Zack O'Malley Greenburg's Blog, page 47

From Katy Perry to Jackie Chan: My Top Stories Of 2015

Writing the cover story on Katy Perry–the world’s highest-paid musician of the past year–was one of my highlights of 2015. (Photo by Jamel Toppin for Forbes).

As the clock runs out on each year,we in the Mainstream Media tend to get nostalgic–or lazy–and our coverage takes on a retrospective tone. In my case, that involves offering thoughts on the music industry’s big winners, predicting what will happen in 2016andindulging myself–and hopefully you, too–with some of my own journalistic highli...

Four Fearless Music Business Predictions For 2016

Been Around The World: Swift’s1989 Tour has taken her to most of the continents on the planet–and will boost her into a new stratosphere of earnings. (Photo by Graham Denholm/Getty Images).

Around this time last year, I pulled out my crystal ball and made four music business prognostications for 2015–and though my foresight wasn’t quite as sharp as hindsight, it wasn’t too shabby.

I predicted that Ed Sheeran would become the world’s top male pop star (he went on to bank $57.5 million, trailin...

Music Winners 2015: Taylor Swift, Adele, Kendrick Lamar, Katy Perry

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DJ Khaled famously released a song called “All I Do Is Win.” Perhaps it’s time for a Taylor Swift remix: for the second year in a row, she’s one of our year-end music business winners.

After riding the success of1989 to all sorts of honors–including the title of top-selling album of 2014, moving over 3.6 million units–Swift has taken her act on the road. Her 1989 World Tour is selling out stadiums worldwide, grossing over $4 million per night. Despite the fa...

Michael Jackson’s ‘Thriller’ Just Became The First 30x Platinum Album

Thriller’s Thriller: Michael Jackson’s opus has broken another record (Photo courtesy of RIAA).

The King of Pop has added another jewel to his crown: today the RIAA certifiedThrilleras the first 30x-multiplatinum album, reaffirming its status as the bestselling album of all time.

“RIAA has awarded Gold & Platinum records on behalf of the music business for nearly 60 years, but this is the first time an artist has crossed the 30X multi-Platinum plateau,” said RIAA chief Cary Sherman in a state...

How I Blew My Chance To Play Anakin Skywalker In Star Wars

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When I was five years old, I played the title role in a film calledLorenzo’s Oil. Acting alongside Nick Nolte and Susan Sarandon–as well as helping to tell the remarkable story of the Odone family–is an experience I’m glad, and proud, to have had.

It’s also the sort of thing that feels a lot better in hindsight. Five-year-old me didn’t quite have along-term view on the situation, and was mostly frustrated with the long days on set and in the makeup...

How Wu-Tang’s Album Was Sold To ‘Most Hated Man In America’ Martin Shkreli

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The saga of the Wu-Tang Clan’s secret albumseems to have finally reached its conclusion: the group has reportedly soldOnce Upon A Time In Shaolinto 32-year-old pharmaceutical mogul Martin Shkreli for $2 million.

Today’s news is the epilogue to a story that FORBES broke nearly two years ago, reporting the existence of a clandestine double-album stashed away in the shadow of Morocco’s Atlas Mountains. Soon after, we traveled to Marrakech to visit producer Cilv...

Paper Lions: Why Hyperlocal Newsweeklies Are Making A Quiet Comeback

The Fastest Name In News: Bill Moss’Hendersonville Lightning has a circulation of 2,000–and double-digit margins. (Photo: Evan Kafka for Forbes).

On the corner of Oakland and Asheville in Hendersonville, N.C.–behind a used-car dealership where banged-up late-model sedans sport “AS IS” stickers and sub-$4,000 price tags–sits an 812-square-foot trailer that houses what just might be the future of local print journalism.

The Trailer of Truth, as it’s known in these parts, is world headquarters o...

Star Wars Heroes Rarely Become Box Office Jedi Masters

Star Scores: Harrison Ford and Natalie Portman have used Star Wars as a launching pad to blockbuster glory, but that’s about it. (Graphic by Analytics@American & Forbes).

The Force Awakenssold more than $50 million worth of tickets before its Dec. 18 premiere en route to an expected ten-figure tally, but if history is any guide, there’s no guarantee it will transform its two young stars, Daisy Ridley and John Boyega, into box-office Jedi masters.

With the exception of Harrison Ford and Natali...

The World’s Highest-Paid Musicians Of 2015

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Adele’s 25 sold a record-smashing 3.38 million copies the week after its November 20th release—but even if her launch had fallen within our scoring period, she wouldn’t have been among music’stop earners. Touring isnow the industry’s main moneymaker, and perhaps nobody better exemplifies this that this year’s highest-paid musician in the world: Katy Perry.

The Super Bowl halftime starpulled in $135 million over the past year, making her not only th...

Grammy Nominees 2016: The Full List

Kendrick Lamar performed at the 2014Grammys and even took home two golden gramophones. This year he’s in line for quite a bit more. (Photo by Kevork Djansezian/Getty Images)

Adele may be smashing sales records, but when it comes to Grammy nominations, there’s a new king in the music world: Kendrick Lamar. The California rapper and his album To Pimp A Butterfly paced the field with 11 nominations for this year’s ceremony, the second-highest total for a single night behind Michael Jackson’s 12...