The Domestics Part Ways With Record Label

Jason Tate

The Domestics have left their record label after a PR stunt that went horribly wrong:

The band stressed they’d had no involvement in the campaign aimed at drawing attention to their new album Little Darkness and, as a result of the negative publicity, they’ve agreed to leave Tender Loving Empire, taking their catalog with them.

The label mailed cassette tapes labeled “Trump / Comey Recordings” with Russian text beneath to a number of media outlets. Early reports suggested that only Jewish industry operatives had been targeted, but that was quickly denied. By that time, however, severe damage had been done to the Domestics’ image.

How Avenged Sevenfold’s Lawsuit Could Upend Record Deals Everywhere

Avenged Sevenfold
Jason Tate

Eriq Gardner, writing for The Hollywood Reporter:

What’s a record label actually good for? That is a question implied in a lawsuit between Warner Bros. Records and Avenged Sevenfold, a heavy metal band from Huntington Beach, California, that is scheduled to go to trial this year and has the potential to upend the music industry.

The dispute dates back to 2015, when the act notified its label that it was terminating the contract it signed in 2004, citing the “seven-year rule,” which bars personal service contracts lasting longer than seven years. The law has its roots in a pro-labor statute put on the books after the Civil War to prevent long-term contracts from becoming the means for involuntary servitude. The modern version of the rule was famously tested in entertainment in 1944, when Olivia de Havilland used the law to break her contract with Warner Bros after the studio repeatedly suspended her for turning down roles. An appeals court decision helped bring an end to Hollywood’s old studio system.

Kendrick Lamar Joins Nike

Kendrick Lamar
Jason Tate

Kendrick Lamar has officially left Reebok and joined Nike. GQ reports:

And while Reebok sneakers are having a moment right now, there’s no arguing that the Nike Cortez has been a bigger staple of hip-hop style, particularly in Lamar’s hometown Los Angeles. And now it looks like K.Dot has decided to leave Reebok in favor of Nike, taking to social media to post a photo of himself in a pair of Nike Cortez kicks with the caption “Cortez. Since day 1. #teamnike.”

Dave Keuning No Longer Touring With The Killers

The Killers
Jason Tate

The Killers News reports on an upcoming Q Magazine interview which announces that The Killers’ Dave Keuning will no longer be touring with the band:

Like many fans who woke up this morning to scans of the ‘Q’ magazine interview floating around in various Killers communities, I am heartbroken to hear the rumors that had churned over the past several months of Dave Keuning seeking an arrangement simliar to Mark Stoermer’s had turned out to be true.