The centre will open its doors on September 13 at the V&A East Storehouse, after originally being teased back in February 2023. As described on the V&A website, it will give fans the chance to “step into the creative worlds of David Bowie – artist, disruptor, icon.  Explore the costumes, sounds, lyrics, and sketches that mapped his many reinventions and use his radical imagination as a springboard to something new.”

A number of special displays will be curated for the exhibitions – with over 90,000 of Bowie’s personal items being on show over nine special displays.

We are thrilled to announce that the exceptional archive of legend @DavidBowieReal is coming to the V&A! Spanning 80,000 items across his 60 year career, you can explore Bowie’s life’s work in ways never possible before at @vam_east Storehouse from 2025 #DavidBowieArchive pic.twitter.com/sTGtJnydKB

— V&A (@V_and_A) February 23, 2023

Two of the displays are being curated by the aforementioned Nile Rodgers and The Last Dinner Party. Rodgers has selected items that reflect his and Bowie’s “shared love of the music that had both made and saved our lives”.

Speaking of the exhibition, Rodgers said: “My creative life with David Bowie provided the greatest success of his incredible career, but our friendship was just as rewarding. Our bond was built on a love of the music that had both made and saved our lives.”

Although The Last Dinner Party didn’t have the same personal relationship with Bowie as Nile Rodgers did, ‘Ziggy Stardust’ certainly had a major inspiration on the bands musical journey.

The ‘Prelude To Ecstasy’ rockers curation will include exclusive photos by Mick Rock of Bowie in the studio, his Electronic Music Studios synthesiser user manual, writings from the 1976 ‘Station To Station’ tour and Bowie’s handwritten lyrics for ‘Win’.

The group recently unboxed several items and artefacts of Bowie’s in a YouTube video for V&A. Check it out below.

Speaking of the inspiration Bowie gave to them, The Last Dinner Party said: “David Bowie continues to inspire generations of artists like us to stand up for ourselves. Bowie is a constant source of inspiration to us.

“When we first started developing ideas for TLDP, we took a similar approach to Bowie developing his ‘Station To Station’ album – we had a notebook and would write words we wanted to associate with the band.”

As for the opportunity to curate a display for the Bowie Centre, the band said: “It was such a thrill to explore Bowie’s archive, and see first-hand the process that went into his world-building and how he created a sense of community and belonging for those that felt like outcasts or alienated – something that’s really important to us in our work too.”

The David Bowie Centre opens on September 13 with entry being free, but ticketed. Tickets will be available to book at a later date from here.

It’s our great pleasure to announce the winner of The Global Icon Award, supported by Visit West Hollywood: Nile Rodgers. https://t.co/WLxzdVusA7

— Rolling Stone UK (@RollingStoneUK) November 22, 2024

The announcement of Rodgers as the well-deserved recipient of the award came soon after Rolling Stone UK revealed this year’s shortlisted nominees for other major categories including: The Breakthrough Award, The Artist Award, The Album Award and the Song of the Year Award.

The Global Icon Award is selected with support from Visit West Hollywood, which awarded the same title to heavy metal icon, Ozzy Osbourne last year.

This year’s recipient of the Global Icon Award, Nile Rodgers has an impressive and legendary career spanning over five decades. As co-founder of the prominent disco band, Chic, known from their timeless tracks from the 1970s, ‘Le Freak’, ‘Good Times’ and ‘Everybody Dance’, Rodgers has had a pivotal presence in the creation of the industry’s most influential tracks.

Rodgers has experimented beyond the genres of disco, funk and soul within his expansive discography. He has become well-immersed in R&B, rock, pop, dance and electronic dance during his time in the industry.

The now-72-year-old songwriter and producer couldn’t have been more deserving of the Global Icon Award having sold more than 500 million albums and 75 million singles worldwide. These very impressive figures have established Rodgers as one of the industry’s greats. He has had a substantial influence in the industry, while being a figurehead of funk, he has also served significant contributions as producer to pop culture’s most memorable hits.

One of Madonna’s most popular tracks, which has sold more than 22 million copies worldwide, ‘Like A Virgin’ was produced by Rodgers in 1984, who at first, was against producing the song over dislike of its hook, came to like the track after admitting the song had got stuck in his head during the time of its recording.

Along with ‘Like A Virgin’, Rodgers has produced: David Bowie’s 1983 hit ‘Let’s Dance’ part of Bowie’s album of the same name which sold 10.7 million copies worldwide; Diana Ross’ most listened to tracks ‘I’m Coming Out’ and ‘Upside Down’; Sister Sledge’s ‘We Are Family’ and Daft Punk’s ‘Get Lucky’ from 2013, which features vocal contributions from Pharrell Williams. The track of which spent four weeks on the UK’s Official Singles Chart, which became the second best-selling single of 2013 and Rodger’s first-ever UK million seller.

Rodgers has been an innovative pioneer to the music industry for over 50 years, following popular trends whilst honing his craft as an influential figure in funk and soul. The now-awarded Global Icon doesn’t seem any closer to putting away his Fender Stratocaster, as the icon is currently touring as part of his ‘Nile Rodgers & Chic’ ensemble performing across the UK, South America and Europe during the rest of 2024 and 2025.

]]> https://www.mxdwn.co.uk/news/nile-rodgers-is-crowned-global-icon-at-rolling-stone-uks-2024-awards/feed/ 0 https://www.mxdwn.co.uk/news/kaiser-chiefs-announce-new-album-and-2024-uk-tour/ https://www.mxdwn.co.uk/news/kaiser-chiefs-announce-new-album-and-2024-uk-tour/#comments Wed, 25 Oct 2023 22:04:22 +0000 http://www.mxdwn.co.uk/?p=66433 World famous British band Kaiser Chiefs delighted fans recently with the news of their upcoming eighth studio album. The band, fronted by ex The Voice judge Ricky Wilson, are due to drop the highly anticipated album, titled Kaiser Chiefs’ Easy Eighth Album, on March 1st 2024. You can pre-order or pre-save the LP here.

The new album, produced by Amir Amor of Drum & Bass band Rudimental, will feature the band’s two previously released singles “Jealousy” and “How 2 Dance”. In addition to this, the “Love’s Not A Competition” singers dropped a brand new track today (October 25) featuring none other than musical legend Nile Rodgers.

When speaking about how the new track, titled “Feeling Alright”, Ricky Wilson said “On the first day with Nile Rodgers, he said, ‘What have you got?’ We searched through some jams we had and this was a song that stood out to him. The band loved playing it round and round, and it must be fun to play but we never really knew where it would find a home. Nile turned out to be the best estate agent and found it a home almost immediately. He also brought in Amir, who turned out to be our housemate for the entire record. A good place to start!”

“Nile Rodgers is a force to be reckoned with,” Ricky stated. “He does make you think about dancing quite a lot! He’s an amazing man to write songs with.”

Our new single Feeling Alright is out everywhere now! We’re also announcing our eighth album ‘Kaiser Chiefs’ Easy Eighth Album’ releasing March 1st! If that wasn’t exciting enough, to celebrate we’re also heading out on tour in April! pic.twitter.com/jr1qeSvCN0

— Kaiser Chiefs (@KaiserChiefs) October 25, 2023

The full tracklist for Kaiser Chiefs’ Easy Eighth Album is:

1. “Feeling Alright”
2. “Beautiful Girl”
3. “How 2 Dance”
4. “The Job Centre Shuffle”
5. “Burning In Flames”
6. “Reasons To Stay Alive”
7. “Sentimental Love Songs”
8. “Jealousy”
9. “Noel Groove”
10. “The Lads”

In case that wasn’t enough for fans, Kaiser Chiefs have also shared details of a UK tour taking place next Spring. Tickets go on sale at 9am BST on Friday November 3rd, and will be available here.

Fans can also access a pre-sale by pre-ordering the group’s new album via their official website before 8:55am GMT next Tuesday (October 31). You can do that by clicking here.

Tour dates:

11/04/2024 – International Riviera Centre – Torquay
12/04 – Winter Gardens – Eastbourne
12/04 – Dreamland – Margate
16/04 – Globe – Stockton
17/04 – Civic – Wolverhampton
19/04 – Empress Ballroom – Blackpool
20/04 – Troxy – London
21/04 – Flippers Roller Boogie Palace – London

Rodgers co-founded the group Chic with Bernard Edwards in the late 70’s and has since gone on to write, produce and perform on records that have sold more than 500 million albums and 75 million singles worldwide.

“Thrilled to announce we’re bringing the ‘Good Times’ back across England and Wales in 2024!” Rodgers shared in a social post on October 23. “Mark your calendars because we’re gonna light up the night, celebrate life, and dance like there’s no tomorrow.”

Thrilled to announce we’re bringing the ‘Good Times’ back across England and Wales in 2024! Mark your calendars because we’re gonna light up the night, celebrate life, and dance like there’s no tomorrow.

Tickets are on sale 9am Friday 27th October at https://t.co/JR5Yx4J5oA

pic.twitter.com/m3fUkqAkdU

— Nile Rodgers (@nilerodgers) October 23, 2023

In addition to Nile Rodgers and Chic, British Pop singer Sophie Ellis-Bextor and viral Pop band Deco will be supporting on the whole tour.

I’m so excited to announce that my band and I will be joining @nilerodgers and Chic as special guests on their Summer 2024 tour Ticket info: https://t.co/khh0P3yHW0 pic.twitter.com/ywUSdqkcn2

— Sophie Ellis-Bextor (@SophieEB) October 23, 2023

General sale tickets will become available this Friday (October 27th) at 9am BST. You can purchase tickets here. Presale tickets for all dates excluding July 13th (Dreamland, Margate) are available now and can be purchased here.

In other Nile Rodgers news, the musician recently featured on British New Wave band Duran Duran’s latest single “Black Moonlight”. This collaboration is not the first time Rodgers and Duran Duran have worked together, as the Chic co-founder also produced the “Hungry Like The Wolf” band’s 1986 album Notorious. When speaking of the collaboration, Duran Duran keyboardist Nick Rhodes said “Nile Rogers is a force of nature. When we get into a room, we start playing, and magic happens. Nile always says that CHIC is his first band, and Duran Duran is his second.”

Moreover, the band’s frontman Simon Le Bon added “‘Black Moonlight’ is this classic Duran Duran-Nile Rodgers collaboration. When Nile started playing his guitar in the studio, he really inspired everyone with his riff, and the song just kind of wrote itself.”

You can find dates for the upcoming Nile Rodgers and Chic 2024 UK tour below.

Tour dates:

16/06/2024 – The Piece Hall – Halifax
23/06 – Southampton Summer Session – Southampton
07/07 – Bedford Park – Bedford
11/07 – Llangollen International Musical Eisteddfod – Llangollen
13/07 – Dreamland – Margate

The conception of the album was inspired by a show the band played last Halloween in Las Vegas in which the band played Halloween themed re-workings of rarities from the band as well as a variety of covers, much like the new album.

The covers on the album include ‘Bury a Friend’ by Billie Eilish, ‘Psycho Killer’ by Talking Heads, ‘Paint It Black’ by The Rolling Stones, ‘Ghost Town’ by The Specials, ‘Spellbound’ by Siouxsie and the Banshees and ‘Supernature’ by Cerrone. The album also features a guest list of Nile Rodgers, Victoria De Angelis from Maneskin as well as former guitarists Andy Taylor and Warren Cuccurullo.

The title track ‘Danse Macabre’ has already been released alongside the album announcement and is available on streaming services now.

Talking about the song, keyboardist Nick Rhodes said: “The song ‘Danse Macabre’ celebrates the joy and madness of Halloween. It is the title track of our forthcoming album, which gathers together an unusual mix of cover versions, reworked Duran Duran songs and several new compositions.

The idea was born out of a show we played in Las Vegas on 31st October 2022. We had decided to seize the moment to create a unique, special event… the temptation of using glorious gothic visuals set to a dark soundtrack of horror and humour was simply irresistible.”

He further adds: “That evening inspired us to explore further and to make an album, using Halloween as the key theme. The record metamorphosed through a pure, organic process, and not only was it made faster than anything since our debut album, it has also resulted in something none of us could have ever predicted. Emotion, mood, style and attitude have always been at the heart of Duran Duran’s DNA, we search for light in the darkness and darkness in the light, and I feel we have somehow managed to capture the essence of all of that in this project.”

The title track is one of three original tracks from the album alongside other new tracks ‘Black Moonlight’ and ‘Confession in the Afterlife’. Furthermore, long-term fans of the band will be thrilled to learn that the original band line-up of Nick Rhodes, Andy Taylor, Roger Taylor, John Taylor, and Simon Le Bon will be reunited for many tracks on the album.

Tracklist:

1. Nightboat
2. Black Moonlight
3. Love Voudou
4. Bury a Friend
5. Supernature
6. Danse Macabre
7. Secret Oktober 31st
8. Ghost Town
9. Paint It Black
10. Super Lonely Freak
11. Spellbound
12. Psycho Killer
13. Confession In The Afterlife

Duran Duran Announce Charity Concert In Support Of Former Band Member Andy Taylor

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The legend himself, @nilerodgers! Come and join Nile on Sunday 19 December with performances from Sir @rodstewart, @ImeldaOfficial, @JessGillamSax and more!

Don’t miss out on what will be an unforgettable evening. Sign up today: https://t.co/e4JusZfgxh pic.twitter.com/nKkl4O99ST

— Nordoff Robbins Music Therapy (@nordoffrobbins) December 9, 2021

All proceeds from the event were donated to Nordoff Robbins to ensure that the continuation of the charities positive influence. The donated funds will enable the charity’s music therapists to continue their important work to utilise music’s power to help those suffering from mental and physical difficulties. A statement from the charity’s website describes their work, “At Nordoff Robbins, we stand for music and believe in the value of music for all people in our society. Our vision is to live in a world where through music therapy, human potential is recognised regardless of profound disability, illness or social exclusion.”

The annual fundraising concert was hosted by music icon Nile Rodgers and included headline acts Sir Rod Stewart, Imelda May and Jess Gillam. Sir Stewart treated ticketholders to a setlist including the hit single “Have I Told You Lately” and the festive classic “Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas”. The singer then concluded the show with an improvised rendition of the classic “Shake, Rattle And Roll”. Dublin born singer also delighted the audience with a set including her 2021 hit “Don’t Let Me Stand On My Own” as well as a reading of her poem “Home”. May was also joined on stage by Sir Stewart and the duo performed an emotional duet of “Grace”. Gillam also adhered to the festive theme and performed a rendition of “Merry Christmas, Mr Lawrence”.  The event’s host also took to Instagram to announce the event, within the post Rodgers also provided link to the charity.

 

 

 

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A post shared by Nile Rodgers (@nilerodgers)

The event also saw performances from Shakira, Eurythmics Songbook featuring David A. Stewart along with special guest Beverley Knight, Enrique Iglesias and Lindsey Buckingham, The event’s host Nile Rodgers also performed with his band CHIC, all acts performed at St. Luke’s Church and all performances are available to stream. The event’s stream also features accessible sets from previous years’ line up, past acts available to stream include Neil Young and Robbie Williams.

The Christmas concert also included a treat for literature fans, actors gave readings from celebrated texts. Clarke Peters read from The Journey of the Magi by T.S Eliot, the American actor is best known for his work in The Wire. The Darkling Thrush by Thomas Hardy was read by English actress Alice Eve and Rory Bremmer read from King John’s Christmas by A.A. Milne.

The event’s host Nile Rodgers has given the following statement expressing the charities’ importance, “Get together with family and friends and settle down for a musical treat from the comfort of your own sofa for Christmas carols with a difference as The Stars Come Out To Sing At Christmas 2021 – to help raise vital funds for a whole range of people who need it most, including children with autism who rely on music therapy for a sense of connection and those affected by life-limiting illnesses or disability. Nordoff Robbins believes in the value of music for all people in our society – which is why it’s so close to my heart. I understand the power of music and have witnessed how music therapy can connect people who may otherwise feel isolated or disconnected from the world. It’s the universal values that we can all express through music that brings us together in a unique way. I’m honoured to be hosting this special online concert for the second year running, bringing together some of my friends from the music world, including one of my favourites – Sir Rod Stewart – who feel just as passionately as I do about the important work of Nordoff Robbins.”

Click here to stream the concert and discover more about Nordoff Robbins.

McVie left the band in 1998 following the band’s induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and her win of a Brit Award for Outstanding Contribution to Music in 1998. McVie remained in semi-retirement for 15 years and rejoined the band in October 2014. The singer has announced that she has now sold her 115- song back catalogue to the company Hipgnosis.

Fleetwood Mac’s Christine McVie Sells 115-Song Catalog to Hipgnosis https://t.co/8XFgoERUvs

— Variety (@Variety) August 9, 2021

Hipgnosis was founded by Nile Rodgers and Merck Mercuriadi in 2018 and has also successfully obtained songwriting rights from the band’s Lindsey Buckingham. McVie follows in the footsteps of the co-founder of the band Mick Fleetwood who secured a deal with BMG and Stevie Nicks who has a deal with Primary Wave. It is reported that the deal with Hipgnosis includes ownership of McVie’s songs, financial interest, and writers shares of her songwriting credits (Inclusive of McVie’s solo work) and worldwide copyright.

McVie expressed her excitement and stated, “I am so excited to belong to the Hipgnosis family, and thrilled that you all regard my songs worthy of merit”.

Mercuriadi’s from Hipgnosis has hailed McVie as being one of the greatest songwriters. Hipgnosis has amassed a market value of £1.4 billion and has also acquired the catalogue rights to other big artists such as Shakira, Michael Buble, Neil Young, Mark Ronson and the Red Hot Chilli Peppers.

Mercuriadis speaking of the deal said “Christine McVie is one of the greatest songwriters of all time having guided Fleetwood Mac to almost 150 million albums sold and making them one of the best-selling bands of all time globally,”

McVie thanked Hipgnosis for their deal and expressed that she wishes to maintain their relationship in any way that she can. In the wake of increasing streaming numbers, the song “The Chain” that McVie co-wrote with Mick Fleetwood, Lindsey Buckingham, John McVie and Stevie Nicks has been streamed 1 billion times.

Nile Rodgers in an iconic musician from the 1970s, he is a 3-time Grammy winner and is an inductee into the Rock n Roll Hall of Fame and currently sits as chairman for the Songwriters Hall of Fame. His signature chucking style of guitar can be heard in hundreds of hit songs with bands and artists such as Chic, Bowie, Diana Ross, Queen, Daft Punk, Madonna, Mick Jagger, Lady Gaga and countless other massive names in the industry.

Rodgers commented on the new collaboration with SG Lewis, stating that “SG and I have been working together at my home away from home, Abbey Road, for a couple of years now.” The collaboration is a widely coveted honour for the new musician SG Lewis and Rodgers continued to praise the track, saying “I love how effortless and cool this song is. The awesome Julian Bunetta and John Ryan wrote on this with us and killed it!”

SG Lewis is not unaccustomed to working with big names in the music industry. He began his career playing music with Disclosure, and has recently released music with big names such as Robyn and Khalid. His upcoming LP times is highly awaited, as he is a large presence in the UK and quickly becoming Britain’s next rising star.

SG Lewis commented on the track with Rodgers excitement on social media, stating that “Working with Nile Rodgers was an experience which will stay with me for the rest of my life. To have someone who has influenced not only this album, but my entire career play on this song is mind blowing.” SG Lewis explained the new single in further detail, saying that “One More was the first song I wrote for this record in L.A., and one that set me on the path to making this whole album.”

SG Lewis and Nile Rodgers collaborative track One More is available now on all streaming services and Times will be released everywhere as SG Lewis debut LP, coming February 19th.

We’ve been overwhelmed by the support from all the incredible artists & celebrities who will be helping to raise vital funds for our music therapy on Tue 15 Dec for our Christmas concert #SingForNordoffRobbins https://t.co/yt5APxGrNs @HipgnosisSongs @LSEplc @openexc @YourSSE pic.twitter.com/Rqmq6Po9M0

— Nordoff Robbins Music Therapy (@NordoffRobbins1) December 10, 2020

The list of performers for the virtual concert includes Cliff Richard; Rod Stewart; Robbie Williams; Manic Street Preachers frontman James Dean Bradfield; Simple Minds; Neil Young; Tony Bennett; Kaiser Chiefs; Rebecca Ferguson; Freya Ridings; Jack Savoretti and soul songstress Mica Paris. There will also be appearances from Led Zeppelin troubadour Robert Plant, The Who’s Roger Daltrey and Coloradan pop-rockers OneRepublic.

The musical sets will be interspersed with traditional and topical Christmas readings from British stars of stage and screen. Speakers will include Bill Nighy; Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again and Rebecca star Lily James; actor, playwright and singer Kwame Kwei-Armah; Olivier Award winner Noma Dumezweni; and Freddie Fox.

Nordoff Robbins – founded in 1959 by Handsworth-born special education teacher Clive Robbins and American composer and pianist Paul Nordoff – helps provide therapy to music to those affected by life-limiting illness, isolation or disability. The charity works with  over 270 organisations across the UK; including schools, care homes, hospitals, mental health units, hospices, and neuro-rehab centres.

Previewing the gig this week, the charity’s Instagram page states: “Nordoff Robbins has been severely impacted by #COVID-19. Most of our fundraising activities have been cancelled, meaning we are expecting to lose over 50% of our income in 2020, putting music therapy at risk of stopping for the people who need it most. Our #SingForNordoffRobbins online Christmas concert will help raise vital funds for our music therapy.”

Host Nile Rodgers, the guitar behemoth behind the iconic sound of Chic and Sister Sledge, t0ld Music Week that he had a personal connection with the charity. He said “Nordoff Robbins music therapy is a charity close to my heart as I’ve witnessed the power of music first hand. I’ve seen how music connects with people all over the world in a way that nothing else can so when I heard that Nordoff Robbins were taking their annual carol service online, I jumped at the chance to host the event and to bring along some of my closest musical friends to help spread some Christmas cheer.”

The veteran hit-maker added “I know how hard this year has been for everyone, in particular charities. Because of the pandemic, Nordoff Robbins are expecting to lose much of their fundraising income. This means they are able to help less people, including children with autism who rely on music therapy for a sense of connection or those affected by life-limiting illnesses or disability – even though their services are needed now more than ever.“

“At present, Spotify is believed to pay between £0.002 and £0.0038 per stream, while Apple Music pays about £0.0059. YouTube pays the least – about £0.00052 (or 0.05 pence) per stream.”. Music is an important part of our lives, and streaming is “such a useful and much-used method of consuming media content in this day and age” and is the easiest way to get widespread music listens and attention. it also tracks how many streams a song gets. However, Nile Rodgers and Fiona Bevan are among the new musicians shedding the harsh light on streaming royalties

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A post shared by Fiona Bevan (@fionabevan)

Bevan, who is a songwriter for artists, has gone on record to say that “Right now, hit songwriters are driving Ubers. It’s quite shameful.”. Bevan has been credited for writing songs for well-known artists like One Direction, Steps, and Lewis Capaldi revealed just how much she would earn from a song “she had earned just £100 for co-writing a track on Kylie Minogue’s number one album, Disco.”. She added that even the most successful among songwriters are struggling to pay their bills this year.

CHIC frontman Nile Rodgers has also spoken to MP’s on the matter of streaming royalties. Rodgers admitted that before this year he never truly looked into how much he made through royalties because “my tour revenue has been so substantial that I could support my entire organisation”. Rodgers links the issues to the none-discloser agreements that are set between record labels and the songwriter.  

 

 

 

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A post shared by Nile Rodgers (@nilerodgers)

Rodgers wants transparency on the matter saying that “record labels retain up to 82% of the royalties generated from music played on services like Spotify, Apple Music and Amazon Music” and has branded the system as just ridiculous. Rodgers also accused the record labels of deliberately withholding money from songwriters “I look at the record labels as my partners. And the interesting thing is that every single time I’ve audited my partners, I find money.”

“We don’t even know what a stream is worth… and there’s no way you can find out”

Chic’s Nile Rodgers gives evidence to MPs’ music streaming inquiry https://t.co/fiaZzkpggH pic.twitter.com/mAZKTLPsQB

— BBC Politics (@BBCPolitics) December 8, 2020

As it stands, each stream of a song is counted as a sale of that song which then gives the record label the largest share of that ‘sale’. However, Rodgers believes that each stream is more akin to a radio broadcast, “or a licence of the recording, which would give artists 50% of the royalties” and that labels won’t want to change this as it maximises their profits. “Artists and songwriters need to update clauses in their contracts to reflect the true nature of how their songs are being consumed – which is via a licence. It is something that people are borrowing from [the streaming services]”. You can read our reporting on the first hear from artists to the DCMS here!