UPDATE (June 4): Reps for Clive Davis tell Billboard that the music executive has been released from the hospital on Thursday. “Clive was discharged from the hospital earlier today,” the statement reads. “He is in good spirits and happy to be recuperating at home.”

PREVIOUSLY: Clive Davis has been hospitalized following an upper respiratory issue.

The legendary music executive, 94, was admitted to a New York City hospital on Friday (May 29), Billboard has confirmed. A representative for Davis told TMZ that he is being treated for an upper respiratory infection and was admitted to the hospital out of an abundance of caution.

He is expected to be released within the next 24 hours.

The hospitalization comes just days after Davis attended the Gordon Parks Foundation Awards Dinner and Auction in New York City, Page Six reports.

The iconic label boss, who helped shape the careers of artists including Whitney Houston, Bruce Springsteen, Aretha Franklin, Janis Joplin, Carlos Santana and Alicia Keys, has faced health challenges in the past. In February 2021, Davis postponed his annual pre-Grammy gala after being diagnosed with Bell’s palsy, a temporary condition that causes weakness or paralysis in facial muscles.

“He’s being treated with antibiotics and steroids and will make a full recovery within six to eight weeks, at which point he plans to host the second installment of the virtual pre-Grammy gala,” Davis’ rep said at the time.

Davis’ star-studded pre-Grammy gala has been held on the eve of the Grammy Awards each year since 1976.

A four-time Grammy winner and Rock & Roll Hall of Fame inductee, Davis is widely regarded as one of the most influential executives in modern music history. After entering the music business in the 1960s, he became president of Columbia Records in 1967 at age 35. Over a career spanning more than six decades, he held executive roles at CBS Records, founded Arista Records and J Records, later led RCA Music Group, and most recently held the title of chief creative officer at Sony Music Entertainment.

In recent years, the National Independent Venue Association’s advocacy efforts have been focused on the Department of Justice’s monopoly case against Live Nation, which resulted in a jury finding that the company illegally monopolized the market for ticketing services and the use of amphitheaters. In April, it also found that Live Nation illegally tied the use of its venues to its concert promotion services.

Now, as the association heads into its fifth annual conference, NIVA executive director Stephen Parker says the association is turning its attention to ticketing resale caps and building a more stable future for independent venues and promoters.

“This conference is more about our vision for what live entertainment looks like in a post-monopoly world. My hope is that our NIVA members are able to articulate what that vision should be,” Parker tells Billboard of the NIVA ‘26 gathering that will take place June 7-10 at various independent venues in Minneapolis. “We have been working towards a future that’s better, not just working to make sure that one company is help accountable.”

The four-day conference will kick off with a Sunday night opening party in celebration of Prince, who was a frequent performer and visitor of renowned indie venue First Avenue, where the opening party will take place. From there, NIVA will address the attendees on the current “state of live,” followed by panels on everything from marketing, ticketing platforms, food and beverage strategies, dealing with the growing number of performing rights organizations and the resale cap legislation that is being introduced across the country.

As of June 2026, 20 states across the U.S. have introduced legislation that would cap the price of concert tickets on secondary ticketing platforms like StubHub, SeatGeek and more. The wave of bills comes as fans are feeling gauged by sky-high ticket prices, while the price of a night out also continues rising.

“There’s not a single state that introduced a resale price cap this year that we went to and said, ‘Please introduce this legislation.’ In some cases, we just saw it drop,” says Parker. “The fact is, this has been such an organic movement, a bipartisan organic movement, to see a problem and see a solution and work towards that solution.”

Maine and Vermont are the only two states that have signed resale cap legislation into law, while states including New York and California have similar laws up for consideration. “We’re going to talk about all the dollars that have been spent to defeat this legislation and how we have spent very little getting a couple of these passed in the last year,” Parker says. “We’re gonna talk about how this is basically artists, fans and everybody who actually is in the live entertainment industry against scalpers.”

The conference will take place across what Parker calls an “incredible indie venue scene” in Minneapolis including First Ave and 7th Street Entry, storied Jazz club The Dakota, new space Green Room and the musician hangout Ice House. Despite the turmoil Minneapolis faced earlier this year with the Immigration and Customs Enforcement operations and the killing of civilians Renée Good and Alex Pretti, Parker says Minneapolis NIVA members wanted the conference to take place in the city.

“We heard from the community early on, the one thing that the venues and the community leaders wanted more than anything was for people not to abandon them,” Parker says. Minneapolis mayor Jacob Frey will welcome attendees to the conference on June 8 at the Pantages Theater.

Other notable speakers at NIVA ‘26 include CAA agent Carly James, The Daily Show comedian Jordan Klepper, as well as musicians Jimmy Jam, Cornbread Harris, Cory Wong of Vulfpeck and The Black Keys’ Patrick Carney.

The main focus, Parker says, will be detailing plans for a more sustainable independent live sector. The conference will discuss what the association and its members are doing to support the cultural infrastructure across the country by lobbying for tax credit programs or live performance funds that can help independent venues and creating more music offices at the city and state levels.

“What can we do to make sure that live performance isn’t just something that politicians and policy makers go to, but something that politicians and policy makers create a seat at the table for at the state and local level, and at the federal level across the country,” Parker says. “Let’s get past the monopoly. Let’s get past the predatory resale and let’s focus on the things that matter which is building the infrastructure that we need for independent venues and festivals and artists and fans to actually be able to connect without all these other things getting in the way.”

Stu Mackenzie and Lucas Harwood of King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard, Julia Jacklin, and trials, lead the first wave of Artist In Conversation sessions at BIGSOUND 2026, one of the most popular daytime spots during Australia’s annual conference and showcase smorgasbord.  

King Gizz, as they’re affectionately known in these parts, are BIGSOUND alum, having performed during the nighttime program back in 2013. The prolific group has gone on to own their lane in the psych-rock space, smashing out a remarkable 25 albums (including five in one year), launching a label (p(doom) Records) and standing out as one of Australia’s leading music exports.

Jacklin, too, has graced the BIGSOUND showcase stages. The indie alt-pop artist made her BIGSOUND debut in 2016, just ahead of the release of Don’t Let The Kids Win, the first of her three studio albums.

A two-time ARIA Award winner, Jacklin this week announced her first-ever global record deal with venerated indie label 4AD, and shared details of her 2026/27 tour that will see her perform throughout North America, the United Kingdom and Continental Europe.

Also confirmed for BIGSOUND’s Artist In Conversation lineup is Ngarrindjeri hip-hop producer, composer and innovator, a founding member of Funkoars and one half of A.B. ORIGINAL, his politically-charged project with Yorta Yorta artist Briggs (an Artist in Conversation participant at last year’s BIGSOUND) that won two ARIA Awards and the coveted Australian Music Prize for best Australian album of the year (with 2016’s Reclaim Australia).

Trials (real name: Daniel Rankine) recently supported Hilltop Hoods on their 10-date arena tour of Australia, and last month released his debut solo project hendle. Also, he has been throwing his support behind Full Stop Australia, one of the country’s leading sexual, domestic and family violence response and recovery services, with profits of his merchandise t-shirt sales from every show donated to the organization.

Previous Artist In Conversation guests have included Tony Watson (aka Tones And I), Kelis, Mallrat, Blur’s Dave Rowntree, and Amy Taylor of Amyl And The Sniffers.

This year’s 25^th anniversary edition of BIGSOUND will play out in the vibrant entertainment district that is Brisbane’s Fortitude Valley, from Sept. 1-4.

International guests confirmed for BIGSOUND 2026 include reps from Partisan Records, Pitchfork, Bonnaroo, Soho House, MOM+POP, ROAM Artists, Reeperbahn, DMT Law Firm, Carpark Records, The Great Escape, True Panther and SXSW.

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“BIGSOUND has always been a place where real connections happen, and this year we’re focused on creating even more opportunities for Australian and New Zealand artists and industry to connect with each other and the global market,” comments Kristy Ellis, interim CEO, QMusic, producers of BIGSOUND. “The program focuses on the conversations the industry is having right now — how the business is changing, how we stay ahead, and how Australian and New Zealand artists continue to grow on the global stage.”

Visit bigsound.org.au for more information.

Billboard is now live in India, the world’s most populous nation.

Launched in partnership with Other Side Ventures Pvt. Ltd. and headquartered in Mumbai, Billboard India is said to mark a new chapter in how Indian music is documented and celebrated worldwide. 

The new title will be familiar to readers of the flagship Billboard, coupling a deep range of multimedia editorial content with charts, lists, music awards, and more, cut with a domestic flair to reflect the diversity of India’s vibrant music communities.

“India is already one of the world’s largest music markets by volume,” comments Priyanka Khimani, media advisor and driving force behind Other Side Ventures. “Our growth story isn’t from one city or one language. It’s from every corner of this country,”

Legendary composer Ilaiyaraaja is the first cover star of Billboard India. The homegrown screen music icon has composed for 1,500 film soundtracks, and this year celebrates his 50th year in music.

“There couldn’t have been a more superlative name to launch our first cover than Ilaiyaraaja,” adds Khimani. “His legacy, body of work and music superiority speaks for themself. It was our privilege to be able to capture him as he celebrates an important milestone in his career.”

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A culturally rich nation, India, of course, is home to Bollywood, a film industry that creates stars who shine globally. Its 1.4 billion population is mostly young, and many are plugged into the country’s music and movie industries. Some 450 million Indians are under the age of 30, and, according to the IFPI, are increasingly captivated with the next generation of Indian music stars that are crossing over from the silver screen.

Experts predict a boom is on the way. Domestic creator collections roared to roughly US$75 million in 2024, according to data published by CISAC data, representing a 42% year-on-year increase. Separately, India now ranks as the world’s 15th largest recorded music market, the IFPI reports.

The new platform has no shortage of content to explore. Billboard India will capture the dominance of film soundtracks, through to the explosive rise of independent artists, a statement reads, and serve as the “definitive voice” of Indian artists across all languages, including Hindi, Punjabi, Tamil, Telugu, and more.  

Its leadership team is helmed by Preeti Nayyar, who is appointed chief operating officer, and Mohini Chaudhuri as content strategy director. Other key appointments include, Amruta Ramesh (creative director), and Vidya Sivalenka (charts lead). 

“At Billboard, we are committed to celebrating any music ecosystem that includes artists, executives, trends, achievements and stories shaping today’s global music landscape,” notes Mike Van, CEO of Billboard. “Billboard India marks an exciting step in that mission, as the Indian music industry and its global diaspora continue to command growing attention and influence worldwide. With a market as culturally rich and diverse as India, this launch reflects both the scale of the opportunity and the strength of the Billboard India team, whose depth and editorial ambition set a powerful foundation for what’s ahead.” 

Billboard India is headquartered in Mumbai and is now live at billboardindia.com and across social platforms. 

The Canadian government is stepping in to support Canadian music and media amidst debates around the Online Streaming Act.

This morning (June 3), the government announced that it will offer immediate financial support for music, audio and audiovisual media with a $600 million yearly investment. The release says funding will “provide stability and immediate support to Canada’s audio and audiovisual sectors and keep our culture accessible and affordable for all Canadians.”

The mandate is a direct response to the Canadian Radio-Television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC)’s recent announcement of plans to triple the base contribution rate that foreign streaming companies and Canadian broadcasters with a yearly revenue of over $25 million pay to Canadian Content, potentially raising it to 15%, up from the original 5%. The legislation has become a target of many U.S. politicians during negotiations of the CUSMA trade agreement between the two countries.

“Canadians should be able to see themselves in the films and series they watch and hear their lives reflected in the artists they listen to. That’s why we are investing to support the audiovisual and audio sectors now, while bringing necessary stability as we develop new directions that will ensure Canadian content remains affordable and that our stories continue to shape our identity and how the world sees us,” says Marc Miller, Canada’s Minister of Canadian Identity and Culture.

The base contributions would contribute $200 million in increased funding and benefit organizations like nonprofit music funders FACTOR and Musicaction, Canadian Starmaker Fund and Fonds RadioStar, Community Radio Fund of Canada, Indigenous Music Office and more. A spokesperson from the Minister’s office confirms to Billboard Canada that the $200 million in funding will now be contributed by the government.

An additional $220 million will go to Services of Exceptional Importance like the Aboriginal Peoples Television Network (APTN), The Weather Network and CPAC (Cable Public Affairs Channel). Another $180 million in additional investment will be determined after consultations with stakeholders in the industry.

The so-called “streaming tax” was originally mandated by the CRTC in its implementation of the Online Streaming Act, which was passed in 2023, the first major update to broadcast regulations and Canadian Content in many decades. The implementation would require streaming services like Spotify, Apple Music and Amazon Music to financially contribute to fostering Canadian and Indigenous content in the country.

These companies have pushed back against the original contribution rate during a series of court hearings that were held in Gatineau throughout 2025, where more than 150 Canadian companies and groups spoke on the topic of the Online Streaming Act, including ADISQ, FACTOR and Music Canada. The federal investment will account for much of the funding that would have come from the contributions.

“Canadian music is more than entertainment, it is one of the ways we tell our stories, reflect our communities and express who we are as a country,” says Meg Symsyk, president & CEO of FACTOR. “At a time when global platforms are consolidating and have unprecedented influence over what audiences discover and consume, it is more important than ever that Canada continues to invest intentionally in its own creators and creative businesses.”

“This announcement recognizes that a strong cultural sector does not happen by accident,” she continues. “It requires ongoing investment, partnership and a commitment to ensuring Canadian voices can be heard and discovered at home and around the world. Canadian songwriters, musicians and music companies have repeatedly demonstrated that they can compete on the world stage when they have access to the right tools and opportunities.”

Music Canada, which advocates for all three major record labels in Canada, also welcomes the news. The organization had previously filed to intervene in the legal challenge over the CRTC’s decision.

“We champion policies that help Canadian artists succeed at home, reach global audiences, and compete in today’s music streaming marketplace,” says Patrick Rogers, CEO of Music Canada. “Today’s announcement by Minister Miller does that by demonstrating the government’s strong commitment to supporting the cultural sector, while keeping the streaming services Canadians love affordable and recognizing that the tools used to regulate the traditional domestic broadcasting sector won’t work for the entirely different model of streaming.”

Miller has also directed the CRTC to review its recent requirements on Canadian broadcasters and online streamers. The government says it is looking to adjust the Online Streaming Act with new policies that strive for accessibility, affordability and flexibility for streamers, all while pushing diverse local content to the forefront.

The government also plans to invest in Indigenous storytelling, which reflects a 2025 national report by the Indigenous Music Office (IMO) that outlined the importance of promoting Indigenous Music in Canada during this pivotal moment. It is also looking to ensure strong support for French-language programs, which recalls Quebec’s Bill 109, passed in Dec. 2025, to improve the discoverability of French-language content by imposing content quotas on major streaming platforms. Similar to the Online Streaming Act, Bill 109 received major pushback from the Digital Media Association (DIMA), which represents major streaming platforms like Spotify, Apple Music and Amazon.

“We are encouraged by the government’s clear recognition that championing Canadian culture must go hand-in-hand with protecting affordability, innovation, and consumer choice. By directing the CRTC to review its framework and stepping up with federal investments for the cultural sector, the government has shown a commendable willingness to listen to the concerns of the digital industry, creators, and everyday consumers,” DIMA says in a statement.

Conversely, the Alliance of Canadian Cinema, Television and Radio Artists (ACTRA) sees the removal of mandatory contributions towards CanCon as detrimental to the growth and visibility of Canadian Content. In a release today, the union says the new $600 million federal contribution “lets billionaire streamers off the hook” and “hands a $600 million bill to Canadian taxpayers.”

“We endured years of debate to finally get an Online Streaming Act that would require billionaire-owned streamers to pay the bare minimum into Canadian culture. We thought we were finally there,” says ACTRA national president Eleanor Noble. “Rather than requiring wealthy media companies to modestly invest in Canada’s cultural ecosystem, Ottawa has chosen to transfer that responsibility to Canadian taxpayers under the guise of ‘consumer protection’.”

The spokesperson from the Minister’s office says that while audio services will no longer have to pay into funds, the government will continue to work with them on non-monetary actions to promote and foster Canadian Content, including measures for discoverability, an updated MAPL definition of CanCon and more.

This story was originally published by Billboard Canada.

Cardi B is asking for gossip blogger Tasha K to refund more than $100,000 in legal fees as a punishment for violating a settlement with talk of the rapper’s love life.

Tasha (Latasha Kebe) is in contempt of court for defying the bankruptcy settlement she signed last year to facilitate the payment of a $4 million defamation judgment to Cardi (Belcalis Almánzar). Tasha, who lost to Cardi at a 2022 trial over outlandish claims about drug use, STDs and prostitution, agreed as part of the repayment plan not to make any more disparaging statements about the star or her family.

U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Scott M. Grossman held last month that Tasha violated that deal with social media posts and radio show comments about Cardi’s estranged husband, Offset, and NFL player Stefon Diggs, the father of her youngest child. As a consequence, the judge said Tasha would have to cover the legal fees that Cardi racked up paying attorneys to monitor the blogger’s social media accounts and enforce her compliance with the settlement.

In a Wednesday (June 3) filing, first obtained and reported by Billboard, Cardi’s lawyers now say that the fees come out to $110,115. This is the amount billed by two law firms, Meland Budwick and Moore Pequignot, for more than 100 hours of “time-intensive and legally complex” work.

“The compliance enforcement award category required continuous monitoring of debtor’s social media activity across multiple platforms over a period of more than fourteen months following confirmation, the systematic documentation of violations spanning YouTube, X (formerly Twitter), Instagram, Facebook, Threads and TikTok, as well as public radio broadcasts, and the preparation of a detailed evidentiary record for the motion,” write attorneys James Moon and Lisa Moore.

Tasha’s lawyer did not immediately return a request for comment on the fee accounting. The blogger has two weeks to respond in writing to Cardi’s request before Judge Grossman makes a final ruling.

Tasha declared bankruptcy in 2023, a year after a federal jury said she owes Cardi millions for making false and defamatory statements about the superstar on YouTube and other platforms. The blogger claimed she didn’t have the funds for this judgment and that it should be thrown out in the bankruptcy process.

But Cardi, who notably tweeted “imma come for everything …..BBHMM” (“b—- better have my money”) after the verdict, objected and urged the court to keep Tasha’s debt alive. Judge Grossman ultimately ruled in Cardi’s favor and refused to discharge the judgment.

In the wake of that ruling, Tasha filed a plan last February to pay $1.2 million to Cardi over five years and refrain from speaking publicly about her. Under that arrangement, Tasha still owes the remaining balance of the $4 million defamation verdict down the line.

The court approved Tasha’s plan, and relations between her and Cardi remained relatively peaceful for about a year. But that all changed in April, when the rapper’s attorneys alleged that Tasha must be punished for “willful violations” of the non-disparagement agreement.

Then, in May, Cardi filed a new lawsuit against Tasha’s husband, Cheickna Kebe, for allegedly plotting a fraudulent scheme to move around the couple’s assets so they would be shielded from collection after the defamation judgment. Cheickna has not yet responded to the claims in court.  

In March, Billboard unveiled its 2026 Global Power Players list honoring leaders driving music business success outside the United States. Among the names recognized as this year’s Power Players, Hyunrock Han, representative director and CEO of HYBE JAPAN, was recognized for the first time. To mark the occasion, Billboard Japan sat down with Han to hear how he helped grow the company from around 20 employees at the time of his appointment to roughly 300, about his strategies with &TEAM, an act signed to the label he heads (YX LABELS) and more.

First, could you tell us a little about your background?

I spent my career in management strategy across a range of industries — finance, manufacturing, trading companies — before joining Big Hit Entertainment (now HYBE) in 2019. At my previous company, MISUMI Group, I was based in Thailand and handling the Asia region when a mutual friend introduced me to Si-Hyuk Bang, the Chairman of HYBE’s Board of Directors and the company’s founder. His business philosophy, his extraordinary creativity, and his character left a deep impression on me. I had no prior experience in the entertainment industry, but felt that I could put my background in strategy and various project experience to good use working under him, so I returned to South Korea in 2019.

So you weren’t assigned to Japan from the very beginning.

Initially, the plan was to work in Korea for a few years. But about six months after joining, I was asked to go to Japan. I wrestled with the decision, but told them, “The way I manage and operate based on my experience may differ from the conventions of the traditional music industry. In the process of reforming and shaping the organization, there may be friction and pushback. But whatever anyone says, I need you to trust me for three years.” I made my resolve clear and made up my mind to come to Japan.

You then became President of Big Hit Solutions Japan (now HYBE JAPAN) in 2020, when the company had fewer than 20 employees. Six years later, you’ve grown to around 300.

If someone asked me to do the same thing again, I’m not sure I could. [Laughs] That’s how hard those six years were. When I came to Japan, I had two broad missions. The first was to build an in-house, autonomous solutions organization. The second was to develop original Japanese artists.

When I arrived, HYBE was outsourcing virtually all of its operations through business partnerships. Company A handled live production, Company B ran the pop-up stores, Company C produced merchandise, Company D managed the fan club, and so on. But neither data nor institutional knowledge accumulates in-house that way. I restructured everything so that our own staff could handle each area. In my first year, I was conducting interviews with two or three people almost every single day. I didn’t limit myself to candidates with music industry experience and hired specialists in retail operations, merchandising, loyalty customer business and so on, bringing in experts from each field.

When I make decisions, I always base them on common sense, logic, and data. So I spent over a year organizing and connecting the various customer data sets our company held, looking at things like whether people who came to show were also purchasing albums, how pop-up visitors behaved online and so on, and built an organization that drives its business on the foundation of such data.

With data, you can do an accurate post-mortem whether a business succeeds or fails. This allows us to maintain a continuous improvement loop (PDCA) — forming hypotheses, executing, and refining our strategy. Repeating that process is how we’ve grown the organization.

The second mission — the original Japanese artist — is &TEAM. They’re HYBE’s first localized artist developed by one of its global headquarters outside of Korea, so everything was uncharted territory. I think we looked at over 50 properties just scouting for their rehearsal space. Everything from that initial groundwork to trainee contracts, we built from scratch through discussions among our staff.

Bringing together people from all different industries while taking on projects no one has done before must require tremendous leadership. What do you consistently tell your employees?

The two things I always tell everyone as being important are interpersonal excellence and problem-solving ability. Interpersonal excellence means the ability to generate empathy, draw others in, move them, bring them together, and drive them toward something new. Some people move others through passion, others build empathy through logical explanation, others have a natural charm they were simply born with — if there are 100 people, there are 100 different expressions of interpersonal excellence. Big business doesn’t move without people working together, so I tell my employees to develop the ability to speak straight with each other while bringing others along with them.

What do you mean by problem-solving ability?

No matter how thoroughly you plan, the unexpected always happens. So the ability to troubleshoot when something comes up is critically important. I hold myself to both of those standards at all times, and I encourage everyone to do the same. As HYBE JAPAN has grown this large, each business unit can also become siloed, so in Japan we created a structure called Artist Strategy.　

What role does that play?

It’s a team that tracks each area of business — live shows, merchandise, music releases — on a per-artist basis. Thanks to them, we’ve been able to keep each artist’s branding consistent and on course.

What strategy did you take with &TEAM, the second mission you mentioned?

When I took over as label head in June 2025, &TEAM had set “Japan to Global” as their goal, but I felt there were challenges because the fact that “&TEAM is an act from Japan” and that “&TEAM is taking on the global stage from Japan” wasn’t coming through clearly enough to the public yet. So first I simply focused on getting more people to know &TEAM, and on making them artists who are loved across all generations.

“Go in Blind” came in at No. 5 on Billboard Japan’s year-end single sales chart.

Thank you. I’m grateful to every fan who supported them. And to help more people learn about their “Japan to Global” challenge, we released the documentary series &TEAM 100 Days Journey 〜Howling out to the World〜. Typically, documentary footage is released after a phase of activity has wrapped, looking back at what went on behind the scenes. But this series was broadcast in near real time.

So fans could feel like they were running alongside them.

Yes. There were many things we couldn’t show in advance — new choreography, for example — so in practice it turned out to be incredibly difficult. Debuting in South Korea was a major challenge for us. I wanted viewers to experience firsthand what kind of conflict, struggle, and obstacles they were facing as they pushed forward. We aired it on terrestrial TV and Hulu, while also releasing edited excerpts on &TEAM’s official YouTube channel to reach fans all over the world.

If the goal is global expansion, there’s an argument for targeting North America first rather than South Korea. Why did you choose the latter?

Because of what I’d call the “distribution structure” of K-pop and Korean television broadcasting. In Korea, when a music program airs, the official footage from that program is also shared on YouTube. High-quality video broadcast from television can reach the entire world almost immediately. We wanted to deliver &TEAM’s performances globally through that ecosystem, and that’s what led us to pursue the Korean debut. Korea has a concentrated wealth of know-how for expanding the K-pop industry to the world. Just as BTS spread Korean culture across the globe, one of our goals is for &TEAM to eventually become a bridge, not just through their music, but connecting Japanese culture, food, lifestyle, and trends to the rest of the world.

Since 2022, you’ve also been running THE CITY, an initiative that partners with local governments and companies to create new entertainment experiences. Could you share your thoughts on the economic impact that live events create?

This may sound contradictory, but as technology has advanced and people can now watch livestreamed concerts, the value and scarcity of the offline experience has actually increased. And then, to make that offline experience more flexibly enjoyable, IT technology becomes important again, meaning a kind of cycle has emerged. Our “digital stamp” service for preserving memories with artists, or WEVERSE Pickup, which eliminates wait times at merchandise booths at concert venues, are examples of this. By making smart use of these digital tools, the time spent offline becomes all the more meaningful.

HYBE is a company born in South Korea, but the foundation of HYBE JAPAN’s coexistence model is to firmly take root in Japan and grow from there. Giving people more to enjoy before and after a show also connects to revitalizing the local area, and we felt it was important in terms of letting fans feel a deeper connection with the artists they love.

The first thing we tackled was a merchandise pre-order system. In the past, buying goods at a venue meant standing in line. But by building a system where fans select items and pay in advance, then come to pick them up at a designated time, there’s no longer any need to queue. The time that would have been spent waiting can now be used for pop-up experiences, dining, or anything else.

Shows draw not just people from nearby, but fans traveling from far away by bullet train or plane. For those fans, we’ve developed shops featuring local specialties from the area, which might in turn lead to passersby coming across the artist collaboration pop-up and becoming a new fan. It creates mutual promotional benefits for both sides.

MUSIC AWARDS JAPAN launched in 2025 as an initiative to accelerate the export of Japanese content globally. How do you see it developing?

I think it’s a truly meaningful music award as an effort to send a diverse range of artists from Japan out into the world. NewJeans’ “Ditto” won the award for Best K-Pop Song in Japan last year, and I’m very grateful that artists from HYBE MUSIC GROUP are receiving such positive recognition. Going forward, I hope this award takes firm root and becomes a central launchpad for artists to take flight from Japan to the world.

—This interview by Naoko Takashima first appeared on Billboard Japan

Sunita Kaur joins Universal Music Publishing Group as president, Asia, part of a major restructuring at the music publishing giant.

Based in Singapore, Kaur will lead UMPG’s activities across the Asian continent, and is tasked with driving sustainable growth, strengthening the company’s presence in key markets, and helping “to shape a more connected, inclusive, and forward-looking music ecosystem,” reads a statement.

Also, Kaur will work closely with UMPG teams across the region with a focus on supporting and amplifying the voices of songwriters and artists, ensuring they have the platforms, partnerships, and protections they need to thrive.

“Asia represents one of the most exciting and important regions for the future of music publishing, and I’m thrilled that an executive of Sunita’s experience and depth is joining UMPG to lead our continued growth in the region,” comments UMPG chairman and CEO Jody Gerson, to whom Kaur reports. “She has a deep understanding of the evolving digital landscape and the opportunities it creates for songwriters, and her leadership and relationships across the region will be invaluable as we continue supporting and championing the next generation of songwriters.”

Kaur is a Billboard International Power Player alum who brings to the role a resume stacked with experience in music, digital media, and technology. She served as senior VP, APAC at Twitch from 2020 to 2023, and before that, climbed the ranks at Spotify, including stints as managing director SEA and VP revenue, APAC. From 2011, to 2013, she oversaw Facebook’s operations in the region as director, Asia.

“I’m grateful to Jody and Marc for the opportunity to join UMPG at such an exciting time for the company and for music across Asia,” Kaur remarks. “Having worked across both music and technology throughout my career, joining UMPG feels like a natural and exciting next chapter as those worlds continue to come together in new and powerful ways. Asia is at a defining moment for the global music ecosystem, and I look forward to working with our teams across the region to drive the next phase of growth and opportunity for songwriters.”

UMPG unveils their top new recruit just hours after announcing the departure of long-standing regional chief Andrew Jenkins, with effect from July 1. Currently, Jenkins serves as president of Australia and the Asia Pacific Region.

Live Nation is expanding its live music presence in Latin America via a strategic partnership with top Argentine promoter Dale Play Live, Billboard can exclusively announce. As part of the agreement, Live Nation will acquire a majority stake in Dale Play Live, and Dale Play founder and CEO Federico Lauria will continue in his position, leading the company’s creative and strategic direction.

The move is part of Live Nation’s continued push to expand its presence in Latin America. Earlier this year, the promoter announced it had made a majority investment in Bizarro Peru, one of the country’s leading promoters, and in 2023, it acquired a majority stake in Colombia’s Páramo Presenta, the company that produces leading festival Estereo Picnic. In turn, that deal was executed through OCESA, which Live Nation acquired a controlling interest of in December of 2021.

Dale Play Live is the live arm of entertainment company Dale Play, whose holdings also include Dale Play Management and Dale Play Records, which is home to Bizarrap, Rels B and Duki, among others, and which Lauria owns in partnership with Rimas (Bad Bunny’s label) and Sony.

Although Dale Play has established itself globally as a pioneer in the South American urban music movement –taking the music to the top of the charts worldwide — the company actually started as a concert promoter in Argentina, where it sells over one million tickets per year and promotes concerts by the likes of longtime client Bad Bunny.  

The new partnership bolsters Live Nation’s already significant presence in Argentina, where it has a longstanding partnership with promoter DF Entertainment. DF will continue playing a central role in the growth and expansion of “international live events” while Dale Play will contribute its expertise in developing Spanish-language artists and local content.

“Buenos Aires is the second largest music market in South America and a priority for Live Nation,” said Michael Rapino, President and CEO of Live Nation Entertainment, in a statement. “The addition of Dale Play complements our existing partnership with DF Entertainment and strengthens our commitment to Argentina and the growth of Spanish-language music in the region and throughout the world.”

“Dale Play was founded with the vision of supporting artists and building a platform that empowers them to grow locally and globally,” said Lauria. “Being partners with Live Nation represents a tremendous opportunity to continue expanding artists from Argentina and Latin America to the world.”