New ARIAs category recognises music in ads, First Nations talent celebrate NITV’s 10th, and more!
Been out of the loop with everything that’s been going on in the music industry recently? We don’t blame you. Here’s a wrap-up of all the biggest Aussie music industry news stories from the past fortnight.
The top headlines:
- TikTok Music to test in Australia first?
- New ARIAs category recognises music in ads.
- Perth’s RAC Arena launched an artist support scheme.
Keep up to date with the latest industry news here.
New ARIAs category recognises music in ads
A new category in the ARIA Awards from 2023 recognises the best use of Australian music in the creative and advertising industry.
The announcement coincided with the launch of Our Soundtrack Our Ads, to urge that sector to use more Australian music and voices in ads.
It is in partnership with Our Soundtrack Our Stories and M&C Saatchi Sport & Entertainment.
Our Soundtrack Our Stories launched in 2021 to promote the use of Aussie music across business and media landscape.
It was sparked by a call from singer songwriter Jack River for greater exposure for domestic sounds which was struggling in the pandemic.
“We have such amazing talent here in our backyard, so getting to hear new and upcoming voices across more commercials, social media campaigns and creative content is exciting for the next generation of artists, brands and music lovers alike,” River said.
TikTok Music to test in Australia first?
As the arrival of TikTok Music seems imminent, it seems Australia will be one of the first to get it.
Owner ByteDance has set up a dedicated, “music.tiktok.com” site for Australia, New Zealand, Mexico, Malaysia, and Singapore.
It remains unclear if TikTok Music will launch as a standalone, or as part of ByteDance’s other streaming service Resso, which is only available in India, Indonesia, and Brazil.
Two venues unplug the music
Frankie’s Pizza By The Slice in Sydney unplugs the amps on December 11 (the day of its tenth birthday) before it’s demolished for a train line.
The Pepper Tree Cafe in Adelaide’s Aldinga closed without warning, cancelling 20 gigs.
“Please note this is not a permanent closure it is only temporary,” it told patrons via Facebook.
Babylon Newcastle had to change its name to Bartholomew’s after legal action by a Sydney-based bar with a similar moniker.
First Nations talent celebrate NITV’s 10th
Major First Nations talent appear on the From The Heart Of Our Nation, A Celebration broadcast on December 12, from Uluru.
It marks 10 years since National Indigenous Television (NITV) became a free-to-air station available to all Australians.
It screens at 7:30pm on SBS and NITV and hosted by Wiradjuri man Luke Carroll (Big Mob Brekky, Redfern Now) and Whadjuk Noongar woman Narelda Jacobs (The Point, Studio 10).
All-female record store
A new(ish) record store, Suffragette Records, only stocks female artists.
Co-founder Lauren Carter says most Australian record stores are dominated by male artist titles, and the store came into being to make it easier to find those by female talents of all genres and dating back to the 1950s.
The store is on 52 Sandy Bay Road, Battery Point in Hobart/nipaluna in Tasmania/lutruwita with shipping via https://suffragetterecords.com.au.
How diverse is UK music?
The UK music industry has been focusing on its workforce diversity since 2016.
A report released this month found there were forward moves in some sectors, and slide backwards in others.
The number of women has reached a record high with women now making up the majority at 52.9% up from 49.6% in 2020.
The number in mid-level roles increased from 40.4% to 45.1%, and those in senior roles up from 51.2% in 2020 to 53.3% in 2022.
But data shows two men start to leave the biz in their mid-40s.
There is a drop in the amount of people from an ethnically diverse background, from 22.3% two years ago to 21.04%.
But there is a rise in the group aged 25-34 from 24.8% in 2020 to 26.3% in 2022, which suggests efforts to improve career progression may be starting to have an effect.
14.9% of the industry reported a disability, up from 12.2% in 2020. Two-thirds (67.2%) of those felt they had to compromise their health for work.
Parents and carers are under represented in the music industry (at 29.7%, compared to 44% of the UK working population). The majority of primary parents or carers are female, and 72.3% are more likely to turn down jobs, compared to 25.5% of males.
In the survey, 78.7% identified as heterosexual, 6% bisexual, and 4.2% preferred not to say.
4.2% identifying as gay, 2.1% as queer, 1.6% as lesbian and 1.3% as pansexual.
Switching on the Limelight
To celebrate its tenth year in operation, Perth’s RAC Arena launched an artist support scheme called Limelight with support from WAM.
Acts are being encouraged to apply by November 30 via the RAC Arena website and include an introduction and performance video. The winner is announced on November 30.
For 12 months, the act gets $5,000 financial help, $2,500 music equipment thanks to Mega Music and Yamaha, inclusion in the WAMFest 2023 line-up, paid gigs at RAC Arena, and promotion via RAC Arena’s marketing channels.
History Never Repeats #1: ‘Down Under’
40 years after its release, Men At Work’s ‘Down Under’ has been honoured by APRA AMCOS for exceeding one billion streams.
The song reached #1 in Australia, the US (where atop for four weeks, sold two million), NZ, Canada, UK, Ireland, Denmark, Switzerland, and Italy.
It’s still kicking. A version by Perth producer/DJ Luude with new vocals by Colin Hay went to #1 in NZ and Spotify’s Viral Global Chart, and #2 on the ARIA chart.
It’s in the new Tourism Australia ad with a re-imagined version by Arnhem Land band King Stingray singing in Yolngu Matha and English.
History Never Repeats #2: ‘Let There Be Rock’
The chapel on Cleveland St in Sydney’s Surry Hills where AC/DC shot the video for 1977’s ‘Let There Be Rock’ – complete with singer Bon Scott dressed as a priest – has been sold for $6 million, the Daily Telegraph reported.
Its last owner was bondage and discipline performance artist, and painter, Gretel Pinniger aka Madame Lash, who bought it in 1986 for $205,000 from the Methodist Church.
More here.
