WMG Goes Live

Warner Music Group announced its pricing at $17 a share and stated that they will cover the shortfall of funds intended to pay off debt with cash. They begin trading today on the New York Stock Exchange as WMG.

Blogs: DANTRIFICATION, Media Chin-Check, Hip Hop Blogger, Vibes and Stuff, Blogads, Deal Flow, unmediated

DANTRIFICATION has completed a three part consideration of hip hop media, Minding My Business:
Part One ~ Part Two ~ Part Three

Media Chin-Check introduces hip hop comic Felt: True Tales of Underground Hip Hop and expresses concern over a small ass in Apple Bottoms.

Hip Hop Blogger refers us to a Wall Street Journal article on hip hop demographics that reveals the source of stats indicating that rap music consumers are predominantly white, that crazy mashup of ethnicities and national backgrounds.

Vibes and Stuff responds to a Canadian radio content petition intended to support developing artists that nevertheless ignores hip hop and electronica.

Though not hip hop specific, the Blogads blog considers t-shirts and niche marketing, a useful topic for budding fashion entrepreneurs.

For those who are making serious decisions about hiring publicity firms, Deal Flow discusses the reasons why independent contractors may be your best bet, a good thing to hear considering so many hip hop publicists operate as one person shops.

unmediated mentions grassroots digital music service Music For Dozens.

Unpaid Writing Gigs, Nets Internship, Ultimate Hustler

If you're an up and coming writer who wants exposure and can accept unpaid work, there are lots of opportunities with online music mags, especially with indie rock oriented publications that include hip hop in their coverage. For example, Prefixmag.com recently ran an ad in Craigslist for new contributors. PopMatters also has openings. However, just because they're unpaid doesn't mean they don't expect professional quality.

In more unpaid action, you've got till May 15th to make your bid to be an S. Carter Academy intern with the New Jersey Nets. However, housing will be provided.

There's also still time to catch at least one of the Ultimate Hustler Casting Calls for Damon Dash's new surreality show and perhaps earn your opportunity to be verbally abused by the great Dame himself.

Industry: Warner IPO, Yahoo Music, Columbia House/BMG, Universal Music, MTV/VH1 Execs, IODA, TriMedia

Warner Music Group's IPO prices at $17 a share, the low end of their adjustment to reality. This pricing puts their initial capitalization at $2.4 billion, far below their lofty dreams based on a valuation of $3.43 billion and below the $2.6 billion paid for the company. This also means that they may have to use cash to pay off their debt and won't have much of anything to put back into the company.

Yesterday, Yahoo announced a digital music subscription service that will include portability and sharply underprices its competitors. I'd hate to be competing with Yahoo, their ability to run massive amounts of advertising within their network by itself is a huge competitive advantage. Billboard PostPlay and PaidContent have more on Yahoo's music service.

BMG's parent company Bertelsmann is buying Columbia House which will be combined with BMG Direct boosting their CD offerings and adding DVD sales.

Glenayre Technologies is buying Universal Music Group's CD and DVD manufacturing and distribution assets via Entertainment Distribution Co. which will become a division of Glenayre upon completion of the deal. EDC will then provide such services to Universal, gradually taking over the additional services that are currently outsourced to other companies.

MTV/VH1's exec shufflings will make VH1 President Christina Norman head of MTV, MTV2 et al and one of the top ranking black execs in television. MTV's Tom Calderone will become VH1's new prez.

Fortune Mag has named San Francisco's Independent Online Distribution Alliance one of 25 breakout companies to watch in 2005. Official site: IODA.

TriMedia Entertainment Group, whose RuffNation Films subsidiary produced Snipes, yesterday announced a multimillion dollar debt for stock swap. Official site: TriMedia.