Music News (1/31/18)

Copyright Royalty Board Increases Mechanical Rates For Songwriters

On Saturday (Jan. 27), the Copyright Royalty Board released its ruling on mechanical rates for songwriters for 2018-2022. The court decided in favor of an increase in the overall percentage of revenue paid to songwriters, from 10.5 percent to 15.1 percent over the next five years, marking the largest increase in the Copyright Royalty Board’s history.

Read more at MusicRow.com.

 
Luke Laird Signs Publishing Deal With Sony/ATV Music Publishing, Creative Nation

Front row (L-R): Hannah Williams, Sony/ATV Nashville Creative Manager; Josh Van Valkenburg, Sony/ATV Nashville SVP, Creative; Luke Laird; Troy Tomlinson, Sony/ATV Nashville President/CEO. Back row (L-R): Terry Wakefield, Sony/ATV Nashville SVP, Creative; Dustin Kovacic, Dickinson Wright PLLC; Tom Luteran, Sony/ATV Nashville VP, Creative; Austen Adams, Dickinson Wright PLLC; Stephen Denninger, Sony/ATV Nashville A&R Coordinator; Dane Schmidt, Sony/ATV Nashville Director, Creative

Grammy award-winning songwriter and producer Luke Laird has signed a worldwide publishing agreement with Sony/ATV Music Publishing and Creative Nation. As a songwriter, Laird has had 46 radio singles – 23 of which were Billboard No. 1 hits.

ole Extends Deal With Chris Janson

Chris Janson. Photo: Brenton Giesey

On Jan. 29, ole announced it has concluded an exclusive deal with singer/songwriter Chris Janson. The deal includes the purchase of Janson’s publishing share of his existing catalogue (including his most recent album, Everybody), and extends ole’s existing publishing agreement with Janson for future albums.

Janson previously hit No. 1 with “Buy Me A Boat” in late 2015. In addition to his self-recorded tracks, Janson has also written more than 25 songs for a long list of country stars, including Tim McGraw (“Truck Yeah” & “How I’ll Always Be”), Locash (“I Love This Life”), and Randy Houser (“Song Number 7”).

 
Rough Trade Publishing Opens Nashville Office

Lynn Gann

New York-based Rough Trade Publishing has announced the opening of their new Nashville offices, to be headed by Nashville publishing veteran Lynn Gann. Rough Trade Publishing began business in 2007 as House of Hassle Publishing, and was founded by partners Lyle Hysen, Gandhar Savur and Ken Weinstein.

The group purchased the London-based Rough Trade Publishing catalog in early 2016, and merged the two companies. In addition to the new Nashville and Manhattan home office, Rough Trade Publishing maintains offices in London and Los Angeles, with 19 employees. Worldwide, RTP has agreements with approximately 400 artists and writers, covering many musical genres from country to rock, Americana, punk and more. RTP affiliated acts include The War On Drugs, Grizzly Bear, Future Islands, Superchunk and White Reaper.

The Nashville office is located at 1027 17th Ave. S., on Music Row.