Dr. Dre & Kendrick Lamar For ‘Beats By Dre’ Commercial (Video)

 

Only God knows when Dre’s next album is dropping. But to help promote Beats By Dre’s Pill and Pill XL, K-Dot checks back in with the Doc to work on an unknown track.

Dr. Dre To Flex His Beats Muscle, Will Challenge Streaming Giants Spotify & iTunes Radio

Aftermath Records CEO Dr. Dre and longtime business partner Jimmy Iovine’s Beats By Dre empire is on the verge of taking the music streaming business by storm with plans to launch its Beats Music service in the coming weeks.

 

 

Reports Sohh:

According to reports, popular streaming services like Spotify and iTunes Radio will have to make way for new competition this January.

Dr Dre is to launch a new music streaming service, Beats Music, following the extraordinary success of his Beats By Dre headphone line. Dre first announced the service late last year under the name Daisy, and originally built it out of the streaming service MOG, but will launch it with the Beats Music brand in January 2014. He previously appointed Nine Inch Nails bandleader Trent Reznor as chief creative officer on the project, who in an interview last year talked up the “intelligent curation” that would be a feature of the site – moving away from the algorithmically-derived recommendations of Spotify, and towards artist-curated playlists and suggestions. “It’s like having your own guy when you go into the record store, who knows what you like but can also point you down some paths you wouldn’t necessarily have encountered,” said Reznor. (The Guardian)

In an effort to spark anticipation, potential users can begin registering now.
In a blog post, the CEO of Beats Music, Ian Rogers, announced that as of today users can register their preferred username with the service, and that “we’re providing a few artists and other influencers access to familiarize them with the service and get their early feedback.” Beats Music joins a crowded marketplace with Spotify still leading the pack and close competitor Deezer planning a US launch in 2014. YouTube is also planning a premium streaming service – essentially Spotify blended with music video. (The Guardian)

The new launch will put Beats Music up against stiff competition courtesy of various streaming services.

As Beats has gradually pushed back its streaming service’s launch, other rivals have made their way into the space. iTunes Radio from Apple, which at one point was reportedly in talks with Beats, rolled out in September. Google Play Music All Access arrived in May. Google’s own YouTube could soon follow with a paid subscription service of its own. (SPIN)

 



WOW: Dr. Dre & Jimmy Iovine Fatten Their Wallets W/ $500 Million Hook-Up

50 Cent is going to have even more hurdles to jump over for SMS Audio to reach the same level of success as Beats By Dre as reports claim the mega company has found a $500 million investor.

 

 

Reports SOHH:

 

According to reports, music moguls Dr. Dre and Jimmy Iovine’s headphones empire has only grown stronger thanks to a significant new business partner.
Jimmy Iovine and Dr. Dre have found the deep-pocketed investor they were seeking for Beats Electronics. Carlyle Group, a DC-based private-equity firm, is investing $500 million for a minority stake in the company, The Wall Street Journal reports, The new investment values beats at more than $1 billion, significantly north of the roughly $600 million valuation put on the company by an investment from HTC two years ago. Carlyle will become a shareholder and is expected to take two of the six seats on Beats’ board. (HITS Daily Double)

The Interscope Records CEO has already confirmed the power move and noted what it meant for Beats’ future.

HTC said today it has agreed to sell back its remaining stake in Beats for $265 million; it paid around $300 million for a majority stake in 2011. Iovine told the paper that the latest transactions reflect the company’s “significant growth prospects,” while Carlyle’s Sandra Horbach said her firm is “confident that Beats will continue to drive innovation and growth in the premium audio accessory market.” (HITS Daily Double)
Dre’s Beats company helped land him a top three spot on Forbes’ “World’s Highest Paid Hip Hop Artists” list behind Diddy and Jay Z this week.

Hip-hop’s net worth king claims his first annual earnings crown thanks mostly to the success of Ciroc vodka. Other ingredients in his cash cocktail: record label Bad Boy, clothing line Sean John and, soon, cable channel Revolt. Lost his hyphen but gained double-digit millions from lucrative live shows, Armand de Brignac champagne, D’Ussé cognac, Roc Nation label/management firm and other ventures. Last year’s Cash King slips two spots, no longer boosted by a nine-figure payout for selling part of Beats by Dr. Dre in 2011. But he’s still cashing in on the ubiquitous headphones, expanding the company he founded with Interscope chief Jimmy Iovine to include a long-awaited streaming music service. (Forbes)