Spitfire Audio Valentine's Day Sale Spitfire Audio have announced a Valentine's Day Sale, with discounts of up to 35% applied across a select range of individual libraries.

McDSP SA-3 plug-in gains Windows support McDSP have announced that their recently released SA-3 Spectral Processor plug-in is now supported on PCs running Windows 10 and 11.

This alien-looking Love Hultén MIDI guitar comes with a built-in NESpoly synthIs it a guitar-shaped synth or a synth-shaped guitar? This is a question one might ask when faced with Love Hultén’s latest creation.

READ MORE: “Move over, Taylor – Queen Bey is in the house!”: TIDAL servers crash after Beyoncé drops two new songs during Super Bowl

For those new to Love Hultén’s quirky designs, the Swedish audio visual artist, synth-builder and woodworker is the mastermind behind some of the most bizarre and incredible-looking musical machines we’ve seen. Last year, he turned a cactus garden into an instrument by integrating a device called Plantwave, which turns biodata from organic objects into MIDI.
And now, we have a portable MIDI guitar that’s infused with a NES-style chiptune synthesizer. The instrument, created in a collaboration with musician Catbeats, is built around the YouRock MIDI guitar technology.
Features include a bunch of tone-shaping buttons and knobs, a detachable neck for easy transportation, as well as a detachable clear dome at the bottom corner for the extremely important task of replacing the cat avatar underneath — because why not?
To top things off, the guitar also comes with a custom strap that’s “made from extraterrestrial skin” to complete the look.
“Kickstarted 2024 with a weird one for my friend,” Hultén says of his latest invention. Check out the axe in action below.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Love Hulten (@lovehulten)

Of late, Love Hultén’s has also collaborated with Chase Bliss on a custom synth that integrates some of Chase Bliss’s new products. The synth, in all its mint green glory, utilises a Korg Minilogue, Yamaha Reface CP, a Roland TR-08, as well as Chase Bliss’s own Mood MKII and newly launched Lossy.
“It’s dream-come-true time today! We made a Love Hultén,” said Chase Bliss of the project. “It will be living at the EU Hub in Amsterdam and was a workplace anniversary gift for one of our very early employees and EU Director, Tyler Devonald.”
The post This alien-looking Love Hultén MIDI guitar comes with a built-in NESpoly synth appeared first on MusicTech.

Big news from Bandsintown x Spotify integration. Now Bandsintown Events in addition to Shopify merch was added. It looks familiar but also strategical somehow...

Airbnb plans to use AI, including its GamePlanner acquisition, to create the ‘ultimate concierge’In November, Airbnb acquired a stealth AI firm launched by Siri’s co-founder, called GamePlanner.AI. The deal valued the secretive startup at around $200 million, according to reports. Though the hosting company didn’t telegraph its plans for GamePlanner at the time, Airbnb co-founder and CEO Brian Chesky today shared a high-level overview of Airbnb’s larger plans […]
© 2024 TechCrunch. All rights reserved. For personal use only.

POLLSTAR LIVE! 2024 Featuring Jon Bon Jovi, Steve Ballmer, James L. Dolan, Pearl Jam’s Jeff Ament, Tedeschi Trucks & More

Los Angeles, CA (February 12, 2024) – Pollstar Live! set a third straight year of record-breaking attendance. The lauded conference is the world’s largest gathering of global live entertainment professionals and the flagship event week for Pollstar magazine, the leading trade for the global live entertainment industry. The conference, including Production Live! and Pollstar Live!, took place Feb. 6-8 at the Fairmont Century Plaza in Los Angeles and once again tackled the most relevant and informative topics facing the live industry and the larger entertainment ecosystem.

On Tuesday, Production Live!, a full day dedicated to production and transportation in live events, kicked off the conference with opening remarks from Ray Waddell, president of OVG Media & Conferences, which produces Pollstar Live!, Production Live!, and the Pollstar Awards. Highlights of the day included “A Matter of Trust: The Artist/Crew Dynamic in Tedeschi Trucks Band Featuring Derek Trucks & Susan Tedeschi,” as well as intriguing and educational panels for the live entertainment pros “in the trenches,” such as “Crisis Averted: The Art & Craft of Subverting Murphy’s Law,” “The Next Generation Of Road Warriors Lead The Way,” “Multiple, Sitdown, Residency, Whatever: The Pros & Cons of a Semi-Permanent Production,” and more.

Wednesday morning began with a welcome address from Chairman and CEO of Oak View Group, Tim Leiweke who spoke on the healthy state of the business and its future.

Later that day, Grammy-winner and Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductee Jon Bon Jovi was a featured Keynote speaker at “How to See A Million Faces and Rock Them All.” At the panel, Bon Jovi, in conversation with his longtime agent Rob Light, CAA’s Head of Music, discussed his lengthy career, including how he secured his initial airplay, his demanding touring schedule, his decisions to create his own management company, the band today, plus advice to young artists and philanthropy, and much more. At the panel, he was also honored with the Milestone Award, recognizing the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame-inducted band's 40th anniversary and their significant contributions to the live industry.

In another keynote session exclusively for attendees of Pollstar Live!, executive chairman and CEO of Sphere Entertainment Co., James L. Dolan sat down with Tim Leiweke for a fireside chat on the spectacular opening of Sphere in Las Vegas and the future of live entertainment.

Additional key panels on Wednesday included “Golden Era 3.0: How Long Will This Boom Last And What Can We Do To Sustain?,” “The Venue’s Role in Booking, Marketing & Maximizing Concerts,” and “The Most Impactful Show Possible: A Look at Sustainability and the Live Music Industry,” just to name a few.

On the evening of the 7th, comedian, actor, host, and author Tom Papa hosted the 35th Annual Pollstar Awards at the historic Wiltern theater. This year’s ceremony celebrated a who’s-who of A-list artists, tours, companies, venues, and executives, including award winners Taylor Swift, Metallica, Post Malone, Beyoncé, P!nk, Morgan Wallen, Karol G, Dave Chappelle, Brandi Carlile, U2, Jelly Roll, The Sphere, Austin’s Moody Center, The Hollywood Bowl, Austin City Limits Music Festival, The Ohana Festival, and more. Celebrities in attendance to accept their awards included Metallica’s Lars Ulrich and Dave Chapelle, with artists including Jelly Roll and P!nk accepting via video. Also at the ceremony, legendary agent Howard Rose, longtime agent for such artists as Jimmy Buffett and Elton John, was recognized with the inaugural Pollstar Lifetime Achievement Award, including a video congratulation from Elton. James L. Dolan received the first-ever Visionary Award for “innovation, inspiration, and vision that will have a positive and lasting impact on the live entertainment industry.” To view the Pollstar Awards recap video, click here.

On Thursday morning, co-founder of Ballmer Group and Chairman of the LA Clippers, Steve Ballmer, and Pearl Jam’s Jeff Ament, spoke on “Music, Basketball & the Intuit Dome.” The energetic and informative Q&A covered topics including Ballmer’s vision for and construction of the new home of the LA Clippers, the Intuit Dome, its positive impact on the community, what’s coming up next for Pearl Jam, their mutual love of basketball, and more. 

Additional final day high points included an early look at the largest, most expensive, and most modern live entertainment arena in the UK and Europe, Co-op Live in Manchester, England (“Co-Op Live Sneak Peek”); “Where To Go & When: Developing the Global Touring Strategy;” “Sphere: Redefining the Future of Live Entertainment”; “Genre Spotlight: Country!”; and more. Pollstar Live! concluded with the highly anticipated “Agents Live!” happy hour networking.

For recaps of the conference, visit the Pollstar Live! editorial hub at https://news.pollstar.com/2024/02/05/pollstar-live-2024-hub/

# # #

About Pollstar:   

Since its founding in 1981, Pollstar, The Voice of Live, has been the premier trade publication dedicated to covering the worldwide concert industry. Pollstar data is the leading resource for the touring industry encompassing box office numbers, routing, and directories. Pollstar produces a weekly magazine, publishes daily content to Pollstar.com and its "Daily Pulse” e-newsletter, and executes the world’s largest gathering of live music industry professionals - Pollstar Live. Follow Pollstar on Facebook, Instagram, X, and LinkedIn.  

Benn Jordan vs TuneCore: “23 albums nuked overnight with no warning”Benn Jordan‘s music, under his alias The Flashbulb, has been taken off streaming platforms, allegedly due to “streaming fraud” – and he is not happy.

READ MORE: Benn Jordan is done with making gear videos and reviews, cites “super toxic” community as cause 

Speaking to his audience via his Gumroad page, Jordan recounts the experience of finding his music removed from digital streaming platforms (DSPs): “Last Friday (10 February, 2024), I randomly pulled out my phone in the studio to reference one of my soundtracks for a composing collaboration. ‘Huh. My phone is bugging out,’ I complained.
“Then I noticed dozens of notifications: various listeners letting me know their feelings regarding my removal of all of my music. ‘What… the… fu?’
“And just like that, poof. I was erased from Spotify, Apple Music, iTunes, Deezer, YouTube Music, and virtually everywhere music is sold or streamed. I logged into TuneCore (my primary digital distributor since 2007), and without warning or any communication, they removed a total of 23 albums.”
Taking to Twitter, Jordan posted screenshots of his TuneCore artist page and a conversation with TuneCore, which claims Spotify had “identified and removed a high amount of streams” from his royalty calculation due to “evidence of abnormal streaming activity” on his releases. It also claims to have conducted “an additional internal investigation” and confirmed the evidence.

On what fucking planet is it okay to ban an artist with 1.6 million annual listeners without any communication?
Is this literally what happens when you criticize the way streaming platforms treat musicians?
You had one job, @TuneCore. pic.twitter.com/PZJYtRNXg4
— Benn Jordan (@bennjordan) February 10, 2024

“An ‘internal investigation’ has confirmed ‘evidence’ of streaming fraud on Spotify,” Jordan writes on X/Twitter.
“Therefore, The Flashbulb and my other music has been permanently removed from all platforms. 23 albums nuked overnight with no warning or communication.
“Give me a fucking break TuneCore.”

An "internal investigation" has confirmed "evidence" of streaming fraud on Spotify.
Therefore, The Flashbulb and my other music has been permanently removed from all platforms. 23 albums nuked overnight with no warning or communication.
Give me a fucking break @tunecore. pic.twitter.com/AmCiybhYj4
— Benn Jordan (@bennjordan) February 12, 2024

After TuneCore’s CEO, Andreea Gleeson, responded to inform him his enquiry would be handled after the weekend, Jordan responded: “I guess the guy who deletes 23 albums without warning or communication works weekends and the support staff that deals with the artist(s) and label affected doesn’t.
“Good thing my 300k monthly listeners don’t listen to music on weekends.”

I guess the guy who deletes 23 albums without warning or communication works weekends and the support staff that deals with the artist(s) and label affected doesn't.
Good thing my 300k monthly listeners don't listen to music on weekends. https://t.co/16IQBgt34V
— Benn Jordan (@bennjordan) February 12, 2024

Jordan has provided MusicTech with a folder of his correspondences with TuneCore, along with his streaming history across multiple platforms including Spotify. One item mentioned that the removal of his music could amount to $500,000 worth of losses.
He later said that TuneCore’s support had “finally” reached out to him and accused him of fraud, and he is now having to meet with legal counsel as a result.
Gleeson has responded to the backlash: “Thanks for the candid feedback and totally agree that we need more and deeper weekend support. This is something we are actively working on expanding.”
Jordan also tells MusicTech: “Whether this is malice related to my Spotify criticism or simply negligence, this is dystopian for reasons much larger than myself or my loss of income. While being erased from existence and gaslit is among one of the worst things that can happen to an artist, if there was one fight I was born to fight, it’s this one.
“I have millions of listeners and my music is on over 300,000 active playlists. These listeners pay a fee to listen to this music, and now it seems to be unavailable even if they downloaded it. The streaming music industry is so broken that it can no longer provide the simple transaction it spent billions of dollars trying to replace.”
The “Spotify criticism” Jordan alludes to includes a variety of video essays posted to his YouTube channel, such as How Money Laundering W/ Spotify Works, and Why Spotify Will Ultimately Fail. In his correspondence with TuneCore, he states that he has “never been involved in any type of streaming fraud. In fact, I’ve done extensive journalism to expose it.”

MusicTech has reached out to TuneCore for comment.
Jordan is offering his entire discography for download at a ‘pay what you want’ price tag. “Pay what you want. Seriously,” reads the message on Gumroad. “If you’re broke, pay the minimum and enjoy the music. If you’re generous, this will certainly help me out as I’ve just had a significant portion of my income cut off and may be entering an expensive legal battle.”
Read more at The Flashbulb Gumroad page. 
The post Benn Jordan vs TuneCore: “23 albums nuked overnight with no warning” appeared first on MusicTech.

How to flip jazz samples into beats
Veteran producer and songwriter Trinity dropped by the Splice YouTube channel to showcase how to flip jazz samples into beats.

Only 19% of artists on Spotify had over 1,000 monthly listeners in 2023As MBW has previously pointed out, there will be a minimum number of unique listeners required for a track to become eligible for royalty payouts on Spotify this year
Source

Session Organ EKX for Toontrack EZKeys 2 The latest EZKeys 2 add-on captures Hammond’s iconic B-3 organ and also offers a modelled Leslie 122 rotary cabinet. 

Benn Jordan vs TuneCore: “23 albums nuked overnight with no warning”Benn Jordan‘s music, under his alias The Flashbulb, has been taken off streaming platforms, allegedly due to “streaming fraud” – and he is not happy.

READ MORE: Benn Jordan is done with making gear videos and reviews, cites “super toxic” community as cause 

Speaking to his audience via his Gumroad page, Jordan recounts the experience of finding his music removed from digital streaming platforms (DSPs): “Last Friday (10 February, 2024), I randomly pulled out my phone in the studio to reference one of my soundtracks for a composing collaboration. ‘Huh. My phone is bugging out,’ I complained.
“Then I noticed dozens of notifications: various listeners letting me know their feelings regarding my removal of all of my music. ‘What… the… fu?’
“And just like that, poof. I was erased from Spotify, Apple Music, iTunes, Deezer, YouTube Music, and virtually everywhere music is sold or streamed. I logged into TuneCore (my primary digital distributor since 2007), and without warning or any communication, they removed a total of 23 albums.”
Taking to Twitter, Jordan posted screenshots of his TuneCore artist page and a conversation with TuneCore, which claims Spotify had “identified and removed a high amount of streams” from his royalty calculation due to “evidence of abnormal streaming activity” on his releases. It also claims to have conducted “an additional internal investigation” and confirmed the evidence.

On what fucking planet is it okay to ban an artist with 1.6 million annual listeners without any communication?
Is this literally what happens when you criticize the way streaming platforms treat musicians?
You had one job, @TuneCore. pic.twitter.com/PZJYtRNXg4
— Benn Jordan (@bennjordan) February 10, 2024

“An ‘internal investigation’ has confirmed ‘evidence’ of streaming fraud on Spotify,” Jordan writes on X/Twitter.
“Therefore, The Flashbulb and my other music has been permanently removed from all platforms. 23 albums nuked overnight with no warning or communication.
“Give me a fucking break TuneCore.”

An "internal investigation" has confirmed "evidence" of streaming fraud on Spotify.
Therefore, The Flashbulb and my other music has been permanently removed from all platforms. 23 albums nuked overnight with no warning or communication.
Give me a fucking break @tunecore. pic.twitter.com/AmCiybhYj4
— Benn Jordan (@bennjordan) February 12, 2024

After TuneCore’s CEO, Andreea Gleeson, responded to inform him his enquiry would be handled after the weekend, Jordan responded: “I guess the guy who deletes 23 albums without warning or communication works weekends and the support staff that deals with the artist(s) and label affected doesn’t.
“Good thing my 300k monthly listeners don’t listen to music on weekends.”

I guess the guy who deletes 23 albums without warning or communication works weekends and the support staff that deals with the artist(s) and label affected doesn't.
Good thing my 300k monthly listeners don't listen to music on weekends. https://t.co/16IQBgt34V
— Benn Jordan (@bennjordan) February 12, 2024

Jordan has provided MusicTech with a folder of his correspondences with TuneCore, along with his streaming history across multiple platforms including Spotify. One item mentioned that the removal of his music could amount to $500,000 worth of losses.
He later said that TuneCore’s support had “finally” reached out to him and accused him of fraud, and he is now having to meet with legal counsel as a result.
Gleeson has responded to the backlash: “Thanks for the candid feedback and totally agree that we need more and deeper weekend support. This is something we are actively working on expanding.”
Jordan also tells MusicTech: “Whether this is malice related to my Spotify criticism or simply negligence, this is dystopian for reasons much larger than myself or my loss of income. While being erased from existence and gaslit is among one of the worst things that can happen to an artist, if there was one fight I was born to fight, it’s this one.
“I have millions of listeners and my music is on over 300,000 active playlists. These listeners pay a fee to listen to this music, and now it seems to be unavailable even if they downloaded it. The streaming music industry is so broken that it can no longer provide the simple transaction it spent billions of dollars trying to replace.”
The “Spotify criticism” Jordan alludes to includes a variety of video essays posted to his YouTube channel, such as How Money Laundering W/ Spotify Works, and Why Spotify Will Ultimately Fail. In his correspondence with TuneCore, he states that he has “never been involved in any type of streaming fraud. In fact, I’ve done extensive journalism to expose it.”

MusicTech has reached out to TuneCore for comment.
Jordan is offering his entire discography for download at a ‘pay what you want’ price tag. “Pay what you want. Seriously,” reads the message on Gumroad. “If you’re broke, pay the minimum and enjoy the music. If you’re generous, this will certainly help me out as I’ve just had a significant portion of my income cut off and may be entering an expensive legal battle.”
Read more at The Flashbulb Gumroad page. 
The post Benn Jordan vs TuneCore: “23 albums nuked overnight with no warning” appeared first on MusicTech.

“Move over, Taylor – Queen Bey is in the house!”: TIDAL servers crash after Beyoncé drops two new songs during Super BowlTIDAL servers struggled to cope after Beyonce dropped two new singles at the weekend, with fans reporting difficulty in signing up to the high-definition music platform.

READ MORE: Over one million “manipulated” tracks on streaming services are “diverting revenue away” from artists, recent study shows 

During Sunday’s Super Bowl, Beyonce appeared in an advert for telecommunications company Verizon, in which she attempted a series of “firsts” in a bid to try and break the internet provider’s service. At the end of the advert, she ordered: “Drop the new music.”
Moments later, a video posted to her Instagram confirmed the release of a new country album, ACT II, which is set to drop on 29 March. She also debuted two new singles, TEXAS HOLD ‘EM and 16 CARRIAGES. 
Beyonce’s bid to break the internet seemingly worked as far as TIDAL was concerned, with fans struggling to sign up for accounts. Members of The Atlantic‘s team tested this by trying to sign up and failing to do so, being met with a ‘504 Error Gateway’ message.

“Beyoncé – a genius at marketing – may have just won the night and the battle for attention with her Verizon Super Bowl commercial, new album announcement AND two new singles. All within an hour!” they remarked.
“Move over, Taylor? Queen Bey is in the house!”
In other TIDAL news, the company confirmed in December that over 10 per cent of its team was to be laid off over the coming months.
“The team is going to be smaller than we are today by the end of next year,” Jack Dorsey, CEO of TIDAL parent company Block, Inc. wrote in his notice to employees. The cuts will be determined “through performance management, scoping our work and restructuring to remove duplication and redundancy”.
“I believe it’s important to be upfront and transparent about all this, so you all can make your own decisions if you need to,” he expanded. “You may not be up for the uncertainty or shrinking our team, and want to leave. That’s perfectly reasonable. But I’d rather us provide the information than to work secretly in the dark.”
The post “Move over, Taylor – Queen Bey is in the house!”: TIDAL servers crash after Beyoncé drops two new songs during Super Bowl appeared first on MusicTech.

Spotify partners with Bandsintown to supercharge live music discoveryShows listed on the global live music discovery platform Bandsintown will now also appear on Spotify.
The new partnership provides greater visibility and discovery for artists, venues, and festivals of all sizes at a time of rising costs and increased competition...
The post Spotify partners with Bandsintown to supercharge live music discovery appeared first on Hypebot.

Soundtoys EchoBoy is just $49 at Plugin Boutique until Friday – saving you $150Plugin Boutique is on a roll with its deals at the minute, and this week it has worked with effects plugin brand Soundtoys to offer up to 75 per cent off on a number of its popular products, including the EchoBoy, the SuperPlate and the PanMan.

READ MORE: You can get up to 93% off Sonnox, Solid State Logic, UJAM plugins over at Plugin Boutique right now

Right now until Friday 16 February, as part of the Soundtoys February Mini Sale, you can find the US brand’s delay effect, EchoBoy, on offer for just $50. Its 2023-launched award-winning SuperPlate reverb is also down from $149 to $50, saving you 67 per cent.

Other notable discounts include 60 per cent off on the Devil-Loc Deluxe limiter, which is, according to Soundtoys, a “crushing, pounding, aggressive compressor for massive drums”, its rhythm auto-panner, the PanMan, and PrimalTap, a modelled retro dual delay with a Freeze feature allowing for lo-fi pitch-warped loops and delays.
Or, if you’re struggling to pick just one of these fantastic effects plugins, the huge Soundtoys Effect Rack, a plugin suite including all of the aforementioned plugins, plus the widely-used Crystallizer, Decapitator, Radiator and FilterFreak, has been made available for just $179, down from $299.
If you’re unfamiliar with Soundtoys’ collection of effects plugins, we advise you to get on board with the hype. And that’s not just us saying that – MusicTech has interviewed a ton of producers in recent years, and Soundtoys plugins have been recommended again and again.
In 2022, for example, producers Toyboy & Robin told us about how Soundtoys Decapitator was essential in the making of their track Think It Over, saying it “adds that extra ‘bite’ to so many different sound sources”. DC Gore also praised the same plugin for its “flexibility, sound, ease of use and low DSP”.
Max Tundra, commended for pioneering hyperpop, told us in the same year that the Soundtoys Effect Rack was “astonishingly versatile in terms of bang for buck”.
The Soundtoys Feburary Mini Sale ends this Friday 16 February.
Check out these and more plugins via Plugin Boutique.
The post Soundtoys EchoBoy is just $49 at Plugin Boutique until Friday – saving you $150 appeared first on MusicTech.

What are fan subscriptions and why are they so important for musicians?Fan subscriptions can strengthen direct artist-fan relationships and provide another revenue source for musicians. But they aren't right for everyone...
The post What are fan subscriptions and why are they so important for musicians? appeared first on Hypebot.