1. DFA Label Documentary Short Celebrating 12th Anniversary Released (Watch)

    May 08, 2013 10:00 AM EDT DFA Records is now on a small screen near you (actually, below). Today, the Red Bull Music Academy released a 12-minute documentary short entitled “Too Old To Be New, Too New To Be Classic: 12 Years of DFA” that examines the history of NYC’s inf ...

  2. Creation Records Founder Alan McGee Starts New Label

    May 08, 2013 6:53 AM EDT Alan McGee, the legendary Scottish entrepreneur who discovered Oasis and founded the celebrated British label Creation Records, is back in the game. McGee has teamed with British independent music firm Cherry Red Records to launch the new label, ...

  3. Glassnote Founder Daniel Glass Feted at Musexpo in L.A.

    May 07, 2013 10:12 PM EDT 1 0 12 0 0 “One of the great minds and great guys in the music business” is how talk show host Jimmy Kimmel introduced Glassnote Entertainment founder and fearless label leader Daniel Glass at the Hollywood Roosevelt on Tuesday morning (May 7). The occasi ...

  4. Independent Study: Sacred Bones Records

    May 07, 2013 10:29 AM EDT Label: Sacred Bones Records Founded: 2007 Location: Greenpoint, Brooklyn Number of Employees: 5 Next Release: Pharmakon, Abandon , May 14 Distributor: Secretly Canadian Twitter: @SacredBones Website: SacredBonesRecords.com "Independent Stud ...

  5. Sean Glass' WIN Re-Examines the Role of the Label for Upcoming Electronic Artists

    May 06, 2013 4:27 PM EDT This story -- on Sean Glass and his WIN Records reboot -- is from the May 11 edition of Billboard and featues a cover package on the passing of the late, great country legend George Jones as well as looks at Anheuser-Busch's massive spendin ...

  6. Bubbling Under: Emblem3 Rises At Radio

    May 03, 2013 11:41 AM EDT Each Friday, Billboard presents "Bubbling Under," a weekly look at new and noteworthy acts making their way toward Billboard chart success. Up this week: Emblem3, Dan Croll, L.E.P. Bogus Boys, Tim Timmons.   Emblem3 Emblem3, which fini ...

  7. How Reggae Meets EDM in Jamaica’s 'Rootstronic' Courtney John Project

    May 02, 2013 3:09 PM EDT On an April afternoon inside the rehearsal room at Kingston’s Big Yard Studios, singer Courtney John is working out the live rendition of his current single “Black Cinderella”, an audacious interpretation of Jamaican singer Errol Dunkley’s 1972 ...

  8. How 20-Year Old Chance The Rapper Has Nearly Every Major Label Chasing Him

    May 01, 2013 1:40 PM EDT 393 448 1 0 In high school, Chance the Rapper was the kid with the backpack full of CDs, hustling in hallways, foisting his latest mixtape on unsuspecting classmates. Now he plays coy in meetings with major labels, biding his time while big numbers and ...

  9. Civil Wars to Release Self-Titled, Post-Breakup Second Album in Late Summer

    May 01, 2013 1:27 PM EDT Columbia Records will release the Civil Wars’ self-titled follow-up to their debut, Barton Hollow , the 2011 album that earned them two Grammys, in late summer.   The Civil Wars, Joy Williams and John Paul White, had finished the album prior to ...

  10. Neutral Milk Hotel Reunites, Announces Tour Dates

    April 29, 2013 7:38 PM EDT Neutral Milk Hotel, the beloved indie rock band that has been on hiatus for a decade and a half, is finally getting back together for a brief tour later this year. The reunited group -- featuring Jeff Mangum, Scott Spillane, Julian Koster and Je ...

  11. Q&A: A2IM President Rich Bengloff Talks Export Mission to Brazil

    April 29, 2013 11:58 AM EDT With an eye toward nurturing new revenue streams and increasing their share of the global music market, representatives from 11 independent record labels headed to beautiful Brazil last week to meet with their South American counterparts. The tr ...

  12. Exclusive: Nettwerk Music Group Raises $10.25 Million

    April 26, 2013 2:01 PM EDT This article first appeared in the May 4, 2013 issue of Billboard magazine, which also features our cover story on Rod Stewart's return to rock, an in-depth look at the 10th anniversary of the iTunes Music Store, our incomparable charts and ...

  13. Alabama Shakes, M83 Lead A2IM’s Libera Awards Nominations

    April 25, 2013 6:51 PM EDT Alabama Shakes, M83 and BOY are among the breakout indie artists of 2012 nominated for this year's Libera Awards . A2IM, the American Association for Independent Music, recently announced the full slate of nominees, which include both artis ...

  14. EMI Music, ARPA Musical, More Take Top Awards at Billboard Bash in Miami

    April 24, 2013 10:18 PM EDT Publishing, imprint and label winners were announced during the Billboard Bash at Cameo Nightclub in Miami on Wednesday evening as part of the Billboard Latin Music Conference & Awards, presented by State Farm in association with Pepsi.   Th ...

  15. ASCAP Expo: Ralph Murphy’s Laws of Songwriting

    April 22, 2013 1:29 PM EDT 2 11 26 0 0 A room full of eager songwriters piled into the Mt. Olympus Ballroom of Hollywood's Lowes Hotel on Friday, all hoping to pick up a few tips and tricks from ASCAP's VP of Membership/International and songwriting veteran, Ralph Murphy ...

  16. Record Store Day 2013: Brooklyn's Black Gold Records; Hoboken's Tunes

    April 20, 2013 4:09 PM EDT 1 6 0 0 Halcyon Days: Williamsburg, Brooklyn's Sound Fix on its final Record Store Day. After nine years in business, the independent music retailer closed its doors for good. (Photo: Reggie Ugwu) Brooklyn's Sound Fix’s Last Day, Smiles Tinged ...

  17. From A Stream to a Torrent: Music Journalism's Elite Talk Discovery in Age of One-Click Availability at EMP Pop Conf.

    April 20, 2013 1:56 PM EDT 1 16 35 1 0 In an industry where “music discovery” has become a buzzword -- companies like Twitter and Beats By Dre have invested in high-profile products designed to help users find the unfound -- is there any real ability to wade through the almost unli ...

  18. Exclusive: Big Frame, YouTube Artist Dave Days Kick Off Original Series

    April 18, 2013 5:11 PM EDT 6 130 29 0 0 Exploring new ways for independent artists to earn money, online talent management firm Big Frame and YouTube artist Dave Days on Thursday launched a new reality video series called "Writing Room." The show pairs 10 up-and-coming Yo ...

  19. Record Store Day: Just How Big Is the Big Vinyl Resurgence?

    April 18, 2013 2:27 PM EDT 12 151 109 5 0 While vinyl's ascension has moved beyond the realm of cool into an important moneymaker for key niches in the U.S. music industry, for all of its growth, the format still remains a small percentage of sales. This article first appeared ...

  20. Record Store Day Q&A With Graham Jones of 'Last Shop Standing'

    April 18, 2013 10:02 AM EDT 3 27 33 0 0 Record Store Day has made “Last Shop Standing” -- a new documentary on U.K. record shops -- the official film of this year’s edition of its annual event. “Last Shop Standing,” released in the U.K. last year and coming out April 20 on DVD, has ...

  21. Tooth & Nail, Solid State Records Sign Distribution Deal With RED

    April 17, 2013 5:48 PM EDT 1 2 9 0 0 Tooth & Nail and its Solid State Records imprint have signed a distribution deal with RED Distribution. The first new release through RED will be the third studio album from The Almost, Fear Inside Our Bones , out June 11 on Tooth & Nail ...

  22. Indie Beat: A2IM Heads to Brazil, Rough Trade Posts 25% Growth, and NXNE Gets a New Director

    April 16, 2013 3:50 PM EDT 24 18 0 0 A2IM Heads South A2IM and representatives from 11 indie labels are headed south of the border this week. VP Records, Dead Oceans, Naxos, Yep Roc and more will join American Association for Independent Music president Rich Bengloff on a mission ...

  23. Indie Beat: Lio Kanine on Ten Years of Kanine Records

    April 15, 2013 4:44 PM EDT 62 17 0 0 Next month, May 10 to be exact, Brooklyn’s Kanine Records will celebrate its tenth birthday. Officially launched by dog-loving husband and wife duo Lio and Kay Kanine (not their real last name) in 2003, the landmark Williamsburg label has sinc ...

  24. Morning Fix: Made in America Lineup Announced; Billboard Expands Streaming Charts; Tim Carr, A&R Exec, RIP

    April 11, 2013 8:30 AM EDT Get the Morning Fix Delivered Directly To Your Inbox HERE . BUDWEISER REVEALS MADE IN AMERICA LINEUP – BEYONCE, NINE INCH NAILS TO HEADLINE Beyonce and Nine Inch Nails top an eclectic lineup for Budweiser's second annual Made In America Fes ...

  25. Margaret Thatcher and the Rise and Fall of the Great British Pop Protest Song

    April 09, 2013 10:54 AM EDT In early 1997, I interviewed the Spice Girls who were already massive in their U.K. homeland but had yet to release their debut single "Wannabe" in America. Amid frequent and voluble declarations of their Girl Power manifesto, Geri Hal ...

  26. SoundScan Q1: Track and Album Sales Down, Digital Album Sales Jump

    April 03, 2013 8:41 PM EDT For the second time since SoundScan started counting downloads in 2003, track sales suffered a sales decline, something that occurred in the first three quarters of 2010. So far this year, track sales are down 1.3% as of March 31, according to N ...

  27. Why We Took the Piracy Debate to a Times Square Billboard: Guest Column by Ghost Beach

    April 02, 2013 8:30 AM EDT The New York-based “tropical grit pop” duo Ghost Beach was recently selected as the latest band to have its music featured in an online commercial for American Eagle Outfitters -- and that deal brought the group the opportunity to also be featur ...

  28. ADA Adds New West, Sumerian Records to Distribution Roster (Exclusive)

    April 02, 2013 8:00 AM EDT 4 31 18 0 0 Alternative Distribution Alliance (ADA), the music distribution arm of Warner Music Group, has lured two new independent labels to its growing stable of distribution clients. Alt-country/Americana label New West Records and hard rock purveyor ...

  29. Business Matters: Reports of the CD's Death Were Greatly Exaggerated

    April 01, 2013 3:18 PM EDT 5 24 28 7 0 Even though CD revenues have fallen sharply over the last ten years, most predictions about the format have been wrong. The CD's decline, while painful to companies, has been far more gradual than precipitous. Over the last four years, CD ...

  30. Charles Caldas, Merlin CEO, Talks Market Complexities, UMG's 'Hubris' (Q&A)

    March 29, 2013 11:01 AM EDT Charles Caldas, CEO of Merlin, the global digital-rights champion for indie labels, received the prestigious IMPALA Outstanding Contribution Award this week, in recognition of his relentless work chasing royalties due to indie companies and arti ...

  31. Paul Williams, Crawdaddy Founder, 'Godfather of Rock Criticism' Dead at 64

    March 28, 2013 3:58 PM EDT 1 596 81 0 0 Paul Williams, the writer and editor who helped create what we now know as rock journalism with Crawdaddy!, a magazine he founded in 1966, died last night at the age of 64 from complications related to a 1995 bike accident. Williams began pub ...

  32. Charles Caldas, CEO of Merlin, Receives IMPALA's ‘Outstanding Contribution’ Award

    March 28, 2013 9:42 AM EDT Charles Caldas, the founder and CEO of the independents’ digital rights agency Merlin, has received the IMPALA outstanding contribution award. The Australian-born, London-based exec established Merlin back in 2007, creating what was described at ...

  33. Business Matters: Streaming, Subscriptions Rising, But Total Recorded-Music Revenues Down 1% in 2012: RIAA Report

    March 26, 2013 6:05 PM EDT 12 0 0 Subscription and streaming services experienced tremendous growth and accounted for 15% of record business revenue in 2012, according to RIAA statistics released Tuesday. That expansion helped digital revenue surge to 59% of total recorded musi ...

  34. SiriusXM Indie Awards: Japandroids, Carly Rae Jepsen, and Metric Win Big During Canadian Music Week

    March 25, 2013 10:32 AM EDT Canada’s SirusXM Indie Awards, held each year in Toronto as part of Canadian Music Week, honoured some rather big names Friday night (March 22) -- for an awards ceremony that strictly honors independent artists -- including Taylor Swift, Carly R ...

  35. Five Questions at Ultra: Carl Craig on Trap Music, Planet E Records

    March 24, 2013 5:02 PM EDT 9 0 0 We caught up with Detroit legend Carl Craig, just before he played The Boiler Room’s party at the Red Bull Guest House during Miami Music Week. The dance veteran, who has never been constricted by genre, is preparing an edition of Ministry Of So ...

  36. Simple Plan, Ralph James, Graham Henderson Among Canadian Music & Broadcast Industry Award Honorees

    March 22, 2013 12:35 PM EDT The Canadian music industry was out full force last night (March 22), jammed into a room at Toronto’s Kool Haus to honor three Hall of Fame inductees, a humanitarian and an assortment of companies and individuals from labels, managers, agents, r ...

  37. Bubbling Under: Frank Turner Turns Heads

    March 22, 2013 11:14 AM EDT Each Friday, Billboard presents "Bubbling Under," a weekly look at new and noteworthy acts making their way toward Billboard chart success. Up this week: Frank Turner, Dustin Tavella, Drake White and Viajero . Frank Turner British rock ...

  38. #Ultragram: Your Photos from Ultra's First Weekend, Miami Music Week -- Keep 'Em Coming!

    March 21, 2013 6:36 PM EDT 2 20 0 0 HEAD HERE TO SEE ALL OUR INSTAGRAM GALLERIES Our new audience-generated Instagram gallery is getting a gang of great photos from Ultra Music Festival -- which resumes this weekend after last weekend's kickoff -- and Miami Music Week, which ...

  39. Bon Jovi, David Bowie Among Six Debuts To Hit Top 10 On Billboard 200

    March 20, 2013 11:37 AM EDT It's the most top 10 debuts appearing on the chart in four months. The last time there were more in a week was the Dec. 1, 2012, chart, when seven albums arrived in the region. That week, One Direction's Take Me Home led the debut pack ...

  40. Q&A: Sean Parker and Shawn Fanning on 'Downloaded,' The Napster Revolution

    March 19, 2013 10:50 AM EDT They were wiry teenagers when they ignited the digital revolution, altering the music landscape forever with a little program called Napster in 1999. Now, 14 years later, Shawn Fanning and Sean Parker are older and wiser, but no less passionate ...

  41. eMusic Merges with E-Book Distributor K-NFB Reading

    March 18, 2013 10:44 PM EDT 1 1 23 0 0 Online music service eMusic merged on Monday with an e-book distributor K-NFB Reading to form the new company Media Arc Inc. Media Arc "will offer a comprehensive source of more than 17 million songs, 40,000 audio books and 600,000 eBooks, ...

  42. Hastings Reports $1.2 Million in Q4 Earnings, Plans to Reduce Music in Stores

    March 18, 2013 7:30 PM EDT Hastings Entertainment cut its red ink in half for the year by posting net income of $1.2 million, or 15 cents per diluted share, on sales of $141.6 million, for the fourth-quarter ended Jan. 31. That performance contrasts with $8.4 million in r ...

  43. The Conan Bump: Quantifying Late Night Talk Show Sales & Social Numbers

    March 18, 2013 3:41 PM EDT This article originally appeared in the March 23rd issue of Billboard Magazine -- subscribe right here ! On the heels of his ratings-topping appearance on NBC’s “Saturday Night Live,” Justin Timberlake chose to extend his run on the late-night T ...

  44. Backbeat: Billboard & BMI's Annual SXSW Brunch Brings Together Movers and Shakers from Across the Biz

    March 18, 2013 12:38 PM EDT Another SXSW, another full lawn at the Four Seasons for Billboard and BMI’s annual Acoustic Brunch Friday, which kept the music and coffee flowing long after the fruit and breakfast burritos ran out. Sponsored by SunTrust and Southwest Airlines, ...

  45. #SXSW Instagr.am: Check Out the Photos You Sent Us!

    March 17, 2013 5:15 AM EDT 2 14 0 0 HEAD HERE TO SEE ALL OUR INSTAGRAM GALLERIES: Our new audience-generated Instagr.am gallery got a bumper crop of photos from #SXSW this year -- check out pics of Scooter Braun, Kendrick Lamar, Dave Grohl, Raekwon, Usher Pharrell, the Flaming Li ...

  46. Couch By Couchwest: An Alternative To SXSW 'Where the Beer Is Cheap and the Only Hipster is You' (Q&A)

    March 16, 2013 1:33 PM EDT 1 0 Too broke, ambivalent, couch-potato-like to make it down to this year’s SXSW? Don’t worry, in this age of niche affinity groups there’s a community of like-minded individuals willing to accept and entertain you without judgment, $500 hotel rooms ...

  47. SXSW: David Lowery and Co. Lash out Against Industry 'Pimps'

    March 16, 2013 11:16 AM EDT 3 336 68 3 0 Passions ran high Friday evening at what was described by its organizers as “an artists’ panel” in the Austin Convention Center for SXSW. The distinction was deliberate -- too many panels and presentations at this conference had failed to rep ...

  48. SXSW Q&A: Merlin CEO Charles Caldas on Distribution, Streaming, BBQ and Music

    March 15, 2013 5:20 PM EDT =A gathering of thousands of musicians is a good place to find the CEO of a global rights agency that represents independent music companies in over 25 countries. Charles Caldas is CEO of Merlin, the nearly five-year-old network that represents ...

  49. Backbeat: Pitchfork, Green Label Sound and Jagjaguwar Bring the Indie Rock to SXSW

    March 15, 2013 12:29 PM EDT On Wednesday, Pitchfork held their unofficial day party and official showcase at 1100 Warehouse, with a line of people waiting to get in longer than FADER Fort's notoriously never-ending one across the street. It was a surprise, then, that ...

  50. Exclusive: Machinedrum Signs to Ninja Tune

    March 15, 2013 9:59 AM EDT Azealia Banks beat maker plans a summer album London-based label Ninja Tune has signed electro/dubstep artist Machinedrum to a four-album deal, with a full-length expected as early as June. The deal was announced at the Ninja Tune SXSW showcase ...

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