Kings hits number One on our IMNZ Airplay and Singles charts, and The Black Seeds hold the top Album spot again this week. Plenty of news this week from around the world, so get stuck in. Happy Friday everyone!
Welcoming New IMNZ Members
Lazy Fifty
Formed in late 2016 Lazy Fifty set about writing songs. Songs with a groove. Sometimes slow and haunting but often fast and free.
Lazy Fifty showcase musical flair and fluency with frequent improvisations making each show truly unique! Website
INTERNATIONAL AND INDUSTRY NEWS
APRA AMCOS Announces New CEO Dean Ormston The Industry Observer reports: Following Brett Cottle’s announcement that he would step down in June 2018, the APRA AMCOS CEO has named his replacement.
International recruiting firm Odgers Berndtson were tasked with the search for a new CEO, but the perfect candidate was right under their nose, APRA AMCOS Head of Member Services, Dean Ormston.
Dean currently heads APRA AMCOS’ Member Services division and has over 20 years’ experience with the organisation in both member services and licensing areas. He holds a Bachelor of Education in Music, a post-graduate qualification in marketing and is a graduate of the High Potentials Leadership program at Harvard University.
APRA’s Chair, Jenny Morris, said: “The APRA Board is thrilled to announce Dean’s appointment to this crucial role. Dean has for many years been a brilliant and highly respected member of APRA’s senior management team. We have no doubt that Dean will bring a fresh and innovative approach to leadership, while building on, and safeguarding, the strengths and traditions of the organisation.”
Outgoing CEO Brett Cottle noted that “the Board could not have chosen a better or more qualified leader for the organisation. Apart from being tremendously capable, hard-working and dedicated, Dean is a fantastic person. He will provide great vision and inspiration for the extremely talented workforce we have at APRA AMCOS, and most of all place the members’ needs first and foremost in all circumstances.”
Cottle exits the role next year after 27 years leading the organisation.
APRA AMCOS recently announced a banner year of growth, with streaming proving to be the driving force behind the industry’s success. The total amount of royalties paid to songwriters, publishers, and affiliated societies equaled $335.9m, showing a 17.7% year on year growth.
The next highest area was that of streaming royalties, at $62.2m, which saw an unprecedented 127% year on year growth.
Girls Rock! Camp Is Coming To New Zealand!
Feminist music programme Girls Rock! Camp Aotearoa is coming to New Zealand for the first time in 2018. Launching at MAINZ in Auckland from 15-19 January 2018, Girls Rock! Camp is a week-long holiday programme for young women*, where music is the medium to build confidence, empowerment and foster social change.
Up to 40 campers between the ages of 12-17 years will form bands, learn instruments, attend workshops and write an original song to be performed at a concert for friends and family at the end of the week.
The kaupapa of Girls Rock! Camp Aotearoa is to create the world we want to live in – a more equal and inspiring place. That’s why they have launched a crowd-funding campaign! Check out the video here to learn more.
Girls Rock! Camp Aotearoa are a group of feminist musicians from bands like Street Chant, The Beths, Wax Chattels and more, alongside music lovers with years of music industry experience. They are committed to guiding the advancement and empowerment of young women- but they need the support of the public!
They have received generous funding from APRA, Recorded Music New Zealand, the NZ Music Commission and MAINZ,but they need you too.
Their goal is to hold a professional and affordable programme, so they have launched a crowd-funding campaign via Boosted to raise our funding goal of $7000.
Donations will go toward crucial costs such as equipment hire and tutor fees, helping to put on the best quality camp possible and keep the programme accessible for all. They want to provide free scholarship placements for families that need it, and the more money they raise, the more scholarships they can offer.
Please head to the Boosted page and donate today. Your generosity will help provide young women, trans and gender nonconforming youth with the chance to create, learn and grow, and make some noise!
To read more, or to apply to be a camper or mentor, head to our website www.girlsrockcamp.co.nz.
Music Streaming Service Arena Pays Royalties In Bitcoin To Eliminate Industry Black Box News.bitcoin reports: Arena Music attempts to right the fallen music industry. As a loss leader streaming service pointing users to artist merchandise, it is also taking the radical step of paying royalties in bitcoin.
Phoenix, Arizona streaming service Arena Music announced it would pay royalties in bitcoin. The independent site boasts a wide variety of musical content, including do-it-yourself punk bands. It uses the loss leader model, effectively streaming an artist’s music for free while linking fans to exclusive merchandise offers. Pay for the shirt, basically, get the music gratis. Arena Music uses its model as a brand identifier, often in moral terms, as it evangelizes taking care of artists and customers.
All the advantages of bitcoin’s peer-to-peer infrastructure make it ripe to help take the sagging music industry out of financial purgatory. Cumbersome contracts filled with legalease can be muted. Notorious label accounting tricks become transparent. And, for the first time in the industry’s history, artist royalties might actually appreciate in value — all without a central authority’s permission.
Now that’s punk rock.
CEO and Founder Damon Evans (DE) is one driven dude. He’s on a crusade to make for-profit music great again. Only this time, his vision includes the bands and artists too. News.Bitcoin.com (BN) snagged a few minutes with Mr. Evans to catch-up readers on Arena Music’s nearly year-old experiment in bitcoin.
BN: What made Arena Music decide to pay royalties in bitcoin?
DE: More and more, content and label owners are understanding that bitcoin forces a level of transparency and fairness in reporting and payouts for each person who has contributed to a specific work. That is lacking from all paid subscription music streaming services in particular.
BN: How is working with bitcoin going?
DE: While our international clients are experienced with bitcoin, US clients are just starting to understand what it is and how it works. We believe that by being the only commercial streaming service allowed to offer payout in bitcoin (wholly because Arena Music is the last and only commercial streaming service not financed by or partnered with the major labels), Arena will truly be able to define itself as the industry alternative for independent artists. We intend to make bitcoin a major part of our artist offering.
BN: Have any bands balked at bitcoin payment?
DE: No one has balked, especially when we are able to explain the benefits that come with the cryptocurrency. There is still some hesitation from US based artists to fully trust in receiving 100% of their royalties through bitcoin, but more and more, artists are open to receiving a percentage of their payments in the currency. We explain taking payment in bitcoin essentially annihilates the “black box” accounting subscription services major labels rely on to leverage maximum profits between stream payouts and paying subscribers. This detail also explains why the world’s most known subscription services will never be allowed to offer payouts in bitcoin. It essentially removes the ability to fully control the music industry from those who have historically been able to keep the system broken.
BN: Is the Phoenix area/scene comfortable with bitcoin?
DE: Absolutely! We are seeing more and more interest in artists wanting to understand how it works which will ultimately translate into adoption. The market tests we’ve done in Atlanta have also been well received. Currently, 30% of our artist clients have, or are, accepting payments through bitcoin and we expect that number to grow the more we market and promote the option. Bitcoin will be prominently featured in the crowdfunding campaign Arena Music is launching through Wefunder.com next month.
New Proposals Under Consideration To Inject Life Back Into Sydney After Dark The Music Network reports: The City of Sydney is set to reform outdated local planning laws in a bid to inject new life into the city’s beleaguered late night economy. A new round of proposals sees the City of Sydney set out to make it easier for small businesses to trade late, and encourage more small-scale cultural events and activities across the city. There’s good news for existing entertainment venues too, with the ‘agent of change’ principle to be applied for the first time when managing noise impacts.
Under this system, new residential developments near venues would need to be designed and built to ensure residents are not impacted by the venue’s noise. Conversely, new entertainment venues would be required to protect existing residential properties from any noise it will make.
Lord Mayor Clover Moore said that although the City had started this work to encourage a more diverse nightlife before the impact of the NSW Government’s lockout laws, it was even more important now. “Unfortunately, the lockouts have had a serious impact on Sydney’s cultural life, businesses and our reputation overseas – and while areas like Kings Cross are safer, we know the balance isn’t right yet in terms of Sydney’s nightlife,” she said. “We also made a commitment to review the red tape that we are responsible for that impacts the way our city operates after hours.”
The City of Sydney’s night-time economy is estimated to produce $3.64 billion in revenue per year, involving more than 4,600 businesses and employing over 32,000 people.
Sweden To Hose The World’s largest Women-Only Festival The Industry Observer reports: Following a spate of sexual assaults at Swedish festivals so grim and numerous, the attacks made headlines around the globe, one pertinacious Swede has set in motion plans for a women-only festival.
The aptly-titled Statement Festival is the brainchild of comedienne Emma Knyckare, who launched a Kickstarter with a clear mission statement, “At music festivals, everyone should feel safe.”
With a modest target of 500,000 Swedish Kroner, or about A$80,000, it’s been easily reached, the Festival is now pencilled in for the summer of 2018. There’s one hitch (and it’s a big one): only cis women, trans women and those who identify as non-binary are invited. If you’re a guy, tough luck.
Statement Festival was kicked into action after a disturbing string of assaults and rapes were reported at some of the county’s most popular festivals, such as Bravalla and Putte I Parken. Organisers of Bravalla, the country’s Sweden’s biggest music festival, axed the 2018 event after 27 sexual assaults were reporting from its 2017 event. Mumford & Sons headlined the fest in Norrköping in 2016 but vowed never to return following five rapes and, as the band pointed out at the time, a “disgustingly high rate of reported sexual violence.”
It’s no laughing matter, says Knyckare of Statement, which will be the biggest of its kind. “Help us to create a safe space for the people who want to attend a festival without feeling scared for their personal safety,” she explains on the Kickstarter post.
Just months earlier, professionals from across the Swedish industry banded together for The Equalizer Project, which hopes to eliminate the gender gap in the music biz, while promoting tolerance and equal opportunities for all creators.
Spotify Launches Spotify For Artists App Venture Beat reports: Spotify has launched a mobile app specifically to help artists, their managers, and members of their entourage manage the artist’s presence on the music-streaming service.
Spotify for Artists launches today on iOS only, with an Android incarnation following shortly.
By way of a quick recap, Spotify for Artists launched back in April as a rebrand of the company’s existing Fan Insights initiative, which was introduced in 2015. Notably, Spotify for Artists ushered in a bunch of new controls that allowed artists to not only garner access to data, but to specifically manage their presence on Spotify.
Through the app, artists can update their public profile — including biography, picks, and playlists — from their phones. They can also view real-time data on the number of listens their new music racks up after it’s released, as well as demographic information that breaks down who is listening to their tunes.
International Indie Distributor Names Colin Daniels For Global Managing Role The Music Australia reports: One of the world’s leading indie music companies [PIAS] has today announced that current CEO of Inertia Music, Colin Daniels, will be taking on the expanded role of Regional Managing Director for North America, Australia and Asia.
Daniels has previously worked in senior management roles at both the distribution and record company arm of Mushroom, where he helped set up Mushroom Records UK, before joining EMI Records in Australia and Europe as A&R Director.
Daniels has also sat on the board of global rights agency, Merlin for the past six years.
In the expanded role, Daniels will split his time between the US and Australia, where he will focus on growing the [PIAS] North America operations and emerging music markets in Asia.
The appointment follows The Music‘s exclusive announcement in September that Inertia have undergone a complete restructure of its operations.
Daniels recently joined us in New Zealand as a keynote speaker for Going Global Music Summit 2016 – congratulations Colin, from Independent Music NZ!
Facebook To Launch VR Venues App Next Year Ubergizmo reports: By now Facebook’s plans and interest in virtual reality (VR) is pretty well-known, what with them acquiring Oculus and launching support for 360-degree photo and video uploads. In fact just recently Facebook launched a new Oculus Go standalone mobile VR headset, but it seems that the company’s VR efforts don’t just stop there.
Announced at the same event, Facebook’s CEO Mark Zuckerberg revealed that in 2018, the company plans on launching a VR “Venues” app. This is a social app of sorts where users will be able to “attend” live concerts and events virtually with other friends. Given that VR can feel a bit lonely due to your eyes and ears kind of isolating you from the real world, creating an app like Venues could help with that.
However we should point out that the concept behind Venues isn’t exactly new. For example we’ve seen how companies such as Samsung have broadcasted their product launches live in VR to allow multiple people around the world to tune in at the same time. We’ve also seen similar concepts where there is a virtual cinema where friends can meet up in a virtual space to enjoy a movie together.
That being said given Facebook’s strength lies in the number of users it has, we suppose it does make it easier for users to connect. Either way we’ll have to wait until next year to find out more.
NEW RELEASES
Today Estère releases her coveted new mini album My Design, out digitally today via DRM NZ. The new six-track offering is part one in a prolific two-part album My Design, On Others’ Lives, due for release in March 2018. My Design is a colourful patchwork of thoughts, feelings and stories, featuring the hypnotic ballad of gamechanger and Bordello resident, Magdelaine Lavirgin (‘Ambition’), the blue screen war of ‘Pro Bono Techno Zone’ and the conceptualisation of ‘control’ in her latest single ‘Control Freak’.
Breaking conventional barriers is a pivotal element in Estère’s two-part, sophomore album My Design, On Other’s Lives. She didn’t want anyone else to record or produce it and she didn’t want to write songs about love (except to her Grandmother).
Recorded at her home studio in a suburban 40’s Wellington villa, Estère’s production paints a canvas of unique juxtaposition. Citing the meaty side of electronic music with succulent bass and weighty drums then contrasting it with warm acoustic textures paired with the ethereal side of pop/jazz melodies, it’s clear why Estère stands apart in her own genre, Electric Blue Witch-Hop.
Yumi Zouma Release New Album ‘Willowbank’
Just over a year after releasing their lauded debut LP, Yoncalla, Yumi Zouma return with Willowbank, the band’s sophomore album.
For the making of Willowbank, Yumi Zouma’s members — Charlie Ryder, Josh Burgess, Christie Simpson and Sam Perry — settled on a plan to reunite for the New Zealand summer. To complete what would become their first significant work written and recorded entirely in their home country, they rented a studio in Christchurch’s semi-demolished CBD, on one of the few remaining blocks that still characterizes the city from before it was destroyed by a series of earthquakes. “It was as though there was a brief pause in all of our lives and we finally felt like a band from New Zealand,” said Burgess. “We were on home turf and creating from a place that felt fundamentally natural.”
When you know it’s there, the feeling of rootedness is undeniable on Willowbank. Being connected to their origins on the bottom of the earth allowed the band’s members to craft another essential chapter in the Yumi Zouma storybook.
Delaney Davidson Announces Extensive New Zealand Tour
Lyttelton singer-songwriter Delaney Davidson is saddling up and taking his rustic tunes on the road for a comprehensive nationwide tour in November. Beloved for his distinctive croon and woeful tales exploring the darker sides of life, he’s released over a dozen records and had a huge influence on the popular Lyttelton sound, inspiring and collaborating with local legends Marlon Williams and Tami Neilson. Davidson’s live show is a real crowd pleaser, check out the tour details below and catch him in your home town: Delaney Davidson – Magic Lightbox Tour
Being. Announces Debut Single Release Show ‘High In Mind’
Auckland based indie-pop artist, Being. will release her debut single ‘High in Mind’ at Golden Dawn on October 19.
Jasmine Balmer, the voice and Creative Director behind Being. is known for her mesmerising melancholic monologues mixed with moments of hypnotic poetry. She has a special ability to capture the attention of an audience, bringing a sense of togetherness.
‘High in Mind’ is described by Balmer as, “A smack in the face of colour and elation, cosmic synths and surf’d out guitars. It’s a zest-drenched spirited acceptance of the awkward that comes with growing into ‘self’.”
To coincide with the launch of the single, Being. will release her first zine; a collection of poems featuring a collaboration with artist Huia. October is a busy month for the artist who joins NZ Musician’s October showcase line-up. They describe her as, ” A hypnotising performer who is garnering attention for her warm vocals, scatterings of spoken word, and superb performances.”
All this before Being. heads to Mexico for a short tour there.
BEING. SINGLE RELEASE
Date: 19 th October
Venue: Golden Dawn: Tavern of Power, 134 Ponsonby Road, Auckland
Doors: 8pm
