Zack O'Malley Greenburg's Blog, page 89

Blavatnik’s Investment In Beats’ Music Service Signals Major Change

Len Blavatnik: A billionaire bets on streaming.

Beats Electronics, purveyor of the wildly successful Beats By Dr. Dre headphones, announced late last night that billionaire Len Blavatnik and a consortium of investors will pour $60 million into Daisy, the company’s nascent music streaming service.

Other investors include fellow billionaires Marc Rowan, cofounder of Apollo Global Management; James Packer, an Australian entertainment tycoon; and Lee M. Bass, a Texas oil man. Daisy, now set for a l...

Tupac Has New Management, But Don’t Expect A Hologram Tour

Tupac's Hologram: Probably not coming to an arena near you.

Tupac Shakur is being resurrected—again. But not in the way you might think.

Last month Shakur’s mother, Afeni, reached an agreement to have Jeff Jampol’s Jampol Artist Management oversee her son’s estate. Record executive Tom Whalley, who signed the rapper to his first deal, will work on music projects; attorney Peter Paterno will handle legal matters.

Shakur made headlines last year when he appeared as a hologram–or, more specifically...

Michael Jackson’s New Vegas Show ‘One’ Will Double The Fun

Michael Jackson One: Who says you can't be in two places at the same time?

Michael Jackson pulled in an estimated $145 million last year from beyond the grave–tens of millions more than any living musician. A big part of that: his Immortal World Tour, a joint venture between the Michael Jackson Estate and Cirque du Soleil. It grossed $160 million in its first leg, tops among North American tours in 2012.

On the heels of that success, Jackson‘s estate and Cirque du Soliel have announced another...

Jay-Z’s New Publishing Deal Is Just The Beginning

Jay-Z is tying the knot with Warner/Chappell Music.

Yesterday Warner/Chappell Music, the publishing arm of Warner Music Group, announced deals with Jay-Z to administer the copyrights of both his own songs and those on the music publishing roster of his company, Roc Nation.

Warner/Chappell will immediately begin administering Jay-Z’s catalog stretching back to 2008; by the end of 2013, it will handle the bulk of his early career hits as well. The publisher will also now administer copyrights for...

Drake: Making The Forbes List Is My Objective Every Year

Drake: All signs point to another Cash Kings nod.

Cash Money Records’ party on the eve of last week’s Grammys was a perfect reflection of its materialistic moniker, from the retro Cadillac convertible at the door to the half-dozen scantily-clad dancers gyrating above the bar.

Just as fitting were the words of the company’s No. 2 earner, Aubrey “Drake” Graham, who pulled in an estimated $20.5 million last year. When asked if he’d make FORBES’ list of hip-hop’s top earners once again in 2013, he...

Moneyball For Music: The Rise of Next Big Sound

Next Big Sound's Alex White is leading the climb to a data-driven music industry.

It’s a cloudy midwinter morning at Next Big Sound’s New York headquarters, and the scene is pure startup. The walls are exposed brick. The bagels are free. The music is guilty-pleasure indulgent: ‘N Sync, in honor of Justin Timberlake’s newly announced album.

But here they’re not just listening for fun. As the singer’s falsetto soars over the clatter of ergonomic keyboards, Next Big Sound’s employees are quantifyi...

Grammy Aftermath: Mumford & Sons See Sales Spike, But Bruno Mars Is Top Social Gainer

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Bruno Mars wins the hashtag Grammy.

Mumford & Sons’s Babelearned a Grammy forAlbum of the Year on Sunday night, trumping offerings by Frank Ocean, the Black Keys, Jack White and Fun. Unsurprisingly, the folk rockers also saw a spike in sales–their song “I Will Wait” clocked a 394% increase.

The numbers, measured by data outfit 7Digital, reflected the change in the rate of downloads in the 24 hours surrounding the Grammys as compared with the average of each of the seven previous days.

Other top...

Grammy Winners 2013: The Full List

Grammy Award: Nobody took home more than four this year.

The 55th annual Grammys are over, and unlike last year, a wide range of artists is heading home with hardware.

Adele stole the show in 2012, winning all six awards for which she was nominated. In 2013, Dan Auerbach and the Black Keys were the biggest winners, taking home four trophies. Skrillex claimed three, as did Gotye, Jay-Z and Kanye West.

Mumford & Sons won just two Grammys, but scored the biggest one of the night: Best Album for Bab...

Best Album Grammy Surprised Mumford & Sons, But Not Vegas

Mumford & Sons: You can bet on them.

Mumford & Sons’ Babelearned the Grammy for Album of the Year, topping the Black Keys, Frank Ocean, Jack White and Fun. That came as a surprise a few people, including the members of the band.

“We just sort of resigned ourselves to like, last year was Adele’s year, this year was the Black Keys’ year,” says lead singer Marcus Mumford. And now that his band won? “It’s f—ing awesome!”

Babel was the No. 4 top-selling album in the U.S., moving 1.4 million units in...

How Gotye Found Kimbra For ‘Somebody That I Used To Know’

Gotye and Kimbra: "We did it in my bedroom."

Gotye won Record of the Year for his ubiquitous hit “Somebody That I Used To Know,” bringing his total to three Grammys on the night.

But his partner on the song, Kimbra, outshone him—quite literally—at the Staples Center today. The New Zealand native shimmered into the spotlight, decked out in a dress festooned in something that looked like gold leaf.

According to the musicians, though, the song itself was recorded under much less glamorous circumsta...