Steve Knopper

Denver

@billboard editor at large/ex-@rollingstone/"MJ: Genius of #MichaelJackson”/"Appetite for Self-Destruction" (https://t.co/hhvLn9mrZd)/bylines @nytimes, @wsj

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Articles

Inside the Sony Music Team That Leverages Gaming to Build Artists’ Careers

2 weeks ago | billboard.com | Steve Knopper

After Sleepy Hallow‘s “2055” went triple platinum four years ago, Sony Music’s gaming-and-music team noticed something about the Jamaican-American rapper’s fans: They were gamers. And not just gamers, but Fortnite players. According to the label’s internal research, Sleepy Hallow fans are 2.5 times more likely to play Fortnite than the national average and twice as likely to play games overall. “It stuck out,” says Alex Ciccimarro, vp of marketing for Sony-owned RCA Records.
Inside the Sony Music Team That Leverages Gaming to Build Artists’ Careers

2 weeks ago | flipboard.com | Steve Knopper

The viral-turned-radio hit expands to also tackle pop, R&B/hip-hop and even Latin airplay charts. Riding a hot streak that has already established her …
How ‘Pink Floyd at Pompeii’ Found New, Brilliant Life as an IMAX Film

3 weeks ago | billboard.com | Steve Knopper

How ‘Pink Floyd at Pompeii’ Found New, Brilliant Life as an IMAX Film First-cut negatives found in a London storage facility served as the basis of a new version of the celebrated concert film that offers a rare document of the band pre-superstardom.
How ‘Pink Floyd at Pompeii’ Found New, Brilliant Life as an IMAX Film

3 weeks ago | flipboard.com | Steve Knopper

12 hours agoFive '70s Bands That Should Have Been BiggerSome were struck by member defections, some by death. Others just had a run of very bad luck.
How AC/DC’s Highway to High-Decibel Fame Led to Five Decades of Global Success

3 weeks ago | billboard.com | Steve Knopper

Fifty-one years ago, after trying out Zorro, Superman and gorilla costumes, Angus Young took a suggestion from his sister, borrowed her son’s school uniform and wore it onstage. Since then, like his band AC/DC, the lead guitarist’s live persona has been insanely consistent — he once told Billboard that he packs 12 schoolboy costumes for tours. “We’ve never tried to do something we’re not or looked around to see what the other bands were doing,” Angus said in a 1996 interview.
‘We Can Remake Ourselves’

3 weeks ago | superlawyers.com | Steve Knopper

Published in 2025 Virginia Super Lawyers magazine By Steve Knopper on April 21, 2025 When Kevin E. Martingayle started practicing law in Virginia Beach in 1992, he made calls from a bulky cellphone with an antenna protruding from the top.
Why YouTube’s Coachella Livestream Became Must-See TV for Fans — And Essential for Artists

3 weeks ago | billboard.com | Steve Knopper

Why YouTube’s Coachella Livestream Became Must-See TV for Fans — And Essential for Artists Thirteen years after launching, YouTube's stageside view into Coachella has become an invaluable resource for fans, and a huge opportunity for artists.
Australia’s Music Victoria Awards Suspended Following 2024 Voter Fraud Incident

4 weeks ago | billboard.com | Tyler Jenke |Chris Eggertsen |Taylor Mims |Steve Knopper

MELBOURNE, Australia — Just months after the 2024 Music Victoria Awards were confirmed to have been targeted in an egregious occurrence of voter fraud, organizers have made the decision to suspend the 2025 event. The 2024 edition of the awards – which seeks to honor and recognize the talents of musicians in the Australian state of Victoria – was held in Melbourne on Oct. 24, though it was later announced on Nov.
How Rising Tariffs Are Shaking Up the Music Merch Business: ‘I Almost Had a Heart Attack’

4 weeks ago | billboard.com | Steve Knopper

Six months ago, a stadium-concert headliner decided to create tens of thousands of high-end T-shirts and hoodies to “rival any streetwear brand and be able to sell it for less than Sabrina Carpenter or Billie Eilish,” says Billy Candler, CEO/co-founder of Absolute Merch, a 13-year-old company that works with 30 artists. Candler arranged to purchase the shirts from China, then ship them on April 9, two weeks before a new U.S. tour.
UTA Hires Hip-Hop Agents Zach Iser and Caroline Yim

4 weeks ago | asianamericans.einnews.com | Taylor Mims |Chris Eggertsen |Steve Knopper |Bill Donahue

Music agents Zach Iser and Caroline Yim have landed at UTA, where both will serve as partners and agents in the music department. Iser and Yim were previously at WME, which they joined in 2021 as partners and co-heads of hip-hop and R&B. Prior to that, they were with CAA for three years. Both have a proven track record of working with some of the biggest names in hip-hop and R&B including Anderson .Paak, Doechii, Kehlani, SZA and Future.