Arturia’s Winter Sale Arturia’s Winter Sale is running until 11 March, with everything available exclusively via the company’s website and the Arturia Software Centre.

“I’d like to dedicate this moment to SOPHIE”: A.G. Cook is the BRITs 2025 Producer of the YearA.G. Cook has been crowned Producer of the Year ahead of the 2025 BRIT Awards.
Chosen annually by a select panel of expert judges, the award has previously been presented to the likes of Chase & Status, David Guetta and Calvin Harris.

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An artist, producer and label head, Cook has reshaped the landscape of pop music over the past decade with his wild experimentation and innovative production. After founding the label PC Music in 2013, he gained recognition for his pioneering work with its vast network of artists, including the Grammy-nominated Scottish DJ and musician, SOPHIE.
Cook is a longtime collaborator of Charli XCX, having produced the singer’s latest Grammy-winning album Brat. He also released his acclaimed third solo album Britpop, last year.
Responding to news of his win, Cook dedicated the award to SOPHIE, who died in 2021 after a tragic accident: “As someone who’s always felt like a bit of an outsider, I’m very flattered to be recognised by The BRITs. From the early PC Music days to the Charli mixtapes and beyond, I’ve been lucky to work on so much music that I truly believe in. In particular, I’d like to dedicate this moment to SOPHIE, whose vision and artistry is still a driving force for producers everywhere.”
Damian Christian, Managing Director and President of Promotions at Atlantic Records and chair of the BRIT Committee for ,adds, “What a year A.G. Cook has had – from his expansive solo record Britpop to the world beating Brat, he has pushed the boundaries and delivered incredible music.”
“He is a true creative and has worked with the world’s biggest artists – always getting the best out of them and helping them evolve their sound. Congratulations to AG on being crowned the 2025 Producer of the Year.”
The BRIT Awards 2025 will take place on Saturday, 1 March, 8.15pm at The O2 arena. Comedian Jack Whitehall is set to host the show, which will feature live performances from Sabrina Carpenter, JADE, Myles Smith, Teddy Swims and The Last Dinner Party.

The post “I’d like to dedicate this moment to SOPHIE”: A.G. Cook is the BRITs 2025 Producer of the Year appeared first on MusicTech.

How To Make It in Country Music from Bailey Zimmerman and Nate Smith’s ManagerThis week, Ari is joined by Simon Tikhman, the co-founder of The Core Entertainment, to discuss how to break as a country artist today.

GZA AT THE NOVOThis past Sunday, hip-hop artist and founding member of The Wu-Tang Clan, GZA, took the stage at The Novo before a sold-out crowd where he opened for the R&B/soul/funk group Lettuce. GZA is known for remarkable performances, and his show at the Novo was no exception. GZA performed his 1995 second solo studio album Liquid Swords in its entirety—an album widely considered an all-time classic. An hour after the doors opened, fans waited patiently in anticipation of GZA hitting the stage. Just as GZA’s bandmates were tuning their instruments, GZA emerged, bearing a striking resemblance to his late cousin, Ol’ Dirty Bastard (ODB). No time was wasted as GZA launched into his first song “Shadowboxin’” followed by “Cold World.” GZA then brought out special guest rapper Killa Priest—best known for being featured on GZA's hit song “B.I.B.L.E”—and the pair’s performance was an instant crowd favorite. Songs like “Duel of the Iron Mic,” “Gold,” and “4th Chamber” had the crowd in a frenzy, shouting, "We want more! We want more!” Though most of the audience was too young to remember when Liquid Swords was first released, they still knew the words to every track.Just before his set closed for the night, GZA paid homage to his late cousin ODB by rapping a few of his songs, leaving the evening on a nostalgic note as the crowd once again sang along. After his performance, GZA took time to sign autographs for fans, many of whom were eagerly throwing albums, sneakers, and hats his way. With his usual humility, GZA ensured that everyone went home satisfied. His performance was unsurprisingly extraordinary, proving once again that hip-hop will never see another artist like GZA and that Liquid Swords remains unmatched.Photos by Daniel SeyumThe post GZA AT THE NOVO first appeared on Music Connection Magazine.

3 reasons why Solana (SOL) price is 50% down from its all-time highSolana price is 50% down from its all-time high as traders seek greener pastures on other blockchains.

Anthropic’s latest flagship AI might not have been incredibly costly to trainAnthropic’s newest flagship AI model, Claude 3.7 Sonnet, cost “a few tens of millions of dollars” to train using less than 10^26 FLOPs of computing power. That’s according to Wharton professor Ethan Mollick, who in an X post on Monday relayed a clarification he’d received from Anthropic’s PR. “I was contacted by Anthropic who told me […]
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Chloe Bailey hit with copyright infringement suit over ‘Trouble In Paradise’ tracksSinger, songwriter and producer 4Rest is seeking punitive damages of $5 million per track for three tracks on Chloe's second album
Source

Reverse-Engineering SKS Airspy Tire Pressure Sensors for Custom FirmwareAlthough a somewhat common feature on cars these days, tire pressure sensors (TPS) are also useful on bicycles. The SKS Airspy range of TPS products is one such example, which enables remote monitoring of the air pressure either to a special smartphone app (SKS MYBIKE) or to a Garmin device. Of course, proprietary solutions like this require reverse-engineering to liberate the hardware from nasty proprietary firmware limitations, which is exactly what [bitmeal] did with a custom firmware project.
Rather than the proprietary and closed communication protocol, the goal was to use the open ANT+ sensor instead, specifically the (non-certified) TPS profile which is supported by a range of cycling computers. Before this could happen the Airspy TPS hardware had to be first reverse-engineered so that new firmware could be developed and flashed. These devices use the nRF52832 IC, meaning that development tools are freely available. Flashing the custom firmware requires gaining access to the SWD interface, which will very likely void the warranty on a $160 – 240 device.
The SWD programmer is then attached to the 1.27 mm spaced SWD holes per the instructions on the GitHub page. After flashing the provided .hex file you can then connect to the TPS as an ANT+ device, but instructions are also provided for developing your own firmware.

Afroplug Kompa Plug LiteIntroducing the Revolutionary Kompa Plug: The Ultimate All-in-1 Plugin for Authentic Haitian Kompa Music Production. Whether you're influenced by Carimi, T-Vice, Klass, Nu-Look, Djakout... Read More

What is gospel music? Exploring the genre’s rich sound and history
The producers behind Sound Doctrine and leading musicians discuss the elements that define gospel music, its history, and powerful sound.

UMG just assigned 100K ISNI IDs: You need to get one tooUniversal Music Group (UMG) has announced its official adoption of ISNI IDs as a global identifier assigned to anyone involved in the creation of intellectual property.
The post UMG just assigned 100K ISNI IDs: You need to get one too appeared first on Hypebot.

GigAtlas wins Measure of Music HackathonAlmost 2000 attended this year's edition of the online Measure on Music Hackathon and Conference.
The post GigAtlas wins Measure of Music Hackathon appeared first on Hypebot.

These high-end headphones cost $2,000 but are “a carefully crafted audio masterpiece”Meze Audio has again crafted another pair of very high-end planar-magnetic headphones, POET.
POET, priced at $2,000 no less, are described by the luxury Romanian manufacturer as “a carefully crafted audio masterpiece inviting listeners to experience a journey through inner worlds – where sound, emotion, and purpose intertwine”. They offer a more compact design compared to the brand’s flagship planar magnetic ELITE headphones (rated 9/10 by MusicTech).

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Planar magnetic headphones utilise a thin, flat diaphragm with a magnet suspended next to it and an electromagnetic signal running through wires to vibrate the diaphragm to generate sound. They are usually lighter but larger than dynamic headphones.
For POET, this tech comes courtesy of Rinaro Isodynamics, and is combined with luxury materials, and a compact, open-back design. Meze Audio says they deliver “lush, airy vocals and precise bass impact, balancing low-end depth with delicate high-frequency clarity”.
To set the headphones apart from other high-end offerings on the market, they host a unique Hybrid Magnet Array designed to create a uniform, powerful magnetic field across the diaphragm. The Parus diaphragm has a low weight (0.06g) and an “expansive” active area for “pristine” audio reproduction. The POET headphones are also designed with longevity in mind, which makes sense with their hefty price. They are coupled with a premium hand-braided copper cable and are fully serviceable, as every component can be easily disassembled and replaced. They also have a flexible titanium alloy headband to evenly distribute weight, and magnetic ear pads to make swapping easier.

“From the very beginning of our POET journey, we knew we wanted to create something unique – a more compact planar-magnetic open-back headphone that is every bit as capable as our flagship models,” says Alex Grigoras, Acoustic Engineer at Meze Audio.
“What better place to look than at the very apex? In collaboration with our friends at Rinaro Isodynamics, we synthesised the essence of ELITE’s driver technology and gave it new life. I believe POET turned out to be more than just a headphone; it’s a nod to a huge stepping stone in our development as a team and a testament to how far we’ve come.”
The POET headphones are available now for £1,850/$2,000/€2,000. Find out more over at Meze Audio.
The post These high-end headphones cost $2,000 but are “a carefully crafted audio masterpiece” appeared first on MusicTech.

Cali76 Stacked Compressor from Origin Effects The new Cali76 Stacked Compressor will replace the existing Cali76 Stacked Edition, and is said to share a lot in common with the discontinued SlideRIG range. 

“I’m sure many people think I’m crazy for doing this again”: Fyre Festival 2’s “real” date announcedFyre Festival is officially making a comeback.
Billy McFarland, convicted fraudster and the man behind 2017’s most infamous music festival meltdown, has announced that Fyre Festival 2 is happening. He also insists that it’s all “real” this time.

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After years of teasing a comeback, McFarland took to social media Monday to confirm the sequel’s grand return. Scheduled for 30 May to 2 June, Fyre Festival 2 will take place in Isla Mujeres, Mexico. And if you have an extra $1.1 million lying around, you and seven lucky friends can splurge on an exclusive VIP package — though given the festival’s history, you might want to set aside some emergency funds for a last-minute flight home.
Described as a “three-day escape to the Mexican Caribbean,” the festival promises daytime adventures and “intimate beach-side performances at night”. Who’s performing, you ask? Great question — because there’s no actual lineup besides the rather vague promise of “international and emerging talent”.
For those who somehow missed the first Fyre Festival debacle (or just need a refresher), the original event was billed as a luxurious, once-in-a-lifetime music experience in the Bahamas, complete with lavish accommodations and gourmet food. Instead, attendees were met with disaster relief tents, cheese slices on white bread, and their luggages tossed around an unlit carpark.
The entire mess was later immortalised in Netflix’s FYRE documentary, while McFarland spent nearly four years in prison for fraud.
Addressing the skepticism head-on in his announcement, McFarland states, “I’m sure many people think I’m crazy for doing this again. But I feel I’d be crazy not to do it again. After years of reflection and now thoughtful planning, the new team and I have amazing plans for Fyre 2. The adventure seekers who trust the vision and take the leap will help make history. Thank you to my partners for the second chance.”
Andy King, a former investor of the original festival, previously voiced his concerns over “red flags” for the reboot event, saying: “I’m just seeing a lot of red flags, and a lot of red lights, and I feel bad. It saddens me… We were going to rent one of the biggest estates in the Hamptons and have a big, swanky party. We ended up having 30 people at a pizza place along the Montauk highway.”

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For the bravehearted, tickets to Fyre Festival 2 are currently on sale now.
The post “I’m sure many people think I’m crazy for doing this again”: Fyre Festival 2’s “real” date announced appeared first on MusicTech.