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From Warner Music’s leadership shake-up to Suno’s courtroom defiance… it’s MBW’s Weekly Round-Up

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Welcome to Music Business Worldwide’s Weekly Round-up – where we make sure you caught the five biggest stories to hit our headlines over the past seven days. MBW’s Round-up is exclusively supported by BMI, a global leader in performing rights management, dedicated to supporting songwriters, composers and publishers and championing the value of music.

This week, Warner Music Group announced a leadership shake-up, with Val Blavatnik joining the company, Elliot Grainge taking on an expanded role at ADA, and Simon Robson set to exit after nearly 30 years with the company.

Meanwhile, Suno confirmed that its v6 model was trained in part on user ‘creations’ as it hit back at a fresh copyright lawsuit from Universal Music Group and Sony Music Entertainment.

Elsewhere, MBW delved into Universal Music Group’s lawsuit against DistroKid – including the revelation that over 50% of one major streaming service’s tracks were supplied by the DIY distributor.

Also this week, Carianne Marshall is set to exit her role as Co-Chair and COO of Warner Chappell Music, while Sony Music Group became the first music company to join ARIAM, an AI policy coalition alongside Disney, the BBC and The New York Times.

Here are some of the biggest headlines from the past few days…

1. Warner Music Group Shake-Up: Val Blavatnik joins, Elliot Grainge adds ADA, Simon Robson exits

Warner Music Group has announced a string of changes to its global leadership team, which the company says will drive its “next phase of growth.”

Coming in: Val Blavatnik joins the WMG executive team in the new role of Managing Director, Warner Music North America, UK, & Corporate Development.

As that job title suggests, it’s understood that Blavatnik will now lead Warner’s recorded music operations across the US, Canada, and the UK. (MBW)

2. Suno confirms V6 model was trained on ‘creations’ from users, as it blasts latest Sony and Universal lawsuit

Suno has said its v6 AI music models were trained in part on “creations” made by its own users on the platform.

The company set out that description in a statement responding to a second copyright lawsuit filed on Friday (September 18) by Universal Music Group and Sony Music Entertainment in Boston federal court, where the labels’ original case against the company is already being heard.

Suno said v6 was trained on “interactions including creations and preference signals” from its community. (MBW)

3. Over 50% of a major streaming service’s tracks come from DistroKid – and other revelations from UMG’s lawsuit

Universal Music Group‘s complaint against DistroKid, filed last week, runs to 52 pages.

It accuses the DIY distributor of “deceptive trade practices and blatant copyright infringement”, and of flooding streaming services with AI-generated “slop.”

The suit runs on two separate theories: (i) four counts of copyright infringement, which reach tracks that copy UMG recordings, and (ii) one count under the Delaware Uniform Deceptive Trade Practices Act, essentially accusing DistroKid of distributing “AI slop” under the guise of music made and recorded by actual humans. (MBW)

4. Carianne Marshall to exit Warner Chappell Music

Warner Music Group has announced that Carianne Marshall is to exit her role as Co-Chair and Chief Operating Officer of Warner Chappell Music (WCM), the global music publishing arm of WMG, at the end of this month.

A WMG media release said Marshall’s exit comes as the company “streamlines its leadership structure.”

WCM CEO Guy Moot will become the sole chair of WCM, effective October 1. Marshall will remain with the company through the end of the calendar year. (MBW)

5. Sony Music Group becomes first music company to join AI policy coalition ARIAM – alongside Disney, the BBC, and The New York Times

Sony Music Group has joined the Alliance for Responsible Innovation in the Arts & Media, the AI policy coalition better known as ARIAM.

It is the first music company to join the group, which launched in June 2026 with members drawn from film, television, journalism, publishing, education, and technology.

The announcement was made on Wednesday (September 23) by Victoria Furniss, ARIAM’s Executive Director and CEO. (MBW)

Partner message: MBW’s Weekly Round-up is supported by BMI, the global leader in performing rights management, dedicated to supporting songwriters, composers and publishers and championing the value of music. Find out more about BMI here. Music Business Worldwide

Ishbia to brokers: Higher rates will filter weaker competition

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He said the challenge is to keep pushing forward even when everyone around a broker is hitting them with negativity.

“Your family is like, ‘Oh, I heard interest rates are high.’ And what are you supposed to be like? ‘Yeah, it’s awesome,’” Ishbia said sarcastically. “Because they want to commiserate. Ninety percent of people, they like negative things. They like to talk about the bad because the bad is what’s fun to talk about, because nobody wants to talk about the good, which is ridiculous. Be different. Think differently. Be positive all the time.”

Desmond P. Smith, EVP and chief growth officer at UWM, told Mortgage Professional America that the rate environment itself was beside the point.

“When I first started in the early nineties, rates were in the high nines,” Smith said. “But most of these people have never experienced that. And guess what? The market kept going. The market will keep going. People will continue to buy houses. People need cash out. I think credit card debt is at the highest level. People need cash out to improve cash flow.”

He said the market’s direction has never been something originators could control in the first place.

New Audible Offer: Get 4 Months of $0.99/Month Plus $20 Credit

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New Audible Offer: Get 4 Months of $0.99/Month Plus $20 Credit


Audible Standard Trial

Amazon is offering a great promotion for new Audible subscriptions (affiliate link here and below). Audible is an Amazon company that sells and produces spoken audio content. You can now sign up and get the first four months at just $0.99 per month, plus a $20 credit. Plans will cost $8.99 per month after free trial. Check out the details below.

Offer Details

Sign up now to get 4 months of Audible Standard for just $0.99 per month, plus a $20 Audible credit. Offer ends October 7, 2026 at 11:59pm PT. This subscription includes the following benefits:

  • Select 1 audiobook a month: Choose any title you want from entire collection of 1M+ titles—including bestsellers and new releases.
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Audible plans start at $8.99 per month after promo period, but you can cancel at anytime.

Guru’s Wrap-up

This is one of the best offers we have seen for Audible as it includes the $20 credit. If you want to try out the service, then this is a great time to do so. You’re paying just $4 total for the first four months and you’re getting a $20 credit.

 

Disclaimer: As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases made through this article. Using links on the site for Amazon purchases is the best way you can support the site as you normally can’t earn cash back for these purchases. But, you should still check shopping portals such as Rakuten, TopCashback, RebatesMe, ShopBack and others for possible cashback. Your support is always greatly appreciated!

The Biggest Investing Mistake Most Indians Make | Let's Mint Money | Soumya Rajan X Neil Borate

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The Biggest Investing Mistake Most Indians Make | Let's Mint Money | Soumya Rajan X Neil Borate



What separates successful long-term investors from everyone else?

In this episode of Let’s Mint Money, Neil Borate speaks with Soumya Rajan, Founder & CEO of Waterfield Advisors, about the principles that have guided some of India’s wealthiest families through changing market cycles.

Drawing on decades of experience in wealth management, Soumya explains why asset allocation matters more than stock picking, why every investor should think about global diversification, and why she remains optimistic about India’s long-term growth story despite global uncertainty.

Disclaimer:
BSE Application number: 47766
BSE Enlistment number: 1627

#LetsMintMoney #Investing #WealthManagement #PersonalFinance #GlobalInvesting #AssetAllocation #IndiaEconomy #Mint

Presented in association with @WaterfieldAdvisorsHQ, Let’s Mint Money is a candid conversation series where Neil Borate, explores the personal finance philosophies of India’s most accomplished corporate leaders, entrepreneurs, and family business visionaries. From money mistakes to legacy planning, each episode reveals the real stories behind wealth, risk, and values. To know more about Waterfield, visit

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Mint is an Indian financial daily newspaper published by HT Media. The Mint YT Channel brings you cutting edge analysis of the latest business news and financial news. With in-depth market coverage, explainers and expert opinions, we break down and simplify business news for you.

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Why Financial Advisers Matter More Than Investment Products

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Based on both research and industry experience, five capabilities appear to distinguish advisers who improve investor outcomes from those who simply facilitate transactions. 
These five capabilities work together to create what I call, “The Adviser Effect.”

The Adviser Effect describes the influence advisers exert on investor behavior, decision-making, and ultimately investor outcomes. This shifts the conversation from products and recognizes that investment success is not determined solely by what investors own, but by how they behave, how they decide, and who guides them along the journey.

1. Creating Understanding
Investors cannot make good decisions about investments they do not understand. Great advisers simplify complexity. They translate technical concepts into language investors can understand. They focus on clarity rather than sophistication. Understanding reduces uncertainty, builds confidence, and supports better decision-making.

2. Managing Investor Emotions
Market volatility is inevitable and investor panic is common. During periods of uncertainty, advisers often serve as emotional stabilizers. They help investors maintain perspective and remain focused on long-term objectives. Helping a client avoid a panic-driven decision during a market downturn may create more value than any portfolio adjustment. This makes behavioral coaching one of the most important skills in modern financial advice.

3. Connecting Investments to Goals
Investors do not buy mutual funds. They buy retirement security, education funding, financial independence and peace of mind. The most effective advisers help investors connect every investment decision to a meaningful life goal. When investors understand why they are investing, they are more likely to remain committed during difficult periods.

4. Building Trust Through Transparency
Trust is the foundation of every successful adviser-client relationship. Investors do not expect certainty. They expect honesty. Trust develops when advisers communicate openly about both opportunities and risks. Advisers who explain risks before problems arise build stronger relationships and create more resilient clients.

5. Ensuring Suitability
A suitable product with moderate returns is often better than an unsuitable product with higher expected returns. Effective advisers ensure recommendations align with an investor’s goals, risk tolerance, investment horizon, liquidity needs, and level of understanding. Suitability protects investors and improves outcomes.

Boom or bust? The case for and against panicking about 5% yields

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Boom or bust? The case for and against panicking about 5% yields



The most important number in the economy has hit its highest level since 2007, and Wall Street can’t decide if it’s good or bad.

That number is the 10-year Treasury yield, the interest rate that the U.S. government pays to borrow money for a decade and which almost every other loan in the country is predicated off of. It hit 5.21% on Friday and the average 30-year mortgage rate jumped to 7.45% alongside it; car loans, credit cards, and business loans will follow.

This happened after the Federal Reserve raised rates last week, its first hike since 2023, to cool off the economy, with markets seeing roughly 70% odds of another hike in October. 

Bonds kept selling off, and Wednesday’s auction of five-year treasuries drew the weakest demand since 2018.

Whether that’s a problem, though, depends on why it’s happening. Yields can rise mostly off of two reasons: because the economy is booming or because investors are losing their taste for U.S. debt. Economists are split on which one this is.

What even is a bond?

It’s helpful to go back to the basics of bond dynamics. A bond is an IOU; when you buy a Treasury, you lend the government money, and it pays you interest on that loan. That rate of interest is the bond yield.

The yield moves with demand; when fewer investors want to lend, the government has to give a higher rate to find buyers. And because lenders base the price of mortgages, auto loans and the like off of the government’s rate, everyone’s borrowing costs rise with it.

That trades off with other things like stocks, too. If a risk-free government bond can pay you 5%, investors might demand a better reason to own riskier stocks, and might pay less.

Yields for 10- or 30-year bonds price in what investors expect the Federal Reserve to do over the long term. If you think the Fed will hold rates at around 4% for years, you won’t lend to the government for 10 years at anything less than that, because you might as well just buy short term bonds and keep rolling it over. 

Yields also price in the “term premium”, the extra pay that investors demand for tying up their money for that long. A lot can go wrong in a decade; there could be a war, inflation could spike, the deficit could balloon, another pandemic could sweep through the economy.

If yields are up because investors expect that the Fed will keep rates high, it’s usually because they expect that the economy will remain strong, with robust profits and investments such that the Fed won’t have to incentivize further growth through cutting. Strong economies mean strong profits, which is when stocks can handle rising yields.

But if yields are up because the term premium is rising, investors aren’t feeling strong about U.S. growth. Rather, they’re demanding more pay to hold U.S. debt, just in case of some risk. 

So which is it now? Depends on whom you ask.

The case for Boom

The optimists say yields are rising because the economy is strong and there’s real growth, much of it from AI. The largest hyperscalers are on track to spend nearly $800 billion on capex this year and more than $1.1 trillion in 2027, according to Goldman Sachs, the biggest tech investment cycle relative to GDP since the railroads.

A booming economy pushes up prices, so the Fed raises rates to keep inflation in check, and investors expect it to keep them there for a while.

Matthew Klein, an economics commentator who writes the blog The Overshoot, agrees that the Fed is starting to hike for the right reason: the economy has been running hot for years, and it’s finally getting around to being upbeat on growth and jobs. 

Similarly, analysts at Jefferies say the market is “underestimating US equities’ ability to absorb longer-term rates,” pointing to strong, broad earnings growth.

The case for Bust

But the pessimists worry about the term premium starting to climb amid risks that the Fed can’t control.

Start with the debt; Washington is making no effort to rein in the deficit, Wizman wrote, and the war with Iran, now approaching its eighth month, is making it bigger. Every single dollar of that deficit means more Treasuries for investors to absorb, testing the limits of demand in the bond market.

Plus, all that AI spending now exceeds the hyperscalers’ available source of cash, so they’re issuing bonds that compete with Treasuries for investors, in an economy where Americans don’t save that much. 

Without a break in AI spending or the Iran war, Wizman wrote, yields “will stay lofty.”

Why Your Employees Override AI

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<p>These aren&#8217;t acts of resistance&#8212;they&#8217;re self-protection.</p>

Amazon: Free Four Months Of Audible

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Amazon: Free Four Months Of Audible


The Offer

Direct link to offer (this contains our affiliate link, thanks for your support)

  • Amazon is offering their Prime members four months of standard Audible for $.99 per month. 
  • You’ll also get a bonus $20 Audible credit.
  • Offer valid through October 7, 2026. 

Doing this offer enrolls you in auto-billing. Be sure to cancel before the four months are up if you don’t want to pay the regular $8.99/month. 

 

Our Verdict

This time it’s a 4-month deal which is nice. Lately they’ve sometimes been doing the introductory offer for standard Audible, not Premium Plus. The advantage to Premium Plus is that what you buy with your monthly membership credit you get to keep even if you membership lapses whereas with Standard you can only read while subscribed. (Even with Standard, you can always subscribe again in the future and get back access to the purchased books.)

This deal is another one of their Prime Big Deal Days lead-up deals. 

What’s Next for Mortgage Rates? 7.50%? 8%?

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What’s Next for Mortgage Rates? 7.50%? 8%?


Now that mortgage rates are the highest they’ve been since early 2025, the next logical question is how high will they go?

How high do mortgage rates go this cycle?

We’re currently averaging around 7.25%, so the next stop could be 7.50% and eventually 8%.

For the record, 8% is the current cycle high for the 30-year fixed, last seen in October 2023.

Hopefully it doesn’t come to that, but it’s certainly not out of the question.

How High Will Mortgage Rates Go?

As you can see from this chart from Mortgage News Daily, it’s been a rough ride for mortgage rates lately.

They’ve ascended all the way from sub-6% levels in March to above 7.25% in the span of about six months.

What’s worse than the rise is the fact that prior to the climb, they were at the best levels since mid-2022.

If you recall, mortgage rates were still in the low 3s in early 2022, so getting back to anywhere in the year 2022 was a pretty solid achievement.

But instead of building off that momentum, mortgage rates took a turn for the worse after the conflict broke out in the Middle East.

While there have been some periods of respite along the way, it’s been mostly up, up, up since then.

Now I’m wondering just how high we go and when things finally improve.

[Compare different mortgage rates quickly with my new mortgage rate calculator.]

Next Stop for the 30-Year Fixed Could Be 7.50%

Logically, the next stop could be 7.50% if we look at rates in eighths and quarters of a percent.

The last time the 30-year fixed was that high was back in the spring of 2024.

Clearly it was a tough period for the housing market, though rates were off their highest-highs of the current cycle at the time.

Given rates are already slightly north of 7.25%, it wouldn’t take much to climb to 7.50%.

Really, you’d just need more of the same that we’ve experienced over the past six months.

More inflation, sustained high oil/energy prices, and no improvement in the Middle East.

That would likely be enough to push mortgage rates up to the next tier.

What About 8% Mortgage Rates Again?

As noted, the 30-year fixed hit a cycle-high of about 8% back in mid-October 2023.

That turned out to be the high this cycle, fortunately. But the cycle isn’t over yet…

And we’re now approaching those levels again, with some ugly tailwinds that could push mortgage rates right back there.

We’ve got the Iranian conflict, $100 oil prices, skyrocketing diesel prices, and renewed inflation concerns.

Oh, and lots of government debt.

It all points to higher-for-longer and multiple Fed rate hikes over the next 12 months.

At last glance, there are now four more rate hikes anticipated between now and next summer.

But the market has been pricing those in already, as evidenced by 30-year mortgage rates climbing back above 7.25%.

That means there could be limited additional upside for the 30-year fixed. Even with four more Fed rate hikes, mortgage rates might have most of this expectation priced in.

So maybe you go up another 0.375% to .50% from here if all the hikes happen, putting the 30-year fixed just shy of 8%.

Conversely, things settle down, there’s a peace deal, oil comes down, yields fall again, all those hikes don’t happen.

It will depend on what transpires though. More bad news on government debt, inflation, and Middle East geopolitics can certainly push mortgage rates even higher than 8%.

Colin Robertson
Latest posts by Colin Robertson (see all)

(Financial Planning & Analysis) FP&A | One Shot | Basics to Advanced | CA, MBA Finance, IB, FM

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(Financial Planning & Analysis) FP&A | One Shot | Basics to Advanced | CA, MBA Finance, IB, FM



Lecture by Kuldeep Sharma Sir

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0:00 Introduction to FP&A
3:27 The Financial Stack & FP&A’s Role
11:32 FP&A vs. Accounting
15:58 Core Responsibilities: Budgeting & Forecasting
21:20 The FP&A Value Chain: Data to Decisions
29:36 FP&A vs. Business Intelligence
32:46 Key Questions Leadership Asks
39:30 Core FP&A Outputs & Integrated Thinking
47:00 Revenue & Cost Analysis
55:40 Planning Horizons: Annual Budget vs. Rolling Forecast
1:02:26 FP&A as a Business Partner
1:07:29 Essential Skills & Common Myths
1:13:06 Organizational Structure & Information Flow
1:30:02 The Monthly FP&A Cycle in Detail
1:41:51 Budget vs. Forecast Deep Dive
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2:16:29 Characteristics of a Good FP&A Professional
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2:27:00 Understanding Financials Through an FP&A Lens
2:40:13 Variance Analysis: Budget, Forecast, & Pr-Year
2:52:46 Practical Variance Calculation Tutorial
3:00:41 Root Cause Discovery: The 5 Whys Technique
3:11:45 Revenue Variance Decomposition (Price, Volume, Mix)
3:31:10 Operating Leverage: Positive vs. Negative
3:40:28 Unit Economics & Rule of 40
4:00:01 Cash Flow Check: Profit vs. Fact
4:07:34 Capital Allocation using ROI, IRR, & NPV
4:13:13 Executive Reporting Wireframes
4:22:31 Case Study: Building an Annual Budget
5:07:09 Case Study: Reconciling Top-Down vs. Bottom-Up Budgets
5:53:50 Forecasting & Scenario Analysis Best Practices
6:19:41 Practical: Building a 12-Month Rolling Forecast
7:26:22 Case Study: Q4 Variance Analysis & Board Presentation
8:18:59 Data Visualization & Management Reporting
8:49:01 Tutorial: Building Executive Dashboards in Excel
9:09:32 Creating Waterfall Bridges & KPI Charts
9:26:34 Communication for Non-Finance Stakeholders
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10:03:19 Strategic Decision Support: Insight, Foresight, Oversight
10:20:32 Deep Dive: Building Scenario Models
10:29:56 Integrated Business Planning (IBP)
10:37:34 Key KPI Frameworks (ROI, FCF, Net Debt)
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From Warner Music’s leadership shake-up to Suno’s courtroom defiance… it’s MBW’s Weekly Round-Up

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Ishbia to brokers: Higher rates will filter weaker competition

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New Audible Offer: Get 4 Months of $0.99/Month Plus $20 Credit

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From Warner Music’s leadership shake-up to Suno’s courtroom defiance… it’s MBW’s Weekly Round-Up

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Welcome to Music Business Worldwide’s Weekly Round-up...

Ishbia to brokers: Higher rates will filter weaker competition

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