Music Biz Headlines, Jan. 24, 2020

By FYI Staff

Londoner's exhibit puts spotlight on his jet-setting life as rock photographer

Saturday, John Rowlands, one of the great rock photographers of the 1960s and '70s will tell his story and talk about the stars whose images he captured on film in a presentation at the Jet Aircraft Museum at London International Airport. – Joe Belanger, The London Free Press

This weekend, at Hamilton's This Aint Hollywood, the band Danger!! Death Ray releases a sophomore EP, Invasion. Learn more here. – Ric Taylor, The View

No longer spinning multiple plates in the air, the members of a happily reunited Alexisonfire learn from the past

 Alexisonfire started out in the fiercely DIY Ontario punk underground and mushroomed into a platinum-shifting juggernaut. And then it all ended in 2012, leaving singer George Pettit with a wife, a kid, and a complete sense of panic about what the future held. – Mike Usinger, The Georgia Straight

Pete Carmichael of The Diableros mourned by Toronto's music community

The longtime local musician is remembered by friends and collaborators as humble and genuine, a champion of the city's music scene. – Samantha Edwards, NOW

TSO associates celebrate group’s rebirth with great music

Most organizations throw their arms up in despair before handing in the keys when the money runs out. The Associates of the Toronto Symphony Orchestra didn’t give up when it happened to them, handing us a good-news arts story for the start of a new decade. – John Terauds, The Toronto Star

Review: Blackie and the Rodeo Kings - King of This Town

Could an overhaul of payola rules be on the horizon? Majors asked to explain anti-payola practices to FCC

FCC Commissioner Michael O’Rielly has written to Sony Music Entertainment, Warner Music Group and Universal Music Group in the United States to request information from the companies about their current payola-prevention ‘mechanisms’ in addition to their ‘understanding of the current payola rules’. – Murray Stassen, MBW

The Grammys fallout gets more shocking every day – but how relevant is the show to the modern record business?

In light of the almighty fallout between the Grammys’ parent org and its estranged CEO, Deborah Dugan, we look into the commercial impact of the ceremony. – Tim Ingham, MBW

The song economy is just getting started: Here’s why

Keith Jopling explores the development of the burgeoning song economy. This new music industry growth engine has spurred decades-old chestnuts back to the top of the charts, as well as giving new tracks a path to major popularity. – Hypebot

Rat Pack to Fame Monster: The rise, fall and lucrative rebirth of the Las Vegas residency

In 2003, Céline Dion ushered in a new age of residencies that, with the arrival of Britney Spears, Jennifer Lopez and more recently Lady Gaga, Aerosmith and Lil Jon have tripled business in the last five years. – Hilary Hughes, Billboard

30 legendary artists who never won a Grammy

Worth revisiting is the long list of legacy artists who have done just fine without any golden phonograph-shaped trophies. Many of the artists whose snubs are particularly shocking are from the ’60s and ’70s—back when the Grammys had far fewer categories, so it’s technically easier to win a Grammy now. – Lizzie Manno, Paste

TikTok inks first major global licensing deal with Merlin

Global indie licensing powerhouse Merlin has signed a global partnership with hugely popular short-form mobile video app TikTok. Merlin, whose labels account for 15% of the global music market, is the first major music licensing body to sign a deal with TikTok. – Hypebot

BTS announces international stadium tour for 2020

South Korean k-pop icons BTS announced plans to follow up last year’s “Love Yourself: Speak Yourself” world tour with another major international run in 2020. “The Map Of The Soul” Tour kicks off on April 25th and includes a stadium date in Toronto.– Celebrity Access

Madonna should cancel her Madame X tour before she ends up in traction

When Madonna unveiled her alter ego last year, she teased fans with an elaborate bio. What she did not mention: Madame X is prone to injury. – Vinay Menon, The Toronto Star

Rocker Ozzy Osbourne announces Parkinson’s diagnosis

Rocker Ozzy Osbourne says that he’s been diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease, a nervous system disorder that affects movement. The 71-year-old Grammy winner and former vocalist for the metal band Black Sabbath mentioned this during an interview on “Good Morning America.” – AP

Mr. Miyagi on Broadway? ‘Karate Kid’ musical in the works

Broadway may be the next battleground for “The Karate Kid,” which is being developed into a stage musical. Robert Mark Kamen — who wrote the semiautobiographical screenplay of the 1984 movie, plus its two immediate sequels — has written the musical’s book. – Ashley Lee, LA Times

Jazz musician Rex Martey signs record deal aged 82

An 82-year-old south-Londoner has had his lifetime ambition come true by getting a record deal. Rex Martey suffers from prostate cancer and needs dialysis three times a week. He wanted a deal so he could leave a legacy and has been signed by record company The Animal Farm. – BBC

Autopsy report attributes Juice Wrld Chicago airport death to an accidental overdose

According to the Chicago Tribune, the  Cook County Medical Examiner has attributed the death of the 21-year-old  to an accidental overdose of oxycodone and codeine. – Mike Usinger, Georgia Straight 

Judy Collins: ‘Leonard Cohen was a gentleman – except if you were having an affair with him’

In 2009, when Judy Collins was performing at the 50th anniversary of the Newport Folk Festival in Rhode Island, USA, I happened to be backstage, awaiting an interview with Joan Baez, who was also on the bill. Collins, who was 70 by then, was singing The Blizzard, a song that I’d not heard before, which she had written 20 years earlier. – Mick Brown, The Telegraph