PPL

We have now raised £20,821 for the Cancer Awareness Trust, with the Berlin Half Marathon less than 4 weeks away. The PPL team is continuing to train hard for the event. A week ago Mark Douglas and I ran 15k from Soho, round Regents Park and then back to Soho via Hyde Park, Green Park and St James’s Park. This last weekend I went down to Bath, where my youngest daughter Ellie is at University. We ran 16.5k along the River Avon. My daughters Ellie and Hannah are both running in Berlin with the PPL team. We try and do one long run each weekend and a couple of shorter runs during the week. If you would like to donate to support the Cancer Awareness Trust, Natalie Wade and Titania Altius then you can do so here:- https://lnkd.in/esyGQbfh Thank you to everyone that has so generously donated. It is very much appreciated by us all. Training will be a bit harder to fit in this week as I have now arrived in Austin, Texas for SXSW, which involves a lot of time on your feet. PPL is once again a partner in the British Music Embassy, alongside the Department for Business and Trade, BPI (British Phonographic Industry), British Council, PRS Foundation, BBC Introducing and other supporters. We have over 50 UK artists and bands performing this week, and I wish them all the very best. The full schedule is here https://lnkd.in/ePs6Vxmb Photo L to R Michael Stack, Sarah Wall, Suzi Ibbotson

“The chance to work with an organisation that I could see make such a different to so many people made PPL a very attractive place to work…” In our latest Meet the Team, we caught up with Emmanuel Johnson, our Senior People and Culture Manager 👥 From embedding our new company values to creating opportunities for employee development, Emmanuel helps shape life at PPL – all while bringing his love of music to the office 🎶 Read the full interview here: https://lnkd.in/etF-YQjQ

February has been a busy month with lots going on within the music world. The most recent big event was, of course, the BRIT Awards. Many congratulations to Dr Jo Twist OBE (she/her) OBE and her team at the BPI (British Phonographic Industry), on another excellent awards night, with so many exceptional live performances. Congratulations also to Damian Christian for expertly organising the celebration of the best of British and International music over the last year. Particular congratulations to Charli XCX who was the big winner on the night. Thank you to Manny Norte, Warner Music, Tik Tok and Sony Music for having Natalie Wade and I at your parties after the Brit Awards. Made for a late one! I enjoyed attending last week the Association of Independent Music (AIM) & Friends event, as a guest of Gee Davy, for a catch up with friends and peers across the industry. Responding to the Government’s consultation on AI copyright law was a key activity in February and the #MakeItFair campaign completely took over the national front pages and filled up social media feeds. PPL will continue to use our voice to call for a regulatory environment that ensures the right guardrails are in place to protect and appropriately remunerate music creators and rightsholders. Earlier in the month, I attended an excellent panel event run by The Black Music Coalition at Soho House & Co. The panel was titled ‘Did Tik Tok kill the Superstar?’, where Preye Crooks, Parris OH and Lunick Bourgess explored this very question. A really interesting conversation, hosted by Sheryl Nwosu. I had the pleasure of attending the Young Musicians Symphony Orchestra (YMSO) at Cadogan Hall alongside our Chairman, John Smith and PPL Board Director, Dave Lee for a very enjoyable concert. The YMSO is Britain’s leading orchestra for young musicians on the threshold of turning professional and is supported by PPL Giving. Along with some PPL colleagues, I visited Big Star Business Management at their office in Bethnal Green. It was a really enjoyable visit and nice to share more of an insight into the work we do. Thank you to Nick Lawrence and his team. I also recorded my first ever podcast, having been interviewed by Mark Sutherland for the The Money Trench - The Music Industry Podcast with Mark Sutherland. Mark hosts the podcasts so well & has developed a really good format for engaging with his guests. Worth a listen each week. Finally, we celebrated Christine Geissmar’s time at PPL, which covers nearly 17 years. We had a few drinks in the office with some heartfelt speeches from colleagues. It was also great to see such a good response on social media to Christine's retirement, with lots of lovely comments. She has been an outstanding friend & colleague, & I wish her & her family all the best for the future. Char Grant, Komali Scott-Jones, Afryea Henry-Fontaine, Bertina Luzà, Faisat Oluokun, Alexandra Glitz, Julian Palmer, Jackie Davidson, Kim Frankiewicz

Supporting music communities through PPL’s Relationship Managers ✨ Our team of Relationship Managers work across Black music, Dance and Classical, helping artists and rightsholders understand how PPL works and what royalties they may be owed. We caught up with Bertina Luzà, our Black Music Relationship Manager to hear how she is championing Black music artists and rightsholders, and her role leading our work with the MOBO Awards as it gears up to celebrate its 30th anniversary. Read more about the work our Relationship Managers do via the link below 🔗 https://lnkd.in/ePBs5gWJ

Today marks the last day of the Government’s consultation on changing the UK’s copyright laws to allow Artificial Intelligence firms to use the work of music creators and owners without permission or payment. These changes to copyright laws would make it easier for AI firms to use the music of artists, composers and music companies without their permission – this would put the music industry at a huge risk.  PPL is supporting many music and creative industry efforts on this topic including the silent album ‘Is This What We Want’ released today by Virgin Records. Over 100 PPL members have been co-credited in the album which consists of 12 tracks of near silence recorded at empty studios, representing the impact the legislation would have on musicians' livelihoods. We believe we need a regulatory environment that ensures the right guardrails are in place to protect and appropriately remunerate music creators and copyright.  Allowing AI companies to train their models on the world's greatest music without payment, and for the output of those models to then compete with the creators whose property has been used for the training is so wrong, it beggars belief that it is even being considered! There are so many positive and productive uses of AI, but we must unpick the conflation of thinking that the tech sector has been pushing with government. Solving the climate crisis does not need the recordings of Dua Lipa to be ingested! Finding new medical cures does not need the books of J K Rowling to be ingested. Driving corporate productivity does not need the art of Damien Hirst to be ingested. The only reason that AI needs to be trained on these creative works is to make competing outputs. If that's the AI a company wants to engage in, then they must be compelled to seek permission and pay appropriate value for the inputs to their models. That is not a strange view - it's how all businesses operate! There are plenty of ethical AI companies that understand this and are doing the right thing. To carve out a wide ranging exemption form this, on some vague promises of investment and growth, would be a wild punt against the creative sector that is already contributing over £120bn to the economy and be counterproductive to the government's own growth ambitions.  You can support this cause by streaming the silent album below. All proceeds go to @Help Musicians.  https://lnkd.in/eBQTPj9g

Today marks the last day of the Government’s consultation on changing the UK’s copyright laws to allow Artificial Intelligence firms to use the work of music creators and owners without permission or payment - a change that could devastate our creative industries. The plans would seriously undermine the music industry’s efforts to grow the £7.6 billion it contributes to the economy and play its part at the heart of the Government’s industrial strategy.  We believe that the Government must stand with the creative industries to allow creatives to assert their rights in the age of AI.    Follow the link to read more on the consultation and how you get support 🔗 https://lnkd.in/e7fxYNWN 

A special boost for our PPL runners today - Natalie Wade and Titania Altius joined us at our Thursday Run Club to cheer the team on! With just over six weeks to go until the Berlin Half Marathon, the team is in full training mode. Thank you so much for the incredible support we’ve received since launching our fundraising for the Cancer Awareness Trust Trust. In just three weeks, we’ve raised over £16,000 from more than 180 supporters - we are incredibly grateful for this overwhelming support. This has meant so much to Natalie and Titania, as they continue their own cancer treatment. Knowing they have such a strong community behind them has given them a real lift. Training hasn’t been easy over recent weeks, battling the cold, rain, and the challenge of getting back into a heavy training routine. But every time it gets tough, I remind myself that it’s nothing compared to what Natalie and Titania have been through this past year. Their strength and positivity continue to inspire us all. Today is also a significant one for me and our other runners as it marks what would have been our dear colleague and former General Counsel, David Harmsworth’s birthday. We lost David to bowel cancer in 2023, after he had spent 20 years working at PPL, and yet would still not have reached his 50’s. We will continue to carry his memory with us throughout this journey and beyond. If you’d like to support our cause, you can donate to the Cancer Awareness Trust via the link below. Photo L to R - Richard Read, Mark Douglas, Chloe Rowlatt, Shula Kerr, Natalie Wade, Titania Altius, me, Israh Ashraf & Dwayne Marshall. https://lnkd.in/esyGQbfh

A massive congratulations to the incredible artists celebrated at this year’s MOBO Organisation Awards 🏆🎶 It was a powerful evening, both celebrating and shaping the best of black music and culture, with so many highlights, moving speeches, and inspiring performances. Congratulations to the wonderful Kanya King CBE and the entire MOBOs crew on a beautiful evening. You smashed it! 🌟 📸 Claudia Afranie, Bertina Luzá, Taponeswa Mavunga, Stephanie Haughton-Campbell, Kwame Kwaten

Thank you Christine Geissmar for your dedication and positive impact on PPL. Wishing you all the best for your retirement 🩵

A brilliant evening celebrating the relaunch of Attitude is Everything’s Live Events Access Charter at London’s Sinfonia Smith Square concert hall. This initiative is a significant step towards ensuring all fans, regardless of disability, can access and enjoy live music experiences. At PPL, we are proud to support this cause and work alongside organisations dedicated to improving accessibility in the music and events industry. The new charter provides essential guidelines and resources, with over 210 venues and festivals awarded Charter status, from grassroots spaces to major arenas. Our Chief Licensing Officer, Jez Bell, presented the Operations Award sponsored by PPL. Congratulations to Victorious Festival for their commitment to accessibility, including the transformation of the Waterfront Garden Centre. Speaking on the relaunch, our Chief Membership & People Officer, Kate Reilly - Hurter said: “Music by its very nature helps create connection, and in the live space that shared connection is cemented between performers and fans. We are proud to support the relaunch of the Live Events Access Charter to help ensure all fans, regardless of a disability, can access and enjoy live music experiences.”  A huge thank you to Attitude is Everything for leading this important movement and to all the partners, panellists and attendees who made the event a success ✨