00:00 "I think it's Axe Backwards and at the very least we should have known."
00:05 Jack Antonoff and other artists are weighing in on Universal Music Group pulling its song
00:10 catalog from TikTok. After failing to reach a new licensing deal with a social media platform,
00:15 UMG abruptly announced on Tuesday that it would be pulling its catalog from the app,
00:20 which means TikTokers won't be able to use music from artists like Taylor Swift,
00:24 Bad Bunny, Olivia Rodrigo, Drake and more.
00:27 When asked about the TikTok removal backstage at the Grammys, Antonoff,
00:30 who won producer of the year, told press, "You've got a whole industry being like,
00:35 'You've got to do everything, you've got to do everything, and here's where you've got to do it.'
00:38 And then one day it's like, poof." Adding, "There's a lot of things wrong in the industry."
00:42 "You've always got to make sure, as an artist, you can't get used to being paid last,
00:47 which they try to get you used to. But I think it's Axe Backwards and
00:54 at the very least we should have known."
00:57 Best New Artist nominee Noah Khan, signed to UMG's Republic Records,
01:01 also weighed in on the issue on the Grammys red carpet with The Hollywood Reporter.
01:05 "It's a shame for the developing artists, for sure. I'm very,
01:08 very lucky to have built a career over eight years and built a fan base.
01:11 Um, I hope that it's resolved, of course, but I like to believe that there was music
01:15 being made before TikTok, and that there's a way around this and there's a way through it."
01:19 Universal Music Group wrote a blistering open letter to artists and songwriters titled "Why
01:24 We Must Call Time Out on TikTok" and cited artist pay, the harmful effects of AI,
01:29 and online safety for TikTok users among its reasons.
01:32 For more updates to this story, head to THR.com.
01:36 And for the latest entertainment news and updates, keep watching The Hollywood Reporter News.
