IFPI Global Report 2024: Music Revenues Climb 10% to $28.6 Billion PDF Free Download
1 / 26/26
100%
Global music sales grew for the ninth consecutive
year in 2023, with recorded music revenues increas-
ing in every market and region, and across almost all
formats, according to the International Federation
of the Phonographic Industry’s (IFPI) Global Music
Report 2024.
Total revenues climbed to $28.6 billion, a rise of
just over 10% on the previous year, and the second
highest growth rate on record after 2021’s 18.5% year-
on-year spike.
2023’s total sales figure is the highest level since
1999 — when IFPI first started compiling global music
revenues and sales totaled $22.2 billion — on an abso-
lute dollar basis, not accounting for inflation. Piracy
and declining physical sales saw the market bottom
out at $13 billion in 2014.
Driving last year’s growth was an 11.2% rise in paid
streaming subscription revenue, which totaled $14 bil-
lion, up from $12.7 billion in 2022, and accounted for
almost half (48.9%) of global music sales.
The rise in global paid streaming revenue comes af-
ter many of the leading streaming services, including
Spotify, Apple Music, Amazon Music, YouTube Music
and Deezer, all raised their subscription prices in key
territories over the past 12-18 months. For the majority
of streaming services, the hikes were their first price
rises since launching more than a decade ago.
Despite the rising cost for consumers, the number
of music streaming subscribers continues to grow
globally, with IFPI reporting that the number of paid
subscriptions to streaming services surpassed 500
million for the first time in 2023.
When shared usership and family accounts are
considered, there are now more than 667 million
users of paid subscription accounts globally, says the
London-based organization, up 13% from the 589 mil-
lion recorded in the previous 12 months.
Total streaming revenues, comprising of paid sub-
scription and advertising-supported tiers, rose 10% to
$19.3 billion to make up 67% of worldwide recorded
music sales, roughly flat with last year’s share of the
market.
Nevertheless, streaming’s year-on-year growth
continues to slow as a result of its already high
penetration of the global music market. In 2021, total
streaming revenues spiked 24% year-on-year. In 2022,
the rate of growth had more than halved to 11.5%.
IFPI Global Report 2024: Music
Revenues Climb 10% to $28.6 Billion
BY RICHARD SMIRKE
(continued)
YOUR DAILY ENTERTAINMENT NEWS UPDATE
Bulletin
MARCH 21, 2024 Page 1 of 26
• Tennessee Adopts
ELVIS Act, Protecting
Artists’ Voices From
AI Impersonation
• Billboard’s
International Power
Players’ Choice
Award: Vote for
Music’s Most
Impactful Executive
• Acapella, Alarm
Tones & ‘Flung
a Duck’: How
TikTokers Are
Working Around the
UMG Ban
• BMG Chief Content
Ocer Dominique
Casimir Exits
INSIDE
MARKET WATCH
PAGE 23
SONGWRITERS
& PRODUCERS
CHARTS
PAGES 24 - 26
ISSUE DATE 4/27 | AD CLOSE 4/16 | MATERIALS DUE 4/18
2024
On April 27th, Billboard will publish its annual
International Power Players list. This issue
will profile the leaders in the global music
industry including the label executives, live
entertainment execs, managers, talent
agents and lawyers, and recognize their
achievements. Advertise and congratulate
this year’s International Power Players to
CONTACTS
Page 3 of 26
Sales Up Across (Nearly) All Formats
Although streaming continues to domi-
nate global music revenues, 2023 also saw
strong gains in physical record sales and
performance rights revenues. Combined CD
and vinyl revenues grew for a third consecu-
tive year to $5.1 billion, up 13% on 2022’s
total, with Asia generating almost half (49%)
of all physical revenues worldwide.
IFPI attributed the region’s continued
dominance of the physical market to strong
sales of K-pop acts such as boyband Seven-
teen, who topped IFPI’s 2023 global album
charts with FML and also had the year’s
eighth best-selling album with follow-up set
SEVENTEENTH HEAVEN.
In terms of market share, physical ac-
counted for just under 18% of the overall
market last year, marginally up from 17.5% in
2022 but still down on 2021’s share.
Performance rights revenue, meanwhile,
climbed 9.5% to $2.7 billion, representing 9.5%
of global revenues, while sync income was up
4.7% to $632 Million, representing 2.2%.
The only formats to record a decline in
2023 were digital downloads and what IFPI
classifies as other (non-streaming) digital
formats, which fell by 2.6% to $900 million,
representing just 3.2% of the global market.
“The figures in this year’s report reflect a
truly global and diverse industry,” said IFPI
chief financial ocer and interim joint head
John Nolan in a statement accompanying
the report.
Nolan said the strong rise in paid
streaming subscribers worldwide, as well
as services’ price increases, contributed
“significantly” to overall revenue growth.
He also said the music industry’s recovery
from its lows of a decade ago wouldn’t have
been possible without “record companies’
sustained investment in artists and their
careers.”
According to IFPI figures, record com-
panies invest $7.1 billion each year globally
in A&R and marketing alone. They are also
paying out more money than ever before
to artists, said IFPI, with label payments to
musicians increasing by 96% between 2016
and 2021, versus a 63% rise in record com-
pany revenues.
No Change in the Global Top 10 Music
Markets, With U.S. Still On Top
In terms of world markets, IFPI said that
music revenues were up in all of the 58
markets it tracks, with the U.S. retaining its
long-held No. 1 position with music sales
growing 7.2%, compared to 4.8% growth last
year.
Japan holds steady in second place with
sales growing 7.6% in 2023. The third and
fourth-biggest markets for recorded music
remain the United Kingdom (+8.1%) and
Germany (+7%), respectively.
The rest of the top 10 is made up of China
(+25.9%), representing the fastest rate of
increase in any top 10 market, followed
by France (+4.4%), South Korea (percent-
age not provided), Canada (+12.2%), Brazil
(+13.4%) and Australia (+11.3%). (IFPI’s free-
to-access report does not provide market-
by-market revenue breakdowns).
Those cross-market gains are mirrored on
a regional basis with revenues from the U.S.
and Canada region up 7.4%.
Combined, the U.S. and Canada region
accounts for almost 41% of global recorded
music revenues, reports IFPI, while Latin
America — where streaming makes up 86%
of the market — saw growth of 19.4%, far
outpacing the global growth rate and repre-
senting the 14th consecutive year of revenue
growth in the region.
Europe remains the second-biggest region
for music sales, accounting for more than a
quarter (28%) of global revenues and grow-
ing 8.9% year-on-year. In third place is Asia,
where revenues rose by almost 15% in 2023,
driven by strong gains in physical and digital
sales.
Once again, the fastest-growing market
region was Sub-Saharan Africa, which
recorded a 25% rise in music sales, largely
driven by increased take up of paid sub-
scription services (up by just under a quar-
ter) and the thriving South African music
market, which grew by almost a fifth and
contributed more than three quarters of the
region’s revenue.
Revenues in the Middle East and North
Africa, where streaming holds a 98% share
of the recorded music market, rose by
IN BRIEF
AUTHORITATIVE INTELLIGENCE.
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DIGITAL NEWSLETTERS
I S SUE DATE 4/27 |AD CLOSE 4/15 |MATERIALS DUE 4/17
2024
SPOTLIGHT: DOMINICAN REPUBLIC
In the issue of April 27, Billboard will celebrate the
explosion of the music industry in Dominican Republic.
Their rhythms, like merenge and bachata, have influ-
enced many global artists.
We will look at the country’s booming music scene and
how increasingly labels, promoters and artists are
working together across international borders to further
promote its music.
Advertise in this issue to position your business in front of
key decision makers who are driving Dominican
Republic music industry.
CONTACTS
Latin: Marcia Olival | marciaolival29@gmail.com
East Coast/Midwest: Joe Maimone | joe.maimone@billboard.com
Southeast: Lee Ann Photoglo | laphotoglo@gmail.com
Touring & West Coast: Cynthia Mellow | cmellow615@gmail.com
International: Ryan O’Donnell | rodonnell@pmc.com
almost 15%.
(IFPI uses current exchange rates when
compiling its Global Music Report, restating
all historic local currency values on an an-
nual basis. Market values therefore vary ret-
rospectively as a result of foreign currency
movements, says IFPI, which represents
more than 8,000 record company members
worldwide, including all three major labels,
Universal Music Group, Sony Music Enter-
tainment and Warner Music Group.)
Transformation Underway
Present at the Global Music report’s
launch in central London were senior ex-
ecutives from all three major labels, as well
as Konrad von Löhneysen, founder and di-
rector of Germany-based independent Em-
bassy Of Music. Leila Oliveira, president
of Warner Music Brazil, also participated in
the event via video call from Rio.
Reflecting current industry trends, the
potential impact of artificial intelligence
(AI) on the record business, and particularly
risks around generative AI, was a key topic
of conversation among the speakers.
“The reality is that we’re at the beginning
stages of another transformational event for
the music industry,” said Dennis Kooker,
president of global digital business at Sony
Music Entertainment.
“While I’m enthusiastic about where the
evolution will lead, it is essential that we
find new products and new business models
around these technologies to ensure the fu-
ture of human creativity can be invested in,
and that creators can be rewarded,” Kooker
said.
He subsequently warned: “We must also
fight the position that too many companies
want to take to ignore copyright and intel-
lectual property rights, and use our content
without permission or without proper
compensation.”
Adam Granite, executive vp of market
development at Universal Music Group, said
that while AI used “in the service of artists
is wonderful,” AI that uses musicians’ work
“without authorization and compensation
is not.”
“We believe it’s perfectly possible to
develop and adopt AI technology while also
ensuring artists rights are protected,” said
Granite, citing UMG’s recent partnerships
with Roland Corporation and YouTube
on AI initiatives as industry-led develop-
ments that give “artists a seat at the table
and will help safeguard their rights” as more
AI products enter the music business.
Tennessee Adopts
ELVIS Act,
Protecting Artists’
Voices From AI
Impersonation
BY KRISTIN ROBINSON
TennesseegovernorBill
Leesigned the ELVIS Act into
law Thursday (Mar. 21), legisla-
tion designed to further protect
the state’s artists fromartificial intelli-
gencedeep fakes. The bill, more formally
named the Ensuring Likeness Voice and
Image Security Act of 2024, replaces the
state’s old right of publicity law, which
only included explicit protections for one’s
“name, photograph, or likeness,” expanding
protections to include voice- andAI-specific
concerns for the first time.
Gov. Lee signed the bill into law from a
local honky tonk, surrounded by superstar
supporters likeLuke BryanandChris
Janson. Lee joked that it was “the coolest
bill signing ever.”
The ELVIS Act wasintroducedby Gov.
Lee in January along with State Senate
Majority LeaderJack Johnson(R-27) and
House Majority LeaderWilliam Lam-
bert(R-44), and it has since garnered
strong support from the state’s artistic
class. Talents likeLindsay Ell,Michael
W. Smith,Natalie Grant,Matt Ma-
herandEvanescence‘sDavid Hodgeshave
been vocal in their support for the bill.
It also gained support from the recorded
music industry and the Human Artistry
Campaign, a global initiative of enter-
tainment organizations that pushes for a
responsible approach to AI. The initiative
has buy-in from more than 180 organiza-
tions worldwide, including the RIAA,
NMPA, BMI, ASCAP, Recording Academy
and American Association of Independent
Music (A2IM).
Right of publicity protections vary state-
to-state in the United States, leading to a
patchwork of laws that make enforcing one’s
ownership over one’s name, likeness and
voice more complicated. There is an even
greater variation among right of public-
ity laws postmortem. As AI impersonation
concerns have grown more prevalent over
the last year, there has been a greater push
by the music business to gain a federal right
of publicity.
The ELVIS Act replaces the Personal
Rights Protection Act of 1984, which was
passed, in part, to extendElvis Presley‘s
publicity rights after he passed away. (At
the time, Tennessee did not recognize a
postmortem right of publicity). Along with
explicitly including a person’s voice as a
protected right for the first time, the ELVIS
Act also broadens which uses of one’s name,
image, photograph and voice are barred.
Previously, the Personal Rights Protection
Act only banned uses of a person’s name,
photograph and likeness “for purpose of
advertising,” which would not include the
unauthorized use of AI voices for perfor-
mance purposes. The ELVIS Act does not
limit liability based on context, so it would
likely bar any unauthorized use, including in
a documentary, song or book, among other
mediums.
The federal government is also work-
ing on solutions to address publicity rights
concerns. Within hours of Gov. Lee’s
introduction of the ELVIS Act in Tennessee
back in January, a bipartisan group of U.S.
House lawmakersrevealedthe NoArtificial
IntelligenceFake Replicas And Unauthor-
ized Duplications Act(No AI FRAUD Act),
which aims to establish a framework for
protecting one’s voice and likeness on a
federal level and lays out First Amendment
protections. It is said to complement the
Senate’sNurture Originals, Foster Art, and
Keep Entertainment Safe Act (NO FAKES
Act), a draft bill thatwas introducedlast
October.
While most of the music business is
aligned on creating a federal right of public-
Page 5 of 26
IN BRIEF
I S SUE DATE 4/27 |AD CLOSE 4/15 |MATERIALS DUE 4/17
2024
The Heat Latin Music Awards is an annual event that
is broadcasted Live on the HTV cable channel. It
recognizes and honors the outstanding achieve-
ments of the biggest Latin music acts of the year, as
voted by HTV viewers.
Created by Diana Montes, Premios Heat’s mission is
not only to support and develop up and coming Latin
artists but also offer a platform where their hard work
is recognized.
We invite you to take this opportunity to congratulate
Premios Heat and Diana Montes, on her 10th Years
Celebration.
CONTACTS
East Coast/Midwest: Joe Maimone | joe.maimone@billboard.com
Southeast: Lee Ann Photoglo | laphotoglo@gmail.com
Latin: Marcia Olival | marciaolival29@gmail.com
Touring & West Coast: Cynthia Mellow | cmellow615@gmail.com
International: Ryan O’Donnell | rodonnell@pmc.com
ity,David Israelite, president/CEO of the
National Music Publishers’ Association
(NMPA), warned in a speech delivered at an
Association of Independent Music Publish-
ers (AIMP) meeting in February that “while
we are 100% supportive of the record labels’
priority to get a federal right of publicity…
it does not have a good chance. Within the
copyright community, we don’t even agree
on [it]. Guess who doesn’t want a federal
right of publicity? Film and TV. Guess who’s
bigger than the music industry? Film and
TV.”
The subject of AI voice cloning has been
a controversial topic in the music business
since Ghostwriter released the so-called
“Fake-Drake” song “Heart On My Sleeve,”
which used the AI technology without
permission. In some cases, this form of AI
can present novel creative opportunities —
including its use forpitch records,lyric
translations,estate marketingandfan
engagement— but it also poses serious
threats. If an artist’s voice is cloned by AI
without their permission or knowledge, it
can confuse, oend, mislead or even scam
fans.
Billboard’s
International
Power Players’
Choice Award:
Vote for Music’s
Most Impactful
Executive
BY COLIN STUTZ
For the first time, Billboard is
expanding its peer-voted Power
Players’ Choice Award globally,
asking music industry members
from all sectors across the world to honor
the international executive they believe had
the most impact across the business in the
past year.
Voting is now open to all Billboard Pro
members, both existing and new, with one
vote per member per round.
The International Power Players’ Choice
Award will run alongside Billboard’s annual
International Power Players ranking of the
industry’s most influential executives, which
will be announced in April.
VOTE HERE
Billboardlaunched its Players’ Choice
awards in 2023 with the Power Players’
Choice Award, the Country Power Players’
Choice Award, the R&B/Hip-Hop Power
Players’ Choice Award and the Latin Power
Players’ Choice Award. In 2024, the peer-
voted award has expanded to also cover Top
Music Lawyers and International Power
Players.
The first round of voting for the Interna-
tional Power Players’ Choice Award is now
open, with an open call for nominees that
will run through Mar. 22.
The second round of voting, which will
narrow down the top 20 nominees to the
final five, runs Mar. 25 through Mar. 31.
The third round of voting to select the
winner from that list begins Apr. 1 and con-
cludes Apr. 8 at 11:59 p.m. EST.
Vote now and if you are not yet a member
of Billboard Pro, join here.
Acapella, Alarm
Tones & ‘Flung
a Duck’: How
TikTokers Are
Working Around
the UMG Ban
BY ALIYA CHAUDHRY
If you’ve scrolled through TikTok
recently, you might have noticed that
it sounds dierent than it did a few
months ago.
Users have gotten creative with their
sound choices. They’ve posted edits to a
song from the children’s cartoon Little Ein-
steins, the Spongebob theme song, music
from the quiz platform Kahoot, Kevin
MacLeod’s royalty-free track “Sneaky
Snitch” and the 20th Century Fox theme.
There have been dances set to classical
music, and the iPhone ringtone. Users
have even posted screen recordings of what
it’s like scrolling through their feeds, one
with the text, “This is the funniest era of
TikTok to ever exist.”
It’s all because Universal Music Group
(UMG) and TikTok failed to reach a new
licensing agreement after the previous one
expired on Jan. 31. UMG issued an open
letter on Jan. 30 citing concerns over AI,
compensation, harassment and copyright
infringement on the social media app.
TikTok responded in a statement, saying,
“It is sad and disappointing that Universal
Music Group has put their own greed above
the interests of their artists and songwrit-
ers.” Music credited to songwriters signed to
Universal Music Publishing Group disap-
peared at the end of last month following
a grace period.
TikTok has proved vital to artists, break-
ing new artists’ careers and causing songs to
go viral, but the removal of UMG’s catalog
has hit social media creators hard, too.
Kenna Dean, 22, a dance creator with 1.7
million followers on the app, is one of many
TikTokers who found out her videos with
music by Universal artists – including one
with 1.5 million likes – had been muted.
“It was actually really disappointing,
because it’s time you put into those videos,”
Dean says. “You have comments on them,
and you have other people who have done
your dances out there. And then all of that is
just gone, which was alarming.”
Dean had plans to film a dance collabora-
tion with two other creators, @karaleigh-
cannella and @jaedengomezz, on the same
day the catalog was pulled. “All of the dance
creators, we kind of woke up and were like,
‘What do we dance to?’” Dean says. They
stumbled across Niana Guerrero’s viral
dance (which now has over 14 million likes)
to Kevin MacLeod’s “Flung a Duck” – a
royalty-free track – as well as a dance to the
Samsung alarm tone. “I just thought it was
so funny,” says Dean, who jumped on both
trends.
Page 7 of 26
IN BRIEF
UMG is just one portion of the music
industry. There are, of course, many artists
who are not aliated with Universal, or any
label at all, and that music is still available
for creators to use on TikTok – and a lot of
users have opted to simply use the music at
their disposal. Dean pointed out that she’s
trying to use more songs by independent
artists.
“I think it is a chance that we can prove
that we are also worth listening to,” says in-
dependent artist and creator Charisse Chua.
“Us not being signed doesn’t stop us from
still creating good music and releasing it out
there.” Earlier this month, Chua, 19, posted
a clip of her song “would you take it all
back?” with the caption, “umg songs might
be gone [from] tiktok but mine aren’t!!”
But it’s still a challenge to get music to
reach more viewers. “I expected there to be
a lot more interaction than there was,” Chua
says, adding that there are a lot of artists try-
ing to use the app to boost their music.
Many TikTokers have also turned to cov-
ers as a way to replace the missing songs.
In one video, creators danced to a cover
of Lady Gaga’s “Bad Romance” from the
Alvin and the Chipmunks movies. Another
user made a video featuring medieval-style
instrumental versions of songs that got 1.9
million likes, with the audio being used in
over 700 videos.
Glee covers are also popular, with a clip
of the Glee Cast version of “Rose’s Turn,”
uploaded by @girlyteengirl123, currently
trending on the app, having been used in
over 300,000 videos and reaching No. 3 in
Billboard’s TikTok Top 50 chart. A remix
of Ice Spice’s “Think U The Shit (Fart)” in
the style of the Nintendo character Toad
was uploaded to TikTok on Jan. 26 – just
days before the licensing agreement expired
– and has since gotten 2 million likes, having
been used in close to 9,000 videos, often as
a joking substitute for the original song.
And some users took matters into their own
hands, recording covers themselves.
“I just thought, ‘Well, I’m a singer. I might
as well just do my own acapella version,’”
Vicky Ntamag, 25, a musician and dancer,
says. She began uploading her covers to Tik-
Tok after the dispute, starting with a cover
of Nicki Minaj’s “FTCU” and responding
to a few requests in her comments. Her
cover of ATEEZ’s “Crazy Form” was used
over 200 times and her acapella version of
RIIZE’s “Talk Saxy” was used in upwards
of 2,770 videos. RIIZE even posted a video
dancing to Ntamag’s cover that now has a
million likes.
At the time Ntamag posted the cover, the
original song was still available on TikTok
(RIIZE is signed to RCA which is under
Sony Music Entertainment) but it has since
been taken down as the song falls under
Universal Publishing. RIIZE posted a video
using Ntamag’s cover with the text “don’t
worry everyone… we still have this sound!”
Some of these covers are gaining real
traction – and attention from bigger artists.
Mikael Arellano’s cover of Taylor Swift’s
“Bejeweled” got 1.5 million likes, with
OneRepublic commenting, “Can you help us
too..” Arellano then posted a video singing
the band’s “Counting Stars,” and OneRepub-
lic used the audio in two videos uploaded
to its account. Conan Gray, who recently
told Rolling Stone, “I think there’s going
to be a lot of interesting acapella covers
happening from UMG artists until this is
settled,” sang over a clip of his own music
video.
“The TikTok community is really strong,”
Ntamag says. “And we help each other
with the songs. That’s why I’m taking the
requests, because some of them want to use
them for their edits, or there’s certain songs
that were taken o that I’m going to make
an acapella [version] for, just to help my fel-
low TikTokers.”
The communal aspect drives TikTok.
Building upon a previous joke is how memes
function and audio sharing is integral to
that. Participating in and even viewing
trends forms the shared experience of being
on TikTok, and certain sounds define eras of
the app – even if those sounds happen to be
TV show themes and ringtones to capture
the beginning of February. Soon after the
dispute, TikTok seemed to shift away from
some of the more creative options towards
just using the music that was still available
on the app, although covers and royalty-free
tracks remain popular.
“We were all a little bummed when we
saw that the music was taken o,” says Nta-
mag. “But I feel like it’s also an opportunity
that we can use to share who we are and
how funny we are and what kind of music
we make and how creative we can be.”
BMG Chief
Content Ocer
Dominique
Casimir Exits
BY ELIAS LEIGHT
Dominique Casimir, chief con-
tent ocer for BMG, announced
she is exiting the company on
Thursday (Mar. 21).
“It has been an exceptional journey to
have been part of shaping BMG’s story from
almost day one,” Casimir said in a statement.
“We built something unique — a global com-
pany with a genuinely artist-focused spirit
— and celebrated many milestones together.
I am truly grateful for the possibilities I have
been given and the amazing people I work
with, but I have decided that it is time for
something new in my life and career.”
“I would personally like to thank Domi-
nique for her outstanding contribution and
unparalleled commitment to BMG over
many years,” added BMG CEO Thomas
Coesfeld. “We respect her decision to move
on, and I would like to wish her all the very
best for her personal and professional fu-
ture, personally, on behalf of the BMG Board
— and the wider BMG team.”
Casimir’s departure comes during a pe-
riod of transition for BMG.
In April 2023, the company claimed to
be the first to combine its new release and
catalog recordings businesses. The follow-
ing month, BMG announced that it would
shorten its long-term succession plan for
longtime CEO Hartwig Masuch, meaning
that Coesfeld stepped into the role on July 1
instead of New Year’s Day 2024.
BMG subsequently exited its distri-
bution agreement with Warner Music
Group’s ADA and took “direct control of our
relationships with streaming services,” as
Page 8 of 26
IN BRIEF
Coesfeld said in a statement at the time. In
October, BMG laid o around 40 employ-
ees. (Layos have swept through the music
industry in the last 15 months.)
And in November, the company an-
nounced a restructure that Coesfeld
described as “local where necessary, global
where possible.” “Fifteen years after the
emergence of streaming, music is going
through another tectonic change,” Coesfeld
said in a statement at the time. “It is vital we
now reengineer our business to make the
most of that opportunity.”
Casimir started working at BMG in 2008.
Her portfolio eventually grew to encompass
GSA (2016), Continental Europe (2019), Asia
Pacific and Latin America (2020), and the
company’s global synch operation (2021).
She was promoted to chief content ocer in
May 2022.
Anghami Shares
Jump 59% After
Saudi Media
Company MBC
Group Takes 14%
Stake
BY GLENN PEOPLES
Shares of Abu Dhabi-based music
streaming company Anghami
soared 59% on Wednesday (March
20) after an SEC filing showed
media company MBC Group has taken a
13.7% stake in the company. Anghami rose as
high as $1.79 before closing at $1.59. Trading
volume spiked to 11.3 million shares, over
300 times its daily average.
Saudi Arabia-based MBC Group bills
itself as “the largest and leading media com-
pany in the Middle East and North Africa.”
Founded in London in 1991 as a satellite
TV channel, MBC Group’s properties now
include 13 free-to-air TV channels, three
radio stations and Shahid, a leading Arabic
streaming platform. MBC Group also owns
MBC Studios, a content production house,
and MBC Academy, an educational and
training platform.
The two companies already had a market-
ing partnership that renewed in 2022. The
partnership gives Anghami exposure across
MBC Group’s programming. MBC Group
“create[s] new opportunities for rising mu-
sic talent,” Fadel Zahreddine, Group Direc-
tor of Emerging Media at MBC GROUP, said
at the time, “and we continue toinspire up-
coming musicians by encouraging platforms
like Anghami to give them the creative space
to publish their premium music content.”
Investors appeared to take MBC Group’s
ownership stake as a positive sign that
Anghami would have the financial and
promotional resources to build a profitable
business. Anghami shares have fallen 86%
since its Feb. 4, 2022 debut on the Nasdaq.
The company was warned by the Nasdaq
exchange in Nov. 2023 for trading under
the $1 threshold for the previous 30 days.
The Nasdaq gives companies 180 days to
regain compliance or face delisting from the
exchange. Anghami said it would “consider
available options to cure the deficiency,”
including a reverse share split.
Wednesday’s closing price is well below
the valuation of two recent investments in
Anghami, however. Anghami received a $5
million strategic investment from SRMG
in Aug. 2023 that valued Anghami at $2.50
per share. A Nov. 2023 deal with OSN
Group that valued Anghami at $3.65 per
share — and caused Anghami’s share price
to jump 97% to a 52-week high of $3.11 —
will provide Anghami with the OSN+ video
streaming platform and result in an invest-
ment up to $50 million.
Anghami shares traded as high as $16.80
in April 2022 but have fallen 86% below the
$11.00 closing price on its first day of trading
on Feb. 4, 2022, after merging with Vistas
Media Acquisition Company, a special pur-
pose acquisition company. In the 55 trading
days in 2024, Anghami has closed below
$1.00 29 times.
In the first nine months of 2023, Anghami
had 1.73 million subscribers and adjusted
revenue of $30 million, up 8% year over
year. The company has not yet announced
full-year 2023 results.
ChartCipher’s
Analysis of
Billboard’s Radio
Songs Chart
for 2023: Pop,
Midtempo Dance
Dominated
BY GARY TRUST
What were the most notable
highlights regarding the
sonic characteristics of hits
on Billboard’s Radio Songs
chart in 2023?
AI-powered hit song analytics platform
ChartCipher released its latest report
March 15, spotlighting key findings from
Radio Songs surveys dated Jan. 7 through
Dec. 30, 2023.
In October 2023, ChartCipher launched
publicly, as announced jointly by MyPart
and Hit Songs Deconstructed. The plat-
form utilizes analytics from 10 of Billboard’s
most prominent charts dating to the turn
of the century: the Billboard Hot 100, Hot
Country Songs, Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs,
Hot Dance/Electronic Songs, Hot Rock &
Alternative Songs, Pop Airplay, Country
Airplay, Streaming Songs, Radio Songs and
Digital Song Sales.
Here are three takeaways from Chart
Cipher’s new report, reflecting the Radio
Songs chart for 2023.
Pop Topped, But Dropped
“Pop was the top genre on the Billboard
Radio Songs chart in 2023 with a 37% share”
of all entries, ChartCipher’s report notes.
“Country followed close behind at 31% and
hip-hop/rap rounded out the top three at
23%. Rock, R&B/soul, dance/club/electronic
and Latin trailed distantly, each accounting
for 9% of songs or less.”
Still, ChartCipher’s research reveals,
“While pop has consistently maintained the
largest share of the chart for the past five
Page 9 of 26
IN BRIEF
years, its prominence dropped from 54% in
2022 to 37% in 2023 – a low not seen since
the start of the 21st century.
“Conversely, country [up from 27% to 31%
year-over-year] and hip-hop/rap [up from
13% to 23%] both saw gains in 2023.”
Despite its decline, pop boasts a dual
domination, as it tied hip-hop/rap as the top
primary genres on the Streaming Songs
chart for 2023, each with a 27% share.
Country claimed a 20% share and rock, 19%,
followed by R&B/soul (9%), Latin (6%) and
dance/electronic (3%).
To recap, by performance on each chart,
here are the top three genres on both Radio
Songs and Streaming Songs throughout
2023. Pop and country each sport higher
shares on Radio Songs than Streaming
Songs, while hip-hop/rap fared better on
Streaming Songs than Radio Songs:
Pop: 37% share, Radio Songs / 27%,
Streaming Songs
Country: 31%, Radio Songs / 20%, Stream-
ing Songs
Hip-hop/rap: 23%, Radio Songs / 27%,
Streaming Songs
Just Dance (Moderately)
“Radio Songs chart hits have been becom-
ing more danceable the last few years,”
ChartCipher reports.
Not that airwaves have been inundated by
thumping, hi-NRG beats: “Those possess-
ing moderate danceability rose from half
of songs in 2021 to just over two-thirds in
2023,” per ChartCipher. “Conversely, songs
with low danceability have been in decline
over the same time period. On the other end
of the spectrum, highly danceable songs (i.e.,
those that are club-ready) continue to be
few and far
ChartCipher cites examples of dance-
driven 2023 Radio Songs hits including Dua
Lipa’s “Houdini” (high danceability), Taylor
Swift’s “Anti-Hero” (moderate) and Nicki
Minaj and Ice Spice’s “Barbie World,” with
Aqua (low).
Meanwhile, with moderately danceable
songs dominating, “Nearly two-thirds of
Radio Songs chart hits [in 2023 had] tempos
under 100 BPM,” according to ChartCipher.
“Those with tempos under 79 BPM saw a
notable increase in prevalence, from 29% of
songs in 2022 to 39% in 2023, their highest
level in over a decade.”
No Rhyme or Reason
Dissecting lyrics, “Rhyme density was a
mixed bag in 2023, with a near-equal split
of songs (sung in English) possessing low,
moderate and high degrees of rhymes,”
among Radio Songs hits, ChartCipher
analyzes. “However, there has been a recent
trend towards high and very high rhyme
density, together accounting for nearly half
of the chart in 2023, compared to one-third
a few years earlier.”
ChartCipher references “chart-topping
representatives on either end of the spec-
trum,” from Luke Combs’ “Fast Car” (low
rhyme density) to Rema and Selena Gomez’s
“Calm Down” (“very high”).
Executive Director
for Nonprot
Female Drumming
Competition
Resigns
Following Sexual
Harassment
Claims
BY KAREN BLISS
The future of an international
drumming competition designed
to highlight and encourage young
female drummers is in question
after the program’s co-founder/executive
director resigned earlier this month fol-
lowing accusations he made inappropriate
comments to one of the contestants.
David Levine was asked to step down
from the Los Angeles-based nonprofit Hit
Like a Girl on Mar. 10 after Irish singer-
drummer Ria Rua posted a video to Ins-
tagram claiming he asked her for “inap-
propriate pictures” in 2019 and told the
then-20-year-old he “enjoyed” blurring
out the outline of her breast in one of her
photographs so he could use it in promo-
tional assets for the contest. Levine says his
comments were meant to be supportive and
sarcastic, not oensive.
“Women shouldn’t have to deal with this
stu,” Rua said in the Instagram video. She
then shared a screenshot of Levine’s email,
which included the line, “Please send me
more of those photos, even the ones your
Mum may not like.” For “context,” she then
showed the profile picture from her contest
entry page that prompted his request. In it,
she was not wearing a top under her jacket.
“He edited out my boob and he said he en-
joyed it,” she said.
Rua tells Billboard that, in addition to the
email, Levine made some of these comments
over two phone calls. She said he asked if
her mom liked the photo, and she replied,
“I don’t know. I’m sure she doesn’t love it.”
The second call was about a possible cymbal
endorsement deal, in which she says she
brought up the altered photo and he said
“he had enjoyed photoshopping my boob.”
In a statement announcing his resigna-
tion, posted to Instagram, Levine said, “I
wish to sincerely apologize for the inap-
propriate and oensive comments I made to
[Ria Rua] as well as the harm my behavior
has caused to others in the female drum-
ming community. There is no excuse for my
bad judgment, abusing my authority and
undermining Hit Like A Girl’s good works.
The Hit Like A Girl Board has requested
my resignation as Executive Director and
I am fully complying with that request, ef-
fective today, March 10, 2024 at 12:00 PM
PT. Furthermore, I will be entering sexual
harassment sensitivity counseling in the
days ahead.”
He concluded: “Until new Directors can
be installed the Hit Like A Girl and Drum
Summit websites, social media and YouTube
along with all current projects will be sus-
pended,” adding, “I would ask that everyone
in the drumming community continue to
support the growth of female drummers
through other channels.”
When reached for comment, Levine —
who also owns TRX Cymbals and devel-
oped Drum Summit: Empowering Women
Through Drumming — told Billboard in an
email, “The board members asked for my
Page 10 of 26
IN BRIEF
resignation immediately after Ria Rua’s
messages were posted and I complied. I
sincerely hope the organization’s mission
and work will continue however I am not
involved in that process.” He also said his
comments to Rua were “my attempt at
sarcasm.”
Sexual harassment is by far the most wide-
ly-cited problem facing female creators in
the music industry, according to a 2021 study
by MIDiA Research, in conjunction with
Tunecore and its parent company, Believe.
The study found that “almost two-thirds of
female creators identified sexual harassment
or objectification as a key challenge.” The
#MeToo movement empowered women to
come forward with personal stories, ranging
from drugging and rape to sexist behavior
and misogyny. The industry, as a whole, still
seems reluctant to speak out, instead feeling
more comfortable addressing parity and
advancement for women, including with
initiatives like the Hit Like a Girl contest.
Rua started playing music in primary
school, initially with the tin whistle and
then guitar. At 12, she picked up drums and
accompanied an accordion marching band,
then joined The National Youth Orchestra
of Ireland. In 2017, she entered a Hit Like
a Girl competition, which she says seemed
“massive,” sponsored by “all the big compa-
nies” and judged by “the best drummers and
percussionists in the world.” In 2018 she
won the organization’s Joe Hibbs Award.
Rua decided to share her story now, she
tells Billboard, because she writes songs
about women’s issues and had just released
a new song about this specific experience
and wanted to “practice what I preach.” In
the Instagram video, she also noted she’d
been inspired to speak out by recent allega-
tions of sexual misconduct, “especially all
the stu about P. Diddy.”
“[Levine] is still the head of [Hit Like A
Girl] and it’s still running to this day,” she
said in her video. ”If it happened to me, I’m
sure it happened to other women out there.”
Less than a year after Rua’s incidents with
Levine, she says she told a then-Hit Like
a Girl board member. She asked the board
member to discuss it with the board, but not
to tell Levine. The board member, who left
the organization in 2021 because of what
Rua told her about Levine — and does not
wish to be named because of an unrelated
personal issue — confirmed that account to
Billboard. “I had no evidence of anything. I
couldn’t really do anything formally.”
“At that time, I was still pretty afraid,” Rua
says. “This guy is massive. He runs Hit Like
a Girl. He owns the TRX Cymbal company.
He owns another management company
that manages a lot of the top brands.”
Rua posted a second video in which she
sobbed and thanked everyone for support-
ing her, and then a third video explaining
she came forward because she had written
her song “Asking For It” “about my story
with David” and now, when she sings it,
“I’m going to remember the support that I
had.”
Hit Like A Girl began in 2012 “as a drum
contest/market development project,” as
Levine puts it, which he co-founded with
DRUM! magazine publisher Phil Hood and
Mindy Abovitz, founder of female-focused
Tom Tom magazine — both of whom left the
organization years ago.
Levine told Billboard in an email that
Rua entered the contest in 2017 and 2018
under her birth name — which Billboard
has decided not to run at her request — and
that during this time they “had multiple
conversations by phone, email, text, etc.”
He continued, “She was a talented musician
and an interesting person.” He also attached
the 2017 photo she submitted. Rua says they
exchanged only one email and one Insta-
gram message and had two phone calls. She
provided the email and Instagram message
to Billboard.
“At some point in 2018 [name redacted]
introduced her new persona, Ria Rua, with a
completely new look,” Levine tells Billboard
in an email. “During a phone call I asked her
if I could use one of the photos for a social
media post to promote her and the contest.
She told me that her mother didn’t approve
of them. I responded in an email that she
should send me the photos, ‘even the one’s
her mum may not like.’ As with the rest of
the email, I was trying to show support but,
unfortunately, my attempt at sarcasm was
not appreciated.
“I felt that the image she sent me was a
bit too provocative for the Hit Like A Girl
audience so I retouched it and sent it back
to her for approval, which she provided. My
recollection of our conversation is that I said
something to the eect that I was happy to
be able to photoshop the image so that it
would be appropriate for us to share.”
Rua says she distinctly remembers him
using the word “enjoyed” when talking
about editing the photo. After that, she
never entered the contest again.
Hit Like A Girl was incorporated and
received 501(c)(3) charitable status in 2021,
and Levine became executive director,
he told Billboard, “with a board of direc-
tors that included six women.” He added,
“We also established chapters in nearly 60
countries around the world that were man-
aged exclusively by women. I often relied on
these women for advice and approval.”
Since Rua’s post, she says other women
have shared similar correspondence they
received from Levine or conversations they
had with him after entering the contest.
One California-based drummer — who
does not wish to be named — shared screen-
shots with Billboard of “some weird stu he
said to me on text.”
In the thread, Levine provides sugges-
tions on drum technique and then writes,
“Second, try to move your head and body
more when you play to show you’re feeling
the best and having fun. It will drive the
boys crazy.” In another, he writes, “Let me
know if you come back up to LA. Maybe
I’ll break quarantine for you,” followed by
a wink emoji. In regard to some photos she
had submitted during the pandemic, he also
remarked, “I’ll have to get you a sexier mask,
though. You Look like a nurse at a retire-
ment home.”
Asked about these comments, Levine
told Billboard in an email, “I don’t recall the
other exchange you reference but I did oer
advice on how contestants might improve
their entries from time to time, when asked.
I see now that my comments were inappro-
priate.”
He concludes by writing that Hit Like
A Girl accomplished “many amazing and
unprecedented things for girls and women
in the past 12 years, not least the fact that
drums are no longer considered a ‘gendered’
instrument.”
Page 11 of 26
IN BRIEF
The Deals:
Deezer & Merlin
Strike Artist-
Centric Royalties
Partnership;
WMG Expands
India Presence
BY CHRIS EGGERTSEN
Merlin and Deezer announced
a new partnership through
which Deezer’s artist-cen-
tric royalty model will be
integrated across Merlin’s membership of
independent record labels, distributors and
other rights holders. The model, which is
currently being rolled out in France, is de-
signed to reward artists and tracks that are
viewed as playing a part in attracting and
retaining subscribers to the platform while
excluding white noise and other types of
“functional” audio from the royalty pool.
“We have worked with Deezer to ensure
their new model works for the benefit of
our members, representing a path forward
in ensuring that high-quality music, and
the artists who create it, are recognized and
rewarded in the manner they deserve,” said
Merlin CEO Jeremy Sirota in a statement.
Added Deezer CEO Jeronimo Foglueira:
I’m very happy to see that Merlin and its
members are embracing Deezer’s artist
centric model and joins us in redefining
artist remuneration in the streaming era,
to make sure artists are paid more fairly for
their music.”
Warner Music India made a strategic in-
vestment in Global Music Junction (GMJ),
the music and entertainment subsidiary of
digital entertainment and technology com-
pany JetSynthesys. The move gives Warner
Music India a seat on the board of GMJ and
expands its partnership with the company,
with which it previously struck a distribu-
tion deal in 2021. GMJ — which provides
services including content creation, events
management, innovative distribution,
marketing solutions, technical analytics, and
legal expertise — is a leader in the music
markets for the Bhojpuri, Kannada, Gujarati,
Haryanvi and Oriya languages. “This is a
significant milestone in the expansion of our
presence across India,” Alfonso Perez Soto,
president of emerging markets at Warner
Music, said in a statement. “Working with
the amazing team at GMJ last year not only
strengthened our partnership, but enabled
us to better support artists from the central
regions of India, bringing them the best ar-
tistic support that any company can provide,
and helping them connect with fans across
the country and around the world.”
AEG Presents and LIV Golf announced
an exclusive multi-year partnership that
will see AEG and its subsidiary, Concerts
West, booking musical acts and producing
concerts for LIV Golf events globally. Since
launching the LIV Golf Invitational Series in
2022, followed by the ocial kicko of the
LIV Golf League last year, artists including
Zac Brown Band, Tiësto, Nelly, Sebastián
Yatra and Alesso have performed at LIV
Golf events. Starting this spring, AEG Pres-
ents and its Concerts West subsidiary will
book musical acts and produce concerts for
LIV Golf tournaments worldwide, handling
talent booking, artist management, show/
venue planning, creative development and
technical production.
The City of McKinney, Tex., which is
a major hub in the Dallas-Fort Worth area,
chose Notes Live to build what will be the
company’s largest venue yet: the 20,000-ca-
pacity, $220 million open-air Sunset
Amphitheater. The eort to bring the venue
to McKinney was a joint eort between the
city, the McKinney Economic Development
Corporation and the McKinney Community
Development Corporation. Construction on
the Sunset is slated to begin late this year,
with the aim of opening it in time for the
concert touring season in 2026. The project
is expected to support more than 1,300
direct and indirect jobs and create $3 billion
in regional and local economic activity in its
first 10 years of operation.
Audio entertainment platform Pocket
FM raised $103 million in Series D fund-
ing led by Lightspeed with participation
from Stepstone Group. The latest round
brings Pocket FM’s total funding to date to
$196.5 million. The money will support the
company’s push into the U.S. market while
also supporting its expansion into Europe
as well as Latin American markets in 2024.
Pocket FM will also continue to strengthen
its exclusive content library and build AI-
powered personalized recommendations to
enhance the user experience. The company
claims to have surpassed $150 million in
annual recurring revenue and says the plat-
form racked up more than 75 billion minutes
of streaming worldwide last year.
Warner Music South East Europe
acquired a minority stake in Slovenian
independent label NIKA. The label boasts
a repertoire of more than 11,000 songs,
including tracks from Big Foot Mama, Koala
Voice, Luka Basi, Nipke and Siddharta. The
label’s releases are currently distributed
through Warner’s indie distribution and
label services arm ADA. The deal will allow
Warner Music to upstream NIKA’s roster to
its international network. NIKA has been
Warner Music’s licensee in Slovenia since
1995.
Melissa Etheridge partnered with Gritty
In Pink, which powers the INPINK mar-
ketplace — a platform, described as being
similar to Upwork, where female freelancers
in music can find jobs. Through the partner-
ship, female videographers can submit an
INPINK listing to showcase their work to
be considered for a job capturing and edit-
ing content at Etheridge’s upcoming shows
in Santa Clarita, Calif., and Thousand Oaks,
Calif. Those interested can submit their list-
ings between Mar. 20 and Mar. 28. Ether-
idge will also serve as a “strategic advisor”
for the INPINK marketplace. Prior to the
partnership, the singer-songwriter hired an
INPINK videographer to shoot her tour last
year and ran a photography campaign with
INPINK to find a female photographer to
take press photos.
ASM Global signed a strategic part-
nership with King Abdullah Financial
District Development and Management
Company (KAFD DMC) to lead the opera-
tion and management of the King Abdul-
lah Financial District (KAFD) Conference
Page 12 of 26
IN BRIEF
Center in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. The confer-
ence center includes a 1,215 square-meter
banquet hall, a 600-seat auditorium and
multiple outdoor plazas.
NightEvolution — which owns Ibiza
dance music clubs Amnesia and Cova Santa
and Amnesia’s in-house night Pyramid —
joined forces with Dubai developer Sekoya
Management, which owns Dubai venue
Soho Garden and its electronic music sub-
brands/venues Code, Playroom and Hive.
Under the agreement, NightEvolution and
Sekoya will present a new events series
called Horizon in Ibiza, Dubai and else-
where.
AI-powered beat and track generator
SOUNDRAW drew $3 million in new fund-
ing led by Carbide Ventures, along with
other investors including mint VC, Ceres,
iSGS, SMBC Venture Capital, Deepcore,
Kazuomi Kaneto and Paul Rosenberg,
CEO of Goliath Artists and president of
Shady Records.
Italian Recorded
Music Revenues
Grew 18.8% in
2023
BY BILLBOARD ITALY
In 2023, the Italian market of recorded
music grew by 18.8% YoY, reaching a
total of 440 million euros of revenues,
according to FIMI (Federazione
Industria Musicale Italiana), the organiza-
tion that represents the Italian recorded
music industry. It is the best result ever in
the country in the streaming era. Italy is the
third biggest market of the European Union,
after France and Germany.
It is also one of the most significant
growths on a global level, where IFPI
reports an increase of 10.2% YoY, reaching
28.6 billion dollars and marking the ninth
consecutive year of growth, as per their
Global Music Report published today (Mar.
21).
In Italy, like elsewhere in the world, the
sector was driven by streaming: it now cov-
ers a market share of 65% and its revenues
grew by 16.2%, reaching 287 million euros.
Premium subscribers reached 6.5 million
users (+9% compared to the previous year).
The premium segment led the streaming
sector, with a growth of 18.4% and 190 mil-
lion euros in revenues. Overall, the digital
segment saw a growth of 15.7%. Only down-
loads decreased in the segment (-11.8% YoY).
The physical segment also recorded a
growth, positioning Italy as the eighth mar-
ket worldwide. With revenues of 62 million
euros (+14.4% YoY), it covers a market share
of 14%. Vinyl sales lead the sector, grow-
ing by 24.3%, but even CDs saw an increase
(+3.8%).
Performance rights grew significantly
(+42.6%, reaching 73 million euros, which
positions Italy as the seventh market glob-
ally) and synchronization rights saw an
increase of 3.5%, reaching 13 million euros.
The flourishing Italian music scene also
opened new opportunities on a global level.
In 2023, revenues from outside the country
grew by 20% (+130% if compared to 2020,
the year before Måneskin’s success), for a
total royalty income of more than 26 million
euros. This was also driven by the digital
sector, with revenues growing by 11% to
almost 21 million euros.
Michael Jackson’s
Son Says Estate
Shouldn’t Pay
Grandmother’s
Legal Bills In
Dispute Over
$600 Million
Catalog Deal
BY BILL DONAHUE
Michael Jackson’s son Blanket
is asking a Los Angeles judge
to stop his grandmother from
using money from the iconic
singer’s estate to fund her ongoing legal
battles against the estate’s executors over
their recent $600 million deal with Sony.
In court filings obtained by Billboard,
Blanket argued Monday that the estate
shouldn’t foot the bill for Katherine
Jackson’s pending appeal, in which she’s
challenging a ruling last year that gave
co-executors John Branca and John Mc-
Clain approval to proceed with an unnamed
transaction.
While the disputed deal itself is not ex-
plicitly named in legal documents, it appears
to be the Jackson estate’s estimated $600
million deal to sell part of the singer’s cata-
log to Sony, the terms of which were first
reported by Billboard last month.
Monday’s objections highlight a recent
rift between Katherine and Blanket. Both of
them initially opposed the estate’s proposed
transaction, but after the judge ruled last
year that the deal could move forward, Blan-
ket and Jackson’s other children accepted
the decision. Katherine opted instead to
keep fighting, filing an appeal that remains
pending.
In December, Katherine filed motions
asking that the estate pay for her legal bills
stemming from her objections, including the
ongoing appellate case. But in his filing on
Page 13 of 26
IN BRIEF
Monday, Blanket said it would be “unfair”
to force him and his siblings to pay for that
case, since his grandmother’s eorts face
“long odds.”
“It is readily apparent that a reversal
on appeal would be an extreme longshot,”
wrote lawyers for Blanket, who now uses
the name Bigi. “Given those odds, Bigi de-
cided not to waste his resources to partici-
pate in an appeal. Nonetheless, Katherine
has decided to appeal this court’s ruling.
That decision is not for the benefit of the
heirs.”
It’s unclear exactly how much Kather-
ine is seeking. In a court filing earlier this
month, Branca and McClain said she had
asked for more than $561,548 to cover her
legal fees for both her initial objections and
the current appeal. In that filing, the execu-
tors said they strongly opposed any estate
payments for her “failed objection” and
“meritless appeal.”
In his filing Monday, Blanket didn’t
entirely oppose his grandmother’s request.
He argued that the estate should, in fact, pay
her legal bills for her initial opposition to
the deal — arguing that she had presented
“essential evidence” about the proposed
transaction and that “all heirs and beneficia-
ries benefited from this court’s scrutiny.”
But he also argued the actual dollar total
she had requested “might be high,” and
questioned whether she had really needed
to hire “four lawyers charging fees of $840
to $1,400 per hour.” And he argued any
legal fees for the ongoing appeal should be
entirely denied, since the ruling allowing
the deal to proceed had been “reasoned and
detailed.”
“Katherine’s petition has the practical
eect of requiring Bigi and his siblings pay
for her appeal,”Blanket wrote. “It would be
unfair to make those beneficiaries shoulder
this burden when they expressly decided an
appeal would not be in their best interests.”
An attorney for Katherine Jackson did
not immediately respond to requests for
comment on Thursday. Reps for the Jackson
estate declined to comment.
Erv Woolsey,
Longtime
Manager for
George Strait,
Dies at 80
BY JESSICA NICHOLSON
Artist manager and record
promotion executive Eugene
Ervine “Erv” Woolsey, 80, died
Wednesday (Mar. 20) in Clear-
water, Florida, following surgery complica-
tions.
Woolsey was best known as the long-
time manager for and champion of country
music superstar and Country Music Hall of
Fame member George Strait, as well as for
managing and championing artists including
Lee Ann Womack, Dierks Bentley, Clay
Walker and Ronnie Milsap.
“My manager for around 45 years and
most importantly my friend for even longer,
Erv Woolsey, passed away this morning,”
Strait said in a statement. “He had com-
plications from a surgery and just couldn’t
overcome it. He was a very tough man, and
fought hard, but sadly it was just too much.
We will miss him so very much and will nev-
er forget all the time we had together. Won’t
ever be the same without him.”
Woolsey was born on Feb. 15, 1944, in
Houston. After graduating from Southwest
Texas State University in 1969 with a BBA
degree in business, Woolsey began working
in Decca Records’ promotion department.
He spent time working at several labels
before relocating to Nashville in 1973, when
he began serving as the head of promotions
for ABC Records’ newly-launched country
division. There, he helped guide the careers
of Johnny Rodriguez, Jimmy Buett, Billy
“Crash” Craddock, Donna Fargo, Freddy
Fender and the Amazing Rhythm Aces.
Simultaneously, Woolsey and his then-
wife Connie owned the San Marcos, Tex.,
club The Prairie Rose, where Woolsey first
saw and became acquainted with Strait.
He immediately recognized Strait’s talent
and booked him at the venue as a regular
performer.
Woolsey followed his success at ABC
Records with an unprecedented run at MCA
during the 1980s, bringing radio success
for artists including Barbara Mandrell,
Don Williams, Loretta Lynn, Tanya Tucker,
Conway Twitty and the Oak Ridge Boys, all
of whom would become members of the
Country Music Hall of Fame.
In 1981, following the success of the John
Travolta film Urban Cowboy and on the cusp
of a new traditionalist movement, Woolsey
convinced MCA Records head Jim Fogel-
song to sign Strait to the label, where Strait
remains to this day. On MCA, Strait released
his debut single, “Unwound,” which had
an undercurrent of Texas swing; the song
reached No. 6 on Billboard’s Hot Country
Songs chart and launched Strait’s jugger-
naut career. In 1984, Woolsey left MCA and
devoted himself to managing Strait’s career
full-time.
Since then, Strait has earned enter-
tainer of the year accolades spanning four
decades and won a Grammy. Strait and
Woolsey broke ground with the 1992 Jerry
Weintraub-produced film Pure Country,
as well as the stadium-sized George Strait
Country Festival Tours, which began in 1995
and featured artists including Alan Jackson,
The Chicks, Tim McGraw, Faith Hill, Kenny
Chesney, Womack and Western swing band
Asleep at the Wheel.
Though Strait has retired from traditional
touring, he still plays a handful of stadium
dates each year, most recently sharing his
stage and audience with Chris Stapleton and
Little Big Town.
Along the way, Woolsey also found suc-
cess as a songwriter, co-writing “In Too
Deep” on Strait’s 1985 project Something
Special, as well as the Hot Country Songs
chart-topper “I Can Still Make Cheyenne,”
which earned a BMI Million-Air award
for garnering more than 1 million spins on
terrestrial radio. Woolsey also developed a
series of clubs and bars, including open-
ing Nashville clubs The Trap with business
partner Steve Ford and the Music Row-area
mainstay Losers, which was designed as a
hole-in-the-wall establishment for publish-
Page 14 of 26
IN BRIEF
Page 15 of 26
ers, producers and songwriters. Losers’ suc-
cess led to Winners right next door, as well
as the Dawg House. Woolsey also served on
the Country Music Association’s board of
directors as well as the board of directors
for the Tennessee Museum of History.
Late into his career, Woolsey continued
his passion for developing new talent, sign-
ing artists including Ian Munsick, Davisson
Brothers Band, Kylie Frey, Triston Marez,
Nick Davisson, Zach Neil, Stone Senate and
Vince Herman over just the past few years.
A longtime fan and passionate member of
the horse racing community, Woolsey is a
lifetime member of the Texas Thoroughbred
Association and was a regular at Kentucky’s
Churchill Downs and Keeneland, including
Super Stock’s run in the Kentucky Derby
Grade 1 in 2021 and Jordan’s Henny in the
Kentucky Oaks Grade 1 in 2017.
Universal Music Group Nashville Chair/
CEO Cindy Mabe told Billboard in a state-
ment, “Erv Woolsey was a really special
human. God broke the mold with this
character who is as much a part of the fabric
of country music as George Strait. He was
a legendary manager, a promotion man
at heart, and an entrepreneur who loved
music and built his career and businesses
around serving the creative community and
enjoying life, a good laugh, horse races, and
country music. I am honored to have known
this iconic country music hero and benefit
from so many of the decisions and deals he
brokered on behalf of both MCA Nashville
and country music in general. He will be
sorely missed.”
“Without the savvy and determination of
Erv Woolsey, we may never have heard of
George Strait,”said Kyle Young, CEO of the
Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum,
in a statement. He added,“When execs
urged Strait to change his image and his
sound, Erv as his manager backed Strait’s
determination to stay true to himself. You
know the rest. Strait became a superstar
who filled stadiums, and together Strait
and Erv helped lead country music back to
its traditions. All of us owe Erv Woolsey an
enormous debt of gratitude for leading with
his convictions and always supporting art-
ists and new talent.”
Woolsey is survived by his son Clint, ex-
wife Connie, brother David and sister Beth.
He was preceded in death by his parents,
John and Mavis Woolsey, and brother
Johnny Woolsey.
Details on funeral arrangements will be
shared at a future date.
Coachella 2024
Adds New Dance
Stage With Major
Lineup Additions
Including Diplo &
Rüfüs du Sol
BY KATIE BAIN
Coachella’s already extensive
dance oerings are expanding
with this week’s announcement of
a new festival stage dedicated to
the genre.
Called Quasar, the stage will feature
extended sets that run three to four hours,
with Coachella producer Goldenvoice an-
nouncing dierent lineups for both week-
ends of the fest. Weekend one will feature
Honey Dijon playing b2b with Green Velvet,
the first U.S. show from Michael Bibi since
he announced he was in remission from
cancer, and Jamie xx playing b3b with Float-
ing Points and Daphni. All of these artists
are new additions to the lineup.
For weekend two, Quasar will feature a
DJ set by Rüfüs du Sol, Eric Prydz playing
b2b with Anyma and Diplo playing b2b with
Dutch wunkderkind Mau P. Minus Anyma
(also known as Matteo Milleri, who is one
half of Tale of Us), all of these artists are also
new to the 2024 lineup.
There’s also evidence that more artists
will join the bill. On the lineup announce-
ment on Instagram, Los Angeles-based DJ
Heidi Lawden commented “one female yay!”
in regard to the lineup being almost entirely
men. In response, Kobi Danan — whose
company Framework curates Coachella’s
Yuma stage - - wrote “not done yet!”
A rendering of the stage reveals it to be
a massive area with a futuristic design. A
video shared to Instagram by Coachella
outlines specs for the stage, which Gold-
envoice’s Executive Vice President Jenn
Yacoubian calls “a stage where we can
book talent on it in a way that we’ve felt we
haven’t been able to in the past. We’re look
at it as a traditional kind of DJ stage. The
thinking was that we wanted people to see a
longer format DJ set.”
Designed by VITA MOTUS, a longtime
Coachella stage designer, Quasar will be as-
sembled from two massive LED walls with
the artists in the middle.
This is the first time that Coachella has
debuted a new stage dedicated to dance
music since Yuma launched at the event in
2013. Launched during the EDM explosion
and designed to showcase more “under-
ground” dance music, Yuma has grown
substantially over the years in tandem with
house and techno’s rise in popularity in the
U.S. According to Yacoubian, Quasar will
occupy a space on the festival site formerly
occupied by the Sahara tent, with that tent
moving elsewhere.
Dance music is otherwise spread across
nearly all the Coachella stages, typically ap-
pearing on the festival’s second biggest area,
the Outdoor Stage, the occasional mainstage
performance (including Calvin Harris and
Swedish House Mafia during the past two
years), along with Yuma, Sahara, the Do Lab
area and often in the Gobi and Mojave tents
as well.
Pill Testing
Is Coming to
Australian Music
Festivals
BY LARS BRANDLE
Next month’s Rabbit Eats Lettuce
festival will etch its name in the
history books as the first event in
an Australian state to oer pill-
testing services.
IN BRIEF
Page 16 of 26
Set for the Easter long weekend, from
March 28-April 1, the electronic and dance-
specialist fest is at home near Warwick in
the south-east corridor of Queensland — the
first Australian state or territory to com-
mit to supporting pill testing on an ongoing
basis.
Partygoers will have access to free, vol-
untary, and confidential pill testing by an
“appropriately qualified chemist,” reads a
statement from state government, which is
tipping in nearly A$1 million ($660,000) in
investment over two years.
“I am thrilled to be supporting new and
innovative services to help reduce harms
from illicit drug use,” comments minister for
health, mental health and ambulance service
Shannon Fentiman.
These services, Fentiman continues, “are
all about harm minimization; we don’t want
people ending up in our emergency depart-
ments - or worse losing their life.”
According to figures published by
Queensland government, 2,231 drug-in-
duced deaths were reported in Australia in
2021– the equivalent of five deaths each day.
“That’s 2,231 deaths too many,” Fentiman
continues, “and we know this number will
continue to grow if we don’t act now.”
In 2019, two people died after consuming
drugs at Rabbit Eats Lettuce.
Harm Reduction Australia is contracted
to deliver “several” festival-based services
in 2024 and 2025 following an open market
tender process. The state government has
also engaged the University of Queensland
to conduct an evaluation of the services and
to develop a statewide monitoring process.
Also, through a healthcare partnership,
fixed-site services will operate at two loca-
tions in south-east Queensland, including
one in Bowen Hills, central Brisbane, and “at
least one festival-based service” in 2024.
It’s a “step in the right direction in
reducing drug-related harm,” Rabbits Eat
Lettuce festival organizer Eric Lamir tells
the Australian Broadcasting Corporation,
and, through the process, police have been
“extremely supportive” in preparing for
the gathering. Data captured from chemi-
cal tests will be shared with the festival’s
medical sta, which “means our paramedics
and doctors will be able to have up-to-date
data on what drugs might be circulating at
the event.”
The public debate on pill testing in Aus-
tralia has rumbled on for years, and entered
a trial phase for the first time at the Groovin
the Moo festival in the Australian Capital
Territory in April 2018, where two poten-
tially deadly samples were identified and
half the drugs tested were found to contain
no psychoactive substances.
O the back of that trial and others in
Canberra, Queensland developed testing
protocols, and gave the green light for chem-
ically-checking drugs in February 2023.
With pill testing services rolling out prop-
er at the 15th edition of Rabbits Eat Lettuce,
an “important milestone” is notched “in the
ongoing eorts of Queensland to reduce
drug related harms,” comments a spokesper-
son for Pill Testing Australia, “and we know
the patrons of the festival and their families
and friends will greatly appreciate the avail-
ability of this vital public health service.”
Read more here.
Djo Back at
No. 1 on TikTok
Billboard Top 50,
Dasha Reaches
Top 10
BY KEVIN RUTHERFORD
Djo takes “End of Beginning” back
to No. 1 on the TikTok Billboard
Top 50 chart, jumping 3-1 on the
March 23-dated tally.
The TikTok Billboard Top 50 is a weekly
ranking of the most popular songs on Tik-
Tok in the United States based on creations,
video views and user engagement. The latest
chart reflects activity March 11-17. Activity
on TikTok is not included in Billboard charts
except for the TikTok Billboard Top 50. As
previously noted, titles that are part of Uni-
versal Music Group’s catalog are currently
unavailable on TikTok.
“End of Beginning” previously reached
No. 1 on the TikTok Billboard Top 50 list
dated March 2, becoming the first Billboard
ruler for Djo (real name Joe Keery, also well
known as an actor in Stranger Things, Fargo
and more).
Its return to No. 1 coincides with its
rise to the top of Billboard’s Alternative
Streaming Songs ranking. The tune racked
up 16.7 million ocial U.S. streams March
8-14, a jump of 21%, according to Luminate.
It also achieves a new peak of No. 21 on the
multi-metric, all-genre Billboard Hot 100.
Trends utilizing the “End of Beginning”
sound are paced by the “If I won the lottery”
theme, which helped the song rise to No. 1
on its initial ascent and continues well into
March.
Unlike the March 16-dated TikTok
Billboard Top 50, in which the top five re-
mained completely static from the previous
frame, the chart’s upper reaches experi-
ences some shakeup below Djo, as Benson
Boone’s “Beautiful Things” leaps 11-2.
It’s a new peak for “Beautiful Things,”
which debuted at No. 6 on the Feb. 10 survey
and has bounced around the top 20 since.
While the song’s initial debut was largely
thanks to being teased on TikTok for weeks
prior to its ocial release (Jan. 18), its latest
jump is via a proliferation of newly released
lip-synching clips featuring the track, con-
current with its rise on the Hot 100, return-
ing to its peak of No. 3 on the March 23 tally.
Ye (formerly known as Kanye West) and
Ty Dolla $ign’s “Carnival,” No. 1 on the Tik-
Tok Billboard Top 50 for the previous two
weeks, falls to No. 3, while Beyonce’s “Texas
Hold ‘Em” returns to the top five, blasting
39-4, and Bobby Caldwell’s previous No.
1 “What You Won’t Do for Love” dips 2-5.
The “Texas Hold ‘Em” dance trend is what
continues to fuel No. 4, with many users
donning cowboy garb as well to celebrate
Beyonce’s country turn. The song had fallen
o the chart briefly due to being removed
from the platform but has since returned.
Dasha’s “Austin” is the only song of the
week to reach the top 10 for the first time,
leaping to No. 6 after debuting at No. 15
March 16. Its ascent gives the chart two
country songs in the top 10 (alongside
“Texas Hold ‘Em”), the first time that’s hap-
pened since the TikTok Billboard Top 50’s
IN BRIEF
Page 17 of 26
September 2023 inception.
Like “Texas Hold ‘Em,” “Austin” ben-
efits from a line dance-inspired trend, with
Dasha herself leading the pack via a variety
of uploads.
“Austin” sports a 65% jump in ocial U.S.
streams to 6.7 million March 8-14, allowing
for Dasha’s first appearance on the Hot 100
at No. 74, as previously reported.
The top debut of the week on the TikTok
Billboard Top 50 belongs to Don Toliver,
whose “Bandit” premieres at No. 14. “Ban-
dit” was initially released Feb. 1 and has
sported a swift rise on TikTok following its
use in multiple viral clips over the past few
weeks.
Finally, as a potential precursor to future
rankings, Sexyy Red’s “Get It Sexyy” and
Cardi B’s “Enough (Miami)” start at Nos. 44
and 45, respectively, following their ocial
releases March 15, meaning the tracks bow
despite having just three days of tracking
with the ocial sound (the TikTok Bill-
board Top 50 runs on a Monday-Sunday
tracking period).
See the full TikTok Billboard Top 50
here. You can also tune in each Friday to
SiriusXM’s TikTok Radio (channel 4) to
hear the premiere of the chart’s top 10
countdown at 3 p.m. ET, with reruns heard
throughout the week.
Norah Jones’
‘Visions’ Debuts
Top 10 on Album
Sales, No. 1 on
Jazz Charts
BY KEITH CAULFIELD
Norah Jones’ Visions bows at No.
9 on Billboard’s Top Album Sales
chart (dated March 23) and at
No. 1 on both the overall Jazz
Albums and Contemporary Jazz Albums
rankings. It’s the eighth top 10 on the Album
Sales tally for Jones, and her fourth leader
on both Jazz Albums and Contemporary
Jazz Albums.
Visions also enters at No. 40 on the Top
Rock & Alternative Albums chart, her first
debut on the list since Dec. 2013, when For-
everly, her collaborative album with Billie
Joe Armstrong, opened at No. 7 on its way to
a No. 4 peak in Jan. 2014.
Visions was preceded by the radio-pro-
moted single “Running,” which has so-far
peaked at No. 7 on the Adult Alternative
Airplay chart – marking her eighth top 10
and highest-charting song on the list in over
a decade, since “Happy Pills” hit No. 4 in
2012.
Also in the top 10 of the new Top Album
Sales chart: the latest releases from Ariana
Grande, Judas Priest, xikers and Bleachers
arrive.
Billboard’s Top Album Sales chart
ranks the top-selling albums of the week
based only on traditional album sales. The
chart’s history dates back to May 25, 1991,
the first week Billboard began tabulating
charts with electronically monitored piece
count information from SoundScan, now
Luminate. Pure album sales were the sole
measurement utilized by the Billboard 200
albums chart through the list dated Dec. 6,
2014, after which that chart switched to a
methodology that blends album sales with
track equivalent album units and streaming
equivalent album units. For all chart news,
follow @billboard and @billboardcharts on
both Twitter and Instagram.
In the tracking week ending March 14
(which is reflected on the March 23-dated
Top Album Sales chart), Visions sold 7,000
copies in the U.S., according to Luminate.
Of that sum, physical sales comprise 5,500
(3,500 on CD and 2,000 on vinyl) and digital
download sales comprise 1,500. The album
was available in four vinyl variants (includ-
ing exclusive iterations for Barnes & Noble,
indie retailers and Spotify), a standard CD,
a Target-exclusive CD (with a bonus track
and a poster) and a signed CD (available in
Jones’ webstore).
At No. 1 on Top Album Sales, Ariana
Grande’s Eternal Sunshine starts with
77,000 copies sold – earning Grande her
sixth chart-topper. The set was available
in a dozen physical configurations and two
digital download oerings.
Veteran rock band Judas Priest starts at
No. 2 with Invincible Shield (23,000 sold),
scoring the group its third top 10-chart-
ing set on Top Album Sales. (The list began
in 1991, well after Judas Priest began its
overall Billboard chart career in 1978 on
the Billboard 200 with Stained Class.) The
new album’s first-week sales were bolstered
by its availability across six vinyl variants,
a standard CD and a Target-exclusive CD
with a lenticular cover.
South Korean pop group xikers nabs its
highest-charting eort on Top Album Sales,
and second top 10-charting set, as House
of Tricky: Trial and Error debuts at No. 3
with 12,500 copies sold (the act’s best sales
week). The set’s sales were almost entirely
from CDs, with a minimal number of sales
from digital downloads. The album was
issued in 10 collectible CD editions, all in-
cluding branded paper merchandise (some
randomized).
TWICE’s With YOU-th falls 1-4 in its third
week on the chart, selling 10,500 copies
(down 37%).
Bleachers’ new self-titled album opens at
No. 5 with 9,500 copies sold. It’s the second
top 10-charting eort the for the act, led by
Jack Antono. The album was available in a
standard 14-track edition on digital down-
load, CD and cassette. It was also available
on 10 vinyl editions, all boasting bonus
tracks and most pressed on colored vinyl.
Rounding out the rest of the top 10 on the
new Top Album Sales chart: Taylor Swift’s
chart-topping 1989 (Taylor’s Version) falls
3-6 (9,000; up 2%), Swift’s former leader
Lover is steady at No. 7 (8,000; up 8%), LE
SSERAFIM’s Easy falls 2-8 (7,000; down
30%) and Swift’s chart-topping Folklore dips
8-10 (6,000; up 4%).
In the week ending March 14, there
were 1.196 million albums sold in the U.S.
(up 3.7% compared to the previous week).
Of that sum, physical albums (CDs, vinyl
LPs, cassettes, etc.) comprised 909,000 (up
7%) and digital albums comprised 287,000
(down 5.5%).
There were 474,000 CD albums sold in
the week ending March 14 (up 7.3% week-
over-week) and 430,000 vinyl albums sold
(up 6.7%). Year-to-date CD album sales
stand at 4.792 million (down 30.8% com-
IN BRIEF
Page 18 of 26
pared to the same time frame a year ago)
and year-to-date vinyl album sales total
5.031 million (down 48%).
Overall year-to-date album sales total
13.132 million (down 36.3% compared to the
same year-to-date time frame a year ago).
Year-to-date physical album sales stand at
9.872 million (down 40.9%) and digital album
sales total 3.260 million (down 16.5%).
Ariana Grande
Rules Hot 100
Songwriters &
Producers Charts
for First Time
BY XANDER ZELLNER
Ariana Grande is having a mas-
sive week on Billboard’s charts.
Along with claiming the No. 1
album on the Billboard 200, the
No. 1 song on the Billboard Hot 100 and
reigning as the No. 1 act on the Billboard
Artist 100, she also rules the Hot 100 Song-
writers and Hot 100 Producers charts for
the first time.
As such, Grande becomes just the fourth
artist to top all five of those surveys simul-
taneously, a feat achieved just 10 times since
Billboard launched the songwriter and pro-
ducer charts in 2019. Here’s a look at every
such week.
Chart Date, Artist, Billboard 200 No. 1
album, Hot 100 No. 1 song
March 23, 2024: Ariana Grande, Eternal
Sunshine, “We Can’t Be Friends (Wait for
Your Love)”
Nov. 18, 2023: Taylor Swift, 1989 (Taylor’s
Version), “Cruel Summer”
Nov. 11, 2023: Taylor Swift, 1989 (Taylor’s
Version), “Is It Over Now? (Taylor’s Version)
[From the Vault]”
Sept. 9, 2023: Zach Bryan, Zach Bryan, “I
Remember Everything” ft. Kacey Musgraves
Dec. 3, 2022: Taylor Swift, Midnights, “Anti-
Hero”
Nov. 26, 2022: Taylor Swift, Midnights,
“Anti-Hero”
Nov. 12, 2022: Taylor Swift, Midnights, “Anti-
Hero”
Nov. 5, 2022: Taylor Swift, Midnights, “Anti-
Hero”
Nov. 27, 2021: Taylor Swift, Red (Taylor’s
Version), “All Too Well (Taylor’s Version)”
April 4, 2020: The Weeknd, After Hours,
“Blinding Lights”
Taylor Swift has led all five charts simul-
taneously a record seven times, and via three
albums: Red (Taylor’s Version), Midnights
and 1989 (Taylor’s Version). The Weeknd
and Zach Bryan have both achieved the feat
once, thanks to their LPs After Hours and
Zach Bryan, respectively.
Grande tops the latest Hot 100 Songwrit-
ers and Hot 100 Producers charts thanks to
her credits on all 12 of her charting songs
on the Hot 100, all from Eternal Sunshine.
Notably, she’s the only co-songwriter and
co-producer on all 12 songs. Here’s a recap.
Rank, Title
No. 1, “We Can’t Be Friends (Wait for Your
Love)”
No. 10, “Yes, And?” (up from No. 31; debuted
at No. 1 on Jan. 27)
No. 16, “The Boy Is Mine”
No. 17, “Supernatural”
No. 23, “Eternal Sunshine”
No. 25, “Bye”
No. 28, “Don’t Wanna Break Up Again”
No. 30, “True Story”
No. 37, “Imperfect for You”
No. 38, “Intro (End of the World)”
No. 39, “I Wish I Hated You”
No. 55, “Ordinary Things,” feat. Nonna
Eternal Sunshine is Grande’s first album
cycle in which she’s credited as a co-produc-
er. She logged her first career Hot 100 entry
as a credited producer on “Yes, And?,” with
Max Martin and ILYA. Of the 12 charting
songs from the set, Martin is a co-producer
on all but “Intro (End of the World)” and “I
Wish I Hated You.” ILYA co-produced all
except “Intro,” “Supernatural” and “Ordi-
nary Things.” Martin and ILYA rank at Nos.
2 and 3, respectively, on Hot 100 Producers.
Martin has an unprecedented history on
Billboard’s charts, having produced a record
25 No. 1 songs on the Hot 100. He tallied his
record-breaking 24th leader in January with
“Yes, And?” (passing late Beatles master-
mind George Martin). He tallies his 25th
with “We Can’t Be Friends (Wait for Your
Love).”
As for ILYA, 26 of Grande’s Hot
100-charting entries have been produced or
co-produced by the hitmaker, including her
two most recent No. 1s, as well as her first
top five hit, “Problem,” featuring Iggy Aza-
lea, in 2014. He also co-produced Sam Smith
and Kim Petras’ 2022 No. 1 “Unholy,” along
with songs by Justin Bieber, Jonas Brothers,
Lizzo and Normani.
Billboard’s weekly Hot 100 Songwriters
and Hot 100 Producers charts are based on
total points accrued by a songwriter and
producer, respectively, for each attributed
song that appears on the Hot 100. As with
Billboard’s yearly recaps, multiple writers or
producers split points for each song equally
(and the dividing of points will lead to occa-
sional ties on rankings). Billboard launched
its Hot 100 Songwriters and Hot 100 Pro-
ducers charts, as well as genre-specific rank-
ings for country, rock & alternative, R&B/
hip-hop, R&B, rap, Latin, Christian, gospel
and dance/electronic in June 2019. Alter-
native and hard rock joined in 2020, along
with seasonal holiday rankings in 2022.
Milwaukee’s
2024 Summerfest
Lineup Features
Headliners Kane
Brown, Motley
Crue, Illenium,
Keith Urban &
More
BY GIL KAUFMAN
One of summer’s biggest blow-
outs, Milwaukee’s annual multi-
weekend Summerfest festival,
announced the full lineup for
the 2024 edition on Thursday (March 21).
IN BRIEF
Page 19 of 26
As always, it is packed with some of the best,
biggest and brightest pop, rock, country,
hip-hop and EDM acts, including headlin-
ers Kane Brown (with Kameron Marlowe
and Nightly) and Mötley Crüe (with Seether
and Buckcherry) on the first weekend (June
20-22).
That inaugural weekend will also feature
performances from: Goo Goo Dolls, Toosi,
Black Pumas, Chelsea Cutler, Taking Back
Sunday, David Kushner, Brittany Howard,
O.A.R., Umphreys McGee, En Vogue, Gin
Blossoms,Dawes, The War & Treaty, Allen
Stone and many more.
The second weekend (July 27-29) will be
topped by Illenium, Tyler Childers (with
S.G. Goodman and Adeem the Artist) and
Keith Urban (with NEEDTOBREATHE and
Alana Springsteen), with additional sets
from Muna, Jessie Murph, Allison Wonder-
land, Key Glock, Hippo Campus, Fletcher,
REO Speedwagon, Sleater-Kinney, the Hold
Steady, Mario, Metric, Briston Maroney, The
Church, Ethel Cain, Brent Cobb, the Dandy
Warhols and more.
The final weekend (July 4-6) will feature
AJR (with Carly Rae Jepsen and mxmton)
as headliner, along with Maroon 5 and Lil
Uzi Vert (with Lil Yachty, JID, Rico Nasty
and LIHTZ), as well as Ivan Cornejo, Bryson
Tiller, Mt. Joy, Lil Tecca, Chase Rice, Local
Natives, Cold War Kids, Mariah the Scien-
tist, JXDN, Coin, Extreme, Del Water Gap,
Nikki Lane and Cimafunk, among others.
“Our 2024 lineup embodies the essence of
what makes Summerfest so special. With a
curated selection of artists spanning genres
and styles, the festival reflects the vibrancy
of today’s music scene,” said Milwaukee
World Festival Inc. president/CEO Sarah
Pancheri in a statement. “With 600 artists at
a 75-acre permanent festival park, Summer-
fest creates a one-of-a-kind environment
that our fans look forward to every sum-
mer.”
Tickets for Summerfest are on sale now
here, with single-day GA starting at $28; a
UScellular Power Pass is available for $65
for a limited time (now through March 28 at
11:59 p.m. ET), which includes admission to
all 9 days of the festival.
See the full 2024 Milwaukee Summerfest
lineup poster here.
Judas Priest’s
‘Invincible Shield’
Reigns on Top
Hard Rock Albums
Chart
BY KEVIN RUTHERFORD
Judas Priest lands its third No. 1 on
Billboard’s Top Hard Rock Albums
chart, as Invincible Shield starts atop
the ranking dated March 23.
Invincible Shield bows with 25,000
equivalent album units earned March 8-14 in
the U.S., according to Luminate. Of that sum,
23,000 units are via album sales.
It’s the first new No. 1 on Top Hard Rock
Albums in 2024; every week since the Nov.
4, 2023, list, the survey had been ruled by
Queen’s Greatest Hits (as part of its 160-
week run atop the ranking in all). The last
new ruler had been Beartooth’s The Sur-
face, which premiered at No. 1 on the Oct.
28, 2023, chart.
Judas Priest’s previous leaders on Top
Hard Rock Albums, which began in 2007,
are 2014’s Redeemer of Souls and 2018’s
Firepower.
Concurrently, Invincible Shield starts at
No. 6 on Top Rock & Alternative Albums
and at No. 4 on Top Rock Albums. On the
all-format Billboard 200, it begins at No. 18,
the 13th top 40 for the veteran rockers; they
first reached that area when British Steel
peaked at No. 34 in 1980.
The lead single from Invincible Shield is
“Crown of Horns,” which jumps 34-28 on
Mainstream Rock Airplay. It’s the band’s
first airplay appearance since “Lightning
Strike” peaked at No. 21 on Mainstream
Rock Airplay in 2018.
Its title track, “Invincible Shield,” also
premieres on the multi-metric Hot Hard
Rock Songs chart, Judas Priest’s first entry
(it debuted in 2020), at No. 16. It earned
621,000 ocial U.S. streams.
Tenacious D’s
Britney Spears
Cover Tops Rock
Digital Song Sales
Chart
BY KEVIN RUTHERFORD
Tenacious D’s version of Britney
Spears’ “…Baby One More Time”
is No. 1 on a Billboard chart.
The rendition, recorded for Te-
nacious D member Jack Black’s new movie
Kung Fu Panda 4, starts at No. 1 on the Rock
Digital Song Sales survey dated March 23.
The act’s “…Baby One More Time” reigns
with 4,000 downloads sold in the U.S.
March 8-14, its first week of release, accord-
ing to Luminate.
Tenacious D notches its first No. 1 on
Rock Digital Song Sales, which began in
2010. In fact, it becomes the duo of Jack
Black and Kyle Gass’ first No. 1 on any Bill-
board songs chart, with the pair’s previous
commands logged on album surveys – in-
cluding two leaders on Top Rock & Alterna-
tive Albums in 2006’s The Pick of Destiny
and 2012’s Rize of the Fenix.
“…Baby One More Time” is also the
tandem’s first top 10 on the all-format
Digital Song Sales chart, debuting at No. 9,
exceeding the No. 36-peaking “The Pick of
Destiny” in 2006.
On the multimetric Hot Rock & Alterna-
tive Songs chart, “…Baby One More Time”
enters at No. 26. In addition to its sales, it
earned 2.5 million ocial U.S. streams and
84,000 radio audience impressions.
Tenacious D charts its second entry on
the ranking, after another cover, of Lana Del
Rey’s “Video Games,” hit No. 27 last year.
Spears’ original earned its own bump in
consumption from the cover, rising 11% to
1.7 million streams March 8-14. The classic
became Spears’ breakout hit (and Max Mar-
tin’s, as a writer and producer), ruling the
Billboard Hot 100 for two weeks beginning
in January 1999.
IN BRIEF
Page 20 of 26
Tenacious D’s version is heard in the
credits of Kung Fu Panda 4, which pre-
miered March 8 and stars Black as main
character panda Po.
MC Lyte to Be
Honored at
Inaugural SEED
Summit + Awards
BY GAIL MITCHELL
MC Lyte is among the honor-
ees who will be saluted at
the SEED Summit + Awards.
Founded by industry veteran
Valeisha Butterfield, the inaugural event
will take place March 22-24 at the 1 Hotel in
Los Angeles.
Also being honored alongside rap legend
Lyte will be Massah David and Miatta
Johnson, founders of the creative agency
MVD Inc., and financial expert-coach Dr.
Lynn Richardson. The award ceremony
will take place on the evening of March 23.
Among the creators, executives and
artists participating in the SEED Summit
earlier that day will be songwriter-producer
Bryan-Michael Cox, singers Melanie
Fiona and Estelle, 11th& Co chairman/CEO
Ebonie Ward, Kickstarter CEO Everette
Taylor, Franklin Entertainment’s DeVon
Franklin and Reign Ventures’ Monique
Ludlett. The summit will conclude on
March 24 with the SEED Retreat, a full day
devoted to wellness of the mind, body and
soul.
Butterfield conceived of SEED, an organi-
zation and multimedia platform, during the
COVID-19 pandemic in 2020. What began as
a series of masterclasses to inspire creators,
executives and performers, SEED has since
expanded beyond the summit and awards
to include the SEED Book Club, which pro-
duces best-selling books for television and
film adaptation through SEED Entertain-
ment, and SEED Wellbeing.
“The power of storytelling transforms
lives and as we celebrate this tremendous
milestone with our inaugural SEED Summit
+ Awards, the culture stands together for the
launch of SEED,” said Butterfield in a state-
ment. “Illuminating the most iconic stories
and people of our generation is our mission
as we plant seeds into the next generation of
creators, storytellers, leaders and profes-
sionals following in our footsteps.”
Butterfield separately serves as vp of
partnerships and engagement at Google. She
also chairs the Recording Academy’s Black
Music Collective and is the former co-presi-
dent of the Grammys’ parent organization.
In a joint statement, honorees MC Lyte
and Dr. Lynn Richardson commented,
“Valeisha’s entire life and career have been
dedicated to elevating the culture, so to be
recognized with this inaugural award, we’re
humbled and grateful. We commit to con-
tinuing to plant seeds into the next genera-
tion of creators and artists.”
Added Luckett, “I’m delighted to be a part
of this year’s SEED summit. Valeisha always
does a wonderful job of curating a safe space
for us to share our experiences and empow-
er one another.”
Partners in the SEED Summit + Awards
include Pronghorn, iBest WinesandThe
Chris Paul Family Foundation. The event
will be hosted by media personalitiesAle-
sha Reneé and Gia Peppers.
For more information about the SEED
Summit + Awards, visit the SEED website.
Beyoncé to
Receive Innovator
Award at 2024
iHeartRadio Music
Awards
BY RANIA ANIFTOS
All hail, Queen Bey.
iHeartMedia and FOX Enter-
tainmentannounced on Thurs-
day (March 21) that Beyoncé
will be honored with the Innovator Award
at the 2024 iHeartRadio Music Awards. Pre-
vious honorees include Taylor Swift, Alicia
Keys, Chance the Rapper, Bruno Mars, U2
and more.
The iHeartRadio Music Awards, which
will take place on April 1 at Los Angeles’
Dolby Theatre, will come just a few days
after Bey unveils her upcoming album — and
the second act of her 2022 albumRenais-
sance— Cowboy Carter,on March 29. The
project features the previously released “16
Carriages” and the historic Hot Country
Songs chart-topper “Texas Hold ‘Em.”
Additionally, Ludacris will be hosting
the 2024 iHeartRadio Music Awards, and
performing at the show. He joins previously
announced performers Justin Timberlake,
Green Day, TLC, Jelly Roll, Lainey Wilson,
Tate McRaeand more plus a special musical
tribute to this year’s Icon Award recipi-
ent Cher. “I’m looking forward to hosting
the 2024 iHeartRadio Music Awards and
sharing the stage with some of the best in
music,” said Ludacris in a press statement.
“It will be an amazing night celebrating fan-
favorite artists with special performances
that fans won’t want to miss.”
The 11th annual iHeartRadio Music
Awards will celebrate the most-played art-
ists and songs on iHeartRadio stations and
the iHeartRadio app throughout the past
yer. The event will air live on Monday, April
1 (8:00-10:00 p.m. ET live / PT tape-de-
layed) on FOX. The show also will be heard
on iHeartMedia radio stations nationwide
and on the iHeartRadio app.
Creepy Nuts’
‘Bling-Bang-Bang-
Born’ at No. 1 for
8th Straight Week
on Japan Hot 100
BY RANIA ANIFTOS
Creepy Nuts’ “Bling-Bang-Bang-
Born” tops the Billboard Japan
Hot 100 again this week on the
chart dated March 20.
IN BRIEF
Page 21 of 26
Now in its eighth straight week atop the
Japan song chart, the MASHLE season 2
opener has surpassed Gen Hoshino’s “Koi”
and is tied with Ocial HIGE DANdism’s
“Subtitle” for consecutive weeks at No. 1.
(The current record for the longest consecu-
tive stay atop the Japan Hot 100 is 21 weeks,
held by YOASOBI’s “Idol.”)
On the chart tallying the week ending
March 17, “BBBB” returns to No. 1 for down-
loads with 21,307 units (though down by
about 4.4%) and continues to rule streaming
with 24,945,758 weekly streams (up 17%).
The rap banger also rises to No. 1 for video
views by a margin of more than 6.4 times
over the song at No. 2 (12,089,850 views)
and moves 2-1 for karaoke, dominating four
metrics of the chart’s methodology this
week. Creepy Nuts dropped the CD version
of the song on Wednesday (March 20) and is
set to kick o its nationwide tour on Friday
(March 22), and it doesn’t look like the duo’s
biggest hit to date will be slowing down
anytime soon.
AKB48’s “Karakon Wink” debuts at No. 2
this week. The 63rd single by the long-run-
ning girl group is o to a great start, launch-
ing with 463,564 copies to top sales. The
song celebrates the “graduation” of member
Yuki Kashiwagi, who will be leaving after 17
years of being one of the most beloved and
well known members of the group in its 19th
year.
Number_i’s “GOAT” stays in the top 10 at
No. 5 this week, selling 19,459 copies in its
second week of CD release to surpass 500k
copies total. The track is at No. 2 for sales,
No. 11 for downloads (3,926 units), No. 36
for streaming (3,109,214 streams), No. 8 for
video views (1,151,338 views) and holds at
No. 1 for radio airplay.
Fujii Kaze’s “Michi Teyu Ku (Overflow-
ing)” debuts at No. 8 after dropping March
15. The 26-year-old singer-songwriter
performed his latest single, written for the
Japanese movie April Come She Will, on the
premiere episode of NHK’s tiny desk con-
certs JAPAN series broadcast on March 16.
In its first week, the track reached No. 3 for
downloads (11,394 units), No. 20 for stream-
ing (4,067,422 streams), No. 7 for video
(1,208,331 views), and No. 12 for radio.
The Billboard Japan Hot 100 combines
physical and digital sales, audio streams,
radio airplay, video views and karaoke data.
See the full Billboard Japan Hot 100 chart,
tallying the week from March 11 to 17, here.
For more on Japanese music and charts,
visit Billboard Japan’s English Twitter
account.
Beyonce’s
‘Cowboy Carter’
Ads Appear on
NYC Museums
BY GIL KAUFMAN
This ain’t Texas, but New York City
is gearing up for Beyoncé’s Cow-
boy Carter release.
A number of major NYC art
museums were seen with a display pro-
jected onto the front that reads, “This ain’t
a country album. This is a ‘Beyoncé’ album,”
as shared in photos posted by ARTnews.
Among the museums with the projected ad
include the Guggenheim Museum, Whitney
Museum, New Museum and Museum of
Arts and Design. Bey also posted a photo of
the Guggenheim’s coordinates to her Insta-
gram Story on Wednesday night (March 20).
However, in a statement to ARTNews, the
Guggenheim “was not informed about and
did not authorize this activation. However,
we invite the public—includingBeyoncé and
her devoted fans—to visit the museumMay
16–20 when we present projections by artist
Jenny Holzer on the facade of our iconic
building to celebrate the opening of her
major exhibition.”
The Whitney also noted to Billboard, “We
wish Beyoncé well with her album, and look
forward to seeing her at the Whitney Bien-
nial soon.”
The Museum of Arts and Design mir-
rored the statement, sharing with Billboard,
“While the Museum of Arts and Design
(MAD) was not involved in the activation,
we are thrilled to see Beyoncé shining a
light on the importance of museums in the
cultural landscape. Her influence undoubt-
edly opens doors for even more peopleto
explore and appreciate Blackcreativity,
such as pioneering textile artist Sonya Clark,
whose comprehensive survey, ‘Sonya Clark:
We Are Other,’ opens this weekend at MAD.”
Billboard has reached out to Beyoncé’s
team for more information.
Earlier this week, Bey shared the of-
ficial album cover for Cowboy Carter,
which is set to arrive on March 29. A clear
continuation of her 2022 albumRenais-
sance’saesthetic, the album cover forCow-
boy Carterfinds Queen Bey striking a pose
while perched atop a white horse. She dons
red, white and blue chaps, a simple white
cowboy hat and platinum blonde hair as she
raises the American flag.
“This album has been over five years in
the making. It was born out of an experi-
ence that I had years ago where I did not
feel welcomed…and it was very clear that
I wasn’t,” she wrote in her post, possibly
alluding to her experience performing
the country-indebted “Daddy Lessons”
at the2016 CMA Awardsalongside The
Chicks. “But, because of that experience, I
did a deeper dive into the history of Country
music and studied our rich musical archive.
It feels good to see how music can unite
so many people around the world, while
also amplifying the voices of some of the
people who have dedicated so much of
their lives educating on our musical his-
tory.”Billboardreached out to the Country
Music Association, who had no comment on
Beyoncé’s March 19 Instagram post.
In her message, Beyoncé both stressed
thatCowboy Carteris “a continuation
ofRenaissance” and acknowledged theBill-
boardchart history she made with “Texas
Hold ‘Em.” “I feel honored to be the first
Black woman with the number one single on
the Hot Country Songs chart,” she shared.
“That would not have happened without
the outpouring of support from each and
every one of you. My hope is that years from
now, the mention of an artist’s race, as it
relates to releasing genres of music, will be
irrelevant.”
IN BRIEF
Page 22 of 26
Quavo Launches
Program to Award
$100,000 for
Gun Violence
Prevention in
Atlanta
BY MICHAEL SAPONARA
Quavo is looking to give back to
his local Atlanta community
through The Rocket Founda-
tion. Huncho announced the
launch of the Spark Grants initiative on
Wednesday (March 20), which will award
10 dierent organizations with $10,000 to
help minimize gun violence and spread
awareness around the ATL.
The grants will be handed out to recipi-
ents on June 18, which is also the birthday of
Quavo’s late nephew and Migos bandmate
Takeo and lands in National Gun Violence
Awareness Month.
Takeo (born Kirshnik Khari Ball), 28,
was shot and killed early in the morning of
Nov. 1, 2022 while attending a private party
with Quavo at 810 Billiards & Bowling in
downtown Houston.
Last year, Quavo headed to Washington,
D.C., to meet with Vice President Kamala
Harris to discuss gun violence and what
could be done to help reduce the amount of
weapons on the streets. Twenty-four hours
later, the White House revealed plans for
the Oce of Gun Violence Prevention.
“I am honored to launch this grant pro-
gram to honor Take and the countless fami-
lies that have been aected by gun violence,”
said Quavo in a statement. “The Rocket
Foundation will be giving out $100,000 in
Spark grants to local organizations dedi-
cated to reducing community violence in
Atlanta.”
He continued: “There is a lot of important
work going on in ATL right now, and part of
our mission is to uplift these organizations
and support them to help save more lives.”
Applications from nonprofit organizations
are due by April 21 and then the $100,000 in
total will be awarded on June 18. The 10th
winner will be selected by the public with
voting taking place on The Rocket Founda-
tion’s website.
Investigators said shots rang out during
the an afterparty attended by several dozen
people, with TakeO pronounced dead at
the scene of what the Harris County coro-
ner’s oce said was “penetrating gunshot
woundsof head and torso into arm.”
Less than a month before TakeO’s
murder, Quavo and Take teamed up to form
the Unc & Phew duo (TakeO is Quavo’s
nephew) and unleash their Only Built For
Infinity Links album. The LP debuted at
No. 7 on the Billboard 200.
IN BRIEF
Page 23 of 26
A WEEKLY NATIONAL
MUSIC CONSUMPTION REPORT
Market Watch
WEEKLY UNIT COUNT
ALBUM CONSUMPTION UNITS BY FORMAT
Album consumption units — also known as albums plus TEA plus SEA — consists of album sales; track-equivalent album (TEA)
sales whereby 10 tracks equal one consumption unit; and stream equivalent albums (SEA) whereby 1,250 paid and/or 3,750
ad-supported audio on-demand streams (OAD) equal one consumption unit.
Source:
m
m
m
m
m
m
m
YEAR TO DATE
Current
Catalog
8,668,000
13,890,000
4,464,000
6,719,000
-.% -.%
YEAR TO DATE
ALBUM SALES BY AGE
2024 2023 Change
CD Sales 4,792,000 ,, -30.8%
Vinyl Sales 5,031,000 ,, -48.0%
Digital Sales 3,260,000 3,904,000 -16.5%
Other Sales 49,000
,
-51.8%
Track Equivalent 2,620,000 2,958,000 -11.4%
Audio On-Demand
Equivalent 201,490,000 186,122,000 8.3%
2024 2023 Change
Total On-Demand
Streams 308,152,435,000 ,,, 4.6%
Audio On-Demand
Streams 275,091,259,000 ,,, 8.1%
Digital Track Sales 26,199,000
,,
-11.4%
Album Sales 13,132,000 20,609,000 -36.3%
Albums
Consumption Units 217,242,000 209,690,000 3.6%
*All data measures U.S. activity as of the week ending Marchg 14, 2024. All units counts are rounded to the nearest thousand.
Total
Streams
Audio
On-Demand
Video
On-Demand
Album
Sales
Vinyl
Album Sales
Digital
Tracks
Albums Consumption
Units
This
Week* 27,993,259,000 ,,, ,,, ,, , ,, 20,323,000
Last
Week 28,198,887,000 ,,, ,,, ,, , ,, ,,
Change -0.7% -0.6% -2.0% 3.7% 6.7% -5.3% -0.5%
This Week
Last Year
,,, ,,, ,,,
,, , ,, ,,
Change 2.6% 9.5% -40.9% -39.0% -50.1% -15.4% 4.5%
1#1
1 WK ARIANA GRANDE
2MAX MARTIN
3ILYA
4ZACH BRYAN
54BATZ
6NOAH KAHAN
7TRACY CHAPMAN
8JOE KEERY
TIE 9JACK ANTONOFF
TIE 9TAYLOR SWIFT
11 ASHLEY GORLEY
12 XAVI
13 SHINTARO YASUDA
14 AMY ALLEN
15 KACEY MUSGRAVES
TIE 16 BENSON BOONE
TIE 16 EVAN BLAIR
TIE 16 JACK LAFRANTZ
19 CHAYCE BECKHAM
20 RYAN TEDDER
21 310BABII
22 TATE MCRAE
23 DAVIDIOR
TIE 24 CHARLIE HANDSOME
TIE 24 JOHN BYRON
HOT 100 SONGWRITERSTM
1#1
1 WK ARIANA GRANDE
2MAX MARTIN
3ILYA
4JOEY MOI
5EVAN BLAIR
6ZACH BRYAN
7SANNI IREOLUWA
8ROSS COPPERMAN
9ERNESTO FERNANDEZ
TIE 10 JACK ANTONOFF
TIE 10 TAYLOR SWIFT
12 TYLIANMTB
TIE 13 INFAMOUS
TIE 13 JULIAN BUNETTA
15 KEVIN PARKER
16 DANN HUFF
17 RYAN TEDDER
18 JOHN HENRY RYAN
19 GERREAUX KATANA
20 FINNEAS
21 AUSTIN SHAWN
22 JEFF GITTY
23 TRAVIS SCOTT
24 DAN NIGRO
25 TRENT WILLMON
HOT 100 PRODUCERSTM
1#1
12 WK STRACY CHAPMAN
2ASHLEY GORLEY
3ZACH BRYAN
4KACEY MUSGRAVES
5CHAYCE BECKHAM
TIE 6CHARLIE HANDSOME
TIE 6JOHN BYRON
8HUNTER PHELPS
9TAYLOR PHILLIPS
10 DYLAN GOSSETT
COUNTRY SONGWRITERSTM
1#1
131 WK SJOEY MOI
2ZACH BRYAN
3ROSS COPPERMAN
4TRENT WILLMON
5DANN HUFF
6JEFF GITTY
7JON RANDALL
8CHARLIE HANDSOME
9ZACH CROWELL
TIE 10 CHIP MATTHEWS
TIE 10 JONATHAN SINGLETON
TIE 10 LUKE COMBS
COUNTRY PRODUCERSTM
1#1
1 WK 4BATZ
2310BABII
3SZA
421 SAVAGE
5PLAYBOI CARTI
TIE 6KANYE WEST
TIE 6TY DOLLA $IGN
8KEY GLOCK
TIE 9BRYSON TILLER
TIE 9TIFFANY MAJETTE
TIE 9TYLIANMTB
R&B/HIP-HOP SONGWRITERSTM
1#1
1 WK SANNI IREOLUWA
2TYLIANMTB
3GERREAUX KATANA
4SAMMY SOSO
5TRAVIS SCOTT
TIE 6NIK D
TIE 6OZ
TIE 6SEAN MOMBERGER
9KANYE WEST
10 TY DOLLA $IGN
R&B/HIP-HOP PRODUCERSTM
Page 24 of 26
The top songwriters and producers on the Billboard Hot 100 and selective genre songs chart that utilize the Hot 100
formula (blending streaming, airplay and download sales data) for the charts dated March 23, 2024. Rankings are based
on accumulated weekly points for all charted songs — on the specified chart for the week — on which a songwriter or
producer is credited. If a song is written or produced by more than one person, points are divided equally among all
credited parties.
SONGWRITERS & PRODUCERS
1#1
7 WK S4BATZ
2SZA
TIE 3BABYFACE
TIE 3BLAIR FERGUSON
TIE 3KHRISTOPHER VAN RIDDICK-TYNES
TIE 3LEON THOMAS III
TIE 7CARTER LANG
TIE 7MONSUNE
TIE 7ROB BISEL
TIE 7SOLOMONOPHONIC
R&B SONGWRITERSTM
1#1
1 WK SANNI IREOLUWA
2SAMMY SOSO
3RAYO
4DJ HARDWERK
5THE WEEKND
TIE 6BABYFACE
TIE 6BLAIR FERGUSON
TIE 6KHRISTOPHER RIDDICK-TYNES
TIE 6LEON THOMAS III
TIE 10 BRYAN-MICHAEL COX
TIE 10 JERMAINE DUPRI
TIE 10 JORDANXL
R&B PRODUCERSTM
AIRPLAY/STREAMING &
SALES DATA COMPILED BY
DATA FOR WEEK OF 03.23.2024
MAR
23
2024
Page 25 of 26
1#1
21 WK SKENYA GRACE
TIE 2ARIANA GRANDE
TIE 2ILYA
TIE 2MAX MARTIN
5KEVIN PARKER
TIE 6CAROLINE AILIN
TIE 6DUA LIPA
TIE 6TOBIAS JESSO JR.
TIE 9GREGG ALEXANDER
TIE 9SOPHIE ELLIS-BEXTOR
DANCE/ELECTRONIC SONGWRITERSTM
1#1
4 WK SKEVIN PARKER
2DANNY L HARLE
3KENYA GRACE
TIE 4ARIANA GRANDE
TIE 4ILYA
TIE 4MAX MARTIN
TIE 7GREGG ALEXANDER
TIE 7MATT ROWE
9LUMI ATHENA
10 EASYFUN
DANCE/ELECTRONIC PRODUCERSTM
SONGWRITERS & PRODUCERS
1#1
9 WK SNOAH KAHAN
2ZACH BRYAN
3JOE KEERY
4KACEY MUSGRAVES
5MITSKI
TIE 6BILLIE EILISH
TIE 6FINNEAS
8BRAD PETERING
9MITCH CUTTS
TIE 10 ANDREW YORIO
TIE 10 MICHAEL MARCAGI
ROCK & ALTERNATIVE SONGWRITERSTM
1#1
28 WK SZACH BRYAN
2GABE SIMON
3NOAH KAHAN
4FINNEAS
5BRAD PETERING
TIE 6ADAM THEIN
TIE 6JOE KEERY
8PATRICK HYL AND
9DAVID BARON
10 THE RED CLAY STRAYS
ROCK & ALTERNATIVE PRODUCERSTM
1#1
15 WK SXAVI
2JESUS ORTIZ PAZ
3ALEXIS ARMANDO FIERRO ROMAN
4ALEX HERNANDEZ
5GAEL LEONARDO INIGUEZ VALENZUELA
6FEID
7DANIEL ESTEBAN GUTIERREZ
8JONATHAN FERNANDO CARO VEGA
9EDGAR BARRERA
10 OSBALDO SANCHEZ
LATIN SONGWRITERSTM
1#1
14 WK SERNESTO FERNANDEZ
2JESUS ORTIZ PAZ
3EDGAR BARRERA
4OVY ON THE DRUMS
5ANGEL TUMBADO
6JIMMY HUMILDE
7MOISES LOPEZ
8ATL JACOB
9YAMIL
10 MIGUEL ARMENTA
LATIN PRODUCERSTM
1#1
4 WK S310BABII
221 SAVAGE
3PLAYBOI CARTI
4KEY GLOCK
TIE 5BRYSON TILLER
TIE 5TIFFANY MAJETTE
TIE 5TYLIANMTB
8DOUGIE F
TIE 9KANYE WEST
TIE 9THE LEGENDARY TRAXSTER
TIE 9TY DOLLA $IGN
RAP SONGWRITERSTM
1#1
3 WK STYLIANMTB
2GERREAUX KATANA
3TRAVIS SCOTT
TIE 4NIK D
TIE 4OZ
TIE 4SEAN MOMBERGER
7DXNTEMADEIT
TIE 8AYOPEEB
TIE 8LONDON ON DA TRACK
10 SEAN COOK
RAP PRODUCERSTM
AIRPLAY/STREAMING &
SALES DATA COMPILED BY
DATA FOR WEEK OF 03.23.2024
MAR
23
2024
Page 26 of 26
1#1
19 WK SNOAH KAHAN
2JOE KEERY
3MITSKI
TIE 4BILLIE EILISH
TIE 4FINNEAS
6BRAD PETERING
TIE 7ANDREW YORIO
TIE 7MICHAEL MARCAGI
TIE 9OLI FOX
TIE 9SCOTT VERRILL
ALTERNATIVE SONGWRITERSTM
TIE 1#1
11 WK SGABE SIMON
TIE 1#1
9 WK SNOAH KAHAN
3FINNEAS
4BRAD PETERING
TIE 5ADAM THEIN
TIE 5JOE KEERY
7PATRICK HYL AND
8DAVID BARON
9E-BASS
TIE 10 OLI FOX
TIE 10 SCOTT VERRILL
ALTERNATIVE PRODUCERSTM
1#1
9 WK SNOAH KAHAN
2ZACH BRYAN
3JOE KEERY
4KACEY MUSGRAVES
5MITSKI
6BRAD PETERING
7MITCH CUTTS
TIE 8ANDREW YORIO
TIE 8MICHAEL MARCAGI
TIE 10 OLI FOX
TIE 10 SCOTT VERRILL
ROCK SONGWRITERSTM
1#1
28 WK SZACH BRYAN
2GABE SIMON
3NOAH KAHAN
4BRAD PETERING
TIE 5ADAM THEIN
TIE 5JOE KEERY
7PATRICK HYL AND
8DAVID BARON
9THE RED CLAY STRAYS
10 NIC HAUGHN
ROCK PRODUCERSTM
1#1
20 WK SNOAH SEBASTIAN
2JOAKIM KARLSSON
3WZRD BLD
4VESSEL1
5VIOLENT VIRA
TIE 6GR AYSKIES
TIE 6WISP
TIE 8BLAKE PENDERGRASS
TIE 8HARDY
TIE 8JACOB DURRETT
HARD ROCK SONGWRITERSTM
1#1
36 WK SNOAH SEBASTIAN
2JOAKIM KARLSSON
3WZRD BLD
4ANDREW WATT
5WILL YIP
6GR AYSKIES
7DAVID COWELL
TIE 8DON GILMORE
TIE 8LINKIN PARK
10 ANDY SNEAP
HARD ROCK PRODUCERSTM
1#1
1 WK FORREST FRANK
2BRANDON LAKE
3JOSIAH QUEEN
4MATTHEW WEST
5JEFF PARDO
6STEVEN FURTICK
7CODY CARNES
8CHANDLER MOORE
9ANNE WILSON
10 CHRIS BROWN
CHRISTIAN SONGWRITERSTM
1#1
69 WK SJEFF PARDO
2JONATHAN SMITH
3FORREST FRANK
TIE 4CHRIS BROWN
TIE 4STEVEN FURTICK
6JARED CONRAD
7AUSTIN DAVIS
8JACOB SOOTER
9MICAH KUIPER
10 KYLE LEE
CHRISTIAN PRODUCERSTM
1#1
24 WK SNAOMI RAINE
2CHANDLER MOORE
3STEVEN FURTICK
4KIRK FRANKLIN
5ANTHONY BROWN
6CHRIS BROWN
7JEKALYN CARR
8TASHA COBBS LEONARD
9G. MORRIS COLEMAN
10 BEN FIELDING
GOSPEL SONGWRITERSTM
1#1
65 WK SJONATHAN JAY
TIE 2BRUNES CHARLES
TIE 2NORMAN GYAMFI
TIE 4CHRIS BROWN
TIE 4STEVEN FURTICK
6THOMAS HARDIN, JR.
7CHANDLER MOORE
8JEKALYN CARR
TIE 9KYLE LEE
TIE 9TYRONE JACKSON
GOSPEL PRODUCERSTM
SONGWRITERS & PRODUCERS
AIRPLAY/STREAMING &
SALES DATA COMPILED BY
DATA FOR WEEK OF 03.23.2024
MAR
23
2024
