Film and TV
How Waves Got Kanye and Kendrick on Its Soundtrack (New York Times)
Some of the biggest names in music lent songs to this intimate family drama, but convincing them took time.
Uncut Gems and Its Exquisitely Harrowing Soundscape (New York Times)
The Safdie brothers’ movie layers the noise of New York with dialogue and music so effectively, at times you don’t even need the visuals.
Top TV Song Last Week – Dec 6th: ‘Out of Control’ by Oshins, feat. Rosi Golan | Dec 11: ‘Fisherman’s Blues’ by The Waterboys (Tunefind)
The last two weeks have seen tracks from 9-1-1 and Ray Donovan top the popular songs list.
Legacies, Power, Morning Show Soundtracks Top November’s TV Songs List (Hollywood Reporter)
Music from Lauren Daigle, Seinabo Sey and Rozzi ranked on November’s top TV songs.
Influencers: Music Supervisor Randall Poster Is Responsible for Your Favorite Needle Drops (IndieWire)
No music supervisor has been more instrumental in shaping the best movies of the last 30 years than Randall Poster.
Why Is Stephen Sondheim Karaoke in All Our Movies Now? (Vulture)
Characters in Rian Johnson’s Knives Out, Todd Phillips’s Joker, and Jennifer Aniston and Reese Witherspoon’s The Morning Show experienced various levels of emotional breakdown to the music of the decorated composer and lyricist Sondheim in one form or another this year.
How Ford v Ferrari Composer Created a 1960s-Infused Score (Hollywood Reporter)
Composer Marco Beltrami and longtime collaborator Buck Sanders re-teamed with James Mangold for the racing drama and recorded a 15-piece ensemble that combined 1960s rock and jazz.
The BBC’s Dracula used real blood – and coffins – in its soundtrack (Radio Times)
At a recent screening for the new horror series’ first episode, it was revealed that composers David Arnold and Michael Price included all sorts of thematically appropriate materials into the musical score…
Frozen 2 Soundtrack Debuts at No. 1, Without a ‘Let It Go’ (So Far) (New York Times)
The Disney movie’s sequel lacks a monster hit like the Idina Menzel smash, but still moved the equivalent of 80,000 copies its first week out.
Noah Baumbach on the Music of His Life (Pitchfork)
The 50-year-old filmmaker talks about the artists and albums that have meant the most to him—Madonna, LCD Soundsystem, Yeezus—five years at a time.
‘Two Popes’ Walk Into Abbey Road Recording Studio (No Joke) (Variety)
The soundtrack to Netflix’s The Two Popes is the tonally diverse product of Grammy Award-winning musician Bryce Dessner who was tasked by director Fernando Meirelles to score the film, generating large-scale cinematic energy to unseen, intimate moments between religious figures.
Society of Composers & Lyricists Announces Nominees for Inaugural Film/TV Awards (Variety)
The Society of Composers & Lyricists has been around for nearly 75 years, but not until this year did the organization start its own annual awards program for music appearing in film, TV and videogames.
Film composers turn from the expected this season to find a unique sonic wavelength (LA Times)
Conservative, conventional choices are nowhere to be found in the noteworthy scores of 2019.
An Insight into the Music Supervision work on Musical Film, Cats (GMS UK & Europe)
With the upcoming release of Cats on December 20th, we had the pleasure of speaking with Music Supervisor, Becky Bentham who was happy to share with us her experience and work on this musical film.
The Best Movie Soundtrack Songs Of 2019 (Empire)
2019’s been another stellar year for musical moments in the movies – and Empire has pulled together a list of the most memorable.
Gaming
Grimes, A$AP Rocky, Run the Jewels to Soundtrack Cyberpunk 2077 Video Game (Rolling Stone)
Each artist contributing to the soundtrack created new songs for the project and each will have a fictional band/artist name in the game.
“We Want Artists and Their Fans to Engage on a Completely Different Level” – Q&A with Music for Gaming Startup Five Vectors (Synchblog)
Next-generation music company Five Vectors is looking to disrupt the music for gaming space with a unique and data-driven blend of tech and creativity. We recently sat down with co-founder Wasae Imran to find out more…
Video game music composer: Getting your big break (2020 edition) (Gamasutra)
Starting a viable career in the game development industry as a composer can be an awesome task, and I’m often asked for advice about how to break into this business.
The Best Video Game Music/Soundtrack of 2019 (IGN)
It’s been an incredible year for soundtracks in video games, so this is a tight race. These are our nominees for the best music soundtrack in games of 2019.
2010s: Favorite Video Game Music of the Decade (Tiny Mix Tapes)
The video game music in this past decade became its own thing, exiting the screen and into the ears of a loving public.
Advertising
Music Supervisors Go Behind This Year’s Biggest Festive Ads (Synchblog)
Music supervisors take us behind the scenes of this year’s biggest Christmas campaigns, from IKEA to John Lewis, Argos and more…
LeBron and Friends Go ‘Ballin’ in a Christmas Wonderland’ for the NBA (Muse by CLIO)
Holly-jolly imagery abounds—those decked-out trees are blinding!—as former Fifth Harmony singer Normani performs “Ballin’ in a Christmas Wonderland” (a hoop-skewed take on “Winter Wonderland,” natch).
A Jazz Musician Wrote 19 Songs for 19 People, on the Spot, in This Liquor Campaign (Muse by CLIO)
The brand launched a contest on social media and received more than 800 entries from fans requesting a special song for a loved one or friend. Cue English jazz-pop artist Jamie Cullum, who composed 19 short, distinct tracks.
Business
Taylor Swift is blocking sync uses of her masters now they’re owned by Scooter Braun (MBW)
Taylor Swift has confirmed that she is blocking sync uses of her classic hits. She’s refusing to give the green-light because she doesn’t own the masters – Scooter Braun does.
John Clifford named head of BMG Production Music (SHOOT Online)
BMG has appointed London-based John Clifford to head its worldwide production music business.
Position Music Promotes Ty Salazar To Sr. Director, Creative Licensing (Broadway World)
Tyler Bacon, President/CEO of Position Music announced today the promotion of Ty Salazar to the role of Sr. Director of Creative Licensing for the Los Angeles-based company. Salazar will be responsible to continue growing Position’s client base and synch revenue within the Film, Television and Advertising medias.
TV/Film Composers Say Netflix, Other Streaming Services Insist on Buying Out Their Music Rights (Billboard)
At the end of October, close to 90 composers and songwriters from around the world traveled to Budapest to discuss a contentious issue: streaming services’ efforts to upend how composers are compensated for their work.
Why Motown Wanted Creative Stake In the Queen & Slim Soundtrack (Billboard)
When Motown Records president Ethiopia Habtemariam first heard about Queen & Slim last April, she envisioned a soundtrack that would match the movie’s social and political messaging — and engage fans, thanks to her experience at Motown and Universal Music Publishing Group.
Jobs
VP of Creative Sync – Burnett Music (Los Angeles)
This role will be working closely with our roster of talent, catalogue of music, and Executive team to strategize and execute on creative pitches for sync, custom music projects, artist releases, and branding partnerships.
Head of Creative & Sales (UK) – Cézame Music UK (London)
Cézame Music are seeking a Head of Creative & Sales with 3yrs+ experience in the UK Production Music Market to really push and sell the Cézame catalogue in the UK.
Creative Music Consultant – DLMDD Productions (London)
London-based DLMDD Productions are in search of a Creative Music Consultant to join their fast-expanding Production division. The ideal candidate will have 2-3 years of ad-land experience.
For more positions check out our music industry jobs board. To post a listing for free get in touch at jobsboard@synchtank.com.
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