Warner Music Group has confirmed that it has acquired the entire recordings catalog of French DJ/producer superstar David Guetta. Financial Times reports that the Guetta deal cost Warner more than $100 million, whereas MBW's sources say the price was lower than $150 million. This news is interesting, among other reasons, because it hints that Warner’s catalog acquisition strategy today may be leaning towards hits created in the past 20 years.

The London rapper starts her new song as a furious rap, only to turn to psychedelia at the second half. Little Simz is releasing a new album, called 'Sometimes I Might Be Introvert', via her own Age 101 label this September.

Pa Salieu and Slowthai are 'Glidin'' extraordinarily on their collaborative single; Yves Tumor goes big-rock on 'Jackie'; Clairo shares a lovely bit of folk on 'Blouse'; quickly, quickly goes electronica folk on 'Everything is Different to me'.

UK prime minister Boris Johnson has scrapped the plan to ease restrictions on live music in the country next week due to the pandemic, which will bring British musicians, fans and promoters to the brink of losing another summer of live music. Live music events industry believes they are treated differently than other events. Indie venues say a four-week delay in reopening will cost them £36 million, NME reports. The Association of Independent Festivals says 86 percent of the festivals planned for this year in the UK will be canceled, Billboard reports.

Chicago drill was one of the most thriving rap scenes in the country, until local government and police tried to force it out of the city" - Complex writes introducing the controversial genre. BBC explores the rising popularity of drill music as well as rising debates over its links to violence.

Pitchfork recommends eight recent releases that "show the guitar’s boundless potential". Among the selected ones there are: new album by Brooklyn’s Rachika Nayar who "uses her electric guitar to make quiet, visionary ambient music"; Rob Noyes is a 12-string guitarist based in Japan. whos music "enters the room like a strong gust of wind and resonates long after"; Chris Schlarb & Chad Taylor offer "droning 12-string ragas, gentle folk melodies, and quietly psychedelic mood pieces that transport listeners to a higher plane of thinking" on their collaborative album.

Bandcamp has pledged to donate 100 percent of its share of sales made on June 18 for a 24-hour period. This year, the event will again coincide with the music platform's Bandcamp Fridays program. All the proceeds will go to the NAACP Legal Defense Fund in honour of Juneteenth. This will be Bandcamp's second summer in a row to observe Juneteenth in this manner.

Elton John has warned members of the UK parliament that their national music industry could lose "a generation of talent" because of post-Brexit restrictions on touring the EU. The biggest threat stands before young musicians, John warned on his Instagram - "this gravest of situations is about the damage to the next generation of musicians and emerging artists, whose careers will stall before they've even started due to this infuriating blame game. If I had faced the financial and logistical obstacles facing young musicians now when I started out, I'd never have had the opportunity to build the foundations of my career and I very much doubt I would be where I am today".

The leader of North Korea described K-pop as a "vicious cancer" corrupting the young people of his country, and has started a crackdown on the cultural import, the New York Times reports. Kim Jong-un has declared a new culture war to halt the spread and influence of South Korean movies, K-dramas and K-pop videos to his citizens. Punishment for owning and/or watching South Korean entertainment has been lifted from five years of hard labor to up to 15 years in labor camps.

18-year-old British composer/producer Rachel Sandy has gone viral with her parodies of indie-rock and indie-pop stars, Consequence reports. She launched her channel back in May by crafting a spot-on take on the type of Phoebe Bridgers song that the Pharbz would “eat right up” - the video racked up nearly one million views in just a few weeks. Since then, she has expertly lampooned the signature styles of Hozier (complete with *Irish forest sounds*), Mitski (“What key are we in?”), and Maggie Rogers (“More percussion please”). She garnered more than 12 million views so far for her six parodies.

ex-directory presents several new artists and audio-makers who are producing field recordings in order to tell stories, connect online communities and even distill entirely new, otherworldly sounds. Field Recordings is a podcast dedicated to (literally) “standing silently in fields”. There are over 240 episodes, including ASMR-like clatter of fisherman sorting clams on a Portuguese beach, chirping froglets in New South Wales, waves crashing on the frozen shores of Lake Ontario and a dog dreaming in the Wirral. Sounds of The Forest is an interactive "sound map" platform with one-minute recordings from local woodland from all over the world. MycoLyco's producer connects synthesisers to giant oyster mushrooms and quartz crystals, then records their output, with sounds ranging from the gentle ambient bubbling of an amethyst playing a Eurorack to the erratic chatter of oyster mushrooms performing on a modular synth

Morgan Wallen has quietly slipped back onto the air at most country stations in the US in the last few weeks, after being banned for four months due to a racial slur. Wallen however remains persona non grata at awards shows and other high-profile events. Variety reports. “It’s a thing that people are going to do quietly and not want to make a lot of noise about. It’s like, have him blend back into the mosaic of the thing and not make a big deal about it” - says a radio insider, who added that Wallen’s ongoing status is “the most over-discussed topic in the history of country music”.

A group of indie and major music publishers - including ABKCO Music & Records, Big Machine Records, Concord Music Group, deadmau5, Downtown Music Publishing, Hipgnosis, Kobalt Music Group, Universal Music Publishing Group - are suing video gaming platform Roblox for over $200 million in damages in the US, alleging widespread copyright infringement by the company. Plaintiffs' representative cites Roblox’s massive user base of more than 42 million active daily players and alleges that Roblox has gone to great lengths to avoid paying music creators, MBW reports. Warner and Sony are missing from the lawsuit - they're partners with the gaming platform.

Carrie Underwood and John Legend won video of the year at the CMT Music Awards for their song 'Hallelujah', whereas Kane Brown was the only double-winner of the night, for male video of the year ('Worship You') and collaborative video ('Famous Friends', with Chris Young), US Weekly reports.

The U.S. music publishing industry registered a 9.6% revenue increase to $4.077 billion in 2020, up from $3.72 billion in 2019, Billboard reports. In 2019 total revenue was up 12.7% from $3.3 billion in 2018. Although 2020 was the year of the lockdown, surprisingly, performance collections grew 7.92% to $2.1 billion from $1.945 billion in 2019.

Deafheaven take an interesting and sharp turn with their new, melodic, non-metal song 'Great Mass of Color'; José González shares his new bassy single 'Head On'; Madi Diaz finds a sweet spot between Americana and indie rock on 'Woman in my Heart'; 'Dropout Boogie' is the first collaboration between Your Old Droog and MF DOOM, produced after YOD renewed his interest in hip-hop - after hearing DOOM; Slow Fire Pistol go from ambient rock to hardcore to ambient... in the span of two minutes on 'Who Decides'.

An interesting selection by the Stereogum of 50 best albums of the five months of 2021 that are behind us. The top 10 (not so expectedly) are:

10. The Armed - 'ULTRAPOP'

9. Matt Sweeney & Bonnie 'Prince' Billy - 'Superwolves'

8. Home Is Where - 'i became birds'

7. Armand Hammer & The Alchemist - 'Haram'

6. Spirit Of The Beehive - 'ENTERTAINMENT, DEATH'

5. Cassandra Jenkins - 'An Overview On Phenomenal Nature'

4. Floating Points, Pharoah Sanders, & The London Symphony Orchestra - 'Promises'

3. serpentwithfeet - 'Deacon'

2. The Weather Station - 'Ignorance'

1. Fiddlehead - 'Between The Richness'

Dozens of artists signed a letter asking the US Senate to "take action on background checks" for gun purchases, in a campaign organized by Billboard. The esteemed signees: Christina Aguilera, Tori Amos, Sara Barielles, Aaron Bay-Schuck, Tony Bennett, Selim Bouab, Rob Bourdon, Scooter Braun, Cortez Bryant, Michael Bublé, Vanessa Carlton, Joseph Carozza, Steve Cooper, Tom Corson, Lee Daniels, Ellen DeGeneres, Brad Delson, Diplo, Mike Easterlin, John Esposito, Melissa Etheridge, Fletcher, Luis Fonsi, Becky G, Kevin Gore, Julie Greenwald, Josh Groban, Horacio Gutierrez, Joe Hahn, Halsey, Billy Joel, Craig Kallman, Alicia Keys, Kid Cudi, Carole King, Elle King, Adam Lambert, Cyndi Lauper, Kevin Liles, Dre London, Jennifer Lopez, Macklemore, Zayn Malik, Carianne Marshall, Ricky Martin, Paul McCartney, Julia Michaels, Guy Moot, Jason Mraz, Gregg Nadel, Yoko Ono, Mark Pinkus, Gregory Porter, Prince Royce, Bonnie Raitt, Dawn Richard, RMR, Paul Robinson, Maggie Rogers, Kelly Rowland, Mike Shinoda, Sia, Matt Signore, Britney Spears, Rob Stevenson, Sting, Barbra Streisand, Justin Tranter, Sir Trilli, Sharon Van Etten, Aimie Vaughn-Fruehe, Eddie Vedder, Andrew Watt.

Jazz pianist Jason Moran talks to The United States of Anxiety about the life and work of James Reese Europe - American ragtime and early jazz bandleader, arranger, composer, and the leading figure on the African Americans music scene of New York City in the 1910s - and about Reese's role in the infamous 369th Infantry Regiment, also known as the Harlem Hellfighters, who crossed racial lines and brought jazz to Europe.

The New York Times shares a story about three brave dancers - Piisciis (25), Nova (25), and Axid (20) who joined anti-government protests in Bogota, Columbia, and fought the power with their - dance. “In that moment we were all connected in the message of the struggle, the resistance, empathy, strength and love” Piisciis said, while Nova added: “We resisted with art and vogue. We were scared, but the people and the love from the public was our gasoline to go up there and confront the police”. For weeks, thousands of people have crowded the streets of Colombia, protesting inequality, rising poverty and police violence. President Iván Duque has deployed the country’s military and police forces, and more than 40 people have died.

Taylor Swift’s 6-months old album 'Evermore' returns to No. 1 on the Billboard 200 chart with 202,000 equivalent album units earned in the U.S. in the week ending June 3, Billboard reports. Album sales comprise 192,000, marking the biggest sales week of 2021. Also, 'Evermore' broke the record for the biggest sales week for a vinyl album in the U.S. since tracking sales began in 1991. The vinyl edition of the album sold 102,000 in a week, smashing Jack White’s record set with 40,000 copies of 'Lazaretto' sold in June 2014. 'Evermore' was initially released digitally and through streamers on Dec. 11, 2020, but its vinyl edition was not issued until May 28.

“This is to announce my retirement from touring and from working in the record business. I’ve gotten older and I’m tired” - Sinéad O’Connor wrote in a series of tweets. The Irish singer-songwriter’s upcoming album, 'No Veteran Dies Alone', will be her final release, she said, Deadline reports. TNC, inspired by the announcement, remembers her 1990 interview: "By the time 'Nothing Compares 2 U' happened I was almost in a state of shock. I was zapped mentally. I wasn't eating properly, just drinking coffee and smoking hundreds of cigarettes and getting totally stressed out... man, I just didn't know how to deal with the fame and the American fans and the horseshit British press. 'Shoeless Sinead' and all that bollocks. I was never prepared for what it did to me. I couldn't have been prepared for that kind of success. Let's face it, what other record has really done that? I thought it might do OK? But not this".

They were born around the time the U.S. invaded Afghanistan to oust the Taliban from power in 2001. Now, they are students becoming doctors and engineers, who are also juggling jobs to support their families. Vice talked to several Afghan rappers about how they feel now the American troops are leaving.

New York-based Pershing Square Tontine Holding, led by billionaire CEO Bill Ackman, is to acquire 10% of Universal Music Group for approximately $4 billion. The deal would value the label at $40 billion and make it the largest ever investment by a blank check vehicle, Reuters reports. Universal, owned by the parent company Vivendi and controlled by French billionaire Vincent Bollore, has benefited from growing streaming revenues at the world's biggest music label, which is behind artists such as Taylor Swift and Lady Gaga. The deal would give Universal an enterprise value of 35 billion euros ($42.4 billion).

New York-based music rights company Reservoir has acquired the US record label and music publishing company Tommy Boy Music LLC - home to Queen Latifah, Afrika Bambaataa, Digital Underground, Coolio, De La Soul, House of Pain and Naughty By Nature, among others - in a deal valued at approximately $100m. Reservoir’s deal to buy Tommy Boy comprises 6,000+ masters including Coolio’s 'Gangsta’s Paradise', House of Pain’s 'Jump Around', and Afrika Bambaataa & The Soulsonic Force’s 'Planet Rock', MBW reports. Apart from the hip-hop pioneers, Tommy Boy also introduced EDM to mainstream audiences through releases by LFO, Coldcut, and 808 State, while helping to establish the Latin Freestyle and Latin Hip-Hop genres with releases by TKA, K7, and Information Society.

Chvrches share saucy synth-pop 'How Not To Drown'; Darkside keep their branded clubby sound on 'Lawmaker'; L’Rain goes dramatic and big on 'Blame Me'; Turnstile share a bit of grand psychedelic rock on 'Mystery'; Martha Skye Murphy used only classical instruments - clavinet, clarinet, voice, guitar - to create the haunting 'Found Out'.

'We Are Lady Parts' is a British television sitcom that follows an eponymous British punk rock band, which consists entirely of Muslim women. Rolling Stone appreciates the representation side of it: "It’s a fundamental social good for audiences to encounter people who look and talk like them in the stories they consume, and also for people from other groups to be exposed to characters who aren’t at all like themselves". AV Club likes how the British comedy, which comprises only six half-hour episodes, "manages to pack a punch with its fast-paced, comprehensive storytelling and cogent, comical writing".

Amapiano is an offshoot of South African house, often featuring bright and airy chords and flourishes of jazz, Afrobeats and lounge music. Two authorities on the movement are DJ Maphorisa and Kabza de Small, who form the Scorpion Kings duo. They made a mix for The Face presenting the amapiano ("the pianos" in Zulu) sound, featuring, Kelvin Momo, DJ Stokie, Felo Le Tee, Lady Du and others.

Olivia Rodrigo scores her first Number One on the Rolling Stone Artists 500 Chart this week to the tune of a staggering 283.7 million streams. As her debut album 'Sour' rules the Billboard 200 albums chart and 'Good 4 U' leads the Rolling Stone 100, Rodrigo becomes only the third female artist to sweep all three charts in one week, Rolling Stone reports.

YouTube paid artists, songwriters, and rights-holders over $4 billion in the last 12 months – money derived from both YouTube ads and YouTube Music / YouTube Premium subscriptions, YouTube’s Global Head of Music Lyor Cohen confirmed in a fresh newsletter sent to the music industry, Music Business Worldwide reports. YouTube paid the music industry over $3bn in 2019, and the streaming service added more paid ‘members’ in Q1 21 than in any other quarter since launch. Cohen states that the Alphabet-owned platform’s goal is now “to become the leading revenue generator for the music industry”. Spotify paid out over $5 billion to the music industry in 2020.