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Tag: ASCAP

  • Pandora Royalty To Remain The Same

    Federal judge Denise Cote in New York has left the rate internet music giant Pandora must pay to songwriters essentially the same, according to reports. In a ruling handed down on Friday March 14, Cote ruled that Pandora must pay The American Society of Composers, Authors, and Publishers (ASCAP) a rate of 1.85 percent of revenue through 2015, a rate which Pandora had been paying for the previous three years.

    ASCAP CEO John LoFrumento issued a statement saying, “And today’s decision further demonstrates the need to review the entire regulatory structure, including the decades-old consent decrees that govern PRO licensing, to ensure they reflect the realities of today’s music landscape.”

    Internet radio, including streaming of music, has been growing in popularity in recent years. According to a press release on Pandora’s website, the metrics for the month of February reveal that Pandora’s total users has been growing significantly. Listener hours for the month of February were 1.5 billion, an increase of nine percent from the same period last year. In addition, active listeners totaled 75 million, up 11 percent from 68 million from the same period of the previous year.

    LoFrumento believes this growth is cause for a higher rate than 1.85 percent. “Streaming is growing in popularity – and so is the value of music on that platform. We are pleased the court recognized the need for Pandora to pay a higher rate than traditional radio stations. But recent agreements negotiated without the artificial constraints of a consent decree make clear that the market rate for Internet radio is substantially higher than 1.85%.”

    ASCAP, which is a professional membership organization of songwriters, composers, and music publishers of every kind of music, issued the statement ahead of the public ruling from judge Denise Cote, which will likely occur next week. For now, Pandora is declining comment until the public ruling of the case.

    In effect, the ruling seems like a draw between the two giant organizations. As ASCAP says, “While Judge Cote’s decision does not fully adopt the escalating rate structure that ASCAP had proposed, it also does not adopt Pandora’s argument that the 1.7% RMLC rate should apply to Pandora.”

    Image via http://blog.pandora.com/

  • George Strait: The Cowboy Rides Away with Awards

    Wednesday night, country crooner George Strait will be the elder statesman among this year’s annual Country Music Association Awards nominees for entertainer of the year. Strait’s competitors at the 47th annual event are Blake Shelton and Luke Bryan (37), Jason Aldean (36) and Taylor Swift (24) and all of them got their music city breaks in the 2000’s. The 61-year-old, on the other hand, has been racking up chart toppers since his first single hit the Top Ten in 1981.

    The awards spotlight is not restricted to Strait, who was presented with the Founder’s Award at this week’s American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers ceremony; it graces those around him. Tonight, Broadcast Music, Inc., honored longtime songwriter Dean Dillon, who penned over 50 songs for the Texan, including The Breath You Take, which garnered Dillon a GRAMMY nomination.

    Tom Roland, editor of Billboard Country Update says that in this year of, “turnover,” from seasoned to newer artists, and figuring in Strait’s farewell tour which ends next year, King George’s nomination for the CMAs is, “a case of the industry saying, ‘Hey, we love you. We appreciate what you did’… A lot of the people who vote on the CMA Awards still have this great appreciation for traditional country music, and that’s very important to them even though that’s not necessarily what’s driving the ship for them right now in country music.”

    But if it’s a sign of farewells for the long-hailed troubadours of country music, this is Strait’s only nomination for this year’s CMAs as opposed to Swift’s six nominations (three for Highway Don’t Care with main vocals by Tim McGraw and also featuring Keith Urban), Shelton’s five nods, and Bryan and Aldean’s three nods (one each for The Only Way I Know with Eric Church). Shelton, Bryan and Aldean are also competing for the Male Vocalist of the Year award.

    Strait insists that he is not retiring, but rather that his The Cowboy Rides Away Tour will be his last, so-structured tour.
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    [Image via George Strait official Facebook.]

  • George Strait Up For Entertainer Of The Year At CMA’s

    It’s beginning to look like quite the rewarding week for country singer George Strait.

    On Monday, Strait was given the Founders Award at the American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers (ASCAP) Country Music Awards. ASCAP made the announcement in August that they would be honoring the “King of Country Music” with the award.

    Strait received a tribute from fellow country artists Alan Jackson, Lee Ann Womack, and Garth Brooks. Former President George W. Bush was even in a video congratulating Strait. In the video he said, “George Strait’s talents transcend generations.” He later added, “Being called ‘President George’ is OK, but ‘King George’ has a mighty fine ring to it.”

    Next up, Strait will attend the Country Music Association Awards (CMA’s) on Wednesday. “King George” has been nominated for the Entertainer of the Year Award. He’ll be up against the likes of Jason Aldean, Luke Bryan, Blake Shelton, and Taylor Swift.

    Previously, Strait won the award in 1989 and 1990, and was last nominated in 2009.

    We won’t find out till Wednesday night if Strait will win, but we do know he at least has one vote – his own.

    In a meeting with reporters Monday, Strait said, “Of course I voted for myself. I always vote for myself. I figure everybody does, why wouldn’t I? It’s such an honor. It’s been a while. We had a great year, it really was a great year, and any time you get nominated for entertainer of the year, which is the award of the night, it’s very, very special. I’m excited about it. I’ll be very nervous that night.”

    If Twitter has anything to say about it, Strait seems to be a heavy favorite for the award.

    The other nominees respect Strait and have learned a lot from the country icon. “In my opinion when all is said and done, there will be two artists viewed as the greatest influences on country music: Hank Williams Sr. and George Strait,” said Shelton.

    Said Bryan, “When I moved to town, I kind of wanted a career like George Strait. A long career that starts here and it’s always been on George’s terms. And he’s always cut amazing songs and wonderful music and had a long career that you can tell looks like he’s always enjoyed it. And he’s always been happy.”

    “He’s been around for 30-something years, and not only been around for 30 years, but been relevant to the business for 30-something years. I mean, still putting out music that people love, still able to go out and sell out his shows when he tours. That just doesn’t happen….That’s why there is only one George Strait,” said Aldean

    Swift said, “For me George is always going to be the guy who let me open up his shows when I was 17 and it was at that point in my life the biggest break I’d gotten as far as live touring because I got to be on the George Strait tour. I learned so much from performing on an in-the-round stage and I think that he over the years has been so supportive, and I’ll get a text every now and then from him just sort of wishing me well. He’s just such a class act. He’s just such an incredible example of how to be a gracious, humble, well-respected human being.”

    [Image via YouTube.]