The Declaration is the fifth studio album by American singer Ashanti , released on June 3, 2008, by The Inc. Records and Universal Motown Records .
85-524: The album includes the single " The Way That I Love You ". Ashanti said during her June 2 appearance on the television program 106 & Park that she recorded fifty-two tracks for the album, of which fifteen—including the bonus tracks "Why" and " Hey Baby (After the Club) "—were used. This is her last album to be released on Irv Gotti's label The Inc. Records . The Declaration received generally mixed reviews from music critics. At Metacritic , which assigns
170-518: A Sony -led consortium for $ 2.2 billion. Among the other companies that had competed for the recorded music business was Warner Music Group which was reported to have made a $ 2 billion bid. IMPALA opposed the merger. In March 2012, the European Union opened an investigation into the acquisition The EU asked rivals and consumer groups whether the deal would result in higher prices and shut out competitors. On September 21, 2012,
255-437: A "good girl". Universal closed the site, but Ashanti defended it as "a better alternative to actual violence" and "an incredible online viral tool." Ashanti's publicist, Michelle Huff, clarified that the video was intended to have a similar tone to a Saturday Night Live sketch and said that the singer had received primarily positive feedback for the site. Shanti Das , Motown 's vice president for urban marketing, referred to
340-436: A "gotcha-gram", featured a news report about a series of murders inspired by "The Way That I Love You" music video and the upcoming release of The Declaration . The message could be customized to include the victim's name and crime, the murder weapon, and the sender's name and home state. The choices for crimes were sleeping around, suspected sleeping around, playing you like a fool, and breaking your heart. The weapons included
425-505: A "strut of a song." Noah Berlatsky of the Chicago Reader noted the song's piano loop as one of the few standouts from the album. A Dayton Daily News reviewer summed up the single as "cliche but effective." On the other hand, some commentators negatively compared "The Way That I Love You" to music released by other singers. Despite praising Ashanti's performance as emotional, Leah Greenblatt of Entertainment Weekly found
510-430: A bloody knife, footprints, and walls, intercut the video. It ends when Ashanti leaves her partner after killing him in a bathtub. The video received critical attention for its representation of violence. In a 2015 article for The Atlantic , Kornhaber said it was part of a trend in music videos of violent female pop artists who want to avoid being presented as the victim. A The Boombox contributor summarized
595-403: A boot, knife, can, sledgehammer, rolling pin, and a guillotine . The news report ends with the disclaimer, "Ashanti and Universal Music Group do not encourage or condone violence of any kind. This is for parody purposes only." Each message was attributed to the fictional Universal Crime Network. An example of a gotcha-gram, sent to CNN 's Lola Ogunnaike, was: "Do you know the person pictured in
680-476: A former wife of Tom Petty that seeks class action status for artists whose master recordings were believed to have been destroyed in the Universal Studios fire. On December 9, 2011, Megaupload published a music video titled: "The Mega Song", showing artists including Kanye West , Snoop Dogg , Alicia Keys and will.i.am endorsing the company. The music video was also uploaded to YouTube, but
765-758: A global partnership agreement with UMG across recorded music, music publishing, brand management, and licensing rights. On November 19, 2018, singer-songwriter Taylor Swift signed a new multi-album deal with UMG, in the United States, her future releases will be promoted under the Republic Records imprint. In addition to the promised ownership of her master recordings, UMG agreed to, in case it sells portions of its stake in Spotify , distribute proceeds among its artists and make them non-recoupable. In December 2018, Queen's " Bohemian Rhapsody " became
850-508: A global, multi-year agreement with Facebook becoming the first of The " Big Three " to license its recorded music and publishing catalogs for video and other social experiences across Facebook , Instagram and Oculus . Sony and Warner signed similar contracts with Facebook the following year. Furthermore, on December 19, 2017, UMG signed a multi-year licensing agreement with YouTube . In June 2018, Universal Music Japan announced an exclusive license agreement with Disney Music Group . With
935-469: A new in-car audio collaboration with Apple Music and Universal Music Group. With this new audio standard, UMG allows its artists to base their song approval process on how the final mix sounds in a Mercedes‑Benz and introduced the "Approved in a Mercedes‑Benz" label as a standard. In November 2022, Universal Music Group acquired a 49% stake in Play It Again Sam (PIAS Group), which brings together
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#17327726011511020-456: A new multi-year licensing agreement with Spotify In June 2021, Pershing Square Tontine Holdings , a special-purpose acquisition company run by investor Bill Ackman, announced it would acquire 10 percent of UMG before it went public, in a $ 4 billion transaction. The deal collapsed in July 2021 due to regulatory concerns, and it was announced that Ackman's Pershing Square Holdings would complete
1105-817: A new multi-year licensing agreement with Spotify , the world's leading streaming service, and in May 2017, UMG signed a deal with Tencent , China's biggest gaming and social media firm. In July 2017, " Despacito " by Luis Fonsi , Daddy Yankee and featuring Justin Bieber , became the most streamed track of all time. By 2018, the song had broken several Guinness World Records , including Most Weeks at Number 1 on Billboard Hot Latin Songs chart and most-viewed video online. In August 2017, UMG and Grace/Beyond agreed to develop three new music-based television series, 27 , Melody Island and Mixtape . 27 would focus on musicians at
1190-611: A normalized rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream critics, the album received an average score of 52, based on 11 reviews, indicating "mixed or average" reviews. Dan Gennoe of Yahoo! Music UK felt that the album was "surprisingly short of anything even approaching a commercial hit [but] even without instant hooks to grab on to, it's amazingly compelling." He called The Declaration a "supremely subtle and sophisticated record" as well as "the best album of Ashanti's career." Sal Cinquemani from Slant Magazine felt that while "past releases have displayed an ostensible desire to follow in
1275-425: A regular music video" to make a larger impact after her absence from the music industry. When discussing the overall message, Ashanti said: "Don't cheat." Throughout the video, Ashanti is shown in a volatile relationship with her boyfriend, played by actor Christian Keyes . After learning about his infidelity, the singer poses with a butcher's knife while dressed in an evening gown. Images of evidence, including
1360-419: A result of the fire. Representatives for R.E.M. announced they would investigate the effects the fire may have had on the band's archival materials, while Hole , Steely Dan , Rosanne Cash and Geoff Downes made statements on their possible losses from the fire. A representative for Eminem confirmed that the rapper's master recordings were digitized months before the fire, but could not confirm whether
1445-614: A series of independent labels. In January 2023, Sherry Lansing was named the Chairman of Board of Directors of the Universal Music Group. In August 2023, it was announced UMG had acquired the UAE -based music marketing, digital publishing and distribution agency, Chabaka. In 2023, Universal Music Group and Deezer announced their initiative to explore potential new business models for music streaming that better recognize
1530-474: A similar settlement was entered into with music publishers and distributors Sony Music , Warner Music , Bertelsmann Music Group , EMI Music and Universal Music Group and certain retailers, without admission of liability or wrongdoing, with various states. In settlement of the claim, the companies collectively agreed to pay a $ 67.4 million fine and distribute $ 75.7 million in CDs to public and non-profit groups. It
1615-512: A worldwide basis. The exclusive deal also saw UMG granted unlimited access to all rights pertaining to Disney's 85-year back catalog of soundtracks and albums. On April 2, 2013, the gospel music divisions of Motown Records and EMI merged to form a new label called Motown Gospel. In May 2013, Japanese company SoftBank offered $ 8.5 billion to Vivendi for the acquisition of UMG, but Vivendi rejected it. In July 2018, JPMorgan said that UMG could be worth as much as $ 40 billion and then increased
1700-823: Is a Dutch – American multinational music corporation under Dutch law . UMG's corporate headquarters are located in Hilversum , Netherlands and its operational headquarters are located in Santa Monica , California. The biggest music company in the world, it is one of the " Big Three " record labels, along with Sony Music Group and Warner Music Group . Tencent acquired ten percent of Universal Music Group in March 2020 for €3 billion and acquired an additional ten percent stake in January 2021. Pershing Square Holdings later acquired ten percent of UMG prior to its IPO on
1785-862: Is also headquartered in Hollywood. Universal Music Group operates a secondary office in Woodland Hills that includes finance, royalty, and operations functions. Universal Music Latin Entertainment is headquartered in Miami, Florida . Universal Music Group Nashville is headquartered in Nashville, Tennessee . UMG has offices in New York City where Island Records , Def Jam Recordings , Republic Records , Verve Label Group , and Spinefarm Records are headquartered. Universal Music Spain
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#17327726011511870-640: Is based in Madrid , Spain. Universal Music Group Global (formerly known as Universal Music Group International (UMGI) ) operates offices in London. Universal Music GmbH, the German subsidiary, is headquartered in Berlin . It moved in 2002 from Hamburg to the district Friedrichshain at the river Spree . In February 2024 the company moved out of the iconic building also called "Eierspeicher" into another office down
1955-522: Is composed in the key of E minor using common time and a "moderate hip-hop " tempo . The instrumentation is provided by a piano, a guitar, and horns; Sal Cinquemani of Slant Magazine wrote that the single is "driven by a distinct descending piano arpeggio and horn arrangement". Ashanti's vocal range spans from the low note of D 4 to the high note of E 5 . AllMusic 's Andy Kellman compared her vocals to her 2003 single " Rain on Me " because of their similar "melodramatic flourishes" but said
2040-598: Is expected to be of $ 3.36 billion. In February 2020, Vivendi announced it was planning to go public in an IPO within three years. On June 16, 2020, Universal rebranded Virgin EMI Records as EMI Records and named Rebecca Allen (former president of UMG's Decca label) as the label's president, bringing back the EMI brand. The same day, UMG announced launch of its new affiliates in Morocco and Israel. In July 2020, UMG signed
2125-638: Is over a third bigger than initial valuation. In January 2022, UMG (through INgrooves ) acquired the Icelandic record label Alda Music, which owned the rights to nearly 80 percent of all music released in Iceland. In February 2022, Universal Music Group announced a partnership with Curio, an NFT platform, to create NFT collections for its record labels and artists. On May 31, 2022, Universal Music Group announced Baa1/BBB long-term credit ratings from Moody's and S&P. In October 2022, Mercedes-Benz launched
2210-534: Is unlikely to reclaim her spotlight." The Declaration debuted and peaked at number six on the US Billboard 200 , selling 86,000 copies in its first week of release. It marked Ashanti's lowest opening sales for a regular studio album to then and was a considerable decline from her previous effort Concrete Rose , which had opened to sales of 254,000 units in 2004. On the Top R&;B/Hip Hop Albums chart
2295-672: The Euronext Amsterdam stock exchange. The company went public on September 21, 2021, at a valuation of €46 billion. As of April 2024, UMG's catalogue includes over 3 million recordings and 4 million compositions. As of November 2024, UMG is facing accusations of violating the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act ; and using deceptive business practices and false advertising under New York state law, to illegally inflate music streams using bots, payola and other methods. The company's origins go back to
2380-694: The Hot R&;B/Hip-Hop Songs and R&B/Hip-Hop Airplay chart, and number 18 on the Adult R&;B Songs component charts compiled by the same publication. Ashanti debuted the Kevin Bray -directed music video on 106 & Park and it was played on BET , MTV Hits , and MTV Jams . It was uploaded on Ashanti's YouTube account on December 22, 2009. A rough cut had leaked a few weeks before its premiere in February 2008. Another version of
2465-487: The "Annenberg Inclusion Initiative", becoming the first music company to do so. The initiative is meant to create change for representation of women and underrepresented racial and ethnic groups in the media industry. In December 2017, Universal Music Group acquired Stiff and ZTT labels, along with Perfect Songs Publishing, from Trevor Horn 's SPZ Group; BMG Rights Management , through Union Square Music subsidiary, retained its back catalogues. That same month, UMG signed
2550-659: The 'ethical use' of Artificial Intelligence (AI). Also in October 2023, UMG formed a new partnership with BMG Rights Management to develop collaborative initiatives to enlarge opportunities for BMG-signed artists all over the world. Unable to reach a licensing agreement with TikTok, UMG removed its music from the platform in January 2024, During UMG's fourth-quarter earnings call on February 29, Grainge said: "There must not be free rides for massive global platforms such as TikTok." The company reported that quarterly revenue rose 9 percent, to 3.2 billion euros ($ 3.5 billion). Following
2635-531: The Beatles (formerly of Parlophone) and Robbie Williams (formerly of Chrysalis). The Beatles catalogue was transferred to UMG's newly formed Calderstone Productions , while Williams' catalogue was transferred to Island Records . Universal Music Group completed their acquisition of EMI on September 28, 2012. In November 2012, Steve Barnett was appointed chairman and CEO of Capitol Music Group . He formerly served as COO of Columbia Records . In compliance
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2720-659: The Greek market, as part of its divesture plans, Universal Music retained Minos EMI and sold Universal Music Greece to Greek investors who renamed it Cobalt Music. Edel AG acquired the MPS catalogue from Universal in January 2014. On March 20, 2013, UMG announced the worldwide extension of their exclusive distribution deal with the Disney Music Group , excluding Japan. As a result of this deal DMG's labels and artists have access to UMG's roster of producers and songwriters on
2805-872: The Philippines and more. Company's legal headquarters are in the Netherlands. Universal Music Group's largest corporate shareholder, Tencent , is headquartered in Shenzhen , China. Tencent's ultimate largest controlling corporate shareholder, Naspers , is headquartered in Cape Town , South Africa. On March 8, 2022, UMG suspended all its operations in Russia , following the country's invasion of Ukraine . In 2023, UMG announced its expansion with its new office in Casablanca , Morocco. As of January 2022,
2890-631: The Top 10 artists, including all of the top five, as well as all of the top eight artists ranked by on-demand audio streams. In August 2018, UMG announced a strategic expansion in Africa, opening an office in Abidjan to oversee French-speaking Africa, and also unveiling a Universal Music Nigeria office in Lagos to focus on signing local artists and taking them global. In September 2018, singer Elton John signed
2975-492: The acquisition was completed on June 25, 2007. In June 2007, UMG acquired Sanctuary, which eventually became UMG's entertainment merchandising and brand management division, Bravado. In 2008, Universal Music Group agreed to make its catalog available to Spotify , then a new streaming service, for use outside the U.S. on a limited basis. Doug Morris stepped down from his position as CEO on January 1, 2011. Former chairman/CEO of Universal Music International Lucian Grainge
3060-545: The addition of Japan, UMG distributes releases from Disney Music Group globally. In July, the Rolling Stones signed a worldwide agreement with UMG covering the band's recorded music and audio-visual catalogues, archival support, global merchandising and brand management. That same month, Vivendi announced it would explore selling as much as half of Universal Music Group to one or more investors. In Nielsen's 2018 US Music Mid-Year report, UMG made history with eight of
3145-452: The age of 27, an age at which several iconic musicians died . Melody Island was an animated series based on tropical island music with live craft segments. Mixtape had twelve episodes, with each episode connected to a song. In October 2017, UMG announced the launch of its Accelerator Engagement Network, an initiative aimed to help develop music-based startups around the world. In November 2017, USC Annenberg announced UMG's partnership in
3230-412: The album debuted at number two where it spent a total of 34 consecutive weeks on the chart. By October 2008, The Declaration had sold 246,000 copies. Notes Credits are taken from the album's liner notes. The Way That I Love You " The Way That I Love You " is a song recorded by American singer Ashanti from her fourth studio album, The Declaration (2008). It was released as
3315-466: The album's lead single on February 26, 2008, through Universal and The Inc. Ashanti wrote and produced the song with L.T. Hutton . Backed by piano, guitar, and horns, "The Way That I Love You" is a midtempo R&B ballad whose lyrics tell of betrayal. Critical response was primarily positive; some reviewers said it was a highlight from The Declaration while others felt it was inferior to music released by Beyoncé and Mary J. Blige . Commercially,
3400-545: The beats stick to straightforward bounce or subdued ballads. And Ashanti doesn't offer any more personality." Shanel Odum of Vibe gave a mixed review to the album, writing that "her voice is pleasant if sometimes uninspiring, but on soulful songs like "You’re Gonna Miss," the pain in her sweet-as- Smarties voice is definite. But even with all the emo-passion, nearly half of this album is lukewarm." Now writer Benjamin Boles found that it's "all too evident why The Declaration
3485-487: The campaign as a parody of the music video and said that Ashanti does not promote violence against women . Ashanti promoted "The Way That I Love You" with a live performance at a 2008 Sessions@AOL . In 2016, she sang it as part of the Natural Born Hitters Tour with rapper Ja Rule . The Boombox ' s Liz Ramanand said the performance was a highlight from the show. Ashanti subsequently included
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3570-425: The company was renamed Universal Studios, Inc. , and its music division was renamed Universal Music Group; MCA Records continued as a label within the Universal Music Group. In May 1998, Seagram purchased PolyGram and merged it with Universal Music Group in early 1999. Seagram's entertainment assets were then sold to French media conglomerate Vivendi in 2000, along with UMG. In May 2004, Universal Music Group
3655-554: The company's catalog division, are headquartered in Santa Monica. Def Jam , Island and Republic Records also maintain offices there. UMG chairman & CEO Lucian Grainge is based at the company's Santa Monica offices. Universal Music Publishing is also headquartered in the city. Capitol Music Group is headquartered at the Capitol Records Building in Hollywood. Universal Music Latin Entertainment
3740-475: The company's shares were held by: In 2000, music companies including UMG entered into consent agreements with the Federal Trade Commission , with no admission of liability, whereby they agreed to discontinue the use of Minimum Advertised Price programs under which subsidized cooperative advertising was provided to retailers that agreed to adhere to minimum advertised pricing. In 2002,
3825-1416: The conditions of the European Commission after purchase of EMI, Universal Music Group sold the Mute catalogue to the German-based BMG Rights Management on December 22, 2012. Two months later, BMG acquired Sanctuary Records for €50 million ($ 58 million). On February 8, 2013, Warner Music Group acquired the Parlophone Label Group (consisting of Parlophone Records , Chrysalis Records , EMI Classics , Virgin Classics and EMI Records' Belgian, Czech, Danish, French, Norwegian, Portuguese, Spanish, Slovak and Swedish divisions) for $ 765 million (£487 million). Later in February, Sony Music Entertainment acquired UMG's European share in Now That's What I Call Music for approximately $ 60 million. Play It Again Sam acquired Co-Operative Music for £500,000 in March 2013. With EMI's absorption into Universal Music complete, its British operations consist of five label units: Island, Polydor, Decca, Virgin EMI and Capitol. In
3910-533: The court holding a trial on whether UMG had a subjective belief that the video was infringing and not fair to use before sending its request to YouTube. In April 2016, UMG had the audio muted of a video clip showing Katherine Jenkins singing the British national anthem. They claimed that the recording of " God Save the Queen " was copyrighted, and YouTube initially complied with this request, but subsequently offered
3995-527: The disbandment of Island Def Jam Music , one of four operational umbrella groups within Universal Music. Universal CEO Lucian Grainge said of the closure, "No matter how much we might work to build 'IDJ' as a brand, that brand could never be as powerful as each of IDJ's constituent parts." Island Records and Def Jam now operate as autonomous record labels. David Massey and Bartels, who worked respectively at Island and Def Jam Records, were named to
4080-594: The earnings call, UMG began a "strategic organizational redesign" that included company-wide layoffs. Universal Music Group co-developed with Google Vevo , a site designed for music videos inspired by Hulu , which similarly allows free ad-supported streaming of videos and other music content. On May 24, 2018, Vevo announced that it would no longer continue distributing videos to Vevo.com, instead opting to primarily focus on YouTube syndication. UMG's operational headquarters are located in Santa Monica . Interscope-Geffen-A&M and Universal Music Enterprises (UME),
4165-459: The fire which swept through Universal Studios Hollywood on June 1, 2008, caused "the biggest disaster in the history of the music business". In space rented from NBCUniversal, according to an official document marked "Confidential", the fire destroyed at least 118,230 "assets" ( master recordings ), or about 500,000 song titles, owned by UMG. "The vault housed tape masters for Decca , the pop, jazz and classical powerhouse; it housed master tapes for
4250-476: The following video. If so, please contact me immediately. Your life might be in danger." The campaign received a primarily negative response. The civil rights organization Project Islamic Hope and the think tank Industry Ears led a protest that called for the website's removal. These groups felt that the project encouraged violence as a valid means to handle disputes. Ogunnaike deemed the messages "disturbing", and felt that they damaged Ashanti's public image as
4335-525: The formation of the American branch of Decca Records in September 1934, and its name and company logo originate from Carl Laemmle 's Universal Pictures . Although the movie studio and the music business share a common history, today the former is part of Comcast and the latter an independent commercial entity. During World War II , many record companies donated their metal masters to recycling for
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#17327726011514420-408: The label, including a feud with G-Unit and an FBI investigation. L.T. Hutton produced a majority of The Declaration , instead of Ashanti's longtime producer Irv Gotti . Ashanti said that she had more artistic freedom with the album. Hutton and Ashanti wrote and produced "The Way That I Love". Ashanti said that she "just started jotting down words, and it just kind of poured out" upon hearing
4505-433: The lyrics of "The Way That I Love You" were "much more vengeful in nature than depressive." Ashanti felt both men and women would relate to the single's theme of betrayal. "The Way That I Love You" was praised by critics who identified it as a highlight of The Declaration . The New York Daily News ' Jim Farber felt Ashanti's collaboration with Hutton was her best work, and described "The Way That I Love You" as
4590-671: The major Grammy Awards for the year, with Sam Smith receiving Best New Artist , Record of the Year and Song of the Year awards and Beck winning Album of the Year . In March 2016, Universal Music Canada donated the archives of EMI Music Canada to the University of Calgary . In May 2016, UMG acquired Famehouse, a digital marketing agency. That same year, Paul McCartney and the Bee Gees both signed to UMG's Capitol Records, including their catalog releases. In April 2017, UMG signed
4675-418: The melodramatic steps of Mary J. Blige and much of Declaration continues in that quest," it also "aims to prove that Ashanti is indeed growing up." AllMusic editor Andy Kellman found that "even though this album marks a nearly complete break from The Inc., it's very much in line with what came before it, hardly a major departure [...] This is neither a great nor a poor Ashanti album. It's decent, just like
4760-453: The most-streamed song from the pre-streaming era and the most-streamed classic rock song of all time. In February 2019, UMG fully acquired music distributor INgrooves . In June 2019, YouTube and UMG announced that they were upgrading more than 1,000 popular music videos to high definition, releasing them through 2020. In August 2019, Tencent and Vivendi started negotiation to sell 10% Vivendi's stake of Universal Music to Tencent. The deal
4845-481: The new record labels independently. Barry Weiss , who previously moved from Sony Music to lead Island Def Jam Music in 2012 when Motown Records was incorporated into Island Def Jam, stepped down from Universal Music. Additionally, as part of the changes to the labels, Motown Records transferred to Los Angeles to become part of the Capitol Music Group and previous Vice President Ethiopia Habtemariam
4930-470: The opening instrumental. She produced the lead and background vocals, and Hutton programmed the song and played the instruments. The final version was mixed at Brandons Way Recording Studios in Los Angeles, California. "Switch", which featured Nelly , and " Hey Baby (After the Club) " were both announced as the album's lead single in 2007. They were replaced by "The Way That I Love You", which
5015-536: The physical master reels of his recordings were affected. UMG archivist Patrick Kraus assured that the Impulse! Records , John Coltrane , Muddy Waters , Ahmad Jamal , Nashboro Records , and Chess Records masters survived the fire and were still in Universal's archive. Howard King filed a lawsuit in Los Angeles on June 21, 2019, on behalf of Soundgarden , Hole , Steve Earle , the estate of Tupac Shakur and
5100-677: The purchase instead. In September 2021, IPO , Euronext Amsterdam announces an introduction price of €18,50 and Vivendi set an initial valuation for UMG at €33 billion ($ 38.3 billion). Vivendi distributed 60% of its UMG shares and retaining 10%. The family of French businessman Vincent Bolloré is revealed as the majority shareholder with 28% of UMG shares, through its holding company Bolloré (18%) and its subsidiary Vivendi (10%), headed by his son Yannick Bolloré . Tencent emerged as UMG's biggest corporate shareholder with 20% of shares. Pershing Square Holdings held 10% of UMG shares. In its IPO, UMG hits €54 billion ($ 62.6 billion) valuation which
5185-597: The rest of them." Leah Greenblatt from Entertainment Weekly wrote that The Declaration "simply doesn't make much of a statement, and its high point – the prettily emotive ballad " The Way That I Love You " – isn't enough to unseat the Beyoncés and Mary J. 's of the world." Rolling Stone ' s Christian Hoard thought that Ashanti "is still doing the diva-by-numbers thing, alternating between angry-at-her-man anthems and lovey pleasantry [...] But even with A-list producers like Babyface, Jermaine Dupri and Rodney Jerkins,
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#17327726011515270-812: The sale of EMI to UMG was approved in the European Union and the United States by the European Commission and Federal Trade Commission respectively. However, the European Commission approved the deal only under the condition the merged company divest one third of its total operations to other companies with a proven track record in the music industry. UMG divested Mute Records , Parlophone , Roxy Recordings , MPS Records , Cooperative Music , Now That's What I Call Music! , Jazzland , Universal Greece, Sanctuary Records , Chrysalis Records , EMI Classics , Virgin Classics , and EMI's European regional labels to comply with this condition. UMG retained
5355-476: The scope of the incident and affected assets." Following the publication of the New York Times story, Questlove of The Roots confirmed that the master tapes for two of the band's albums, including unused material and multi-track recordings, were lost in the fire. Similarly, Nirvana bassist Krist Novoselic said he believed the masters for the band's 1991 album Nevermind were "gone forever" as
5440-541: The single to be inferior to those by Beyoncé and Mary J. Blige . Vibe 's Shanel Odum dismissed the song as "barely set[ting] off a smoke detector, let alone ring[ing] any alarms", in a reference to Beyoncé's 2006 single " Ring the Alarm ". Commercially, "The Way That I Love You" peaked at number 37 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart on May 17, 2008, and remained on the chart for 18 weeks. It reached number two on
5525-481: The song on the setlist for a 2018 tour with Ja Rule. Victor D. Infante of Telegram & Gazette praised her for providing a "soulful rendition" of the single and her decision to provide "an air of vulnerability" by singing it without backup dancers. Credits adapted from the liner notes of The Declaration : Universal Records Universal Music Group N.V. (often abbreviated as UMG and referred to as Universal Music Group or Universal Music )
5610-457: The song peaked at number 37 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart and appeared on the publication's Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs and Adult R&B Songs component charts. Ashanti performed "The Way That I Love You" at Sessions@AOL and on tour. Kevin Bray directed the music video which tells the story of Ashanti and her boyfriend—he cheats on her, she discovers it, and she murders him. The story for
5695-584: The state in settlement. In 2007, with the help of the Electronic Frontier Foundation, Stephanie Lenz sued UMG's publishing company for allegedly improperly requesting that, pursuant to the Digital Millennium Copyright Act , YouTube remove a 29-second home video in which Lenz's child danced to a recording of Prince's song " Let's Go Crazy ". After years of litigation, the suit settled in 2018, prior to
5780-583: The storied blues label Chess ; it housed masters for Impulse! , the groundbreaking jazz label. The vault held masters for the MCA, ABC, A&M, Geffen and Interscope labels; as well as some smaller subsidiary labels. Nearly all of these masters—in some cases, the complete discographies of entire record labels—were wiped out in the fire." In a statement issued on June 11, 2019, UMG said The New York Times article contained "numerous inaccuracies, misleading statements, contradictions and fundamental misunderstandings of
5865-656: The street. Universal Music Group's Universal Music Polska is located in Warsaw . Universal Music Group's Universal Music Canada is located in Toronto . Universal Music Japan is headquartered in Shibuya , Tokyo. UMG operates in more than 60 territories around the world including Australia, Central America, Brazil, France, India, China, Hong Kong, Taiwan, Sub-Saharan Africa, Central and Eastern Europe, New Zealand, Russia, Ukraine, South Korea, Singapore, Malaysia, Indonesia,
5950-612: The takedown was ordered under the terms of the Digital Millennium Copyright Act , and said that the takedown was "pursuant to the UMG-YouTube agreement," which gives UMG "the right to block or remove user-posted videos through YouTube's CMS (Content Management System) based on a number of contractually specified criteria." The video was subsequently returned to YouTube, with the reasons for the UMG takedown remaining unclear. Lawyers for will.i.am initially claimed that he had never agreed to
6035-556: The valuation to $ 50 billion in 2019. In August 2013, UMG became the first company in the US to have nine of the Top 10 songs on the digital charts, according to SoundScan and weeks later, became the first company to hold all 10 of the Top 10 spots on the Billboard Hot 100 Chart . In September 2013, UMG received a SAG-AFTRA American Scene Award for the company's commitment to diversity as exemplified by its "entire catalog and roster of artists." On April 1, 2014, Universal Music announced
6120-440: The value created by artists. Indeed, in September 2023, they announced their launch of an artist-centric streaming model designed to better remunerate the artists and music that fans mostly enjoy. Also in 2023, Universal Music Group introduced a HBCU scholarship program for aspiring doctors. In October 2023, UMG and BandLab Technologies formed a partnership to protect the rights of artists as well as songwriters and guarantee
6205-431: The video as "Hell hath no fury like a woman scorned." The music video was popular on MTV.com and Total Request Live where it peaked at number one and two, respectively. A publicity stunt was coordinated with the music video's release through Ashanti's website (TheWayThatILoveYou.com). The website allowed a user to create and send a personalized news report and a death threat to a contact. The message, stylized as
6290-667: The video was inspired by the true crime TV shows Snapped and Forensic Files . The video's emphasis on violence attracted critical attention. As part of the song's promotion, Ashanti launched a website that allowed users to create and send a personalized news report and death threat to a contact. The campaign was received negatively and incited a protest in Los Angeles. The website was ultimately taken down. For her fourth studio album The Declaration (2008), Ashanti collaborated with songwriters and producers outside of her record label Murder Inc . Her previous album Concrete Rose (2004) had been overshadowed by negative news regarding
6375-440: The video with the original audio track. In December 2007, UMG announced a deal with Imeem that allowed users of the social network to listen to any track from Universal's catalogue for free with a portion of the advertising generated by the music being shared with the record label. All traffic was redirected to MySpace after that company acquired Imeem on December 8, 2009. According to Jody Rosen of The New York Times ,
6460-411: The video, with the subtitle "Access Denied", was released on Ashanti's YouTube account on November 22, 2009. Ashanti used the true crime TV shows Snapped and Forensic Files as the primary inspiration for the video. She felt that the storyline of a woman driven to murder fit the single's dramatic, painful, and emotional lyrics. She said that she wanted the video to be "very cinematic as opposed to
6545-535: The war effort. However, Universal was an exception and donated more than 200,000 of their historic master recordings to the Library of Congress . The Decca Record Co. Ltd. of England spun American Decca off in 1939. MCA Inc. merged with American Decca in 1962. In November 1990, Japanese multinational conglomerate Matsushita Electric agreed to acquire MCA for $ 6.59 billion. In 1995, Seagram acquired 80 percent of MCA from Matsushita. On December 9, 1996,
6630-533: Was cast under separate management from Universal Studios, when Vivendi sold 80% of the latter to General Electric , who subsequently merged it with NBC to form NBCUniversal . This came two months after the separation of Warner Music Group from Time Warner . In February 2006, Vivendi purchased the remaining 20 percent of UMG from Matsushita Electric . On September 6, 2006, Vivendi announced its €1.63 billion ($ 2.4 billion) purchase of BMG Music Publishing ; after receiving European Union regulatory approval,
6715-502: Was delayed. Producer LT Hutton is behind most of these beats, and it’s easy to see why he hasn’t had a hit in years. A few bigger names drop in (Nelly and Akon might as well be sleepwalking here), but none sound like they’re putting much into their appearances. Ashanti’s still got a decent voice, but she’s badly in need of a better songwriting and production team." The Boston Globe remarked that "after four years away, Ashanti declares that she's back, but this middling, familiar set of songs
6800-440: Was estimated that consumers were overcharged by $ 500 million and up to $ 5 per album. In May 2006, an investigation led by then New York Attorney General , Eliot Spitzer , concluded with a determination that Universal Music Group bribed radio stations to play songs from Ashlee Simpson , Brian McKnight , Big Tymers , Nick Lachey , Lindsay Lohan and other performers under Universal labels. The company paid $ 12 million to
6885-507: Was president of production as head of film and television development and production, and theater producer Scott Landis as special advisor on theatrical development and production. UMG Executive Vice President Michele Anthony and Universal Music Publishing Group Chairman and CEO Jody Gerson have oversight of the pair. On February 11, 2017, PolyGram Entertainment was relaunched as a film and television unit of Universal Music Group under David Blackman. In 2015, UMG's Capitol Records earned all
6970-593: Was promoted to CEO of the company. Grainge later replaced Morris as chairman on March 9, 2011. Morris became the next chairman of Sony Music Entertainment on July 1, 2011. With Grainge's appointment as CEO at UMG, Max Hole was promoted to COO of UMGI, effective July 1, 2010. In January 2011, UMG announced it was donating 200,000 master recordings from the 1920s to 1940s to the Library of Congress for preservation. In 2011, EMI agreed to sell its recorded music operations to Universal Music Group for £1.2 billion ($ 1.9 billion) and its music publishing operations to
7055-514: Was promoted to Label President for Motown Records. Universal Music Group entered into film and TV production with the 2014 purchase of Eagle Rock Entertainment . UMG's first major film production was Amy , which won an Oscar for Best Documentary, while taking part in Kurt Cobain: Montage of Heck and The Beatles: Eight Days a Week documentaries. In January 2016, UMG hired David Blackman from Laurence Mark Production where he
7140-473: Was released to urban radio on February 26, 2008, and rhythmic radio on April 1, 2008. It was the number one most-added song on urban radio in the week of its release. The single was included on a July 2008 Cartier charity playlist created to support the Boys & Girls Clubs of America organization. "The Way That I Love You" is a midtempo R&B ballad that lasts four minutes and thirty seconds. It
7225-556: Was removed following a takedown request by UMG. Megaupload said that the video contained no infringing content, commenting: "we have signed agreements with every featured artist for this campaign". Megaupload requested an apology from UMG, and filed a lawsuit against the company in the United States District Court for the Northern District of California , on December 12, 2011. UMG denied that
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