Calvin Harris‘ former longtime business manager is firing back against bombshell fraud claims, saying he never stole from anybody and that the Scottish DJ willingly agreed to invest in his Los Angeles real estate development project.

Thomas St. John, an entertainment industry-focused accountant who runs the eponymous firm Thomas St. John Group, is currently wrapped up in thorny arbitration proceedings with his former client Harris (Adam Wiles). He’s accused of abusing his access to Harris’ accounts in order to fund his side venture: the construction of a recording studio and office space complex in Hollywood.

Harris claims that St. John tricked him into investing $22.5 million in the project, known as CMNTY Culture Campus, which he says turned out to be a “complete boondoggle” that he “has not received a single penny in return for” — while suggesting that St. John pocketed much of the money for himself.  

However, a representative for St. John says in a new statement that the allegations are “categorically false.” The rep denies that St. John engaged in any self-dealing, adding that Harris is one of nine above-board investors who “knowingly signed investment agreements” to get involved in CMNTY Culture.

“Not a single dollar has been misappropriated, all investor entitlements remain intact, and the project continues to advance within the normal entitlement timeline,” says St. John’s rep in the Tuesday (Sept. 23) statement. “We will continue to take every necessary step to set the record straight and to ensure that these malicious, bad-faith attacks are recognized for what they are: entirely without merit.”

While CMNTY Culture was initially designed to house a recording studio and office space, St. John has since shifted the plans and is now developing a residential apartment complex on the same tract of land in Hollywood. According to his rep, the project is proceeding apace and “is expected to approach a $1 billion valuation” upon completion.

“While the entitlement process has naturally taken longer than initially projected due to unprecedented interest, macroeconomic conditions and significant city red tape, it remains firmly within its promised schedule and is now on the verge of securing final entitlements, an important milestone that will unlock substantial value,” adds St. John’s rep.

Thomas St. John Group has offices in Los Angeles, London, Amsterdam and Stockholm. The management firm’s U.S. arm recently filed for bankruptcy, citing hundreds of thousands of dollars in unpaid rent in L.A. and multiple pending legal actions.

One creditor listed in the firm’s bankruptcy papers is Philip Lawrence, a songwriter and producer who made his name collaborating with Bruno Mars. Lawrence used to be a client of St. John’s and at one point invested $10 million from the sale of his catalog into CMNTY Culture Campus, according to court filings in Lawrence’s own personal bankruptcy case.

Five years ago, Latin music moguls Diego Laviada and Hernán Villarreal, who both worked at Sony Music Mexico for more than two decades, launched their own marketing and promotion agency called Dubbing Hits. 

“I felt the desire to do something else,” Laviada, CEO of Dubbing Hits and former vp of marketing and promotion at Sony Music Mexico, tells Billboard. “When I told Hernán about wanting to start this project, he got really excited and decided to join me. I didn’t have much to offer him at first, other than this big idea and the dream to follow it.” 

Based in Mexico, Dubbing Hits has become a one-stop company with different verticals specializing in creative and influencer marketing, audiovisual production, paid media, and mass promotion on TV, radio, and digital media, to name a few. The agency also works closely live entertainment companies, events, influencers and brands, and recently teamed up with creative and audiovisual production company Cuarto Piso. 

“When it came to the growth of independent artists, I felt there was a need for professional, experienced, and honest attention that can guide the artist in their different stages,” says Laviada, who has almost 35 years of experience in the industry.

What started off as a small team of six people has evolved into an office with more than 35 employees. Led by Laviada and Villarreal, Dubbing Hits says it has collaborated on more than 1,000 promo plans and 500 music releases, with over 400 of those reaching No. 1 in Mexico; and executed more than 1,500 campaigns that have generated 5.3 billion impressions across 14 countries. The agency has also expanded its campaigns to the coveted screens in New York’s Times Square. 

Dubbing Hits’ notable clients include Alejandro Sanz, Bad Bunny, Carin León, Fuerza Regida, Grupo Firme, Katy Perry, Marc Anthony, Miley Cyrus, Rauw Alejandro, Romeo Santos and Shakira, along with companies such as Disney+, OCESA Seitrack, Rimas and Spotify. 

Now, on the company’s fifth anniversary, Laviada and Villarreal have no plans to slow down. 

“This industry is so extensive with lots of options that I think we make the perfect combination, always with the hunger to support, create and be that partner that believes in the artist and lives their dream,” says Laviada. “Our slogan best explains it: ‘Your project, our passion.’”

The Mavericks’ lead singer Raul Malo has given an update on his medical condition and the immediate future of the revered country band.

Malo has been receiving treatment for colon cancer since June 2024 but has remarkably managed to keep touring with periodic breaks for treatment. However, in an Instagram post earlier Wednesday (Sept. 24), accompanied by a video of him sitting in what looks like a study playing his electric guitar, he said all future shows are cancelled while he furthers treatment.

“I’ve developed something called LMD, which stands for ‘get this sh-t out of my head/’ Treatment for this is radiation, which I will start tomorrow,” he wrote. “We will probably jump into some chemo, and are even looking at alternative therapies.”  According to the Mayo Clinic’s website, LMD stands for Leptomeningeal Disease, a condition when cancer cells spread to the membranes around the brain and spinal chord.

Malo said the band will continue working on other non-touring projects, including releasing live recordings and merchandise. He also said while the Mavericks’ dates with Dwight Yoakam on Yoakam’s Cosmic Roundup & Rodeo tour are canceled, the band still hopes to play its shows at Nashville’s Ryman Auditorium in December.

The singer also sent thanks to all who are wishing him well and for the circle of support he has. “I want to let everybody know, I am in no way alone, or scared. I have an amazing wife and boys, wonderful family, team, road crew, band, friends and fans,” he said. “I don’t even have enough words to describe the love and support that I’m getting right now. To my friends who have sent me texts and messages, I want you to know that I’ve read them all. I can’t return them all, but your love, prayers, and well wishes have not gone unnoticed.”

He also vowed to keep fighting. “We don’t know what this will look like a couple months from now, but we are going into it like we have with everything else. Full steam ahead. Fight, recover, rest, repeat.”

Mariah Carey isn’t the biggest fan of artists covering her songs.

During an interview with GQ, the topic of covers came up and Mariah told a story of Prince once telling her that he didn’t like when other singers did covers of his songs, in regards to Carey’s rendition of his record “The Beautiful Ones.”

“I love ‘The Beautiful Ones’ so much,” she said. “And I remember Prince, he didn’t like people to redo his songs. He said to me, ‘I love ‘Honey’ though.’ It’s like, ‘Prince likes ‘Honey’!’ [Laughs] But about [my cover of] ‘The Beautiful Ones,’ he said he didn’t like when people did covers of his songs. And I was like, ‘Oh no, he doesn’t like it.’ But then he told me that he liked ‘Honey.’”

And apparently she feels the same way because she was then asked if she liked when people covered her songs to which she answered, “Not really.”

She was then asked about the viral reaction to her watching Muni Long covering her hit record “We Belong Together” during the 2025 iHeartRadio Music Awards where the legendary singer was being honored as an industry icon and appeared to be a bit uncomfortable during her tribute performance.

“I didn’t even hear the cover. I didn’t know it happened. No one told me,” she said perhaps blaming her reaction on the venue’s acoustics. “I just didn’t know that she had done ‘We Belong Together’ [as a cover] ‘cause her song was so similar to ‘We Belong Together.’ I had no idea that she did ‘We Belong Together.’”

Adding, “I’m very honored and flattered that she did it. I love Muni Long, she’s a great person, umm, but I just don’t like people doing my songs.”

Muni took to social media and gave her side of the story, telling her followers that she was paying homage and was asked to do that specific song.

“The people that’s got a lot to say, you don’t understand how this…paying homage and having respect for people, you know what I’m saying,” Long explained at the time. “She asked me to do it. You thought I chose to get on TV and sing a Mariah Carey song? You thought that was my choice? Why would I do that? Nobody can sing Mariah’s songs like Mariah. Nobody. I didn’t chose that. She asked me to do it and of course I said yes ’cause why would I ever say no? I did my best, and that’s all I can do.”

Mariah also showed Muni love on her Instagram Stories after the show and posted a picture of herself, Long and Tori Kelly along with a caption that read, “So beyond grateful for these two gorgeous, uber-talented, kind, incredible musicians who made my heart so full of joy with their tribute performances at the @iheartradio awards. I love and appreciate you so much!!!”

The two singers have collaborated a bunch over the years, most recently in 2024 when Mariah hopped on the remix for Muni’s hit single “Made for Me.”

Mariah Carey’s 16th album Here for It All later this week on Friday, Sept. 26.

AI-powered artist Xania Monet’s songs have racked up more than 17 million total on-demand streams in the U.S. since her Suno-crafted R&B tracks were released about two months ago, according to Luminate.  

What exactly is that worth?   

Monet — the creation of 31-year-old Mississippi-based woman Talisha Jones, who used AI to craft Monet’s image and Suno to make the music — was signed to a multimillion-dollar record deal by the independent music company Hallwood Media last week after a bidding war roped in several labels, one of which offered as much as $3 million.  

Using industry data from the RIAA, Luminate and other financial sources at major and indie labels to estimate how much money a song makes per audio and video stream, digital download and airplay spin, Billboard estimates Monet’s songs have generated more than $50,000 in less than two months. But how much of that Jones, Monet’s human creator, or Hallwood Media may be able to collect is less clear.  
Most digital streaming platforms, including Spotify, do not have specific policies for AI music, which may mean these songs can accrue royalties the same as human-made songs do. The United States Copyright Office has said that songs authored by a human that use AI to assist in the creation of music are copyrightable, but that fully AI-generated songs are not. 

The law is not yet settled on the matter, and several major music companies are currently suing Suno and another AI music generator, Udio, over copyright infringement for allegedly illegally ingesting their music to train algorithms.  

Whether fully or partially AI-generated, songs involving AI are now charting more frequently. In June, Vinih Pray’s “A Million Colors” was hailed as the first-known AI song to chart on the TikTok Viral 50, and it has accumulated around 950,000 official U.S. on-demand audio and video streams, which Billboard estimates generated roughly $6,300. Later in June, AI act The Velvet Sundown benefited from controversy after Reddit users discovered that the performers in the band were not real-life humans. The Velvet Sundown’s most popular song, “Dust on the Wind,” racked up just under 900,000 official U.S. on-demand audio and video streams, which Billboard estimates generated slightly less than $6,000 in revenue. 

The Music Fights Fraud Alliance has called for greater scrutiny by streaming platforms around content like The Velvet Sundown’s, saying that bots, manipulated playlists and other factors can be used to make songs look more popular than they are. The group’s CEO, Michael Lewan, says this kind of artificial streaming can occur with both AI-generated and human-made music.  

All that said, Monet’s five-song catalog has generated more than $52,000 and nearly 17 million total on-demand official U.S. streams — a figure that nearly doubled from last week — according to Billboard estimates based on Luminate data. The catalog had racked up 12,500 album consumption units as of the week ending Sept. 18. 

Monet’s most popular track, “How Was I Supposed to Know?,” which has ranked in the top 10 on Billboard’s R&B Digital Song Sales for two weeks in a row and hit No. 22 last week on the Digital Song Sales chart overall, has accumulated 22,700 song equivalents in the U.S. and more than 3 million on-demand audio and video streams.  

If all royalties were paid out for this track, Billboard estimates it would total nearly $21,800 in master recording and publishing rights.  

Monet’s next most popular track, “I Ask For So Little,” which has 1.56 million total on-demand U.S. streams, has so far generated around $10,000 in revenue from master and publishing rights. The track “This Ain’t No Tryout,” which has 1.2 million on-demand streams, has generated $8,360. “The Strong Don’t Get a Break” has generated an estimated $6,500, and “Let God, Let Go” has generated around $5,500, as of Sept. 18, according to Billboard estimates.

More than a decade since streaming became the dominant mode of music consumption, stakeholders are actively exploring changes to royalty payout models, with some calling for “functional music” songs like the sounds of white noise and birds — and possibly AI-generated songs — to receive royalty rates that are lower than human-generated music, or to be excluded from the revenue pool entirely.  
 
All of which makes it nearly impossible to determine how much either Jones or her label would be able to take in from streams and sales of such songs in the end. But the revenue generated in theory is still significant — and growing by the day.