Natalie Imbruglia, Hellfest Lineup, Frank Bonner, Imran Majid & Justin Eshak, 300 Entertainment, TikTok

Your daily update on new releases, tours, and business news from MusicIndustryCity.com Natalie Imbruglia announces return with first new album in six years The Australian singer has made a spectacular comeback with her return to music. She has announced the release of 'Firebird,' her first album in six years. The new project includes a slew of collaborations, including Albert Hammond Jr. of The Strokes. Metallica, Nine Inch Nails and Guns N’ Roses to headline Hellfest 2022 Hellfest 2022 has announced its full line-up for next year. Headliners include Metallica, Nine Inch Nails, Guns N' Roses and Scorpions. The seven-day, two-weekend French festival will feature 350 bands across six stages. Deftones, Faith No More, Megadeth, Korn, Judas Priest, Deep Purple and many others are also on the bill. In Memory... R.I.P. Frank Bonner, WKRP in Cincinnati Actor Dead at 79 Frank Bonner, best remembered for his work on WKRP Cincinnati, died at the age of 79. Bonner had been suffering from Lewy body dementia and died on Wednesday (June 16th) as a result of complications from the disease. In all four seasons of the sitcom, he played Herb Tarlek, the plaid-suited radio station sales manager. In Musical Chairs… IMRAN MAJID AND JUSTIN ESHAK APPOINTED CO-CEOS OF ISLAND RECORDS Universal Music Group describes Eshak and Majid as “one of music's most dynamic and successful artist-development teams,” and they will join Island from Sony Music's Columbia Records, where they have served as Co-Heads of A&R since 2018. Majid and Eshak's employment at Island, beginning January 1, 2022, signals a return to UMG for the two, who met in 2004 while working as A&R executives at UMG's Republic Records. 300 ENTERTAINMENT LAUNCHES INVITE-ONLY DIY DISTRIBUTION PLATFORM, SPARTA Last year, self-releasing DIY bands made $1.2 billion globally, and 300 Entertainment, one of the most successful independent labels of the modern age, is getting in on the action. Sparta, unlike other DIY sites such as TuneCore, UnitedMasters, and Distrokid, does not allow anyone to upload music to its platform. Instead, the company uses an A&R filtration technology similar to that used by AWAL. We’ll talk more about this in the Music News Power Hour live on Clubhouse and on MusicIndustryCity.com at 12 p.m. Eastern. And in music tech news… TikTok says it helps 80% of its users discover new music TikTok has released the findings of a study it did in the United Kingdom, France, Germany, Italy, and Spain on how its users engage with music. TikTok reports that 80% of them claim "they discover new music on the platform and that it is the number #1 for music discovery." It went on to say that 56 percent of that discovery occurs in its famous For You feed. That concludes today's update. For article links, see the show notes, or go to MusicIndustryCity.com and listen to the Music News Power Hour live in Clubhouse or on the website at 12 p.m. Eastern. Have a great weekend!