“Love is a gamble and I’m so glad that I’m winnin,” sings Luther Vandross in his 1981 classic “Never Too Much” song with a sentiment that has some extra significance today.
CNN Films and OWN have picked up Dawn Porter’s Sundance Film Festival-debuting Luther: Never Too Much documentary, it was announced today at the Warner Bros Discovery upfront in NYC. The 101-minute film, which counts Colin Firth among its EPs and had Sony Music Entertainment as its sales agent, is set to debut on CNN, OWN and streamer Max next year.
“I’m thrilled to partner again with CNN Films and OWN to bring this film to audiences,” said director Porter on Wednesday. “Luther’s music is timeless, his legacy is unsurpassed, and we can’t wait for all of his fans new and old to experience his brilliance.”
“CNN Films has a long history of bringing audiences...
CNN Films and OWN have picked up Dawn Porter’s Sundance Film Festival-debuting Luther: Never Too Much documentary, it was announced today at the Warner Bros Discovery upfront in NYC. The 101-minute film, which counts Colin Firth among its EPs and had Sony Music Entertainment as its sales agent, is set to debut on CNN, OWN and streamer Max next year.
“I’m thrilled to partner again with CNN Films and OWN to bring this film to audiences,” said director Porter on Wednesday. “Luther’s music is timeless, his legacy is unsurpassed, and we can’t wait for all of his fans new and old to experience his brilliance.”
“CNN Films has a long history of bringing audiences...
- 5/15/2024
- by Dominic Patten
- Deadline Film + TV
Dawn Porter’s documentary about R&b icon Luther Vandross, “Luther: Never Too Much,” has been acquired by CNN Films in partnership with the Oprah Winfrey Network (OWN), IndieWire can reveal exclusively.
The documentary film, which first premiered at this year’s Sundance Film Festival, will debut in 2025 first on television on CNN and OWN before it lands on Max.
The acquisition is encouraging news for CNN Films, which back in 2022 under former boss Chris Licht scaled back on its original documentary films. The brand moved away from acquisitions or commissioning projects and opted instead for newsy, quick turnaround docs produced in-house.
But CNN Films also partnered with Warner Bros. Discovery and DC Studios on this fall’s release of “Super/Man: The Christopher Reeve Story,” so the two acquisitions, both from this year’s Sundance, is a positive step forward for the documentary brand.
“Luther: Never Too Much” chronicles the story of a vocal virtuoso,...
The documentary film, which first premiered at this year’s Sundance Film Festival, will debut in 2025 first on television on CNN and OWN before it lands on Max.
The acquisition is encouraging news for CNN Films, which back in 2022 under former boss Chris Licht scaled back on its original documentary films. The brand moved away from acquisitions or commissioning projects and opted instead for newsy, quick turnaround docs produced in-house.
But CNN Films also partnered with Warner Bros. Discovery and DC Studios on this fall’s release of “Super/Man: The Christopher Reeve Story,” so the two acquisitions, both from this year’s Sundance, is a positive step forward for the documentary brand.
“Luther: Never Too Much” chronicles the story of a vocal virtuoso,...
- 5/15/2024
- by Brian Welk
- Indiewire
A documentary about the life and career of legendary R&b singer Luther Vandross is in the works, with Jamie Foxx and Colin Firth serving as producers.
Sony Music Entertainment’s (Sme) Premium Content Division, Sony Music Publishing, Foxx’s Foxxhole Productions and Firth’s Raindog Films have joined forces to produce the first-ever doc on the eight-time Grammy winner, who died in 2005 at age 54. Award-winning filmmaker Dawn Porter is directing, and production is underway.
Vandross began his career as a backup singer for Roberta Flack, Chaka Khan, Bette Midler and David Bowie. He released his successful, double platinum debut album, Never Too Much, in 1981 and has sold 40 million albums worldwide. Most of his albums achieved platinum or double platinum status, and he scored five Top 10 hits on the Billboard Hot 100 chart, including “Here and Now,” “Endless Love” and “Power of Love/Love Power.” He earned 27 Top 10 hits on the R&b chart,...
Sony Music Entertainment’s (Sme) Premium Content Division, Sony Music Publishing, Foxx’s Foxxhole Productions and Firth’s Raindog Films have joined forces to produce the first-ever doc on the eight-time Grammy winner, who died in 2005 at age 54. Award-winning filmmaker Dawn Porter is directing, and production is underway.
Vandross began his career as a backup singer for Roberta Flack, Chaka Khan, Bette Midler and David Bowie. He released his successful, double platinum debut album, Never Too Much, in 1981 and has sold 40 million albums worldwide. Most of his albums achieved platinum or double platinum status, and he scored five Top 10 hits on the Billboard Hot 100 chart, including “Here and Now,” “Endless Love” and “Power of Love/Love Power.” He earned 27 Top 10 hits on the R&b chart,...
- 7/11/2023
- by Mesfin Fekadu
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
As omicron begins to fade, and Americans shake off the coronavirus winter blues, advertisers are returning to the Super Bowl with big, bold campaigns. This year’s soundtrack veers from 2021’s tonal themes — muted, soulful or comforting — offering uplifting, and even humorous, usages.
For this weekend’s Super Bowl Lvi, some advertisers chose iconic songs for their instant recognition factor, or for their irony, or because the tune aligned well with the products they’re selling. But most music publishers agree that this year marked a return to normal in the space, with more upbeat songs requested by brands as the nation seeks to turn the page on a waning pandemic.
“Brands are back spending on music to enhance their commercials and pricing was very healthy this year — up from prior years,” says Brian Monaco, president and global chief marketing officer at Sony Music Publishing. “The majority of our licenses [this year] were for catalog,...
For this weekend’s Super Bowl Lvi, some advertisers chose iconic songs for their instant recognition factor, or for their irony, or because the tune aligned well with the products they’re selling. But most music publishers agree that this year marked a return to normal in the space, with more upbeat songs requested by brands as the nation seeks to turn the page on a waning pandemic.
“Brands are back spending on music to enhance their commercials and pricing was very healthy this year — up from prior years,” says Brian Monaco, president and global chief marketing officer at Sony Music Publishing. “The majority of our licenses [this year] were for catalog,...
- 2/11/2022
- by Charlie Amter
- Variety Film + TV
The higher the intensity of a trailer, the slower the song that accompanies it. This may seem fairly recent as a reliable rule, but it’s not a completely new phenomenon. What goes back at least to the 2001 trailer for the first iteration of Xbox 360’s apocalyptic warfare video game Gears of War — with Gary Jules delivering a heart-ripping cover of Tears for Fears’ “Mad World” — is an visual-aural contrast that’s now common practice.
More recent examples of the trend include FJØRA’s echoey take on the 4 Non Blondes perennial “What’s Up?” in the terrifying trailer for 2020’s “Welcome to the Blumhouse”; Lana Del Rey’s creepy version of “Once Upon a Dream,” from the classic Disney animated film “Sleeping Beauty,” in the trailer for 2014’s “Maleficent”; and ConfidentialMX featuring Becky Hanson’s operatic interpretation of the Bee Gees’ “I Started a Joke” in the dark trailer for 2016’s “Suicide Squad.
More recent examples of the trend include FJØRA’s echoey take on the 4 Non Blondes perennial “What’s Up?” in the terrifying trailer for 2020’s “Welcome to the Blumhouse”; Lana Del Rey’s creepy version of “Once Upon a Dream,” from the classic Disney animated film “Sleeping Beauty,” in the trailer for 2014’s “Maleficent”; and ConfidentialMX featuring Becky Hanson’s operatic interpretation of the Bee Gees’ “I Started a Joke” in the dark trailer for 2016’s “Suicide Squad.
- 8/26/2021
- by Lily Moayeri
- Variety Film + TV
As expected, Bruce Springsteen’s rumored Jeep commercial was the big highlight of this year’s Super Bowl ad haul, with The Boss making his first-ever appearance in a commercial. His music, however, remains an advertising holdout, as Springsteen opted to compose an original score for the two-minute spot with frequent collaborator Ron Aniello rather than license one of his hits.
Still, Olivier Francois, chief marketing officer for Jeep’s parent company Stellantis, was thrilled to finally team up with his white whale of all celebrity cameos. “It took me ten years to get him in, but once he was in, he was all in,” he told Variety’s Brian Steinberg over the weekend.
Those looking for Sunday-night surprises had to make do with previously unannounced cameos by Drake (State Farm) and Gwen Stefani, Blake Shelton & Adam Levine (T-Mobile), as the vast majority of this year’s ads premiered several...
Still, Olivier Francois, chief marketing officer for Jeep’s parent company Stellantis, was thrilled to finally team up with his white whale of all celebrity cameos. “It took me ten years to get him in, but once he was in, he was all in,” he told Variety’s Brian Steinberg over the weekend.
Those looking for Sunday-night surprises had to make do with previously unannounced cameos by Drake (State Farm) and Gwen Stefani, Blake Shelton & Adam Levine (T-Mobile), as the vast majority of this year’s ads premiered several...
- 2/8/2021
- by Andrew Hampp
- Variety Film + TV
For a few days last October, ongoing Covid-19 complications made it seem like Super Bowl Lv might not take place as planned this Sunday — or lead commercial music supervisors to take on a more somber tone harkening back to the early-quarantine days where seemingly every commercial featured morose piano music.
However, the NFL’s successful bubble strategy kept players safe into the winter, which inspired confidence in the ad marketplace: CBS sold out of inventory for the big game earlier this week, selling commercials at an average fee of $5.5 million per 30 seconds. So this weekend’s Super Bowl ads will be largely business-as-usual, with a few tech brands stepping up to fill the vacancies of stalwarts like Budweiser, Coca-Cola, Pepsi and a quintet of automakers. An air of optimism will be reflected in the music, too, with a mix of well-known catalog hits and familiar faces set to appear in many spots.
However, the NFL’s successful bubble strategy kept players safe into the winter, which inspired confidence in the ad marketplace: CBS sold out of inventory for the big game earlier this week, selling commercials at an average fee of $5.5 million per 30 seconds. So this weekend’s Super Bowl ads will be largely business-as-usual, with a few tech brands stepping up to fill the vacancies of stalwarts like Budweiser, Coca-Cola, Pepsi and a quintet of automakers. An air of optimism will be reflected in the music, too, with a mix of well-known catalog hits and familiar faces set to appear in many spots.
- 2/5/2021
- by Andrew Hampp
- Variety Film + TV
Liam Gallagher is rarely at a loss for words, snide or otherwise. But during a recent interview with Rolling Stone, the singer was left momentarily speechless after being informed that “Wonderwall,” the monster 1995 ballad he sang with his old band, Oasis, is on its way to approaching 1 billion streams on Spotify.
“That’s pretty big, man,” Gallagher says, finally, as if it took a few seconds for the enormity of that figure to sink in. Then the old Liam, the one who loves to bash his songwriting brother, Noel, returns.
“That’s pretty big, man,” Gallagher says, finally, as if it took a few seconds for the enormity of that figure to sink in. Then the old Liam, the one who loves to bash his songwriting brother, Noel, returns.
- 9/24/2020
- by David Browne
- Rollingstone.com
Read: 500 Greatest Albums of All Time List
Voters were asked to submit ranked ballots listing their 50 favorite albums of all time. Votes were tabulated, with the highest-ranked album on each list receiving 300 points, the second highest 290 points, and so on down to 44 points for number 50. More than 3,000 albums received at least one vote.
Artists, Songwriters, and Producers 9th Wonder Johntá Austin A Boogie Wit Da Hoodie Mick Avory
The Kinks Glen Ballard Alice Bag Bas Jon Batiste Big Boi Beyoncé Branko Michael Brun Eric Burdon
The Animals John Cale
The...
Voters were asked to submit ranked ballots listing their 50 favorite albums of all time. Votes were tabulated, with the highest-ranked album on each list receiving 300 points, the second highest 290 points, and so on down to 44 points for number 50. More than 3,000 albums received at least one vote.
Artists, Songwriters, and Producers 9th Wonder Johntá Austin A Boogie Wit Da Hoodie Mick Avory
The Kinks Glen Ballard Alice Bag Bas Jon Batiste Big Boi Beyoncé Branko Michael Brun Eric Burdon
The Animals John Cale
The...
- 9/22/2020
- by RS Editors
- Rollingstone.com
Donald Trump’s campaign and the Republican National Committee are under fire for the use of another piece of music: Leonard Cohen’s “Hallelujah.”
The singer-songwriter’s estate and Sony/Atv Publishing say that they specifically declined the Republican National Committee’s request for the song, but it was played anyway during the final night of the convention, as Trump delivered his acceptance speech from the South Lawn of the White House.
Michelle Rice, legal representative for Cohen’s estate, said in a statement that they were “surprised and dismayed” that the Rnc would use the song knowing they “had specifically declined the Rnc’s use request, and their rather brazen attempt to politicize and exploit in such an egregious manner ‘Hallelujah,’ one of the most important songs in the Cohen song catalogue.”
She said that they are exploring legal options but also got in a dig at the campaign.
The singer-songwriter’s estate and Sony/Atv Publishing say that they specifically declined the Republican National Committee’s request for the song, but it was played anyway during the final night of the convention, as Trump delivered his acceptance speech from the South Lawn of the White House.
Michelle Rice, legal representative for Cohen’s estate, said in a statement that they were “surprised and dismayed” that the Rnc would use the song knowing they “had specifically declined the Rnc’s use request, and their rather brazen attempt to politicize and exploit in such an egregious manner ‘Hallelujah,’ one of the most important songs in the Cohen song catalogue.”
She said that they are exploring legal options but also got in a dig at the campaign.
- 8/28/2020
- by Ted Johnson
- Deadline Film + TV
With inventory beyond sold-out and the cost of 30-second spots soaring to as high as $5.6 million just to secure ad time, the demand for Super Bowl advertising continues to reach new peaks in an otherwise fractured media marketplace. And music licensing is following suit, with multiple synchs surpassing the $1 million threshold, and an all-star lineup of musicians taking leading on-camera roles in many of the most-anticipated spots.
Music publishers, who are involved in many of the Super Bowl synch negotiations on behalf of songwriters and music copyrights, are reporting healthy volume as of Friday afternoon. Universal Music Publishing Group has secured 12 synchs in national spots that will air post-kickoff, while Sony/Atv has 10, BMG has four and Abkco has one major synch: Pepsi Zero Sugar’s hip-hop remake of the Rolling Stones’ “Paint It Black” with Missy Elliott and H.E.R. Meanwhile, Warner/Chappell, which didn’t provide specific breakouts upon request for comment,...
Music publishers, who are involved in many of the Super Bowl synch negotiations on behalf of songwriters and music copyrights, are reporting healthy volume as of Friday afternoon. Universal Music Publishing Group has secured 12 synchs in national spots that will air post-kickoff, while Sony/Atv has 10, BMG has four and Abkco has one major synch: Pepsi Zero Sugar’s hip-hop remake of the Rolling Stones’ “Paint It Black” with Missy Elliott and H.E.R. Meanwhile, Warner/Chappell, which didn’t provide specific breakouts upon request for comment,...
- 1/31/2020
- by Andrew Hampp
- Variety Film + TV
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