Ep4records Music

Michael Jacksons estate made $115m last year proof that artists work can carry on making a fortune after their death. From Nick Drake to Elvis, its about selling an artist as if they are still alive and learning how to say no

The real financial winner in music this year may not be Beyonc, or Bruce Springsteen, or any of the artists who have been touring the stadiums and enormodomes of the world. It will probably be a group who have massively increased their worth without singing a note. Or their key member being alive. This year, Michael Jacksons estate looks set to make close to $1bn (769m).

The Jackson estate was already hugely lucrative it generated $115m last year, according to Forbes. That made it far more profitable than the estates of other dead superstars with lasting musical legacies: the Elvis Presley estate made $55m in 2015, the Bob Marley estate recorded revenues of $21m. The reason for the Jackson estates spectacular success was one amazing deal: the sale of its remaining 50% stake in Sony/ATV music publishing to Sony Corporation for $750m so expensive because ATV had been the publisher for the vast majority of the Beatles catalogue. And the profit was enormous: Jackson had paid $47.5m for ATV in 1984.

As the great superstars of rock and pop pass on, estate management has become a huge business. And the claimants to that business are manifold. David Bowie, a man ahead of the curve in looking after his financial interests, might well have prepared thoroughly, but you only need to look at the ongoing court battles over who should benefit from the estate of Prince exacerbated by the fact that he left no will and had no known children to see how a badly managed estate can cause chaos.

John Branca is, along with John McClain, co-executor of the Jackson estate. He was the singers lawyer, on and off, for 26 years from 1980, during which time Jackson was the biggest pop star on the planet. Branca was reappointed eight days before Jackson died, having negotiated his return during rehearsals for what would have been Jacksons comeback shows. And Branca has steered the estates business interests over the past seven years to make it the most commercially successful celebrity estate in the world. He and McClain, rather than Jacksons children, parents or siblings, make all the commercial decisions around the assets which include Jacksons recordings, his songwriting, his share of Sony/ATV, his image rights and his name rights.

Refusal is key. Immediately after Jacksons death, the estate had to address the debts he had run up in his lifetime, so there was a flurry of activity: the This Is It documentary, Cirque du Soleils Immortal tour and two documentaries directed by Spike Lee Bad 25 and Michael Jacksons Journey From Motown to Off the Wall all got the green light, and proved highly profitable. But, says Branca, We say no to almost everything that is pitched to us. I just have a basic philosophy, as I am a huge Michael Jackson fan, where I only do things that I would want to watch or listen to. If we dont believe it is going to be of the highest artistic quality, we dont do it.

Here, the estate acts as if for an artist who was still alive, but they need to be realistic about their role. Let me be clear John [McClain] and I are not Michael Jackson, says Branca. There is only one Michael Jackson, so we would never pretend that we could substitute our judgment for his.

The key to making an artist posthumously successful lies in the preparations they made when they were alive. It all starts with the will, says Gregor Pryor, a partner at legal firm Reed Smith. Some artists make very good wills and do a really good job of planning for their death. And others dont. A music business insider, speaking anonymously, says Freddie Mercurys will has become the standard by which other artist legacies are judged. Aware he was dying, Mercury appointed Queens manager Jim Beach as executor of his will and his estate. Other estates, once they have got through the chaos, will want to work towards the steady state that Queen had from the day Freddie died, the insider says.

Estate management is not only an issue for rock stars classical musicians, too, need special attention, because the fundamentals are the same. Jeff Liebenson, of the New York music law firm Liebenson Law, represents the estate of the classical pianist Vladimir Horowitz and explains what happened when his widow, Wanda Toscanini Horowitz, also passed away. Its not unusual that when the estate goes to family members, these are often people who are not that familiar with the music business, he says. They are understandably very emotional and have various issues among and between each other. That can make it very difficult for them to move forward together. In the Horowitz situation, there was no family to inherit it. There were designated beneficiaries, charities and academic institutes in the will.

Allan Steckler has worked on the Horowitz estate for 12 years, as well as the Arturo Toscani estate for 25 years, and previously worked in classical labels and Apple Records in the US. He has overseen the Horowitz estate in a way that would be familiar to those running the Johnny Cash estate, for example: finding previously unreleased recordings of artistic worth, and overseeing their release into a hungry market, the biggest project being the 42-disc collection of Horowitzs performances at Carnegie Hall between 1951 and 1978. The challenge with dealing with a deceased artist is keeping them in the public view, says Steckler. Once an artist passes, unless somebody does something to keep the name in front of the public, they will totally fade away.

It is common to view record companies as ghoulishly exploiting the deaths of stars, as depicted in the Smiths Paint a Vulgar Picture, where Morrissey castigates greedy labels: Reissue! Repackage! Repackage! Re-evaluate the need. And it is true that sometimes, with artists who have not left behind a wealth of high-quality unreleased material, but scraps and odds and ends and whose estate is bequeathed to people in need of money the material that emerges sullies their legacy. But it rarely plays out the way Morrissey suggests, and sometimes the labels can even be helpful.

Steve Davis, who was director of catalogue at EMI from 2000 to 2009, gives the example of what they did for Kirsty MacColls family. The singer was killed in December 2000, when she was run over by a speedboat while diving with her sons in Mexico. Eventually, a man admitted to driving the speedboat an employee of the multimillionaire who owned it and who was on board at the time and was convicted of culpable homicide, but her family spent nine years running the Justice for Kirsty campaign, seeking a judicial review of the events surrounding her death.

We did a compilation of her work, Davis says. Her family were interested in the revenue stream to put towards their campaign. We even branded the artwork with the Justice for Kirsty campaign.

Dealing with a deceased artists music is a question of taste, he says: he also worked on Syd Barretts catalogue after his death in 2006, and EMI waited until 2010 before putting out the compilation An Introduction to Syd Barrett. That ambulance-chasing is unseemly, he says. If you are dealing with a family, you dont want to be seen as [crassly] making money out of their tragedy.

Family members can act as guiding spirits with estates but leave the day-to-day running to others. Cally Callomon is a former creative director at Island Records who has been running the Nick Drake estate since the late 1990s. Both Drakes parents are dead, leaving only his sister, Gabrielle, involved. She approached Callomon to manage the estate because she was unable to dedicate the time that it needed.

Callomons approach was to manage the Drake estate as if he were a living artist. The licensing of Drakes song Pink Moon for a Volkswagen ad in 1999, and a Radio 2 documentary narrated by Brad Pitt in 2004, helped to make the singer considerably more successful posthumously than in his lifetime. Gabrielle got it immediately. This idea of not celebrating or commemorating the death of an artist, but really starting from a complete rebirth of an artist.

Like the Jackson estate, they understand that saying no is more important than saying yes. Gabrielle is a very rare creature and she understands the power of saying no, Callomon says. Its about waiting for that thing that, when you say yes to it, it makes sense. They regularly turn down biopic ideas. To make a film, however lucrative that would be, I think it would kill something and that would be unforgivable in my book. Instead, Gabrielle will occasionally approve use of her brothers music in films or the theatre for free if she likes the script or director, as she is keen to encourage new talent.

They have also restricted how much unreleased material has been put out beyond Drakes original three studio albums limiting them to one compilation (Way to Blue), two compilations with unreleased tracks (Made to Love Magic and A Treasury) and his pre-Island home recordings (Family Tree). They have also repeatedly turned down offers to put all his material in a box set as they are concerned this will devalue his music.

Callomon holds up the example of another beloved, guitar-playing singer who died young as the way not to manage a slender body of acclaimed work. I have [been] openly critical of the way Jeff Buckleys legacy has been handled, says Callomon. The guy only made one album but there have been multiple variations of that one album, demos and live material released by Sony. I think Jeff Buckleys music deserves better than that.

Music fans will now be waiting to see what happens with the cases of Bowie and Prince. Bowies back catalogue was already subject to a carefully planned reissue programme before his death, beginning with the Five Years box last September, and followed by the Who Can I Be Now? set last week. At the rate of one box a year, his catalogue could be repromoted over several years. As for Prince, while those close to him try to resolve the disputes over who gets what, the burning question for fans will be what happens to arguably pops greatest treasure trove of unreleased material, his legendary vault.

It seems as if Colonel Tom Parkers words, on the death of Elvis, his sole client, in 1977, ring true for all dead superstars: Elvis didnt die the body did, he said. This changes nothing.

Read more: https://www.theguardian.com/music/2016/sep/29/get-rich-or-try-dying-how-musicians-estates-are-the-biggest-earners-in-pop

Prince George and Princess Charlotte have played with children of the Canadian military at a rare joint appearance at an official event.

Charlotte, 16 months, was heard speaking in public for the first time – saying “pop” at the balloons that filled Government House in Victoria.

The residence was transformed into a children’s paradise, which included a petting zoo and miniature ponies.

The play day was on day six of the Cambridges’ eight-day tour of Canada.

It is the first official trip all four of the family have been on together.

Image copyright Reuters

Image copyright Reuters

Analysis

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By Peter Hunt, BBC royal correspondent

Those who chronicle the lives of the Cambridges now know that balloons are the way to a 16-month-old princess’s heart and Charlotte’s first public utterance was to use the word “boo”.

And for toddler George there was much fun to be had squirting bubbles at his father – even if he is a future king of Canada and the UK.

Considerable column inches are generated from such offerings. The power of the images is considerable.

The children personify the future of the Canadian monarchy in a country that may, one day, chose a different path.

There’s no sign, at the moment, of that being the desire of the majority of Canadians.

George and Charlotte, on display, will not become an everyday occurrence.

William and Kate are determined their children grow up in private and not in public. This party will attract global attention because of its rarity value.

Read more from Peter

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Image copyright PA

• Royal visit ‘will help tell Canada’s story’
• In pictures: Royals on Canada tour

Prince William could be heard saying “are we going to go pop?” to his daughter and then asked her: “Would you like a balloon, Charlotte?”

Charlotte is said to have made everyone in the grounds of Government House – the home of the Lieutenant Governor of British Columbia – laugh when she tried to lift up a huge balloon archway that led to the petting zoo.

George appeared excited by the attractions and could not resist squirting Charlotte with bubbles.

The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge were said to be happy that the event had been staged for them and pleased their son and daughter had the opportunity to play with others.

24 Sept Victoria, British Columbia: The duke and duchess, accompanied by their children, arrived in Victoria, the capital of British Columbia.

25 Sept Vancouver, British Columbia: The duke and duchess visited Sheway, the Immigration Services Society of British Columbia – for an event to celebrate young leaders in Canadian arts, music, sport, charity, business, and film, and then visited the Kitsilano coastguard station.

26 Sept Bella Bella and the Great Bear Rainforest, British Columbia: The duke and duchess travelled to the Great Bear Rainforest, visiting the Heiltsuk First Nations community and attending a reception hosted by the province of British Columbia at Government House.

27 Sept Kelowna, British Columbia and Whitehorse, Yukon: The royals will tour the Okanagan campus of the University of British Columbia and take part in the BC government’s “Taste of British Columbia” festival at Mission Hill Winery before flying to Whitehorse, where they will be greeted by members of the Canadian Rangers.

28 Sept Whitehorse and Carcross, Yukon: William and Catherine will visit the MacBride Museum and meet members of Whitehorse’s cultural community before travelling to Carcross, where they will be welcomed by the Carcross/Tagish First Nation.

29 Sept Victoria, British Columbia: The royal couple and their children attend a children’s party in the grounds of Government House, which will be attended by military families.

30 Sept Haida Gwaii, British Columbia: The duke and duchess visit Haida Gwaii, the archipelago on the northern coast of British Columbia, home to the Haida Nation. They will attend the opening of the new Haida Gwaii hospital and care centre. They will join local youths for a fishing expedition on the waters of Hecate Strait.

30 Sept Victoria, British Columbia: The royal couple will visit the Cridge Centre for the Family, which provides services and support for women who have experienced domestic violence. They will then meet families who have received support from the Kelty Mental Health Resource Centre and later youth working with the Sail and Life Training Society. They end their tour with a public official departure ceremony at Victoria Harbour Airport.

Read more: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-37513719

With their dark music, inscrutable cool and painful authenticity, the Manchester band have inspired a generation of rappers pushing the boundaries of hip-hop

If rappers are the new rock stars perhaps its because so many of them seem to be cognizant of the old ones. On Tuesday, Danny Brown, one of raps most interesting voices, released his new album, Atrocity Exhibition, named after a Joy Division song (itself named after the book by JG Ballard). Brown has a longstanding relationship with the band. In a 2013 Guardian interview, he cited Ian Curtis as an influence, and the band have informed his music since 2011s album XXX.

Brown told Rolling Stone that he named the album Atrocity Exhibition because he identified with Curtiss pain in the song the authenticity of which received terrible confirmation when the singer hanged himself in 1980, aged 23. I just relate to that song a lot, he said. That song, [Ian Curtis is] pretty much talking about how he feels like hes part of a freak show almost. People just wanna come see him and they just wanna see him be a certain type of way. I totally relate to that.

Though Joy Division and Danny Brown or even post-punk and rap may seem to exist on opposite ends of the spectrum, there is definitely an emotional through line that links the two. The bands influence has added a dark tint to the sounds and aesthetics of two generations of backpack and avant garde rappers. Tyler, the Creator, who once called Odd Future the new Sex Pistols, rapped that he was a modern-day Ian Curtis on Leather Head. Earl Sweatshirt played Decades on a keyboard during his interview last year. Memphis rapper Cities Aviv referred to Curtis death on his mixtape Black Pleasure. Lupe Fiasco paid tribute to Joy Division with his band Japanese Cartoon. Kanye West asked designer Peter Saville, who created Joy Divisions iconic record sleeves, to design his logo. Vince Staples has said that Joy Divisions Unknown Pleasures inspired his debut album, Summertime 06. (They were all following in the footsteps of Grace Jones, who released a scarifying reggae cover of Shes Lost Control in 1980.)

In an interview with RBMA, Staples touched on why so many rap artists respond to Joy Division. BB King and Ian Curtis sing about the same things, he said. Its all life. In hip-hop, specifically, everything is sectioned off Why are we still trying to limit ourselves? Rappers attempting to push the boundaries of hip-hop have often attempted to incorporate kinds of music traditionally circumscribed by the genre. As for the lyrics, the themes of many Joy Division songs failure, crisis, loss and depression are as relatable to rappers as they are to anyone else.

It goes without saying that Joy Division are far from the only white rock band to have inspired current rappers. OG Maco, whose breakout hit, U Guessed It, went viral in 2014, recently released an EP called Blvk Phil Collins, a nod to the Genesis frontman. Aesop Rock has long cited folk rockers the Mountain Goats and singer-songwriter John Darnielle as one of his primary inspirations for his densely packed lyrics. Lil B once released a song featuring Elliott Smith, while Mac Millers producer alter ego Larry Fisherman later covered Angeles. Rappers often see their own reflections in the most unlikely places.

During his 2014 Lollapalooza set, Vic Mensa covered the White Stripes Seven Nation Army, invoking the band as a means to rile the crowd up. Azealia Banks has long been an Interpol fanatic. She covered Slow Hands early in her career, and later said it was a dream of hers to be in the band. Lil Uzi Vert, a rapper the Fader called the first rock star of post-Obama rap, has been vocal about his Marilyn Manson fandom. Listen here, at age 27 I will leave this Earth for this man right here, Uzi said of Manson in a Nardwuar interview. Hes the Pale Emperor. Some connections make more sense than others. Its easy to trace Coldplays influence on Atlanta bubblegum pop rapper Lil Yachty (who once said his favorite album of all-time is Ghost Stories), whose sugary synth confections often evoke a strawberry swing.

Of course rappers are inspiring rockers, too. Earlier this year, Young Thug wrote a song called Rocket Man (whose title later changed to Elton and again to Kanye West on his mixtape JEFFERY) as a tribute to Elton John. John, in turn, said he was a fan of Thugs: I heard a track on Beats 1 and I loved it so much. Iggy Pop also recently co-signed the Atlanta rapper. With his flamboyance, rebelliousness and gender fluidity, in his own way, Young Thug carries on the legacies of both Iggy and Elton. The rappers and the punks and the glam rockers arent really all that different. As genres continue to blur and artists become increasingly harder to categorize, perhaps we should be less surprised that they often understand each other.

Read more: https://www.theguardian.com/music/2016/sep/29/joy-division-rap-danny-brown-odd-future-vince-staples