Week of October 25–31, 2026
Welcome to The Unlimited Brief, the weekly roundup of independent music and music industry news from Unlimited Sounds Radio. We start with the music: five independent artists from this week’s coverage at Indie Music Discovery, including a debut album from the son of an REO Speedwagon frontman and a folk-rock single played partly on traditional Chinese instruments. Then the business, where Universal’s CEO says streaming deals have to change, Spotify is reportedly planning a paid AI remix tool, and the FTC wants a jury trial against Live Nation.
Missed last week? Read the Oct 18–24 edition.
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Indie Discoveries
From Indie Music Discovery, part of the Unlimited Sounds family.
Pac Ave Records artist Mj Ward, fresh off her new album release, was awarded “Best Indie” at this year’s North Bay Music Awards. Congratulations to Mj… and to the proud papa who is one of their biggest supporters. For links to the album and to watch the music video for “Raven,” visit mjwardmusic.com. Pac Ave Records is Pacific’s student-run record label; learn more at pacaverecords.com.
Fresh from the Unlimited Sounds Distribution wing this week, we’ve got new releases from Madame Z, Charlotte Han, a collaboration by SJM, Seanessy, DJ Loot, and Tyler Ullom, and, this one means a lot to me, the 15th anniversary digital release of the Streetlight Allstars album Where The Sidewalk Ends.
Now, this album holds a Nashville Independent Music Award for album of the year. I don’t remember the year without pausing to do some math, but Streetlight Allstars are my close homies from the Dirty Boro. We performed together in the Boro and greater Middle Tennessee region. We shared a stage at Blue Rooster for the Boro Pulse’s Artist of the Month Showcase. And they hosted a radio show, Blazin’ in da Boro, on WMTS FM, the MTSU campus station. The local artists would show up with CDs, you remember those, right? And the Allstars crew would spin our music, sometimes let us freestyle, and share good vibes and great music. They also know how to throw a killer party.
The other releases are also special. I work closely with Madame Z on a weekly basis, Charlotte Han is a former student who I still work closely with, and DJ Loot and SJM are Sacramento homies who have become good friends through our work at Unlimited Sounds. Be sure to follow the links in this post to stream their new releases. And if you’re feeling them, add them to a playlist, save to your library, and most importantly, share with your music-loving friends.
Now for some fresh finds courtesy of Indie Music Discovery.
Whisker, Can’t You Feel It? Whisker is the Los Angeles project of Shane Patrick Cronin, formerly of the band Sir, Please, and his debut album is out October 30. Cronin is the son of REO Speedwagon frontman Kevin Cronin, and his twin brother, Josh, was in Sir, Please too. One song, “Bus Stop,” recalls the moment he had an anxiety attack at age 11 while boarding a bus with his father, who comforted him. Another, “If I Run,” was written nine years ago, and he rebuilt it for the album around piano, distorted guitar, and drums.
Eric Schenkman, “Avocado Eldorado”. The founding member of the Spin Doctors was inspired by his grandfather’s green Cadillac Eldorado, which is, in his words, now rusting away in an old Vermont barn. The title goes back to a 1995 visit to David Lindley’s home in Reseda, California, where Lindley had a big blue 1970s Eldorado of his own. Lindley’s reaction to the story: “That’s a song you should write.” It was recorded with no click track, and the bridge came from Jono Manson during a session in Santa Fe.
Tennyson King, “The Great Unknown”. The Toronto-based, Hong Kong-born artist’s fierce folk-rock single was inspired by a near-drowning while freediving near Australia’s Sunshine Coast. Much of what sounds like electric guitar is actually a zhongruan, a four-string Chinese instrument run through distortion pedals, and a guzheng bends and slides through the chorus. It’s from his album 100 Cities 百城, due November 6.
Earthquake Lights, “Mr. Always-What-He-Had-To-Be”. The New York band’s brooding alt-rock single is the second from their fourth album, due early 2027. The core of the track was recorded at Douglass Recording in Brooklyn with very little editing, and guitarist Justin Garcia improvised the solo on the day of the session. The strings were recorded at Abbey Road Studios, and the song was inspired in part by Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas.
Sébastien De Francesco, “Leaving Now”. The Québec-based songwriter was inspired by the last afternoon he spent with a close friend who was dying of cancer. It plays as an imagined conversation, with some lines sung from the friend’s perspective and others capturing his own urge to comfort him. The title appears only at the very end of the song, and he spent nearly a full day working on that ending.
More from Indie Music Discovery this week: Mark Fenster interview · The Boathouse interview · Rose Wollman, Becoming America · Lauren Minear, “Autumn Leaves” · Scarlett Macfarlane, “Ghost” · Next Week’s Washing, “Clear Eyes” · Raphaela, “Take It Back” · Shiloh Lindsey, “Wolves In Your Head” · Addi John, Love & Misfortunes
Fine Print: Rights, Law and Policy
The FTC wants a jury
In its BOTS Act case against Live Nation and Ticketmaster in federal court in Los Angeles, the FTC has demanded a full jury trial. Seven states, Colorado, Florida, Illinois, Nebraska, Tennessee, Utah and Virginia, joined the case. The complaint alleges deceptive price listings, misleading ticket purchase limits, and unlawful resales, and it cites $3.7 billion in resale ticket fees from 2019 to 2024. A judge denied Live Nation’s motion to dismiss in September. Live Nation denies the allegations and calls the suit misguided. It argues the BOTS Act targets resale botting and can’t be used against a primary ticketing platform, and says it has spent more than a billion dollars on anti-scalping measures since 2010. No trial date has been set, and these are allegations (Digital Music News).
The subpoena fights in the labels’ case against Suno
Suno has served Apple with a deposition subpoena seeking testimony from Apple Music executives, including about Apple’s current licensing talks with Universal and Sony, and about AI. Suno says it needs this for its fair use defense, and for a copyright misuse argument that the majors use their catalogs as leverage against streaming services. Apple has moved to quash, calling the topics irrelevant, overbroad and disproportionate. No ruling has been reported (Digital Music News).
Separately, UMG and Sony have subpoenaed DistroKid for data on how much of its catalog is flagged as AI-generated, including how much was made with Suno. DistroKid’s deadline moved from November 4 to November 6, and the parties say they’re working on a resolution (Digital Music News).
A big judgment in the Notorious B.I.G. estate
A Delaware judge ordered Faith Evans to pay the Voletta Wallace Revocable Trust $12.5 million, nearly $14 million with interest. Voletta Wallace was Biggie’s mother. The trust’s trustee argued it was owed a 25 percent share of estate revenue, including income from the estate’s catalog deal with Primary Wave. The judge ruled the trust’s financial rights took effect when Voletta Wallace died in February 2025. A separate Pennsylvania lawsuit over changes to her will is still going, and no appeal has been reported (Digital Music News).
Royalty Check: Following the Money
Universal’s strong third quarter, and a call to change streaming deals
Revenue was 3.39 billion euros, up 12 percent, helped by the acquisition of Downtown. Excluding Downtown and currency effects, growth was about 5 percent. EBITDA was 672 million euros, up 13 percent, and paid streaming revenue was 1.42 billion euros, up 21 percent as reported, or about 9.5 percent excluding Downtown and currency effects.
CEO Lucian Grainge used the results to argue that uniform pro-rata payments make the AI problem worse, and that unethically generated AI tracks shouldn’t earn the same as music with lasting demand. His words: “the structure of our DSP agreements has to change.” He said Universal expects partnerships with Klay Vision, Udio and others to add revenue in fiscal 2027, and that the next phase of its transformation runs through 2028, with details due with full-year results (Digital Music News).
Spotify is reportedly building a paid AI remix tool
According to a Financial Times report, relayed by Music Business Worldwide, Spotify plans to launch an add-on in the first quarter of 2027, possibly unveiled around the Grammys in February, letting paying subscribers create AI remixes and covers of songs by artists who opt in. The price under discussion is four to five dollars a month on top of a subscription. Royalties from fan remixes would go to the original artists. Universal, Merlin, Kobalt and Believe have signed on, per the report, and Sony and Warner are still negotiating. Spotify declined to comment, and the timing and pricing aren’t final (Music Business Worldwide).
YouTube Music and Premium pass 150 million subscribers
Alphabet says the total, which includes trials, is up 25 million from March 2025. YouTube ad revenue for the quarter was $11.2 billion, up 9.2 percent, and living-room viewing accounted for more than a third of it (Digital Music News).
Headlines
SiriusXM returned to subscriber growth. It added 5,000 net self-pay satellite subscribers in the third quarter, compared with a loss of 40,000 a year earlier, bringing the total to 31.3 million. Revenue was $2.15 billion, down about 0.3 percent. It raised its full-year guidance by $25 million, to $8.55 billion in revenue, but warned of a harder fourth quarter. Listening time on satellite rose 5 percent, and the company credits Morgan Wallen Radio with a good share of that. Pandora slipped to 5.5 million self-pay subscribers, down 3 percent (Digital Music News).
Sphere is headed to the Washington, D.C., area. Prince George’s County, Maryland, gave final approval, 8 to 0, to a deal for a roughly 6,000-seat Sphere at National Harbor. The county is committing about $200 million, and the whole project is estimated at about $1.4 billion. The opening is hoped for early 2030, which is a target, not a firm date (Digital Music News).
Quick Hits
- Michael Jackson estate: Paris Jackson has asked a court to cut executor John Branca’s pay from 15 percent to 10 percent of gross entertainment income for 2023 and 2024. She alleges Branca paid himself more than $100 million in two years and missed court-ordered deadlines. Branca called her claims “nonsensical.” These are allegations, and no ruling has been reported (Digital Music News).
- Boy George: His single “We Will Dance Again,” a tribute to the victims of the October 7 attack on the Nova Music Festival, is getting a release through Warner’s ADA after Bandcamp removed it in August, citing its AI policies (Digital Music News).
- Jonas Brothers: They’re adding a one-time Halloween concert inside Roblox’s Steal an Egg game to their tour (Digital Music News).
- Audio Chateau Records: The label is nearing a $9 million Series A, and is adding Poo Bear as a strategic advisor (Digital Music News).
On This Day in Music History
- October 28, 1998: The DMCA becomes law. President Bill Clinton signed the Digital Millennium Copyright Act. It created the safe harbor that shields platforms from liability for what their users upload, and the notice-and-takedown system that lets rights holders demand removal. It still shapes today’s fights, including the DMCA claims in Reservoir’s lawsuits against Suno and Anthropic that we covered last week (History.com).
- October 29, 1983: Dark Side of the Moon sets a chart record. Pink Floyd’s album reached its 491st week on the Billboard 200, breaking Johnny Mathis’s record for the longest stay on the chart. It’s a fitting reminder after Lucian Grainge’s argument this week about music with lasting demand (iHeart).
Dates to Watch
- November 6: DistroKid’s response deadline on the UMG and Sony subpoena; Tennyson King’s album 100 Cities 百城 and Shiloh Lindsey’s The Western Veil are due
- November 13: The EP Spiral from Next Week’s Washing
- November 23: The Boathouse’s full album
- Early 2027: Earthquake Lights’ fourth album
- February 2027: The Grammys, where Spotify’s AI remix tool may reportedly be unveiled
- Q1 2027: Spotify’s reported target for the AI remix tool
The Unlimited Brief is a weekly production of Unlimited Sounds Radio. Indie Music Discovery is part of the Unlimited Sounds family.
Sources: Digital Music News, Music Business Worldwide, History.com, iHeart, Indie Music Discovery, Pac Ave Records.
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