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UNIVERSAL MUSIC GROUP, on behalf of UMG RECORDINGS INC. and CAPITOL RECORDS LLC, and plaintiffs’ attorneys representing clients in class action lawsuits regarding digital download royalties today submitted a settlement for preliminary court approval.

In the lawsuit, the plaintiffs (including the estate of RICK JAMES, CHUCK D of PUBLIC ENEMY and others) alleged that UMG failed to pay proper royalties to certain artists when consumers bought MP3 files from digital music retailers.

Under the proposed terms, UMG will contribute a maximum of $11.5 million to supplement payments to class members for past digital download activity, cover attorneys’ fees and administrative costs, and also increase digital download royalties by approximately 10% going forward to class members who submit a claim. Class members can learn more about the settlement, including how to submit claims, at www.umgsettlement.com.

In the settlement agreement, UMG specifically denies the plaintiffs’ claims, and states that it agreed to settle the claims rather than continue to litigate the matter to avoid the associated legal expenses.

In a statement, UMG commented, “Although we are confident we appropriately paid royalties on digital downloads and adhered to the terms of contracts, we are pleased to amicably resolve this matter and avoid continued legal costs.”
– See more at: All Access News

Jeff Mills, Lisa Orlando, and more talk about the influential Motor City DJ.

With such a wealth of instrumental figures, some of the most innovative tend to become lost in Detroit’s vast legacy. Duane “In the Mix” Bradley is one of those individuals whose story remains sealed in history. Bradley was essential to shaping early house and techno culture through his work in radio, but his name is not often brought up in the globally accepted narrative of dance music. “In New York, they had Tee Scott and Larry Levan,” says Mike “Agent X” Clark. “In Chicago, they had Frankie Knuckles and Ron Hardy. In Detroit, we had Ken Collier and Duane Bradley. These were our heroes.”

Bradley left a lasting impact on those who knew the DJ and producer, felt all the way from Detroit to Chicago and beyond. He helped bridge the two cities by introducing originators of Detroit techno to pioneers of Chicago house, such as Jesse Saunders, who writes how Bradley was vital to jumpstarting his career in his autobiography House Music… The Real Story. To help keep his legacy shining bright, Bradley’s friends and coworkers share their memories of the brilliant turntablist and discuss how he brought house music to the masses through airwaves.

A key figure on WJLB for nearly 20 years, Bradley held a lunchtime slot called Midday Cuisine Mix and would often play the Saturday Night House Party. (On Friday and Saturday nights, WJLB aired live broadcasts of house, techno, electro and booty bass from Detroit clubs.) He could also be heard on sister station Mix 92.3. “Duane was the first on-air mixer at WJLB,” says radio personality Lisa “Lisa Lisa” Orlando, who was Promotions and Marketing Director at WJLB at the time. “He was flawless on-air… there were no edits, no drum machines or anything. It was all vinyl and he was live.” James Alexander, who worked alongside Orlando as the station’s Program Director, recalls how precise Bradley’s master mixes were: “He had a natural flow for the structure of a song and that allowed him to mix effortlessly.”

Read more at Red Bull Music Academy.

LOS ANGELES (AP) – A jury awarded Marvin Gaye’s children nearly $7.4 million Tuesday after determining singers Robin Thicke and Pharrell Williams copied their father’s music to create “Blurred Lines,” the biggest hit song of 2013.

Gaye’s daughter Nona Gaye wept as the verdict was read and was hugged by her attorney.

“Right now, I feel free,” she said outside court. “Free from … Pharrell Williams and Robin Thicke’s chains and what they tried to keep on us and the lies that were told.”

The verdict could tarnish the legacy of Williams, a reliable hit-maker who has won Grammy Awards and appears on NBC’s music competition show “The Voice.”

He and Thicke are “undoubtedly disappointed,” said their lead attorney, Howard King.

“They’re unwavering in their absolute conviction that they wrote this song independently,” he said.

King has said a decision in favor of Gaye’s heirs could have a chilling effect on musicians who try to emulate an era or another artist’s sound.

Larry Iser, an intellectual property attorney who has represented numerous musicians in copyright cases, was critical of the outcome.

“Unfortunately, today’s jury verdict has blurred the lines between protectable elements of a musical composition and the unprotectable musical style or groove exemplified by Marvin Gaye,” Iser said. “Although Gaye was the Prince of Soul, he didn’t own a copyright to the genre, and Thicke and Williams’ homage to the feel of Marvin Gaye is not infringing.”

Gaye’s children – Nona, Frankie and Marvin Gaye III – sued the two singers in 2013.

Their lawyer, Richard Busch, branded Williams and Thicke liars who went beyond trying to emulate the sound of Gaye’s late-1970s music and copied the R&B legend’s hit “Got to Give It Up” outright.

The family “fought this fight despite every odd being against them,” Busch said after the verdict, which could face years of appeals.

Thicke told jurors he didn’t write “Blurred Lines,” which Williams testified he crafted in about an hour in mid-2012.

Williams testified that Gaye’s music was part of the soundtrack of his youth. But the seven-time Grammy winner said he didn’t use any of it to create “Blurred Lines.”

“Blurred Lines” has sold more than 7.3 million copies in the U.S. alone, according to Nielsen SoundScan figures. It earned a Grammy Awards nomination and netted Williams and Thicke millions of dollars.

The case was a struggle between two of music’s biggest names: Williams has sold more than 100 million records worldwide during his career as a singer-producer, and Gaye performed hits such as “Sexual Healing” and “How Sweet It Is (To be Loved by You)” remain popular.

During closing arguments, Busch accused Thicke and Williams of lying about how the song was created. He told jurors they could award Gaye’s children millions of dollars if they determined the copyright of “Got to Give It Up” was infringed.

King denied there were any substantial similarities between “Blurred Lines” and the sheet music Gaye submitted to obtain copyright protection.

Williams has become a household name – known simply as Pharrell – thanks to his hit song “Happy” and his work as a judge on the “The Voice.” He wrote the majority of “Blurred Lines” and recorded it in one night with Thicke. A segment by rapper T.I. was added later.

Williams, 41, also signed a document stating he didn’t use any other artists’ work in the music and would be responsible if a successful copyright claim was raised.

Thicke testified he wasn’t present when the song was written, despite receiving credit.

The trial focused on detailed analyses of chords and notes in both “Blurred Lines” and “Got to Give It Up.”

Jurors repeatedly heard the upbeat song “Blurred Lines” and saw snippets of its music video, but Gaye’s music was represented during the trial in a less polished form. Jurors did not hear “Got to Give It Up” as Gaye recorded it, but rather a version created based solely on sheet music submitted to gain copyright protection.

That version lacked many of the elements – including Gaye’s voice – that helped make the song a hit in 1977. Busch called the version used in court a “Frankenstein-like monster” that didn’t accurately represent Gaye’s work.

An expert for the Gaye family said there were eight distinct elements from “Got to Give It Up” that were used in “Blurred Lines,” but an expert for Williams and Thicke denied those similarities existed.

Gaye died in April 1984, leaving his children the copyrights to his music.

For the full story, hop on over to AP News.