Music Business Stories to Watch in the Last Half of 2026

For the music business, the first six months of 2026 were defined by a number of major stories across all areas of the industry. From the long-awaited BMG-Concord merger to the blockbuster verdict in the Live Nation antitrust trial to Casey Wasserman‘s decision to step down from his namesake agency (now rebranded THE•TEAM), it’s already been a rollercoaster year. But with 2026 only slightly more than halfway over, what more does it have in store for the business?

To that end, Billboard staffers put their heads together to come up with a list of stories to watch in the back half of the year. On the AI front, we’ll see the industry continue to grapple with just how to approach the disruptive technology, which has sent ripples of fear, uncertainty — and, occasionally, optimism — throughout the business. In terms of finance, industry watchers will be looking to see if activity in the M&A and catalog acquisition spaces can keep pace with the massive influx of deals announced in the first six months of the year. In the legal sphere, developments in a number of major cases — from Drake‘s defamation suit against his own record label to a plethora of AI lawsuits — will be top of mind. And in live music, just which of the suitors circling THE•TEAM will manage to seal the deal?

Check out our full list of stories to watch below, and stay glued to Billboard for developments on all of these issues and more as the year progresses.

In 2026, mergers and acquisitions, along with investments in music catalogs, have received a boost from the expiration of several private equity, endowments and insurance firms’ investment timelines — as well as geopolitical threats driving institutional investors to stable, non-cyclical assets. But there’s another factor fueling deals, too: The billions music companies have raised in recent years from debt investors through asset-backed securitizations (ABS) are burning a hole in their pockets. Indeed, rating agency KBRA says it has rated more than 80 music asset-backed securities with a cumulative value of nearly $13 billion since 2020. 

Companies that raised capital through securitizations may feel pressure to deploy capital to meet investors’ expectations, and because they begin paying interest on ABS money as soon as they raise it, says Michelman Robinson partner Michael Poster.

“There is a ton of cash in the industry, and companies are under a lot of pressure to deploy because of both investor demand and the ticking cost of funds borrowed through ABS facilities,” Poster, chair of Michelman Robinson’s music acquisitions practice, tells Billboard. “So much demand on the buy side coupled with so much available cash is likely to contribute to more aggressive pricing.”

The need to spend is contributing to joint ventures and partnerships, like BMG’s recent deals with Pophouse Entertainment. In March, BMG sold Pophouse a majority stake of its holdings in Tina Turner’s music and name, image and likeness rights to develop immersive live experiences related to Turner’s legendary stage shows. BMG, which spun off its film business in recent years, retained a significant minority stake in Turner’s rights, which stand to benefit from any new content. In July, Pophouse alos acquired a stake in Iron Maiden’s catalog rights from its members, making the company a 50-50 partner with the band as well as BMG, Iron Maiden’s U.S. label and worldwide publisher. — Elizabeth Dilts Marshall

Streaming services are starting to make significant policy decisions about how they treat AI-generated music — but not everyone agrees on the right approach. Deezer has been using AI detection to automate labels on fully AI-generated music since early 2025 and remove that content from playlists and algorithmic recommendations. More recently, Tidal announced the demonetization of fully AI-generated recordings. However, the biggest players in streaming, Spotify and Apple Music, have taken a bit more of a tempered approach. Both have their own systems for asking labels and distributors to disclose and credit AI where it is used, and both have separately spoken about the need to specifically target the most nefarious uses of AI first, like using AI songs to siphon money from the royalty pool. 

Now, the recorded music industry is stepping in with its own idea for how to regulate the presence of AI music on digital platforms. Recently, the RIAA, A2IM, Recording Academy and more banded together to propose new labels on fully AI-generated and AI-assisted content. These proposed labels would be based on voluntary disclosures by artists and content providers and would function much like an “explicit” label on content with inappropriate lyrics. 

In the second half of 2026, it’s expected that there will be more movement on these policies, especially the recorded music industry’s labeling concept. While the Digital Media Association (DIMA), the trade body representing the streaming services, seems relatively supportive, will the streaming companies actually agree to adopt this uniform policy by the end of the year? — Kristin Robinson

The music industry’s court dockets will be busy in the second half of 2026. While judges don’t typically give timelines for when their rulings will drop, some of the biggest music-related legal disputes are fully briefed and currently awaiting decisions in courthouses across the country.  

The Second Circuit Court of Appeals could decide any day now whether to uphold Sean “Diddy” Combs’ four-year prison sentence for prostitution. The same appellate court will also hear oral arguments soon in two big cases against Universal Music Group (UMG): Drake’s defamation lawsuit over Kendrick Lamar’s “Not Like Us,” and Salt-N-Pepa’s battle to claw back their catalog from the major music company.

In the lower courts, a federal judge will imminently rule on whether Miley Cyrus must go to trial for allegedly ripping off Bruno Mars’ “When I Was Your Man” for her Grammy-winning hit “Flowers.” Big judicial decisions are also pending for Taylor Swift as a Vegas showgirl tries to assert ownership of the phrase “The Life of a Showgirl,” as well as for the heirs of The Notorious B.I.G. in their dispute over catalog sale proceeds. — Rachel Scharf

Suno and Udio have started to play nice with the music business, but the legal fight over AI is far from over — and will remain top of mind for the industry as 2026 comes to a close.

Sure, Suno struck a high-profile settlement with Warner Music Group, and Udio agreed to become a more limited “walled garden” to reach deals with Universal Music Group and Warner. But Sony Music Entertainment is still suing both labs, and UMG hasn’t been willing to make peace with Suno as it continues to spit out new songs at the click of a button.

Meanwhile, even more litigation has sprung up. Indie artists are suing Google over its AI music model, prompting the tech giant to argue that it was legally entitled to train on any music users upload to YouTube. And the American Federation of Musicians is suing UMG and Warner over their settlements with Udio and Suno, amplifying growing questions about how the money from those deals is reaching artists and songwriters. — Bill Donahue

Ever since the Wasserman agency’s CEO and founder, Casey Wasserman, appeared in the Epstein files with risqué emails between himself and Ghislaine Maxwell, the agency’s future has been up in the air. The second half of 2026 is expected to provide more answers.

Bids for the booking agency, now renamed THE•TEAM, are in, and it’s expected the new owner will be announced in the second half of 2026. Potential buyers include Providence Equity Partners, which already owns a majority stake in the agency; Patrick Whitesell’s WIM and Excel Sports Management with Goldman Sachs. — Ariel King

The National Music Publishers’ Association (NMPA), the Nashville Songwriters’ Association International (NSAI) and more have been hard at work this year to peacefully figure out fair royalty rates for songwriters and publishers for 2028-2032. In the U.S., mechanical royalty rates are set by a government body called the Copyright Royalty Board (CRB), and the rates are reconsidered and reset every five years. In the past, these negotiations have become heated, as publishers argue for higher rates and streaming services fight to keep them lower, often claiming they already pay enough.

To avoid having the CRB itself make the final call, publisher and writer advocates are working to try to create voluntary settlements instead this time around, something they also did for the current five-year period of 2023-2027.

Already, in June, the NMPA, NSAI, and Music Artists Coalition (MAC) proposed a settlement with Sony Music, Universal Music Group, Warner Music Group and the American Association of Independent Music (A2IM) to set U.S. mechanical royalty rates for the sale of music. Now, their proposition is posted publicly for anyone who wants to weigh in before a final decision is made. Expect that to come in the next few months.

But a settlement regarding royalties for album and single sales is just one side of the equation. While interest in buying vinyl records and CDs has grown in the last decade, streaming remains the most important battleground for publishers and writers by far. There is no word so far on how negotiations have gone between publishers and streaming services on that front, but it’s anticipated to be a fight due to a multi-year feud between NMPA and Spotify over previous CRB proceedings. (If you want to catch up on the feud, known as “bundle gate,” see here.) — Kristin Robinson