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Former Newsboys Frontman Accused of Sexual Assault

Newsboys
Jason Tate

Former Newsboys frontman, Michael Tait, has been accused of grooming and sexual assault:

It’s been called Nashville’s worst-kept secret. For decades, allegations have circulated that Newsboys frontman Michael Tait, formerly of DC Talk, had groomed and sexually assaulted numerous victims.

And after a two-and-a-half-year investigation by The Roys Report (TRR), which included interviewing more than 50 sources, TRR has documented Tait’s alleged predatory pattern with stories dating back more than two decades.

Gibson Launches Search for ‘Back to the Future’ Guitar

Jason Tate

The Hollywood Reporter:

Gibson — the guitar brand behind the iconic cherry red ES-345 Michael J. Fox wielded in the movie — announced that it’s on the hunt for the guitar, with the company sharing a callout Tuesday asking for anyone who may have details on its location to reach out with tips. “Have You Seen This Guitar?” Gibson’s poster reads, accompanied by a still from the movie of Fox playing the instrument. The search — and if all goes the way Gibson would like, the re-discovery — will be featured in an upcoming documentary the company is producing called Lost to the Future. 

Taylor Swift OG Streams Spike

Taylor Swift
Jason Tate

The Hollywood Reporter:

According to figures Spotify shared with The Hollywood Reporter, streams on all of the original versions of her older albums at least doubled on Friday, May 30, compared to the albums’ average daily streams from April 1 through May 29. (Spotify didn’t disclose specific streaming numbers themselves, only percentage changes.)

Marc Maron Ends Podcast

Jason Tate

Marc Maron has announced he’s ending his podcast.

After nearly 16 years spent interviewing musicians, comedians, and other cultural figures, the veteran comedian and actor will release his final episode of the podcast later this fall. Maron broke the news during the post recent WTF episode with John Mulaney, sharing that both he and his producing partner Brendan McDonald are “tired” and “burnt out,” but “utterly satisfied with the work we’ve done.”

Record Labels in Talks to License Music to AI Firms

AI
Jason Tate

Lucas Shaw, writing for Bloomberg:

Universal Music Group, Warner Music Group and Sony Music Entertainment are pushing to collect license fees for their work and also receive a small amount of equity in Suno and Udio, two leaders among a crop of companies that use generative AI to help make music. Any deal would help settle lawsuits between the two sides, said the people, who declined to be identified because the talks could fall apart.

Dave Shapiro Passes Away

Jason Tate

Dave Shapiro, Sound Talent Group co-founder and former member of Count The Stars, has passed away in a plane crash:

The music agency Sound Talent Group said Thursday that three of its employees, including co-founder Dave Shapiro, died on the private plane that crashed into a San Diego neighborhood.

Shapiro is listed as the owner of the plane and has a pilot’s license, according to the Federal Aviation Administration. Shapiro also owned a flight school called Velocity Aviation and a record label, Velocity Records, according to his LinkedIn page.

Zach Braff Returns for ‘Scrubs’ Reboot

Scrubs
Jason Tate

Hollywood Reporter:

Zach Braff has signed on for the Scrubs update that’s in development at ABC. 

Braff will reprise his role from the 2001-10 series as John, aka J.D., the narrator and central character for most of the show’s first run. ABC confirmed it was developing a Scrubs reboot in December, after creator Bill Lawrence, Braff and other members of the cast had for years said they’d like to reunite.

Tom DeLonge Producing ‘Suburban Kings’

Tom Delonge
Jason Tate

Deadline:

Jaime Eliezer Karas (Acapulco) has come aboard to direct Suburban Kings, a coming-of-age film penned by Peter Hoare (Kevin Can Wait), to be produced by Chris Mangano (Mangano Movies & Media), Blink-182’s Tom DeLonge (To The Stars Media), and Stan Spry (Evoke Entertainment).

The film follows Wolfgang Binder, a rebellious, skateboarding-obsessed 13-year-old, who is hellbent on spending the summer of ’99 cheering up his best friend after the tragic, unexpected death of his mother.

Anthropic Apologizes After One of Its Expert Witnesses Cited a Fake Article

Legal
Jason Tate

Maxwell Zeff, writing for TechCrunch:

A lawyer representing Anthropic admitted to using an erroneous citation created by the company’s Claude AI chatbot in its ongoing legal battle with music publishers, according to a filing made in a Northern California court on Thursday.

Claude hallucinated the citation with “an inaccurate title and inaccurate authors,” Anthropic says in the filing, first reported by Bloomberg. Anthropic’s lawyers explain that their “manual citation check” did not catch it, nor several other errors that were caused by Claude’s hallucinations.

Anthropic apologized for the error and called it “an honest citation mistake and not a fabrication of authority.”

DOJ Probes Live Nation, AEG for Covid-Era Refund Collusion

Legal
Jason Tate

Reuters:

The U.S. Justice Department is conducting a criminal antitrust probe of Live Nation and AEG’s response to concert cancellations at the beginning of the pandemic in 2020, Live Nation confirmed while denying any collusion on Thursday. The probe is focused on whether the live-event companies colluded on refund policies for canceled concerts, according to an earlier report by Bloomberg News.

Collusion with competitors can be a criminal offense under antitrust laws. Probes do not always result in charges.

Lorde Interview with Rolling Stone

Lorde
Jason Tate

Lorde sat down with Rolling Stone:

As we talk in her apartment and around her city, Lorde often repeats how “terrified” she is to open up about the album — and to let the world hear it. There are songs she forebodingly describes as “rugged,” vulnerable, and messy, fitting for an artist who’s unlearning the conditioning that taught her to be digestible and “good.” 

“There’s going to be a lot of people who don’t think I’m a good girl anymore, a good woman. It’s over,” she promises, eyes bright and full of fire. “It will be over for a lot of people, and then for some people, I will have arrived. I’ll be where they always hoped I’d be.”

Max Changes Name Back to HBO Max

HBO
Jason Tate

Variety:

This summer, streamer Max will bend the knee and rebrand back to its original name, HBO Max. 

The change comes just over two years after Warner Bros. Discovery decided to drop HBO from the streamer’s name to become just Max. Note that while HBO and Max have carried separate commercial branding during that time, they’ve competed under one “HBO/Max” label for industry awards.

LOL.

Apple Music/UMG Launch “Sound Therapy” Songs

Jason Tate

Variety:

Apple Music, under an exclusive deal with Universal Music Group, is rolling out a collection of instrumental versions of pop songs — crafted based on audio science — that it claims can help you better sleep, relax and focus.

Apple Music’s Sound Therapy collection takes well-known songs and blends in “special sound waves designed to enhance users’ daily routines, while retaining the artist’s original vision,” according to the companies. For example, a “dreamy version of Katy Perry’s ‘Double Rainbow’… could help listeners drift off to sleep.”