Apple Music signs partnership deal with Cash Money Records [u]

AppleInsider

Apple in a bid to deliver exclusive content to Apple Music customers has inked a deal with Birdman's Cash Money Records, a record label representing rap stars including Drake, Lil Wayne and Nicki Minaj, according to a report on Tuesday.

Apple Music content chief Larry Jackson (left) poses with Cash Money Records co-founder Birdman.

Cash Money co-founder Bryan Williams, better known by his nom de guerre "Birdman," and Apple Music content chief Larry Jackson confirmed the the tie-up by posing together in a photo posed to their respective Instagram accounts on Sunday, reports Music Business Worldwide.

"Welcome to the fam @birdman5star. Tough negotiator. Much respeck," Jackson said. Birdman initially thanked Jackson in his post, but later updated the text with a link to Music Business Worldwide's report.

Terms of Apple Music's latest deal are unknown, though the streaming service is expected to gain exclusive access to fresh content from the artists in Cash Money's stable. Apple is no stranger to striking exclusive deals with artists, including Cash Money's Drake, but a partnership with an entire record label is rare in the streaming industry.

Streaming music services often compete on content, as many offer largely similar media libraries. The nature of the business has placed a premium on access so-called "windowed exclusives," or content that remains exclusive to one service for periods ranging from weeks to months.

A latecomer to the streaming game, Apple has aggressively sought out first rights to new releases from chart-topping artists. The effort led by Jackson has been fruitful, as Apple inked deals with Chance the Rapper, Drake, Eminem, Future, Pharrell, the 1975 and more. Most recently, Apple Music landed Britney Spears' new effort "Glory," set to debut later this month.

Update: According to sources close to the deal, Apple has agreed to fund a documentary with Cash Money Records, not secure exclusive content from the label's lineup of artists, reports Bloomberg.

Along with windowed exclusives, Apple has attracted big-name acts by fashioning Apple Music as a "clubhouse" for artists. Collaborative music videos and films are one facet of the strategy, though Bloomberg suggests the Cash Money deal has more to do with original content for Apple TV than music streaming. Apple is currently developing a show focusing on the app business called "Planet of the Apps." Actress Gwyneth Paltrow, musician will.i.am and entrepreneur Gary Vaynerchuk are attached to the project.

cali

Hasn't Birdman been doing the game dirty lately and isn't he at odds with Lil Wayne?

I'm waiting for Apple to sign artists themselves. 

quinney

Oh no!  and Jay hasn't got his check yet.

slprescott

I'm not thrilled with Apple's continued expansion into rap and hip-hop since it's... bad (no melody, self-centered lyrics, mysogenistic, etc.) But I realize there's a market for it, so I guess it's "Give the people what they want."

somethingsometh

slprescott said:

I'm not thrilled with Apple's continued expansion into rap and hip-hop since it's... bad (no melody, self-centered lyrics, mysogenistic, etc.) But I realize there's a market for it, so I guess it's "Give the people what they want."

Ah yes,pretentious white music should be all Apple focuses on. Maybe explore a little and then get back to us once your horizons expand beyond Coldplay and Kenny Chesney.

macseeker

What about Nat King Cole.  Great music there.  Even his daughter.

This rap and hip-hop isn't real music.

I'm sorry for the unenlighten, but rap and hip-hop is very demeaning.  One must respect women of all races but rap and hip-hop doesn't.  I agree with slprescott.

For the ones who love to flame me, have you really listen to the Broadway play theme of Mahogany?  Listen to the words.  Diana Ross is far above the rap and hip-hop players of today.

franklinjackcon

macseeker said:

What about Nat King Cole.  Great music there.  Even his daughter.

This rap and hip-hop isn't real music.

I'm sorry for the unenlighten, but rap and hip-hop is very demeaning.  One must respect women of all races but rap and hip-hop doesn't.  I agree with slprescott.

For the ones who love to flame me, have you really listen to the Broadway play theme of Mahogany?  Listen to the words.  Diana Ross is far above the rap and hip-hop players of today.

That's a very broad brush you are using to dismiss an entire genre that spans decades and thousands and thousands of artists. There's plenty of rubbish hip hop out there but there's even more rubbish pop music too. Listen to some good stuff and you might be surprised

slprescott

somethingsometh said:

slprescott said:

I'm not thrilled with Apple's continued expansion into rap and hip-hop since it's... bad (no melody, self-centered lyrics, mysogenistic, etc.) But I realize there's a market for it, so I guess it's "Give the people what they want."

Ah yes,pretentious white music should be all Apple focuses on. Maybe explore a little and then get back to us once your horizons expand beyond Coldplay and Kenny Chesney.

I respect your opinion but strongly disagree.

There are obviously many, many talented black musicians: John Legend, Jimi Hendrix, Nina Simone, Thelonious Monk, John Coltrane, Michael Jackson, and even Public Enemy (whose "Fear of a Black Planet" I own).  In contrast, over the past six months I've purposely used Apple Music to listen to rap singers whose music I don't own: Kanye, Drake, Usher, Ke$ha, etc.  The difference is not race... it's talent.  Many of the songs from the current rap stars are simply self-referential chants about their sexual size, ability, and how much money the record company owes them.  That's not talent, it's verbal masturbation.

It's the "Emperor has no clothes" syndrome.  People are afraid to criticize some music because of fear that the criticism will be viewed as motivated by race.  But it's not.  Race is not the issue.  If certain categories or performers have no talent, we should have the courage to call them out.

I'll close with another nod to you, though.  You probably see things differently than me, and I respect your opinion.  Thanks.

(... and BTW I really dislike Coldplay; boring and repetitive, by my tastes!)

holyone

macseeker said:

What about Nat King Cole.  Great music there.  Even his daughter.

This rap and hip-hop isn't real music.

I'm sorry for the unenlighten, but rap and hip-hop is very demeaning.  One must respect women of all races but rap and hip-hop doesn't.  I agree with slprescott.

For the ones who love to flame me, have you really listen to the Broadway play theme of Mahogany?  Listen to the words.  Diana Ross is far above the rap and hip-hop players of today.

How about woman respect each other

holyone

macseeker said:

What about Nat King Cole.  Great music there.  Even his daughter.

This rap and hip-hop isn't real music.

I'm sorry for the unenlighten, but rap and hip-hop is very demeaning.  One must respect women of all races but rap and hip-hop doesn't.  I agree with slprescott.

For the ones who love to flame me, have you really listen to the Broadway play theme of Mahogany?  Listen to the words.  Diana Ross is far above the rap and hip-hop players of today.

How about woman respect each other then everybody can follow

rpeters

I never thought I'd see the day when I'd read an Apple exec using the term "much respeck". Seriously? Street parlance has no place in a press release; it only legitimizes gutter-speak.

holyone

slprescott said:

somethingsometh said:

Ah yes,pretentious white music should be all Apple focuses on. Maybe explore a little and then get back to us once your horizons expand beyond Coldplay and Kenny Chesney.

I respect your opinion but strongly disagree.

There are obviously many, many talented black musicians: John Legend, Jimi Hendrix, Nina Simone, Thelonious Monk, John Coltrane, Michael Jackson, and even Public Enemy (whose "Fear of a Black Planet" I own).  In contrast, over the past six months I've purposely used Apple Music to listen to rap singers whose music I don't own: Kanye, Drake, Usher, Ke$ha, etc.  The difference is not race... it's talent.  Many of the songs from the current rap stars are simply self-referential chants about their sexual size, ability, and how much money the record company owes them.  That's not talent, it's verbal masturbation.

It's the "Emperor has no clothes" syndrome.  People are afraid to criticize some music because of fear that the criticism will be viewed as motivated by race.  But it's not.  Race is not the issue.  If certain categories or performers have no talent, we should have the courage to call them out.

I'll close with another nod to you, though.  You probably see things differently than me, and I respect your opinion.  Thanks.

(... and BTW I really dislike Coldplay; boring and repetitive, by my tastes!)

I must disagree with you're findings which I find respectfully illegitimate. If you don't own music from Kanye, Drake, Usher, Ke$ha, etc. How are you in an objective non discriminating position to judge? I find it interesting that all the artist you say you love all generally sing about love and positive experiances, but lyric subject matter cannot be a criteria through which artistry is measured and the world isn't all sunshine and rambows and rap music is the most honest music of all. People who don't get it always misunderstand it and think that its simply "self-referential chants about their sexual size, ability, and how much money the record company owes them" but it isn't, it's just hiding behind all that because the truth is hard and unkind. I tend to dislike most artist with Grammies as singing about love heart ake and John Meyer dumping you is seen as far more atistic than "started from the bottom now we're here" which is fine but unless you've been at the bottom you can't really relate. In the end though that's all music is and that's all art is relatability, and that in its very esence is race thats what racism originates from the inability to relate thus understand that which is different from you, everithing after is simple prejudice. Many of these great artist legends that are worshiped to day were reviled at theire times. But I do understand where you coming from, but some of us love rap music and would appreciate less Snotty opinions about it apple isn't just for White people. BTW love Talor

SpamSandwich

somethingsometh said:

slprescott said:

I'm not thrilled with Apple's continued expansion into rap and hip-hop since it's... bad (no melody, self-centered lyrics, mysogenistic, etc.) But I realize there's a market for it, so I guess it's "Give the people what they want."

Ah yes,pretentious white music should be all Apple focuses on. Maybe explore a little and then get back to us once your horizons expand beyond Coldplay and Kenny Chesney.

What the hell is "white music"? 

Blocked.

jackeebleu

SpamSandwich said:

somethingsometh said:

Ah yes,pretentious white music should be all Apple focuses on. Maybe explore a little and then get back to us once your horizons expand beyond Coldplay and Kenny Chesney.

What the hell is "white music"? 

Blocked.

LMAO.  The term "White music" is used to reference the musical stylings of people that are not people of color. 

jackeebleu

macseeker said:

What about Nat King Cole.  Great music there.  Even his daughter.

This rap and hip-hop isn't real music.

I'm sorry for the unenlighten, but rap and hip-hop is very demeaning.  One must respect women of all races but rap and hip-hop doesn't.  I agree with slprescott.

For the ones who love to flame me, have you really listen to the Broadway play theme of Mahogany?  Listen to the words.  Diana Ross is far above the rap and hip-hop players of today.

Might I offer, if you don't consider Rap & Hip Hop real music, thats an opinion, not a statement of fact. There are many Pop, Rock, Folk, New Age, Experimental artists that the same could be said of. The Prodigy wrote and performed to great acclaim "Smack My Bitch Up" and were considered genius. Would you argue they aren't music when they sold millions? Someone liked.  So please, don't conflate your preferences and tastes into a critique of the state of music. When Chuck Berry and Howling Wolf amplified guitars and wailed away on them, it wasn't considered music. When Elvis did what they did, it was the birth of Rock n' Roll.  So please, be careful.  Your privilege may be showing.

big8ce

rpeters said:

I never thought I'd see the day when I'd read an Apple exec using the term "much respeck". Seriously? Street parlance has no place in a press release; it only legitimizes gutter-speak.

Ahh....The grammar police are out again in rare form. You see the one thing about communication is making sure you know who your audience is. In this case, the Apple exec is speaking to someone whom knows exactly what message was being conveyed; Which is the whole point on communicating. As far as legitimizing the form of speak, your a day late and a dollar short. The terms "YOLO, "On Fleek", "Bling" (As in Bling-Bling, a Cash Money Millionaires colab with B.G. and Juvenile); "Yo", "Wassup" (Budweiser Commercials); "Swag", just to name a few terms that have made there way into the daily lexicon worldwide. I bet there are terms that you use that have emanated from this genre and haven't given it a second thought about its origins. So relax and "Chill".

cali

Yeah I don't think Jackson understands what he's getting into:

SpamSandwich

big8ce said:

rpeters said:

I never thought I'd see the day when I'd read an Apple exec using the term "much respeck". Seriously? Street parlance has no place in a press release; it only legitimizes gutter-speak.

Ahh....The grammar police are out again in rare form. You see the one thing about communication is making sure you know who your audience is. In this case, the Apple exec is speaking to someone whom knows exactly what message was being conveyed; Which is the whole point on communicating. As far as legitimizing the form of speak, your a day late and a dollar short. The terms "YOLO, "On Fleek", "Bling" (As in Bling-Bling, a Cash Money Millionaires colab with B.G. and Juvenile); "Yo", "Wassup" (Budweiser Commercials); "Swag", just to name a few terms that have made there way into the daily lexicon worldwide. I bet there are terms that you use that have emanated from this genre and haven't given it a second thought about its origins. So relax and "Chill".

stantheman

Let's follow the money. Apple may have begun by identifying a cohort of Android and/or iPhone owners who love music but aren't presently subscribing to Apple Music. Next, Apple may have surveyed members of that cohort to discover which performers and groups they are most devoted to, with the greatest intensity. Finally, Apple may have recruited those specific performers to exclusive and semi-exclusive deals. (Apple does not need to sign new music deals to satisfy existing iPhone owners and Apple Music subscribers.)

slprescott

holyone said:

I must disagree with you're findings which I find respectfully illegitimate.

holyone,

You made good points. Thanks for putting your perspective out there for me to see.