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Universal Music UK’s blog on music, the music news stories which interest us most and the wider issues which affect our business. Some food for thought we hope.

Can books read across from music?

04/01/2012

Richard Mollet – Chief Executive, The Publishers Association

"I've seen this happen in other people's lives and now it's happening in mine" as Morrissey once sang. But is this what the publishing sector feels about the digital marketplace when it looks at the music business?

Universal Music at Music Hack Day London

08/12/2011

James Cowdery – Innovation Manager, Universal Music UK

It was Music Hack Day London at the Barbican this weekend and Universal Music was delighted to be involved. If you’re not familiar with Music Hack Day – it’s a marathon of computer code, pizza and beer where collaboration and invention are prized and insomnia is roundly mocked.

The Artist Gateway - linking our data to the best content on the web

05/12/2011

James Cowdery – Innovation Manager, Universal Music UK

I joined Universal Music a few months ago, working in the Commercial Team on the first floor. It’s my job to help the company take advantage of the significant opportunities afforded by the web. This means building innovative digital products that are valuable to our artists and labels. I’d like to tell you about something massively exciting that we announced at Music Hack Day this weekend.

Utalks at the Centre for Contemporary Arts, Glasgow

24/11/2011

Last week a team from Universal Music UK ventured north of the border for the first Utalks session outside London. The event took place just before The Naked and Famous Glasgow show at the ABC. Fiction MD Jim Chancellor and label manager Steve Warby joined Thom Powers and Aaron Short from the band to make up our panel. Corrine McConnachie attended the session and kindly shared her thoughts with us.

Music and TV – joining forces in the new digital age

02/11/2011

Julia Svennerstal - Digital Strategy Manager, Universal Music UK

Last week I was invited to attend a round table discussion titled "The music and TV industries: each other's saviour?" As a new member of the Universal staff this was a great opportunity to learn and meet others working to shape the future of digital music.

Brits countdown begins

31/10/2011

Next year's Brit Awards, which take place on February 21st at the O2 Arena, will see the winners presented with a trophy designed by Sir Peter Blake, the man responsible for the sleeve for The Beatles' Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band.

It's all about the bands

25/10/2011

Paul Smernicki - Director of Digital, Universal Music UK

My job is nothing if not varied. Last week I spent some time in Parliament meeting with Julian Huppert, MP. Julian has expressed some strong views about the implementation of the Digital Economy Act, and we thought it was important that he hear directly from someone (me) who works in an industry where this is an important topic.

New Robbie Williams album set for release by Universal Music

21/10/2011

A new album from Robbie Williams is set to be released next year by Universal Music following a deal struck between the world’s leading record company and the most successful British male solo artist ever.

A sound investment – not risky business

11/10/2011

Paul Smernicki - Director of Digital, Universal Music UK

Over the past ten years, we and our artists have supported a broad range of new products and services (like Spotify and AudioFuel) to ensure the music we love can reach ever wider audiences. But unfortunately, this bucks the general trend throughout the rest of the creative industries.

Striking a sporting note

27/09/2011

Michael Seymour - Communications

Last Sunday I was lucky enough to be invited along to the famous Abbey Road studios to see the London Philharmonic orchestra putting the final touches to the 205 national anthems being recorded in preparation for London 2012.

Anticipating f8

22/09/2011

Paul Smernicki - Director of Digital, Universal Music UK

As one of the 750 million active Facebook users on earth, it's easy for me to see how deeper integration of music into this universal (note – small 'u'!) experience can have very positive implications for the health of our industry and our artists.

Nevermind turns 20 - pt4

22/09/2011

Jim Chancellor - Fiction MD

Working the door of the infamous CBGB’s for six months had introduced me to bands such as Soundgarden and Tad, bands that would pave the way for grunge, and ease me away from metal.

Nevermind turns 20 - pt3

22/09/2011

Michael Seymour - Communications

When Nevermind was first released I was only two years old. My main interests were eating, sleeping, screaming and making a mess.

Nevermind turns 20 - pt2

22/09/2011

Kevin Phelan - Head of Licensing

Unusually I imagine, my strongest memory of Nirvana stems from Dave and Krist’s prowess as practical jokers.

On Track...with SEAT

16/09/2011

On Track…with SEAT is set to return to Channel 4 on Wednesday September 28th for a second series in an extended format – presented by BBC 6Music’s Tom Ravenscroft.

Nevermind turns 20

15/09/2011

Karen Simmonds - UMSM MD

A Tuesday evening in mid-September found me in Shoreditch at the opening of the Nirvana Exhibition, to celebrate the 20th anniversary edition of Nevermind.

Reading Festival 2011 - Sunday

28/08/2011

The third and final day of Reading 2011 was by far its busiest. The main road leading up to the festival was jam packed with thousands of festival goers eager to get a prime spot infront of the main stage.

Reading Festival 2011 - Saturday

27/08/2011

The team from Umusic were back at Reading festival for day two and grateful for the the great weather. Eager fans gathered despite the poor weather on Friday

Reading Festival 2011 - Friday

26/08/2011

Friday at Reading Festival 2011 began with heavy rain but spirits couldn't be dampened by the weather. Bands across Universal's labels had made the trip to the muddy site to perform for over 85,000 fans.

Umusic at Reading Festival 2011

23/08/2011

The August Bank Holiday is fast approaching and for a lot of us at Universal Music that means one thing: the weekend of the Reading and Leeds festivals. We will be blogging from the Reading site all weekend so keep checking back to see what we get up to, which bands we're watching and the occasional weather update.

#futureofmusic with Wired

22/07/2011

Paul Smernicki - Director of Digital, Universal Music UK

This week I spoke at Wired’s Future of Music event with Michael Breidenbruecker (founder of RJDJ) and Imogen Heap.

Utalks at Urban Development

18/07/2011

Courtney Buck - Intern, Urban Development

Utalks are a series of informal sessions to give people interested in and around music the chance to speak to people working on the frontline. Hosted by staff at Universal Music, this is only the fourth of its kind, although Universal is planning to host more throughout the year. For this edition Utalks comes to UDHQ at the Three Mills Studios in East London.

Polydor at Sonisphere

15/07/2011

Olivia Whatley-Hobbs - Digital Marketing, Polydor

A big part of what we do is collecting content such as videos and photos from some of the top festivals and gigs that our artists play.

Elbow at Glastonbury

05/07/2011

Liz Goodwin - Head of Marketing, Polydor

Glastonbury has to be one of the musical highlights every year. Cramming onto a farm with 150,000 people isn’t everyone’s idea of fun but loads of people here at Universal HQ are hooked.

Breakfast in Parliament - pt2

01/07/2011

Hanna Chalmers - Head of Research And Insight, Universal Music UK

On Monday I said I’d update you on our trip to parliament to meet MPs and tell them about Universal Music.

It’s hard not to feel a sense of excitement and trepidation as one is led through security into such a formidable and historic building as the House of Commons.

Breakfast in Parliament

27/06/2011

Hanna Chalmers - Head of Research And Insight, Universal Music UK

My day job is heading up Universal Music's Insight team.

People often ask what this means and most simply put it's our team's job to be the voice of the music fan across Universal Music.

Three Peaks Challenge

15/06/2011

Universal UK's team of intrepid explorers are this week preparing to take on the Three Peaks Challenge to raise money for the Teenage Cancer Trust.

Create your own Kaiser Chiefs album

06/06/2011

The Kaiser Chiefs were in the Fiction offices on Friday after the launch of their new ‘create your own album’ called The Future is Medieval.

The idea behind the release is to let fans be part of the creative process as explained in this YouTube Video.

Utalks at Goldsmiths

31/05/2011

Ross Anderson - Creative Director, Polydor

On sitting down in front of 100 students at Goldsmiths College this Monday, my first thought was that they could ask anything, and that frankly made me a bit nervous. Not because we have an skeletons in our cupboard, or have anything to be ashamed of, but just because we haven’t done this before. It’s easy to hide behind what we do ‘because we know best’ – BUT, in this scenario, was it time for us to explain ourselves!?

Tinchy, Dappy, Pixie and SBTV

31/05/2011

As you would expect at a record label we quite often see artists coming and going during the day. Now and again these artists get together and create something a little special. Last week Mercury’s reception was invaded by Dappy, Tinchy Stryder, Pixie Lott and the crew from SBTV for this spontaneous acoustic performance of Spaceship.

Music when you want, how you want

19/05/2011

If you buy music you should be able to listen to it in the way you want, whether you’re burning MP3s onto a disc or putting CD albums on your iPod. But as things stand when you transfer music you own to a different device (known as format shifting), you’re technically breaking the law.

Gary Harris, Fiction's A&R exec, writes from The Great Escape

18/05/2011

Gary Harris - A&R Exec, Fiction

So here I am on a train making my way to Brighton for 2011’s Great Escape Festival, the UK’s answer to SXSW.

Straight to the hotel to check in and I’m off to the Dome to collect my pass, then on to Komedia to see the Deep Sea Arcade.

Music Matters

12/05/2011

Niamh Byrne - Head of Creative Content Strategy, Universal Music UK

When [Universal Music UK chairman] David Joseph first asked me whether I had any ideas to develop a campaign which would kick start a conversation around the value of music I was sceptical.

Decca rush release a piece of history

06/05/2011

Mark Wilkinson - Managing Director, Decca

Universal Music’s connection with the Royal Household began back in 1981 when our then parent company PolyGram distributed the official recording of Prince Charles and Princess Diana’s wedding on behalf of the BBC.

Introducing Uvinyl

20/04/2011

Wayne Horton - E-commerce Commercial Manager, Universal Music UK

Vinyl is a glorious format and I’ve been a fan for many years. It’s the format of choice for DJs and Audiophiles alike. Sales of LPs have been increasing since 2007 and initiatives such as Record Store Day have made vinyl cool again.

Changes to Spotify

14/04/2011

Paul Smernicki - Director of Digital, Universal Music UK

Today, Spotify, the music subscription service, announced some changes to their service via their excellent blog. The most eye-catching is that after six months of full access to the free version of the service, users will be capped to five listens to any particular track.

Our intern programme

13/04/2011

Morna Cook - Director of Human Recources, Universal Music UK

It was fantastic to see our internship scheme featured on Newsnight on Tuesday after Nick Clegg’s speech on helping young people from a range of backgrounds get career opportunities. At Universal we’re really proud of our paid internship scheme; we believe it benefits not only interns but the whole company.

Bands and Brands

07/04/2011

Aaron Bogucki - Senior Digital Campaign Manager Manager, Polydor

I enjoyed last week’s Guardian Behind The Music column on bands and product placement. (Read it HERE)

Island intern Janette on being on BBC Newsnight

06/04/2011

Janette Quaye - Press Intern, Island

Tuesday was one of the more surreal days I've had working at Island. A BBC film crew spent most of the afternoon following me around for a Newsnight feature on internships. Not something I expected to happen when I joined the press team as an intern in January.

Songs for Japan

28/03/2011

As Japan recovers from the devastating tsunami and earthquake that struck the country on March 11, 38 of the biggest names in contemporary music have joined together for the worldwide release of Songs for Japan, a compilation of 38 chart-topping hits and classic tracks, available on the UK iTunes Store for £7.99 starting today (www.itunes.com/songsforjapan). Proceeds from the album's sale will benefit the disaster relief efforts of the Japanese Red Cross Society.

Alex Close, A&R Manager for Fiction Records, shares his SXSW

25/03/2011

Alex Close - A&R Manager, Fiction

Wednesday March 16th

Delayed flight
Touch down at 10.15pm.
On the strip - 6th Street by 11pm.
Margarita in hand by 11.05pm.
Austin I've missed you!
A spring-break student's paradise - bar after bar as far as the eye can see.

Liam Bailey’s YouTube Website

22/03/2011

Edd Blower - Digital Consultant, Polydor UK

Liam Bailey is one of Polydor’s most exciting new acts and also an avid YouTube user. His musical knowledge is vast and he tends to share everything he likes with the world via Spotify or YouTube.

Noah's Last Night On Earth

03/03/2010

London folk-pop four-piece Noah & The Whale release their new album Last Night On Earth today.

Styling Britannia

14/02/2011

Matt Beardsell - Partner, Music

It’s a dream job for any design agency, to re-invent a brand so iconic that it has the the possibility to become part of the fabric of popular culture. When we were appointed by Brits, and Universal Music UK, Chairman David Joseph to create a new BRIT trophy our excitement soon turned to trepidation at the realisation of the task ahead..

On air, on sale

31/01/2011

David Joseph - Chairman, Universal Music UK

We live in an immediate world so it wasn’t a great surprise when Google and iTunes told us that searches for a new song tend to peak two or three weeks before a record is released, a time when the only place our music had been available was on illegal sites.

The beginning, not the end

28/01/2011

Paul Smernicki - Director of Digital, Universal Music UK

In his report for Forrester, author Mark Mulligan talks about ‘Digital Natives’, 12-15 year olds who have no experience of a world where music was paid for in the way older people would understand - physical products, downloads or even subscription models.