February 11, 2019, Issue 639
Curb Takes Taylor’s Lead
When Taylor Swift signed with Universal/Republic in November, she made headlines by negotiating on behalf of other Universal artists as part of her deal. Specifically, she got Universal to agree that if and when they sell their stake of Spotify, the ensuing disbursement to artists would not be applied to un-recouped balances. Facing his own Spotify windfall, Curb/Word Chairman Mike Curb took note but, looking at his company, asked an additional question. “What about the employees?” Back To December: “We were in the middle of a company retreat and had everyone at the Country Music Hall of Fame Theater,” says GM Ryan Dokke. “That morning, Mike pulled me aside, told me what he was Mike Curb planning and said he’d like to tell the employees right then.” The plan, in short, was to pay the artists, then split most of the remainder equally among all the company’s employees. The difference with Universal? Curb already had the cash in hand. “You could feel the electricity in the room as everyone realized they were getting, essentially, another bonus on top of their annual boRyan Dokke nus,” Dokke says. “It came from such a great place as Mike and [wife] Linda were really under no obligation to do that, but how awesome for everyone just before the holidays.” Here’s the background: Each major label received an ownership stake in Spotify more than a decade ago as the upstart streamer negotiated music licenses. With the company’s April IPO, those stakes became fungible. Reportedly, Sony sold its full share and Warner Music Group sold half. Sony distributed its proceeds to artists without applying those funds to un-recouped balances. For independent labels, licensing with Spotify was negotiated by the agency group Merlin, which quickly determined holding its stake in the streamer wasn’t in its charter and sold. “We were (continued on page 7)
Tequiller Whale: Warner Bros./WAR’s Dan + Shay take home their first Grammy for Best Country Duo/Group Performance with “Tequila.” Pictured (l-r) are Warner Music Group CEO/ Recorded Music Max Lousada, Dan Smyers, Shay Mooney and the label’s John Esposito.
Pittman Visits With Beasley
The most recent episode of Beasley CEO Caroline Beasley’s Beyond The Business podcast features iHeartMedia Chairman/CEO Bob Pittman, who discussed his company’s debt turnaround and role as an industry leader. “We were lucky because we have this huge national footprint, which no other broadcast or digital audio company has,” Pittman says. “That allowed us to take a leadership role in building this without being stuck, as I think Caroline Beasley probably the TV business is, where you’ve got
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