FEBRUARY/MARCH 2006

© Copyright 2006 by SLI - SongLink International
Editor & Publisher: David Stark
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The Kaiser Chiefs were the big winners with three gongs at the Brit Awards 2006, held February 15th at London's Earls Court. The full list of winners is as follows:
British male solo artist: James Blunt
British female solo artist: KT Tunstall
British group: Kaiser Chiefs
British album: Coldplay, X&Y
British single: Coldplay, Speed of Sound
British breakthrough act: Arctic Monkeys
British urban act: Lemar
British rock act: Kaiser Chiefs
British live act: Kaiser Chiefs
Pop act: James Blunt
International male solo artist: Kanye West
International female solo artist: Madonna
International group: Green Day
International album: Green Day, American Idiot
International breakthrough act: Jack Johnson
Outstanding contribution to music: Paul Weller

U2 won all five categories in which they were nominated at the 48th Grammy Awards, including Album of the Year for How To Dismantle An Atomic Bomb, Song of the Year for Sometimes You Can't Make It on Your Own, which also won best rock performance by a duo group or vocal; Best Rock Song for City Of Blinding Lights; and Best Rock Album. Mariah Carey, Alison Krauss, John Legend and Kanye West all won three awards apiece. Boulevard Of Broken Dreams by Green Day was named Record of the Year, while Believe (from Polar Express) by Glenn Ballard and Alan Silvestri, sung by Josh Groban, was named Best Song written for Film or TV.

Rolf Schmidt-Holtz has been promoted to CEO of Sony BMG Music Entertainment, replacing Andrew Lack, who swaps roles with Schmidt Holz to take on his former role as chairman of the board. The UK's Tim Bowen is now set to become chief operating officer. In his new role, Schmidt-Holtz will have overall management responsibility for the company, while Lack will 'lead the company's public policy and industry initiatives, and assume operating responsibility and oversight for the theatrical film business of Sony BMG. Both will be based in New York.

At Sony BMG UK, former EMI Publishing A&R head Mike Smith has been appointed as MD of Columbia Labels Group, while artist manager Craig Logan, who has worked with such names as Pink and Tina Turner, becomes MD of RCA Labels Group, both reporting to Sony BMG music division president Ged Doherty.

Leap Music has promoted Ayla Master to the newly created post of director of music services. She also joins the company boards of both Leap Music and its subsidiary Leap Masters, where she will play a leading role in strategy development. Leap Music was launched in April 2003 as a joint venture between ex-Zomba publisher Richard Kirstein and advertising agency Bartle Bogle Hegarty (BBH).

European authors' rights organisation Cisac has responded to the EC 's comments on the collective management of copyrights, saying that the Competition Directorate of the EC has chosen to adopt a "narrow and formalistic" approach to the issue of collective management of copyright in Europe and one that could be detrimental to cultural diversity. Cisac adds that it will continue to discuss territoriality with the EC with a view to developing the best licensing solutions, as long as any future scheme maintains a balance between the interest of copyright users, authors and the public as well as ensuring the value of creators' rights is upheld.

BBC Radio coverage of South By Southwest will include a Radio Two artist showcase featuring Morrissey, Goldfrapp, The Zutons, Corinne Bailey Rae and Richard Hawley. Presented in partnership with the UK at SXSW group, comprising AIM, the BPI, British Underground, MMF, PPL and UK Trade and Investment. Radio One's SXSW artist showcase features Clap Your Hands Say Yeah, Guillemots, Boy Kill Boy, Dirty Pretty Things and a special guest. A BBC 6Music UK showcase will feature KT Tunstall, Editors, Jim Noir, The Kooks, The Feeling and Brakes. SXSW takes place in Austin, Texas from March 15-18th.

Morrissey will be interviewed by Rolling Stone's David Fricke on Thursday, March 16 at SXSW followed by a performance at Austin Music Hall presented by the BBC Radio. This will be a rare chance to hear him discuss his work and his influences. This will be one of the first performances in support of his forthcoming album Ringleader of the Tormentors which will be released on April 4 on Attack/Sanctuary, produced in Rome by Tony Visconti (David Bowie/T Rex)

A charity auction is to offer bidders the opportunity to feature in recreations of iconic Rolling Stones and Bob Dylan album covers shot by the original photographers. Gered Mankowitz who photographed the Stones' Between the Button, and and Don Hunstein (Dylan's Freewheelin'), have offered their services Cancer Research. The charity aims to raise £100,000 from the music, art and photography exhibition and auction which takes place on February 27 at Abbey Road Studios.

Tom Jones and Johnny Dankworth were knighted in the New Year Honours list. A CBE went to singer Karen Matheson of Capercaillie, while MBEs went to Eddi Reader and Radio Two DJ Johnnie Walker.

Paul McCartney attended the 10th anniversary of LIPA, the Liverpool Institute of Performing Arts, which he co-founded with principal and chief executive Mark Featherstone-Witty. A gala peformance by 250 past and present students was the highlight of the celebrations on January 30th, while a new book, 'LIPA In Pictures - The First Ten Years', by Featherstone-Witty, has just been published. Visit www.lipa.ac.uk.

The British Academy of Composers & Songwriters have strengthened relations with other European composer organisations by joining with Spanish, German, French, Swiss and Scandinavian composer groups to set up a European audio visual composers group. The wider ambition is that this should form one of the three constituent parts of a Europe wide multi-genre composer's network based on the Academy model.

Play It Again Sam UK and Mark Jones have announced the launch of a dynamic new joint venture record label, PIAS / Wall of Sound. The new company will assume responsibility for all PIAS artists in the UK including Mogwai, Amp Fiddler, 2 Many DJs/Soulwax, Vitalic, Tiga, Little Barrie and Iain Archer. PIAS / Wall of Sound will also assume responsibility for Royksopp for the UK and Infadels, previously looked after by Wall of Sound Recordings (WOS). Negotiations are in progress with regard to other WOS acts including Diefenbach, The Girls and Blak Twang. Mark Jones becomes MD working closely with Nick Hartley - CEO of PIAS UK, and Kenny Gates, co-president of the PIAS Group.

Ministry of Sound has acquired the Hed Kandi label along with the Enterprise Records division of Smooth FM (formerly Jazz FM) from Guardian Media Group Radio Holdings for an undisclosed sum. The acquisition includes all associated labels of the GMG Radio Records division including One Two Records. Lohan Presencer, MD of Ministry of Sound Recordings said, "We are very excited at the prospect of bringing our two businesses together. Hed Kandi is a brilliant brand with great integrity, built very skillfully by the team over many years."

Concord Music Group and Universal Music Group, have forged an international distribution and licensing agreement. The pact will lead to recordings by such diverse artists as John Fogerty, Peter Cincotti, Sergio Mendes, Isaac Hayes, Chick Corea, and Curtis Stigers being marketed and distributed by Universal Music Group International. The first albums for release under the agreement include The Long Road Home, the ultimate John Fogerty/Creedence Clearwater Revival collection, and Isaac Hayes' Can You Dig It? It also covers Concord's vast catalogue of recordings from such labels as Fantasy, Prestige, Riverside, Specialty, Milestone, and Stax.

ASCAP has entered into a licensing arrangement for royalty collection and distribution to writers and publishers whose music will be available via LTDnetwork's Qtrax P2P network. Qtrax is an ad-supported legal P2P service that marries the power of Peer-2-Peer and quality Internet advertising to provide improved value to the consumer.