Lyor Cohen, global head of music at Google/YouTube, joined Billboard editor-in-chief Hannah Karp on Wednesday (Oct. 22) for a compelling fireside chat during Billboard Latin Music Week 2025.

Cohen reflected on his decades-long career shaping artists’ journeys and ushering in the digital music revolution. He offered invaluable insights into the evolution of music consumption, the impact of streaming on today’s artists and the importance of harnessing technology such as AI to amplify diverse voices in the global music industry.

When asked about the secrets to creating standout music videos, Cohen shared what he believes to be the most important thing: “Authenticity. Being genuine and finding your voice. A lot of people think there are shortcuts, and do this [signals a selfie] all day long. Being a real artist takes time. You have to love what you do. You have to find that beautiful, important record. You have to keep practicing. You have to build and go on tour. You have to be a real artist. All that fake stuff is going to get flushed out.”

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Karp probed further about “fake stuff,” prompting Cohen to clarify that those who ascend are those who are “thirsty for the human connection — and the human connection is music. Ultimately, you’re gonna have to get on the stage. You’re gonna have to go mano a mano with your fans.” He added that “AI is an additional tool, and the generation of AI is desperate for human authenticity to help guide it and use it as a tool.”

“Spain is the gateway to Europe, and everyone wants to get this Latin action,” he said, emphasizing the global potential of Latin music. “Why does [South Korea] have such weight outside of Korea? It’s because they work at it, showing up, crafting amazing music. I think the same for the Indians – what’s happening with Indian music, the power of these global platforms.”

Cohen continued to highlight the importance of global platforms such as YouTube — which sees more than 2 billion logged-in viewers watching music videos each month — in sharing Latin music with audiences worldwide, emphasizing the opportunity to spread “Latin love” across borders and cultures.

Spanning more than 30 years, Latin Music Week is the single-most important and largest gathering of Latin artists and industry executives in the world. Latin Music Week coincides with the 2025 Billboard Latin Music Awards, set to air Thursday, Oct. 23, on Telemundo and Peacock.

THE BIG STORY: It sounds like music-biz Mad Libs: After a Bruno Mars co-writer sells his catalog, he tries to mitigate his tax liabilities by investing in a Hollywood real estate project, which later becomes a “boondoggle” at the heart of bombshell fraud claims filed by Calvin Harris. Got all that? We haven’t even mentioned Tiësto, who is also somehow involved.

That’s the wild story behind CMNTY Culture Campus, as unpacked by Billboard’s Rachel Scharf last week in a must-read deep dive – a fascinating look at how a now-bankrupt business manager to the stars and several of his clients got tangled up in a Los Angeles development scheme that so far has failed to get off the ground.

For the whole story, go read the full article here – and stay with Billboard for updates on messy dispute as it moves forward.

You’re reading The Legal Beat, a weekly newsletter about music law from Billboard Pro, offering you a one-stop cheat sheet of big new cases, important rulings and all the fun stuff in between. To get the newsletter in your inbox every Tuesday, go subscribe here.

Other top stories this week…

THA RULING – Lil Wayne scored a victory in a years-long legal battle with his former attorney Ron Sweeney, who claimed he was owed $20 million under a contingency fee arrangement that entitled him to 10% of Wayne’s profits. A judge rejected that claim, saying instead that Sweeney is only entitled to “reasonable fees” from Wayne – a figure that will be determined in future litigation. Though Wayne told Billboard he was “thankful” for the ruling, Sweeney said his case was “very much alive.”

WU-TANG WAR – Martin Shkreli asked a federal judge to force Wu-Tang Clan’s RZA to participate in a messy legal battle over the group’s one-of-a-kind album Once Upon a Time in Shaolin. If granted, the move would expand the lawsuit – from a more limited fight over whether Shkreli illegally retained copies of the rare album after he forfeited it to prosecutors, to a broader legal action over whether either Wu-Tang or Shkreli continue to own copyrights to the legendary record.

DIDDY APPEAL – Weeks after he was sent to prison for four years, Sean “Diddy” Combs formally launched his appeal of his convictions and sentence. Though he did not yet file detailed arguments, a major focus at the appellate court could be on so-called acquitted conduct – the tricky problem of sentencing someone, like Diddy, who was only convicted on some of his charges. Separately, the White House said there was “zero truth” to news reports that President Donald Trump was considering commuting the disgraced mogul’s sentence.

MAVERICK CITY MESS – Tony Brown, the co-founder of Maverick City Music, filed civil racketeering (RICO) claims against the Grammy-winning worship collective, alleging that CEO Norman Gyamfi threatened and coerced him into signing an unfavorable buyout deal in 2023. The new claims come on the heels of a bombshell fraud lawsuit brought against Maverick City Music by former member Chandler Moore that accuses Gyamfi of orchestrating secret deals and forging his signature to steal millions in royalties.

NU METAL, FAKE URL – Slipknot launched a lawsuit against an alleged cybersquatter that’s been using the web address slipknot.com to advertise counterfeit merchandise for more than two decades: “The domain name was registered in an effort to profit off of plaintiff’s goodwill and to trick unsuspecting visitors,” the band wrote, saying it had been forced to use the clunkier URL slipknot1.com.

MASTER V. COMPOSITION – A federal appeals court rejected a lawsuit that accused French Montana of illegally sampling on his 2013 hit “Ain’t Worried About Nothin’” – even though the court also said that the beats of the two tracks sounded “indistinguishable” to the “naked ear.” The ruling turned on the fact that accuser Eddie Lee Richardson owned only a copyright to his sound recording, and not the underlying musical composition.

TRIAL DELAY? Attorneys for former Oak View Group (OVG) chief executive Tim Leiweke asked to postpone his criminal trial from December to at least October 2026, arguing that his legal team needs additional time to review roughly seven million pages of evidence produced by federal prosecutors. Leiweke was indicted this summer on charges of conspiring to rig a bid for an Austin arena; the longtime live event exec has strongly denied the allegations.

PRISON DELAY? Music executive Ángel Del Villar asked a judge to let him stay out of prison while he appeals his felony convictions for doing business with a concert promoter linked to Mexican drug cartels, arguing that he’s “not a flight risk” and will likely win his appeal. If the request is denied, Del Villar is set to start his four-year prison sentence on Dec. 1.

MUSIC AT SCOTUS – The major record labels filed their main brief at the U.S. Supreme Court in their billion-dollar piracy lawsuit against Cox Communications, blasting the telecom giant for invoking “innocent grandmothers” in its appeal to the high court. Cox told the court this summer that the case could imperil internet access for millions, but the labels say such “breathless” claims are overblown.

TEMU HITS BACK – The fast-growing Chinese e-commerce site asked a judge to dismiss a lawsuit over counterfeit MF Doom merchandise filed earlier this year by the late hip-hop legend’s estate, arguing in a new court filing that it cannot be held responsible for the actions of independent sellers who use the site.

LIMO LIKENESS LAWSUIT – Post Malone and Tyla Yaweh were hit with a lawsuit from a limo driver named Larry Deuel who appeared in their 2020 music video for the song “Tommy Lee.” Deuel claimed the stars asked him to take part in the shoot and promised he’d be “taken care of” – and that he was owed a whopping $10 million in damages over their failure to do so.

NEVER HEARD IT – Anitta won a court ruling dismissing a lawsuit that claimed the Brazilian star stole key elements of her 2023 hit “Funk Rave” from an earlier track by two little-known songwriters. The judge ruled that Anitta likely never heard the earlier song – and that an alternative allegation her co-writer Diplo might have heard it was “speculative at best.”

“PUT UP OR SHUT UP” – Megan Thee Stallion’s lawyers urged a judge to dismiss a lawsuit by cameraman named Emilio Garcia who sued the rapper last year over allegations that he was forced to watch her have sex in a car during a European tour. After months of discovery, Megan’s lawyers say Garcia has found “no evidentiary support for his sensationalized and baseless claims” and that most of the case should be dismissed without a trial.

RADIO ROW – Maurice “The Voice” Watts, the longtime host of a Harlem R&B radio show called The Love Zone, filed a lawsuit against Amazon Studios and Paramount over claims after a fictional show of the same name was briefly mentioned in an episode of the Prime series Cross. Such a case faces long odds because the First Amendment usually allows for free use of trademarks and brand names in expressive works like TV shows and movies.

DAVID GEFFEN DIVORCE – The music and film mogul’s estranged husband Donovan Michaels dropped a civil lawsuit that leveled shocking abuse allegations against Geffen earlier this year. Michaels, a former exotic dancer who married the 82-year-old billionaire without a prenup in 2023, had sought “financial support commensurate with his lifestyle for the rest of his life.” The pair will continue to litigate their divorce in a separate case.

MINOR DISCORD – Broke Records was hit with a lawsuit from ATLXS, the 18-year-old Italian artist behind the hit dance track “Passo Bem Solto,” over allegations that the indie label has refused to release him from a distribution deal he signed as a minor. Broke, founded in 2023 in partnership with Create Music Group, has carved out a niche turning viral songs into streaming hits – precisely what happened with ATLXS’s track, which has more than 450 million Spotify streams across various remixes.

We’ll never know what Elizabeth Taylor would have thought about Taylor Swift‘s new song named after her, but if the late icon’s son’s reaction is any indication, she would’ve loved it.

In an interview with People published Wednesday (Oct. 22), Christopher Wilding — the second son of Taylor and her second husband, Michael Wilding — said that the pop star’s detailed references to his mom’s legacy on the song were “especially magical.”

“She and my mom do seem like kindred spirits,” Christopher said of Swift, noting that he listened to “Elizabeth Taylor” on “the day it became available.” “They are both the very embodiment of female empowerment. The way [Swift] has deftly captured the similarities and parallel tracks in their careers and personal lives is delightful.”

The 14-time Grammy winner’s tribute to the Hollywood legend dropped Oct. 3 as the second track on The Life of a Showgirl, Swift’s 12th studio album. The LP made a historic debut at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 with more than 4 million copies sold in its first week, while “Elizabeth Taylor” opened at No. 3 on the Billboard Hot 100.

“Even as I believe my mother was for hers, Taylor Swift is an inspirational role model for her generation,” Christopher added. “Her advocacy for LGBTQ+ rights as well as her philanthropic work would have garnered her great admiration from my mother had they had a chance to get to know one another.”

Swift has long had a fascination with Taylor. On Reputation lead single “…Ready for It?,” the singer referenced the actress’ affair with Richard Burton. (“And he can be my jailer, Burton to this Taylor/ Every love I’ve known in comparison is a failure.”)

The Eras Tour headliner also opened up about her choice to honor Taylor on Showgirl in a video with Pandora. “My parents sent me this clip of Elizabeth Taylor’s son [Christopher] saying something very flattering, that if there were one person he might compare to his mother in the modern day, in terms of persona and … the chaos around us, he said it would be me,” she said in the clip at the time. “I was so flattered by that.”

Marathon Live, the Nashville-based independent venue operator and promoter has launched its Facilities Management Division, a major expansion designed to bring full-service operational expertise to live entertainment venues across the U.S. The new division, led by Mark Dinerstein (CEO), Casey Osburn (SVP Operations), and Josh Billue (Chief Development Officer), offers a wide range of venue support services — from operations and talent buying to food and beverage management, sponsorships, marketing, CRM, ticketing, production design, and facility development.

The goal is to help existing and emerging venues streamline costs while maintaining top-tier audience and artist experiences. “We are highly focused on leading the industry in creative efficiencies and lowering overheads without sacrificing a high-quality customer and artist experience,” says Dinerstein. “Our expectations are to integrate our successful practices and team members to share our reputation as a top operator in the small to midsize venue segment.”

The Facilities Management Division’s first client is Fort Worth’s Tulips FTW, a 550-capacity live music venue in the city’s Near Southside neighborhood. Known for its warehouse aesthetic and local community roots, Tulips has become a cornerstone of the Fort Worth music scene, hosting artists like Shakey Graves, Sierra Ferrell, Big Freedia, and Saosin alongside homegrown talent. “Marathon Live changes our dynamic, and we could not be more thrilled to start Tulips’ next chapter with them,” says Jason Suder, owner of Tulips FTW.

“Being part of the Marathon Live network only validates our efforts, and this collaboration opens up a world of prowess and access to artists we could not have achieved on our own.” Founded in 2011 with the opening of Nashville’s Marathon Music Works, Marathon Live has built a respected portfolio of independent venues including The Truman (Kansas City), The Signal (Chattanooga), The Hall (Little Rock), The Hawthorn (St. Louis), and the newly opened FIVE (Jacksonville, FL). With its expansion into facilities management, the company aims to extend its operational DNA — balancing independence, artist-first values, and scalable infrastructure — to a new generation of live entertainment spaces nationwide.