Grand Theft Cliff; Are festivals being cancelled because of the climate crisis?; Gina's Pet Bangers!; SoundCloud sells WAVs and much more

Your weekly guide to the music biz and how it all works. This week, Stu and Joe plan an ultraviolent trip through the criminal underworld* as they take a look at this week's music industry news, including:→ We’re all going on a summer holiday… (a summer holiday that involves cocaine, strip clubs and lots of shooting people in the face.) Yes, the Cliff Richard / Grand Theft Auto crossover you've all been waiting for is here at last! *Yes, this is the extent of their violent plans, sorry.→ The popular US Bonnaroo festival is taking a year off in 2027 because its venue has been battered by storms two years in a row. Is this a big warning klaxon for other festivals regarding the climate emergency?→ We need to talk about Gina’s Pet Bangers. But what are they, and WHY do we need to talk about them?→ $76m. That’s how much a company called Stability AI raised in funding last week, with investors including all three major labels AND their former nemesis Sean Parker.→ Did streaming kill the downloads star? Now SoundCloud wants to bring it back from the dead by helping artists to sell MP3s and WAVs from their profiles. Is this a big deal?→ OK Go have released a new mobile game, except it’s an old mobile game that they already released in 2013. What’s going on here, and are there any treadmills or tech brands involved?And in the special post-show lock-in section just for our ⁠⁠Patreon Superfans⁠⁠, Stu and Joe prop themselves up at the bar – in this week's bonus material:Joe and Stu wax lyrical about Dolly Parton, including some good Dolly Pub Facts from Stuart; Grand Theft Auto and music: what are the most impactful moments of hearing just the right song at just the right time in video games / movies etc – and will there be a GTA music streaming platform?Stu and Joe play the OK Go game (you'll be able to tell how successful they were right here)===================================As ever, we welcome your feedback, emails and – in particular – any questions you might have about how the music biz works!Email us: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠[email protected]⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠See you next week!Stuart and Joe======TPOM online: ⁠http://tpom.uk/⁠Support The Price of Music on Patreon:⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.patreon.com/ThePriceofMusic⁠⁠⁠Follow Stuart on X - @stuartdredgeFollow The Price of Music on X - @PriceofMusicpodFor sponsorship opportunities, please email - ⁠⁠⁠[email protected]⁠