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Everyone is stepping up to create philanthropic ventures in support of the recent protests and uprisings across the country. Steven Victor, senior vice-president of A&R at Universal Music, is launching a new philanthropic foundation under his Victor Victor Worldwide company in support of the Black Lives Matter movement, Variety reports . Victor — who has previously worked with G.O.O.D. Music and represented artists such Pusha T, The-Dream, and the late Pop Smoke — announced the Victor Victor Foundation as his new venture to combat the injustices affecting the Black community. He told Variety , “I’m committing $1,000,000 to the foundation — it’s a starting point and I know it’s going to take much more than that to affect real change.” Victor outlined the foundation’s purpose in an official statement which reads: “The injustices against the black community that persists in our country, fueled by systemic racism and prejudice that lies within the criminal justice system and other...
Breakr continues to find new ways to improve the creator economy. As AFROTECH™ previously reported, the platform was created by Historically Black College and University (HBCU) alums and brothers Anthony and Ameer Brown to ensure artists can connect with brands and agencies and establish creative campaigns they are compensated for. With an early focus on music, Breakr partnered with BMG and Sony Music and built a roster of clients that included Ye (formerly Kanye West), Young Thug, Megan Thee Stallion, Rick Ross, Future, and Gunna. Additionally, Nas is involved not only as an artist on the platform but also as an investor. He participated in a $4.2 million seed round led by Slow Ventures in 2021. Breakr has expanded its scope beyond the music industry, adding partners such as Hershey, Billboard, Celsius, Samsung, and UMG, information shared with AFROTECH™ notes. In 2022, 30,000 creators had onboarded onto its platform. In 2025, that number has more than doubled, reaching a community...
Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) need money to continue to bring quality education to their students. Fortunately, well-known companies are donating to these programs that serve Black students, non-Black students of color and white students. Among these HBCU industry supporters are Boeing , Northrop Grumman Corporation , IBM , Microsoft Corporation and General Motors . Government and nonprofit HBCU supporters include NASA , the Air Force , the Army Corps. , the Navy and the U.S. Department of Defense . And while all HBCU programs are significant, there’s a particularly notable number of doctors who come from HBCUs. The National Center for Education Statistics reports that, in 2021-22, 61% of the 3,000 doctor’s degrees were awarded by HBCUs. Here’s our list of companies that support HBCU medical undergrad programs. UMG Supports HBCU Medical Programs Universal Music Group (UMG) has partnered with HBCUs to further open the pipeline of Black medical practitioners....
Houston, TX, native Jennifer Ford’s passion for sneakers has led her to work with major apparel giants. Ford is currently the proud owner of Premium Goods, a sneaker boutique in Houston. The idea for opening the shop dials back to her days in New York, NY, following the completion of her economics degree from Emory University, her LinkedIn mentions. While in New York, it would spark her interests in women’s buying departments and women’s product development. However, it was not until she befriended Premium Goods-Brooklyn shop owner Clarence Nathan that Ford manifested her own sneaker boutique in 2004, located in her hometown. “It’s about being with other people who enjoy the same thing as me and [building] a community,” Ford told Vogue in 2023. With its opening in 2004, the Premium Goods Houston location reportedly became the first sneaker retail store in the United States led by a Black woman. Per Premium Goods’ website, the shop features major brands like Jordan Brand, Nike,...
New changes are underway at Roc Nation to empower independent artists. According to a news release, Jay-Z’s label has merged its Roc Nation Label and Equity Distribution (EQ) divisions to form ROC Nation distribution, with plans for it to bolster artists by giving them greater freedoms across technology and the music business. “The formation of ROC Nation distribution is a natural transition in the music space,” the press release states. “The mission is to support and empower independent artists while providing them the tools and services to distribute their music. All artists signed to Roc Nation Label will join and benefit from the new ROC Nation distribution structure.” Variety reports the distribution segment was established in 2019 and is being led by President Krystian Santini. The segment allowed artists to maintain ownership of their masters, and it will continue with an artist services division that includes marketing, publishing administration, and data analytics available...
The music catalog company holding the hits of artists like 50 Cent, Eric Bellinger, John Coltrane, and a host of others has officially been sold. Hipgnosis, which is described as having “a collection of proven hit Songs of cultural importance by some of the most talented and important Songwriters globally,” per its website, has sold its assets to Blackstone for $1.6 billion. Additionally, its leader, Merck Mercuriadis, who was once responsible for managing Beyoncé, has also stepped down from the company, The New York Times reports. The Hipgnosis Songs Fund is an “investment trust” currently listed on the London Stock Exchange in the U.K. and owns the rights of “tens of thousands of songs,” per the outlet. During a meeting on Monday, July 8, 2024, a board for the company voted to accept an offer from Blackstone, worth $1.6 billion, to purchase its assets. Already, Blackstone had taken majority control of the company’s “investment adviser” side of the business through a $1 billion...
The battle between artificial intelligence (AI) software and the music industry continues in a new lawsuit against two AI music startups. Top record labels Universal Music Group (UMG), Sony Music Entertainment, and Warner Records are accusing AI music creation programs Suno Inc. and Udio AI of “massive and ongoing infringement.” The lawsuit claims that the entities “copied sound recordings from the labels ‘en masse and ingested them into its AI model,’” a practice that the plaintiffs say violates copyright laws, Forbes reports. Moreover, Suno and Udio AI are accused of using artists’ songs to “train their AI services.” In the suit against Suno, the filings allege that if the company hadn’t “violated copyrights on such a large scale, Suno’s service would not be able to reproduce the convincing imitations of such a vast range of human musical expression at the quality that Suno touts.” Similarly, the accusations against Udio AI hold some of the same weight, noting that “since the day...
Kai Cenat, Kevin Hart, and Druski linking up has made Twitch history. On June 10, 2024, the comedic trio joined together for Cenat’s stream. If you haven’t already seen any of the viral clips, one of the most talked about moments via social media was LeBron James appearing on a FaceTime call with Hart during the stream. In addition to the virality, Cenat’s stream brought in historic numbers. According to information provided to AFROTECH™, the live stream featuring Cenat, Hart, and Druski broke the Twitch North American record for viewership with 712,600 peak concurrent viewers, which is more than a 10% increase. What’s more, the stream had 4.95 million unique viewers across 11.5 hours. “The BIGGEST & BEST STREAM EVER…..@druski x @kaicenat x @kevinhart4real = comedy gold!!!!!,” Hart wrote in an Instagram post. “No scripts and no plans….Just vibing and feeding off one another….Nothing but love for these to jacka–es.” “More coming….STAY TUNED,” he added. View this post on Instagram A...
In a world that’s been evolving constantly in the digital realm for as long as most of us can remember, it’s hard to deny the negative impacts smartphones and social media have on our attention span. Users can hardly sit through a 60-second TikTok video , let alone a 20-minute training course for work. Rather than allowing weaponized incompetence and distractibility to seize the day, app developers have been working tirelessly on creating platforms that make retaining knowledge fun and easy again. They’ve dubbed this trend “microlearning,” and while it could simply be a fad, there are clear benefits to challenging your mind in a bite-sized way. What Is Microlearning? Photo by LinkedIn Sales Solutions/Unsplash The concept of microlearning is based on the forgetting curve , which comes from Hermann Ebbinghaus. His research demonstrates that “when people take in large amounts of information, retention of what was learned tends to degrade over time.” More specifically, they reportedly...
While working in the music industry, many artists make the smart move and don’t limit themselves to only excelling in music. Will.i.am is among such musicians who are the definition of “multi-hyphenate.” As an entertainer, record producer, tech entrepreneur, and founder, the East Los Angeles, CA, native has built an extensive resume for himself. “Investor” is yet another title under his growing list of endeavors. In an interview with the “Drink Champs” podcast, Will.i.am recounted two specific investments he’s made thus far. When asked by host N.O.R.E. whether he’d choose Steve Jobs or Elon Musk — like in a game of “This or That” — Will.i.am was prompted to share how both CEOs have made an impact on his life. “I invested in Tesla in 2006 before Elon took over [the company] — around the same time,” Will.i.am explained on the podcast. He continued, “And then, I was a part of Beats. And then, Apple bought Beats from us. So you’re talking about two companies that changed my life. So, I...
TikTok and Universal Music Group (UMG) have agreed on new licensing conditions to bring the group’s tunes back to the social media platform. According to the TikTok newsroom, the joint agreement between the two entities “marks a new era of strategic collaboration.” “By harnessing TikTok’s best-in-class technology, marketing, and promotional capabilities, UMG and TikTok will deliver improved remuneration for UMG’s songwriters and artists, new promotional and engagement opportunities for their recordings and songs, and industry-leading protections with respect to generative AI,” read the report. What’s more, fans will see a return of UMG’s recorded music and publishing catalogs on TikTok, thus allowing users to go back to creating content with sounds from some of the culture’s biggest musicians. “Music is an integral part of the TikTok ecosystem and we are pleased to have found a path forward with Universal Music Group,” TikTok CEO Shou Chew said. “We are committed to working together...
Universal Music Group (UMG) may be pulling its music from TikTok. In an open letter, UMG listed several grievances that may cause the music company to severe its partnership with the rapidly growing platform. It credits some of TikTok’s success and global reach to the music that has been created by UMG artists and songwriters. Despite this, the company highlights the inadequate compensation for its artists and songwriters, with the platform contributing only a minuscule amount to UMG’s total revenue. “With respect to the issue of artist and songwriter compensation, TikTok proposed paying our artists and songwriters at a rate that is a fraction of the rate that similarly situated major social platforms pay,” UMG said in a letter. “Today, as an indication of how little TikTok compensates artists and songwriters, despite its massive and growing user base, rapidly rising advertising revenue and increasing reliance on music-based content, TikTok accounts for only about 1% of our total...
