Don West, the hotly-tipped Australian soul artist, joins the roster at Kobalt.

West has enjoyed a bountiful breakthrough, culminating in his signing with the independent music publisher, announced Thursday, Dec. 11.

Hailing from Sydney, West’s throwback, soulful sounds have drawn favorable comparisons to the likes of Marvin Gaye and Bill Withers, and, despite being at such an early stage of his career, he has captured close to 4 million monthly listeners on Spotify.

Just last month, West cracked the ARIA Albums Chart at No. 25 with his debut Give Me All Your Love, co-written by and Nathan Hawes (Kesmar, Surely Shirley, Lazywax) and produced entirely by Hawes.

“Don is effortlessly cool and charismatic. His deep-rooted love of classic soul and blues, combined with his coastal upbringing, has shaped a sound that’s resonating with audiences around the world,” comments Briese Abbott, Kobalt’s head of creative services Australia & New Zealand. His songwriting “feels instantly familiar, nostalgic yet contemporary, and inherently inviting,” Abbott remarks.

West made strides with his debut self-titled six-track EP, released last November, and embarked on a debut national headline tour the following month, including spots on the Spilt Milk festival.

He was nominated for the J Award, and was shortlisted at the APRA Music Awards, the AIR Awards, the inaugural NSW Music Prize in the breakthrough category, and in July of this year was named to Spotify’s RADAR program.

During the northern summer, West played a bunch of shows in Europe, including multiple sold-out London dates and festival appearances. In October, he was set to embark on his first headline tour of the United States, but had to postpone due to health issues.

“We are thrilled to have Kobalt representing Don West for his publishing,” says Max McKeith at FRNDS Management, noting Kobalt’s international teams “have all been hugely supportive of Don’s songwriting and we immediately felt like it was the right home for his music.”

West is currently on tour in his homeland, and once again on the Spilt Milk bill. Another global tour is planned for 2026.

With a network of 10 global offices, Kobalt serves over 1 million songs, representing the likes of Max Martin, Stevie Nicks, Phoebe Bridgers, Gunna, Foo Fighters, Paul McCartney, and many others.

A new digital media dawn has broken in Australia, one that blocks millions of youngsters from accessing their favorite social media apps.

Prime minister Anthony Albanese’s center-left Labor government proposed groundbreaking laws that would block under-16s from accessing TikTok, X, Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, Snapchat and other services, citing research that shows overexposure to social media can accelerate mental health problems for young people.

Those rules were passed in parliament a year ago, with bipartisan support, and came into effect Wednesday, Dec. 10. Australia is the first country to embark on this grand, social experiment. No doubt other countries are watching closely.

The music industry has been watching closely, too.

Kids and tweens are, so often, the noisiest superfans of pop artists, a 24-7 connection that has been forged on social media in the past decade.

Youth music organization The Push recently published the results of a national YouGov poll, which found that 70% of young Australians are discovering new music via social media platforms, raising questions on what the new regulations will mean for young Australian audiences’ music discoverability, particularly in relation to domestic repertoire.

In the foreword to “Young Australian Music Audiences 2025,” The Push CEO Kate Duncan addressed necessary “alternative spaces” that would enable young people places to connect, discover new artists and form lifelong friendships offline.

“We need to ensure that if we’re switching-off online opportunities for young Australians, we’re providing real-life, placed-based programs and events for them to connect and be okay,” Duncan tells Billboard. “Without accessible entry points, we risk losing the next generation of live music audiences; and with them, the artists, industry workers and cultural leaders who will sustain the sector in years to come.”

More than three in five of those surveyed for the report said that attending live music events was important to them. And 80% would support a government program for young people to organize or attend music events so they can stay connected without social media.

“What young people have told us is they see access to music events as the solution to connect and meet their tribe when the social media ban begins,” Duncan continues. “We need to open doors by funding all-ages gigs, backing youth-led events, making tickets affordable, and enabling schools and councils to host discovery programs. Government, industry and local communities all have a role to play in this.”

It’s early times, and the launch has been anything but smooth. According to the Australian Broadcasting Corporation, many kids targeted by the restrictions have been able to get around the ban in various ways, with age assurance systems misclassifying users and workarounds such as VPNs and make-up tricks being used.

Those glitches will be ironed out. Billboard spoke with artist managers who noted the laws could have negative unwanted consequences.

“There are clearly loads of artists who grew online fanbases in their early to mid-teens and those communities were the foundations for big commercial success in their late teens,” says one, who asked to remain anonymous. “So ‘holding back’ Australian teens could arguably put them at a handicap when it comes to audience development as well as skills development.”

On balance, says one domestic industry professional, the negative personal impact of social media on millions of Australian kids is “a greater harm” than the negative professional impact on thousands of young Australian ‘content makers’ who will have to endure a delayed start to their careers compared to overseas competitors.”

It’s not gloomy, though it is a thorny subject, and several record label executives declined to comment. Let’s wait and see, was the prevailing argument.

The laws come into effect at a time when Australian artists are struggling to be seen and heard in an all-access digital world, a hyper-competitive market place where the main streaming services offer upwards of 100 million songs, a figure that’s rising by more six digits each week. Just one homegrown recording appears on the latest ARIA Top 50 Singles Chart, Tame Impala’s “Dracula,” at No. 33. The visibility, or “discoverability” issue was hammered home in January when domestic acts had a poor showing in the ARIA year-end charts, and the triple j Hottest 100, both industry-recognized gauges of popularity.

Just last month, the Australia Institute released a report that analyzed the data of the top 10,000 artists streamed in Australia from 2021-2024. Authored by former Spotify chief economist Will Page and forwarded by ex-prime minister Malcolm Turnbull, the document revealed a sharp decline in both the number of Australian artists being streamed domestically (down 20%), and the amount of times they were streamed (down 30%).

Going forward, social media platforms face penalties of up to $50 million if they do not take “reasonable steps” to those under 16 from activating a social media account.

“Start a new sport, learn a new instrument or read that book that’s been sitting there on your shelf for some time,” Albanese said in a video message. “Importantly, spend quality time with your friends and your family, face to face.”

Maggie Collins, executive director of the Association of Artist Managers (AAM), is optimistic that artists, and young people, will always find a way to connect.

“Australian youth being forced off social media may actually drive them to seek music in more manual / analogue ways,” she tells Billboard. “They need experience and connection with one another, and it’s almost like they’ll be thrown back in time – somewhat —  in that they have to physically see each other to do that, and share their love of music in ‘slow’ consumption formats.”

No socials, no problem for ABC’s triple j, double j and Unearthed platforms. “If you’re a young Australian artist who has, or is about to have their social media platforms frozen,” reads a message from the ABC-operated music specialists, “we’re still here.”

Read more here.

On Wednesday (Dec. 10), Spotify announced it will now allow users to personalize their algorithm.

“Imagine a Spotify that doesn’t just passively learn from you but literally listens to you,” a company blog post reads. “For the first time, your ideas, your logic and your creativity can actually power the Spotify algorithm, directing how it thinks, adapts and responds to you.”

As part of the rollout, the blog post introduces a feature called the “Prompted Playlist,” which will first roll out in beta to premium users in New Zealand on Thursday (Dec. 11.) Essentially, this lets users use AI to generate a playlist — a similar concept to Spotify’s recent integration with ChatGPT to allow for prompt-based music and podcast recommendations.ree

“You could ask for ‘music from my top artists from the last five years,’ then push it further with ‘and feature deep cuts I haven’t heard yet,’” the blog post continues. “Or you could request ‘high-energy pop and hip-hop for a 30-minute 5K run that keeps a steady pace before easing into relaxing songs for a cool-down,’ and layer on something like ‘include music from this year’s biggest films and most-talked-about TV shows that match my taste.’ You choose how broad or specific you want to go.”

From there, users can “fine-tune the results by editing the prompt or start fresh whenever you want.” Each song included in the playlist will include descriptions and context to tell the user why Spotify selected that song, “so the playlist feels alive and crafted specifically for your prompt and your taste.”

This can refresh on a periodic basis — daily or weekly — and Spotify refers to the feature as a way to “curate your next Discover Weekly.” For those who don’t know what to prompt, there will be an “ideas” button that helps select prompts for the user.

News of the feature arrives just weeks after Instagram announced the launch of a somewhat similar feature, allowing “for you to tune your algorithm on Instagram by adding and removing topics based on your interests,” Instagram CEO Adam Mosseri wrote on Threads.

The Spotify blog post says this launch “is just the beginning of a new phase [of Spotify] where listeners take the lead and make even more of every minute,” noting that there’s more to come in 2026.

Blanco Brown has left Wheelhouse Records/BMG to start his own label, Trailer Trap.

Brown is best known for 2019’s massive viral hit and dance “The Git Up,” which spent 12 weeks at No. 1 on Billboard’s Hot Country Songs chart and has been certified five-times platinum by the RIAA. In 2021, he and former labelmates Parmalee reached No. 1 on Billboard’s Country Airplay chart with “Just the Way.” As a producer and songwriter, he has also worked with Monica, Pitbull, Fergie and 2 Chainz, among others.

His last project released on Wheelhouse was a trio of EPs released in 2024: Heartache & Lemonade, Cedar Walls & Whiskey and Back 2 Basics.

“I felt like I was being shelved. When I looked around and I saw everything that was going on,” Brown tells Billboard. “There’s no hard feelings over at BMG, but for me to have creative control, be able to put out stuff whenever I want to, that’s what I would rather do.”  Brown also praised Jon Loba, BMG’s president of Frontline Recordings for The Americas, for his support, but says, “he still couldn’t get people outside of the label to believe in me as much as he did.”

BMG representatives did not respond to a request for comment.

Brown says his BMG partnership was a licensing deal, so he retains ownership of his masters, as well as his name, likeness and website.

Trailer Trap takes its name from the term Brown coined years ago to describe his blend of country and rap music. He plans to sign artists, but for now, he’s working on a new project that he will release on the label. “Sometime next year, I’ll be dropping a very great project,” he says. I wish I could tell you the title, but I can’t right now, because I’m in between two or three different titles.” Following the release of that project, he will turn his focus to signing artists.

Brown has been in the news lately following the success of Breaking Rust, an AI-assisted artist that reached No. 1 in November on Billboard’s Country Digital Song Sales chart for a thumping track called “Walk My Walk.” People noticed the stylistic similarities to Brown’s music, and that Abraham Abushmais, one of the creators possibly associated with “Walk My Walk,” had worked with Brown on his label debut, 2019’s Honeysuckle & Lightning Bugs.

Brown made and released his own version of “Walk My Walk” nearly two weeks ago, and then on Friday (Dec. 5) released what he called a “derivative” version that had some changed lyrics. He also released an AI-created video for the song.

“When I first heard [‘Walk My Walk’], I said, ‘Man, this right here has a lot of grit, and it reminds me of my tone, but he doesn’t sound like me. I can just tell that I inspired him,” Brown says. “But it’s like putting the two pieces together, knowing that somebody I mentored actually created [Breaking Rust]. Then it all started making sense, because people were actually hitting me in my inbox and saying, ‘Hey, man, this song that’s going up the charts, and it seems like it could be No. 1 soon, it has a little reminiscent feel of how you approach songs.’ And you know, that’s how it all started.”

Brown says he had never used AI to create any music or videos before, and aside from the “Walk My Walk” video, still doesn’t plan to, but knows he may be in the minority as AI’s usage grows. “I could care less how people create music. When I create music, it’s because I got to get it out of my soul, off of my chest,” he says. “For other people, it’s about money. It’s about making a dime. Just like the industry, the industry is all about money, all about making a dime.”

The singer adds that he will not be signing AI-assisted artists to Trailer Trap’s roster. It will be “real creatives in the flesh,” he says. “That’s the way God intended for it to be because music can heal, break or destroy you.”

Marc Anthony climbs back to No. 1 on Billboard’s Latin Airplay chart through the Wisin pair-up, “Que Me Quiera Ma,” as the song lifts 2-1 on the chart dated Dec. 13.

“Que Me Quiera Ma” was released Sept. 25 though Bolero Records –Marc Anthony’s new label distributed by Sony Music Latin. It claims the top spot in its 10th week, after spending six weeks in the top 10. During the tracking week of Nov. 28-Dec. 4, it registered 9.5 million audience impressions in the United States, a 7% increase, according to Luminate.

As “Que Me Quiera Ma” ascends to No. 1 on the overall Latin radio list, it swaps places with Prince Royce’s bachata cover of the Backstreet Boys’ “I Want It That Way,” which slips 1-2 with 8.6 million audience impressions, down 12%.

“Que Me Quiera Ma” marks Marc Anthony’s 15th No. 1 on Latin Airplay. The singer last claimed the top spot with “Mala” in 2022. Since then, he has charted four straight top 10, including the No. 3-peaking “Ale Ale” in July 2024.
Wisin, meanwhile, secures his 24th No. 1 three months after “Luna,” with Kapo, claimed the crown in September.

“Que Me Quiera Ma” also takes over the Tropical Airplay chart with an equal 2-1 jump. There, Marc extends record-breaking run with 38 No. 1s. The song joins another Marc song, his rendition of “Feliz Navidad/ I Wanna Wish You A Merry Christmas,” at No. 14.

For Wisin, the new No. 1 marks his sixth and first in over three years, since the four-week peaking “Soy Yo,” with Don Omar and Gente de Zona (July 2022).

Banda MS & Fuerza Regida Join Forces on Regional Mexican Airplay: Elsewhere on the Latin charts, Banda MS and Fuerza Regida’s second collab proves successful as“Seguro Le Dolió” claims the top spot on Regional Mexican Airplay, earning the weekly Greatest Gainer honor, for the largest jump in impressions.

“Seguro Le Dolió” rallies 8-1 after a 23% growth in audience impressions during the tracking period, to 6.4 million. The song earns Banda MS its 22nd No. 1, breaking from a tie with Intocable for the second-most champs, and trailing only Calibre 50’s 27 rulers. Regida captures its eighth No. 1

The song also earns Banda MS its first top 10 of the year on Latin Airplay chart, after a 15-4 surge.