DEALS
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Wise Music Group’s Bosworth Music has signed a publishing deal with pianist and composer Sofi Paez. Says Bosworth MD Michael Ohst, “Sofi Paez is a young and talented composer and artist who has impressed us from the very beginning. Her melodic approach and her interesting voice are charming and catchy. We are proud that she chose Bosworth as her partner of choice, and we look forward to supporting her and being a part of her continued artistic growth”.
APPOINTMENTS
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Pitchfork has appointed a new Head Of Editorial Content, Mano Sundaresan, founder of the music blog No Bells. Earlier this year Pitchfork publisher Condé Nast announced a restructure that saw the music publication’s team merged with that of men’s magazine GQ, resulting in a number of job losses. Discussing the future direction of the website in an interview with Billboard, Sundaresan says, “Pitchfork at one point, before it got bigger, was very community-driven. I want to try and restore some of that feeling: getting back to being literally on the ground reporting about things, creating physical spaces for writers, whether that’s live events, readings, panels”.
💡
Hannah Neaves has been appointed sole President of Universal Music’s UK catalogue division, Universal Music Recordings. She was previously co-President alongside Azi Eftekhari. Music Week says that it “understands Eftekhari has now left the business”.
RECORD LABELS
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K-pop powerhouse HYBE is expanding its presence in Latin America via new offices in Mexico City, Miami and LA, according to Allkpop. HYBE Latin America will be led by CEO Jonghyun ‘JH’ Kah, General Manager Fernando Grediaga and COO Jeremy Norkin, and will operate a new label called Docemil Music. Says Grediaga, “HYBE Latin America’s goal is to build an inclusive company that promotes Latin American creativity and talent”.
MEDIA
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Disney+ will next month launch a new series following BTS members Jungkook and Jimin as they travel to the US and Japan, and Jeju Island in South Korea. Filmed before both performers enlisted for military service at the end of last year, the show is called ‘Are You Sure?!’, because apparently their global travels were unplanned resulting in various situations where they ask each other “are you sure?” Seemingly nobody asked that question when choosing a title for the series.
💿
Clara Amfo and Rizzle Kicks’ Jordan Stephens are fronting a new programme on BBC Sounds called ‘Make Me A Mixtape’, in which the two presenters compete to create the ultimate mixtape based on a theme picked by a listener or celebrity guest. In the first two editions, which are already live, Amfo and Stephens attempt to compile the ultimate ‘End Of An Era’ and ‘Roadtrip’ mixtapes, the latter theme selected by Rachel Chinouriri.
GIGS & TOURS
🗳️
With the UK General Election now almost upon us, Maxïmo Park will play an election night show at The Star & Shadow Cinema in hometown Newcastle tomorrow evening, also raising money for the Newcastle West End Foodbank. Says the band’s Paul Smith, “We wanted to premiere some new songs in one of our favourite DIY venues in our hometown. We thought it would be fun to have an election theme, given the date, but, on a serious note, try to raise a bit of money for a local food bank, since the poorest in society have suffered the most under the current government”.
RELEASES
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Eminem has released new single ‘Tobey’ in collaboration with BabyTron and Big Sean. His new album ‘The Death Of Slim Shady (Coup de Grâce)’ is out on 12 Jul.
🛁
AJ Tracey has released new single ‘Bubble Bath’.
🍉
Shanti Celeste has released new single ‘SLB’ in support of Palestinian Aid Charity Operation Olive Branch. Released via Bandcamp, the track will be available for a limited period until 12 Jul.