The speech, titled ‘Remaining Awake Through a Great Revolution,’ was delivered by Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. just days before his assassination in 1968. An important speech delivered by Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., just days before his assassination i…
Category archives: Music Preservation
Universal Music Faces a Growing Chorus of Artist Complaints Over Its Handling of the 2008 Universal Studios Fire
Over ten years ago, several workers at Universal Studios Hollywood made a huge blunder. Universal Music Group committed a much greater one. To repair a building on a set, the workers had decided to use a blowtorch. This would warm asphalts applied to…
UMG Kept a Secret List of Masters Destroyed In the Fire — The New York Times Just Published It
Previously, Universal Music Group had refused to disclose any list detailing its losses in the 2008 Universal Studios fire. Now, the New York Times is releasing it for them. Late Tuesday, Times investigatory reporter Jody Rosen released a list of more …
Universal Music Sued for $100 Million by Tom Petty Estate, Tupac Estate, Soundgarden, Hole, Steve Earle Over 2008 Fire
Universal Music Group now faces a $100 million lawsuit from a group that includes the estates of Tom Petty and Tupac Shakur, surviving members of Soundgarden, Hole, and Steve Earle, among others. The litigation stems from a recent New York Times Magazi…
Vivendi CEO: Universal Music’s 2008 Fire Crisis Is “Just Noise”
As legal action stemming from the 2008 Universal Studios Fire awaits, Universal Music Group’s PR counter-offensive continues. What really got torched in the blaze of ’08? According to the New York Times and its sources, roughly 500,000 priceless record…
UMG Receives First Legal Warning to Disclose Its 2008 Fire Losses; Chairman Lucian Grainge Breaks His Silence
What exactly was lost, and why isn’t UMG disclosing it? The crisis over UMG’s catastrophic loss of recording masters in 2008 is now entering a new phase. Just this morning, LA-based law firm King, Holmes, Paterno & Soriano, LLP issued a written …
UMG Secured a Massive Settlement from NBCUniversal After the 2008 Fire — But Shared Nothing Back With Artists
The crisis surrounding UMG’s handling of the Universal Studios Fire of 2008 is worsening with news of a massive settlement. As Universal Music Group faces the specter of dozens of lawsuits stemming from its mishandling of the 2008 Universal Studios fir…
A List of Artists Whose Masters Were Lost In the 2008 Universal Studios Fire
The ripples are just being felt from Jody Rosen’s bombshell New York Times Magazine exposé on the Universal Studios fire of 2008. The losses felt by Universal Music Group were staggering — not to mention the broader music community. Yet nobody knew ab…
The Universal Studios Fire In 2008 Destroyed an Estimated 500,000 UMG Master Recordings — Though Universal Is Damage-Controlling That Figure
Universal’s 2008 fire reportedly destroyed 500,000 recordings, including Chuck Berry, Ella Fitzgerald, and Eminem master tapes, according to the New York Times. UMG says the report isn’t entirely accurate. Additional information concerning the tragic …
Footage of One of The Beatles’ Last Performances Found In an Attic
The rare Beatles footage was sitting in an attic for decades. It didn’t take long for The Beatles to rise to prominence. The world-renowned quartet came to be in 1960, and by 1963, their tremendous sound, fun off-stage antics, and inviting personalitie…