,
• P Diddy in talks with Universal over Bad Boy,
• Mystikal rape charge settlement expected,
• Review: Longwave - Everywhere You Turn,
• Capital criticism from the advertisers,
• Dion’s husband completely cleared of rape allegations,
• Jay Z wants to quit music for film,
• Christina on her abusive father,
• Limp Bizkit snippets to go online,
• Billboard partner up for new buzz chart,
• Skint video show,
• BBC – triple criticism for digital output,
• Review: One Minute Silence – Revolution,
• Timberlake to back the lips on TOTP,
• Glasgow charity auction off Bee Gee guitar,
• ITV to screen icy DJ fest,
• Mad pop story of the week
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Two songs, two artists – same song title – which two artists have released tracks called 'Crazy'?
Answer on Monday
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GLOBAL CHANGES AT BMG
BMG have begun a global restructure which will reduce the autonomy of the group’s operations in each individual country – supposedly to allow the label to work more easily with artists on a global scale. The company will now consist of four main bits – the very corporate sounding ‘labels group’, ‘territory management’, ‘corporate centre’ and ‘chairman’s office’.
As far as we can make out the chairman’s office will handle global marketing, communication and strategy development, the corporate centre will handle all the dull legal and admin stuff, territory management will look after logistical matters in each region, while labels group will release the music.
The labels group will in turn be split into five divisions – Arista, RCA, Jive/Zomba, RLG Nashville and BMG Music Publishing. This confirms that Jive/Zomba – formerly the biggest most commercial independent label in the world which BMG took over completely last year – will remain autonomous on an A&R level, for the time being at least.
It’s not completely clear yet what the restructuring at the top level will mean for BMG’s operations in the UK. The UK company restructured here sometime ago so that all but A&R departments worked on a group wide basis (prior to that press teams and the likes were assigned to either RCA or Arista). But the word restructuring is often accompanied by the word downsizing so who knows, some room may yet be made at BMG’s Fulham HQ so those Zomba people can move in.
Those BMG / EMI merger rumours are rife again – past mergers have been blocked by EU officials on competition grounds but when a court ruled last year that the travel industry could consolidate into three major players (a move which the EU also initially blocked) some in the music industry reckoned a precedent had been set that would make a major label merger in the music industry hard to block. But, following the Zomba takeover, BMG is less likely to get the go ahead for an EMI takeover that Warners, who have also considered a merger in the past. But some reckon the latest BMG restructure might allow the company to form a “formal business relationship” with EMI with many of the benefits of merger, but sidestepping competition legislation. We’ll see…
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PETITION GROWS OVER NEW LIVE LICENCING
Some 51,000 have now signed an online petition against new legislation which will require pubs to have an entertainments licence in order to stage even the simplest live music – something the Musicians Union reckon will threaten an important circuit of small live music venues. Those signing the petition at www.petitiononline.com/2inabar/petition.html agree that the new rules are "draconian” and "a totally unacceptable regulatory intrusion into mainstream activities".
Responding to the petition culture minister Kim “rent-a-foolish-quote” Howells has told the Stage newspaper that accusations the legislation will kill live music are "urban myths". Admitting it was understandable that some people would find the penalties that will be charged to pubs who break the new rules "intimidating", he added: "I must stress that these are maximum penalties and, as with all offences, the courts would, on any conviction, decide the appropriate punishments."
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P DIDDY IN TALKS WITH UNIVERSAL OVER BAD BOY
Word in the States is that P Diddy is in talks with the Universal Music Group regarding a sale of equity in his Bad Boy Entertainment company. As reported last week, Mr Coombs has been considering a new deal with a major label after he bought back BMG’s share last year. Indications are that he is now asking considerably less that the $100 million he valued the company at when he regained complete ownership. Reports last week suggested the new asking price was as low as $10 million, though latest reports say a Universal deal may be struck for somewhere between $20 million and $50 million.
Although the Bad Boy label had hit hard times commercially towards the end of its relationship with BMG the company does seem to be recovering somewhat so Combs may hang on to push up the value of any potential deal.
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MYSTIKAL RAPE CHARGE SETTLEMENT EXPECTED
According to MTV rapper Mystikal is close to settling with the hairstylist who accused him of raping her last July. Giving little away the star’s lawyer would only say the matter is “being resolved in a way that satisfies both parties”. He added: "We're not making any admission of guilt, but sometimes you just have to swallow a bitter pill in order to move on with your life and your career."
As reported at the time the hairstylist told police Mystikal had raped her in the presence of two friends, later threatening to prosecute her over the cashing of unauthorised cheques if she went to the police over the sexual assault. Although police found a video in the rapper's house that seemed to confirm the allegations the hairstylist subsequently signed an admission that the sex had be consensual - an admission she later withdrew claiming it had been made under pressure from the defendant.
All this means that if the case goes to court Mystikal will now face charges of both rape and extortion – which could lead to a life and fifteen year sentence respectively.
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REVIEW: Longwave - Everywhere You Turn (Hummer Recordings / EastWest)
Well the press release mentions My Bloody Valentine, Dinosaur Jr, Johnny Marr and the Psychedelic Furs. That's a good start. So is the intro, with big drums, Peter Hook bass and Nu Metal vocals as if sung by Shane MacGowan. If only it didn't make me feel so old … this wouldn't have been out of place at an indie club 15 years ago. Ah well, who cares? This is really good and if it's a bit derivative, at least it's derivative of all the best things. B-sides 'Next Plateau' and 'State of Mind' are a quiet plea to be nice to them, and a Velvet Underground-backed paean to the singer. The only quibble is that singer Steve Schiltz doesn't quite have the distinctive vocal style the music merits. But that’s not really much of a quibble... MB
Release date: 3 Feb
Press contact: Wild [CP, CR], East West IH [RP, RR, NP, NR]
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CAPITAL CRITICISM FROM THE ADVERTISERS
More criticism for Capital Radio – this time from the advertising world. The station has admitted that changes need to be made on its main London station if it’s to stop losing listeners to rivals like Heart and Kiss – a rock show, album chart show and less pop music policy are all being considered. While welcoming these moves two top media buying agencies have warned the station needs to manage any transition carefully – especially as it will run alongside big changes on the station’s breakfast show in the lead up to Chris Tarrant’s retirement from the peak time slot later this year.
Mark Jarvis, head of broadcast at Carat, told Media Guardian: "In London Capital is suffering in the face of increased competition. There are 26 commercial channels and Capital is easily the biggest and easy to hit. Their audience has been suffering and the last three Rajars have shown drops in audience. Consumers are looking increasingly for diversity. And you can draw an analogy with ITV - being all things to all people is very hard to maintain and it's difficult for Capital to hold on to the mass audience they've got. But it's a really tough call because if you believe in customer segmentation you'd have to say Capital is never going to do it."
Howard Bareham, head of radio at MindShare, added: "They were all things to all people and that's why they have lost audience - because they weren't doing any of it particularly well. That's why Kiss, Heart and Jazz - stations targeted at a particular group - stole audience from Capital." While welcoming genre shows that targeted specific parts of their audience at specific times he added: "If you like rock, why tune in to Capital's rock show when you can listen to Virgin all day long?".
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DION’S HUSBAND COMPLETELY CLEARED OF RAPE ALLEGATIONS
Police in Las Vegas have completely cleared Celine Dion's manager husband Rene Angelil of any wrongdoing after rape allegations were made against him. As reported on Monday police suspected the allegations by a California woman against Angelil were a case of extortion. Yesterday Angelil received notification from the Las Vegas police that their “sexual assault detail has completed its investigation and no charges will be submitted - this case is closed." It us unclear if the woman who made the allegations will now be charged with extortion against the star and her husband.
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JAY Z WANTS TO QUIT MUSIC FOR FILM
Jay-Z has said his next album - ‘The Black Album’ - will be his last, he is planning on quitting music in favour of acting.
Talking to the NME he said: "My plan is to make the next album, 'The Black Album', my last. There comes a time when you've got to go and challenge yourself with other areas, you know what I'm saying? Take myself out of my comfort zone. Take the safety blanket off. I'll make 'The Black Album' and release a book with it at the same time. It'll be autobiographical. I'll be working on writing it. Writing's tough, though. I've done basically everything, and it's time to take on new and different channels. I feel that I'm at that point in my career. A feature length film would be cool. I haven't seen ‘8 Mile’ yet. Maybe not the same storyline but maybe something. It's a natural evolution for artists. I've done pretty much everything in hip hop, you know what I'm saying?"
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CHRISTINA ON HER ABUSIVE FATHER
Christina Aguilera has told US Weekly magazine that she still suffers panic attacks after being beaten by her father when she was a child. She says US Army sergeant Fausto Aguilera put her entire family, and especially her mother, through mental hell.
Her mother Shelly Kearns, who left her husband when Christina was five, confirmed that domestic violence had been a regular occurrence at that time, adding that she was so terrified she once slept with the anti-attack spray Mace under her pillow.
Talking about a recent panic attack Christina continued: "I ran out of the house and kept running down the street, kind of shivering. I didn't want anybody to find me or see me."
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LIMP BIZKIT SNIPPETS TO GO ONLINE
Fred Durst has told fans he will be making snippets of new Limp Bizkit material available via their website – plus he will post the lyrics to first single ‘Crack Addict’ so fans can record their own versions prior to release.
Writing on his website Durst said: "I'm gonna start leaking out sound bits real shortly here. Little pieces of our new songs for you to nibble on. I've only got two more songs to put the vocals on so it's getting close to being finished. Some days emotions were pouring out of me and some days nothing at all. I had to be patient and let it be natural and not forced. That's the problem with more than a few bands out there today. Too many groups are trying too hard to be what they wanna be instead of just being what and who they really are. At least they're making an effort, I guess."
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BILLBOARD PARTNER UP FOR NEW BUZZ CHART
US industry magazine and chart company Billboard is entering a deal with research firm PromoSquad which will see the company publish a new consumer voted buzz chart in their Airplay Monitor publication – which they hope will predict the potential commercial success of forthcoming releases. Promosquad are recruiting a panel of consumers who listen to and rate new music in return for entering exclusive competitions and receiving music related merchandise.
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SKINT VIDEO SHOW
Skint Records will be touring arthouse cinemas next month with a collection of music videos from their 'We are Skint' DVD collection. The labels founder Damian Harris (better known by his performing name of Midfield General) will supply a light-hearted commentary and run a Q & A session on the stories behind their vids.
Dates confirmed:
15 Feb: Edinburgh Filmhouse
16 Feb: Glasgow, GFT
19 Feb: Bristol, Watershed
21 Feb: London, Curzon Soho
22 Feb: Manchester, Cornerhouse
23 Feb: Belfast, Empire Music Hall
More info at: www.skint.net
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BBC – TRIPLE CRITICISM FOR DIGITAL OUTPUT
The BBC yesterday released information about programming on its new youth channel BBC 3 which finally launches in place of BBC Choice on 9 Feb. Needless to say the station almost immediately received criticism for being too populist and not fulfilling the obligations of public service broadcasting.
Controller Stuart Murphy was on hand to hit back arguing his channel would attract target 25-34-year-old viewers and still comply with the corporation's public service duties. "Our audience are not 'yoof'. They are intelligent, young adults looking for intellient young programmes which don't patronise them." He was confident his channel would achieve this.
Reaction to BBC 3’s launch programming was just one of the rounds of criticism the BBC’s digital operations received yesterday.
Firstly outspoken Labour MP Derek Wyatt called on the government to force the BBC to close down its digital channels in order to drastically cut the licence fee. "Do we continue funding this dinosaur from the licence fee or start to hypothecate a smaller licence that only pays for BBC 2 and Radios 2 and 4? Its empire building will cause, as all empires do, its fall," he wrote in a report produced by the Westminster Media Forum to coincide with the communications bill debate in the House of Lords.
Writing in the same publication Conservative culture spokesman John Whittingdale added: "the BBC has launched a plethora of new TV channels, radio stations and other activities - many seem directly targeted at existing commercial products and have given rise to serious criticisms that it is using its name and its products to compete unfairly.”
And if all that wasn’t enough the BBC faced criticism from the advertising standards authority who said a BBC ad that said their eight digital channels could now be accessed for free via Freeview was misleading because it didn’t mentioned a £100 set top box was required. While a formal complaint is unlikely to be made it may well make the Beeb reconsider how it refers to the Freeview service in which it has a major share.
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REVIEW: One Minute Silence – Revolution (V2/Taste)
Good lord, this single sucks. Although some of the guitar riffs are okay, the music is neither ‘atmospheric’ nor ‘gloomy’, just contrived and turgid. And what the hell are those vocals? The man sings like a bank manager, and drivels on about Huxley’s theories of freedom or somesuch low-grade philosophy. If you like your unimaginative rock with a very large snakebite and black, you are both suited to ‘Revolution’ and an idiot. This is faux-political student boredom at its very, very worst. Revolting. DR
Release date: 27 Jan
Press contact: [CP, CR] Renegade [RP, NP] Hall or Nothing [RR, NR] V2 IH
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TIMBERLAKE TO BACK THE LIPS ON TOTP
The Flaming Lips’ Wayne Coyne yesterday asked Justin Timberlake to play bass for him on Top of the Pops. Coyne and Timberlake were both set to appear on the show, and when the Flaming Lips man bumped into the Nsync star at Radio 1 he suggested the collaboration.
"We're doing 'Top of the Pops', and he's doing 'Top of the Pops', and I'm going to go downstairs and ask him right now if he would like to play bass with on our Yoshimi song.” Wayne explained. “Maybe he'll say to me 'well yeah Wayne, if you'll dance'. And you know, I can't dance, but I would say 'yes', and he'll probably say 'well I don't play bass' and I'll say 'well all the better - I help you and you help me and we'll make a time of it'."
Word is Justin took up the offer – though not being around TV Centre for the show’s recording last night we’re going to have to wait until tonight to see if the collaboration made it into the show.
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GLASGOW CHARITY AUCTION OFF BEE GEE GUITAR
The Ronald McDonald House in Glasgow, which puts up parents of children receiving treatment at the city’s Yorkhill Hospital, should raise considerable funds next month when they auction off a guitar autographed by the Bee Gees days before Maurice Gibb died. The six-string Samick acoustic guitar was given by the band to close friend Sue Findlay, who lives in Linlithgow, West Lothian, who is donating it to the charity auction.
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ITV TO SCREEN ICY DJ FEST
ITV have announced they will be broadcasting six programmes from the Snowbombing festival which takes place in Villars, Switzerland between 29 Mar and 4 Apr. Now in its third year Snowbombing combines snowboarding contests in the day with top DJ sets at night time. 808 State have just been added to the line up alongside Mr Scruff, Deadly Avenger, Justin Robertson, Erol Alkan and So Solid Crew. The ITV programmes will combine both the snowboarding and the music, and will air during the week of the festival itself. There’s more info about the event at www.snowbombing.com
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MAD POP STORY OF THE WEEK
Mad pop story of the week – a member of the current incarnation of Slade has called off marrying Rose West just days after it was announced he would wed the convicted serial killer. Dave Glover, who joined Slade in 2000, has been exchanging letters with West for about a year and earlier this week the couple announced their engagement. But yesterday West’s solicitor Leo Goatley said his client wanted to give "this young man his life back", saying West had added: "I want you to tell the press that the relationship is at an end".
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Answer to Thursday's pop quiz:
Two songs, two artists – same song title – which two artists have released tracks called ‘Who’s That Girl’?
Madonna in 1987 of course, and the Flying Pickets in 1984.