Luminate’s latest data-drop focuses on live music, and specifically on spending patterns in the US. It found that Gen-Z concertgoers spent an average of $101 a month on live music in the first quarter of this year.

That’s more than the $94 averaged by millennials – “historically the highest-spending demographic for live music” as Luminate noted. One thing driving this trend is Gen-Z attitudes to the price of concert tickets.

The Country Music Association announced Wednesday that Brittany Schaffer will be its next CEO. Schaffer, presently a dean at Belmont University and formerly a top exec in Spotify’s country operations, will succeed current CMA head Sarah Trahern as of Jan. 1, 2027

Primary Wave has scored a partnership deal with Foreigner founder Mick Jones, who’s sold a piece of his IP and teed up a collaboration covering touring, NIL, and more.

Produced by C3 Presents and Live Nation, the new For You Fest looks to turn the social feed into a live festival experience, billing itself as the first large-scale festival built around creator culture and touching Comedy, Music, Beauty, Fashion, Culinary and podcasts.

The milestone tenth edition of the Mumbai-based All About Music conference—widely regarded as the largest of its kind in India—will be held from 25 to 27 August.

“We’re thinking less about the last decade and more about the next one”, says Chandni Soni, the business head of the music conference. The discussions, for instance, will feature “dedicated conversations around AI, music technology and future business models”. 

The American Association of Independent Music (A2IM) revealed its 2026-2027 Board of Directors on Tuesday (July 7), alongside its new Executive Committee and Advisory Board members.

Glen Barros, Managing Partner of Exceleration Music, will chair A2IM‘s Executive Committee.

Louis Posen, Founder and President of Hopeless Records, will serve as Treasurer, while David Barnes, COO of Rhymesayers Entertainment, takes the role of Secretary.

Jermaine Dupri has filed an $18 million lawsuit against Sony Music Entertainment, alleging that the company failed to properly pay royalties for releases from Mariah Carey, Usher, Xscape, Kris Kross and more.

Indian “AI-native” and “discovery-first” ticketing platform thumpN has launched. The platform’s key feature is an AI agent named Shadow, which people can use to find live events “through natural conversation rather than traditional search”.

For example, “fans can ask Shadow for anything from ‘a stand-up show this weekend under Rs1,500’ to ‘something fun for the family on Sunday’, and the platform understands context, intent, and taste,” says CEO Varun Khare.

Just days after marrying NFL star Travis Kelce in a star-studded New York City wedding, Taylor Swift is celebrating another major milestone. The singer-songwriter has secured a legal victory after a federal judge dismissed a copyright infringement lawsuit alleging she copied lyrics from a self-published poet.

Directors of Irish ticketing company tickets.ie, which collapsed last month, have said that the loss of two key clients and bad forecasting caused insurmountable cash flow problems. The company’s founder, who left the business last year, also says he was “saddened and shocked” by the sudden collapse

Live Nation isn’t giving up its fight over the landmark antitrust verdict that found the company illegally monopolized the live concert industry.

The entertainment giant and its subsidiary, Ticketmaster, have formally asked a federal judge to either overturn the jury’s April verdict or order a new trial, arguing that legal errors and prejudicial evidence unfairly influenced the outcome. The filing represents the latest development in one of the music industry’s most closely watched legal battles, which could ultimately reshape the future of concert ticketing in the United States.

A federal judge in New York has ruled that concertgoers who purchased Ticketmaster tickets on the secondary market must take their antitrust claims to arbitration rather than pursue them in court, siding with Live Nation's argument that an arbitration clause buried in its terms of service is legally enforceable.

Justin Bieber has been added as a performer to the FIFA World Cup Final Halftime Show, joining the lineup as a co-headliner alongside Madonna, Shakira and BTS.

Suno may still be locked in litigation with two major labels, but it continues to expand its music team, ahead of its planned launch of a new, licensed AI-music model later this year.

Former Atlantic Records marketing executive Grace James has joined as VP and head of artist marketing and editorial, while former YouTube biz-dev exec Christian Bowne is taking a role as director and head of music business development.

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit on Wednesday ruled against the arts institution’s motion to stay a lower court’s decision that Trump’s name be removed from the Kennedy Center pending its appeal.

A US federal judge has ruled that only a jury can decide whether the production duo Steely & Clevie created the “dembow” rhythm used across reggaeton.

Judge André Birotte Jr. issued the decision on Wednesday (July 1), keeping alive a copyright lawsuit that names Bad Bunny, Karol G and more than 150 other artists over nearly 2,000 tracks. You can read the order in full here.

Josh Pulgarin and Scott Lee from SL Management are teaming up with Jackie Andersen and Ryan ‘Dog’ Nelson from Good Fight Management for the new venture.

The founders also have chops in other areas of the industry: Lee and Nelson in merch and ticketing, for example, while Andersen runs independent label SharpTone Records.

GUINNESS WORLD RECORDS (GWR), the global authority on record-breaking achievements, has confirmed that Harry Styles and the Together, Together tour has officially achieved a new world record title for the Longest residency by a musician at Wembley Stadium during a single run, after completing 12 shows at the iconic London venue.

The Spice Girls have regained the rights to the 1997 Spice World movie and have plans to re-release it for their fans after a fresh edit and makeover.
Time to spice up your life! The Spice Girls have taken back the rights to the 1997 Spice World movie and have plans to re-release it. Melanie C (Sporty Spice) recently revealed the news on The Louis Theroux Podcast.

Swiss tech company Tribe Music Group has launched a catalogue-valuation tool called ValuePunks, available for artists and labels to use at no cost.

The software measures data across every rights category — streaming, physical, sync, D2C and neighbouring rights — and turns it into a catalogue assessment report.

Live Nation has asked a New York federal judge to grant judgement against a coalition of U.S. states who succeeded in their antitrust lawsuit and jury trial against the live events company. The defense argues that the court shouldn’t be so quick to “rubberstamp the jury verdict” after the states asserted that there was “sufficient evidence only by arguing there is precious little they had to prove.” As a result, the company is asking for a new trial.