Universal Music Publishing Disputes Hipgnosis’ Statements About Acquiring Songs by Fleetwood Mac’s Christine McVie

Vladimir Putin to assassinate Ukraine’s charismatic president Volodymyr Zelensky was “destroyed” by Ukrainian forces following a tip-off from Russia’s own security services. Speaking on Ukraine’s rolling news TV channel "Ukraine 24,” Oleksiy Danilov, the secretary of Ukraine’s National Security and Defence Council, claimed that officials had been informed by Russia’s Federal Security Service (FSB) that a kill team from the feared Chechen Kadyrovtsy group had been sent to Kyiv.He repeated the claim in a Telegram post on Tuesday, saying: “We are well aware of the special operation that was to take place directly by the Kadyrovites to eliminate our president".“And," he added, "I can say that we have received information from the FSB, who today do not want to take part in this bloody war."And thanks to this,” he added, “I can say that Kadyrov’s elite group was destroyed directly, which came here to eliminate our president”.The Kadyrovtsy, or Kadyrovites, are a ruthless armed militia that originally came to prominence fighting for Chechnya against Russia in the early 1990s.When their leader, Chechen warlord Akhmad Kadyrov, defected to Russia most of his followers went with him.An exact figure for the size of Kadyrov’s is hard to come by, with estimates ranging from 10,000 to 80,000.By 2006 the group had become a semi-formal unit of the Russian army, undertaking deadly missions in Syria as well as their native Chechnya.While operating under Russian orders they are also seen as the “private army” of Ramzan Kadyrov, who took over as leader following his father’s death in the 2004 Grozny stadium bombing.

military presence.About £3.7 trillion ($5 trillion) of international trade is passed through the South China Sea yearly and includes the oil that fuels the economies of Japan, China and South Korea.There are also territorial reef claims in the area, with The Philippines, Vietnam, Malaysia, Taiwan and Brunei claiming some small islands and reef locations.Since 2014, Beijing has strengthened its hold on the entire area by concreting over reefs to build military airports equipped with radar, missiles and aircraft.China had announced new "research stations" during the pandemic that would be placed on Fiery Cross Reef and Subi Reef.The two geographical features were changed into stationary aircraft carriers with satellite photographs showing that the People's Liberation Army had built runways and radar.The Times reported that the two new carriers were also capable of deploying offensive weapons such as combat aircraft and mobile missile launchers. For the latest breaking news and stories from across the globe from the Daily Star, sign up for our newsletter by clicking here.Other claimant countries such as Vietnam and Malaysia have, in the past, drilled for oil and natural gas in areas of the South China Sea.China responded to these survey operations with competing operations of their own, hurrying to those areas to carry out their own vessel operations.There are fears China is watching Russia's invasion of Ukraine with a view to performing a similar move on Taiwan.

Premier League is readying itself to carry out tests on Chelsea's next owners such is the advanced stage of the club’s sale.Todd Boehly and Hansjorg Wyss are thought to be collaborating on a deal, according to The Telegraph, with the former even making a £2.2billion bid for the club in 2019 that was turned down.The Premier League is now understood to be braced for carrying out its owners’ and directors’ test should a deal be struck with Wyss and Boehly or any other consortium or buyer. The pair are also talking to other American investors about purchasing the club from Roman Abramovich, who confirmed on Wednesday he would be selling Chelsea and giving all profits to victims of the war in Ukraine.

body positive star has done it again with her latest Instagram post.Georgie, who boasts 698,000 followers on Instagram herself, decided to share the secret hack models use to get 'flattering' sitting down pictures this week.The stunner also shared two side-by-side photos of herself to illustrate her point as she posed in a white bikini.The left-hand shot saw her rocking the 'influencer pose' which gave her a toned stomach and stunning curves. While in the right-hand 'normal sitting' shot, she just rocked her natural body as she relaxed.Captioning the post, Georgie wrote: "Ever wonder how these influencers always get the perfect sitting photos in restaurants?"Well...

Everton defender as one of the toughest opponents he has faced in his career.According to the German midfielder, Yerry Mina is amongst the hardest opposition players he has come up against since joining Manchester City in 2016.Mina was absent from City's win at Everton on Saturday, with a thigh injury currently keeping him on the sidelines but he has played City five times in his career.His record against the Premier League champions, however, makes Gundogan's choice even more surprising, with Mina having lost all five matches and conceded 11 goals.Speaking to German outlet Bild, Gundogan said: “I remember Yerry Mina, a tough Colombian centre-back.“He’ll use his hands in a tackle, scratch or pinch your back when the referee isn’t looking.“I’ve seen him do that once or twice. But not so much in a dirty way.

Animal welfare experts are appealing for a home for an old age pooch.

A man is in hospital today with serious head injuries after being battered in broad daylight in Renfrewshire.

Tickets for Tyson Fury vs Dillian Whyte sold out quickly on Wednesday after around 200,000 attempted to buy a seat at Wembley Stadium. The queue grew as large as 150,000 at one point - with tens of thousands more attempting to buy tickets - leaving many fans inevitably disappointed with Wembley's capacity being only 90,000.

Rio Ferdinand has suggested Arsenal should go after Manchester City forward Gabriel Jesus in the summer.

Jem Aswad Senior Music EditorJust days after Jay-Z and Roc Nation took part in a $325 million investment in the Fanatics sports e-commerce platform, the rapper, along with Fanatics onwer and Philadelphia 76ers co-owner Michael Rubin have applied for a New York gaming license to form Fanatics Sportsbook. The news was first reported by TMZ and ESPN and confirmed by Variety.

Jem Aswad Senior Music EditorMadonna, the top-selling female artist of all time, will bring her entire catalog of recorded music under the Warner Music umbrella as part of a career-spanning global partnership announced Monday. The singer, who launched her career with Warner, has sold more than 300 million records worldwide, won seven Grammys and dozens of other major awards, including 24 ASCAP Pop Music awards, MTV VMAs, Brits, Ivor Novellos, Junos and more, and was inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 2008.

Jem Aswad Senior Music EditorThe non-profit Executive Leadership Council has launched of a new program called Levels, which endeavors to help junior and mid-level Black employees in the music industry better navigate their careers and climb the ladder in the music business.Sponsored by Spotify, Levels is a four-month comprehensive virtual cohort program designed to accelerate the progress of black music professionals to the executive level.

Jem Aswad Senior Music EditorYoung veterans are nothing new in the music biz, but it still feels odd that Jade Bird is just 23: Her label, Glassnote, began showcasing her five years ago and she soon followed with an EP and, in 2019, a solid debut album. But her new release, “Different Kinds of Light,” is the proverbial big step forward, the one that conjures words like “maturity” and finds her becoming a seasoned performer, songwriter and especially singer.It’s almost like hearing a different artist, particularly on the opening “Open Up the Heavens” and the tracks that immediately follow — her smooth yet powerful delivery hasn’t necessarily changed, but there’s a subtlety and emotional depth that wasn’t there before.

Jem Aswad Senior Music EditorSometimes, when an artist makes a featured appearance on another artist’s song, you can tell that it’s just a payday — the featured artist got a nice check to add credibility to another artist that they don’t really know or maybe even respect. (No examples are necessary — we see them every week.)Then there are the features where you can tell the artists not only like but genuinely admire each other and have a real personal chemistry — which  definitely seems to be the case with Jack Harlow and Lil Nas X on their tag-team “Industry Baby” and its controversial video.Of course, barely a month has passed this year where Lil Nas hasn’t released a “controversial video” of one kind or another.

Jem Aswad Senior Music EditorJustin Bieber and Megan Thee Stallion led the nominations for MTV’s 2021 VMAs, which were unveiled by the network Wednesday. Bieber leads with seven nods, Megan is next with six, and several artists followed with five: Billie Eilish, BTS, Doja Cat, Drake, Giveon, and two of this week’s Variety cover stars, Lil Nas X and first-time nominee Olivia Rodrigo.The 2021 VMAs return to New York City this year, airing live from Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York on Sunday, September 12 at 8PM ET/PT, airing across MTV’s linear and digital platforms in 180 countries and territories.

Jem Aswad Senior Music EditorThe city council of Oakland, California has declared August 25 “Digital Underground Day” in honor of the legendary group’s frontman and co-founder Gregory “Shock G” Jacobs, who died in April. The pioneering 1990s hip-hop group is one of the most legendary to emerge from the Bay Area city — Tupac Shakur began his professional career as a member — and August 25 is Shock G’s birthday.“The shockwaves produced by Shock G and digital underground continue to reverberate across the globe with its epicenter right here in Oakland,” stated Oakland City Councilmember Loren Taylor.

Jem Aswad Senior Music EditorVeteran hitmakers Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis, and U.S. Representatives Ted Deutch and Michael McCall will be honored on Sept.

Jem Aswad Senior Music EditorWhile she only had five concerts on the books for 2021, Stevie Nicks has decided to cancel them all, the singer announced on Tuesday.“These are challenging times with challenging decisions that have to be made,” Nicks said in a statement. “I want everyone to be safe and healthy and the rising Covid cases should be of concern to all of us.

Jem Aswad Senior Music EditorAfter decades of waiting — and a comedic, snafu-filled attempt to get all three members on Instagram Live — De La Soul announced on Tuesday that their catalog, most of which has never been legally available on streaming services, will finally arrive on all major platforms later this year. The announcement follows news earlier this year that the catalog of the group’s original label, Tommy Boy Records, was acquired by Reservoir Music.“We’re thrilled” said the group’s Dave “Trugoy the Dove” Jolicoeur.

Jem Aswad Senior Music EditorFrance-based Vivendi, parent of Universal Music Group, has sold 7.1% of that company’s share capital to Pershing Square Holdings, the investment firm managed by billionaire Bill Ackman, for $2.8 billion, with the possibility to sell him a further 2.9% by September 9, 2021. The deal values UMG — the world’s largest music company — at 35 billion Euros, or around $41 billion.The announcement follows news last month that Ackman decided not to use his SPAC to acquire the 10% stake in UMG after the Securities and Exchange Commission voiced concerns about the complicated agreement, which would have been the biggest SPAC transaction to date.As promised, Ackman used his hedge fund to buy the stake directly instead.

Gallery: Pagani Huayra R (motor1. com)The same year, she began a long hiatus from the band and lived - largely out of the limelight - in a small village in Kent before rejoining the group in 2014 for its On with the Show tour.