Grand Theft Cliff; Are festivals being cancelled because of the climate crisis?; Gina's Pet Bangers!; SoundCloud sells WAVs and much more

<p><strong>Your weekly guide to the music biz and how it all works. This week, Stu and Joe plan an ultraviolent trip through the criminal underworld* as they take a look at this week&#39;s music industry news, including:</strong></p><p>→ We’re all going on a summer holiday… (a summer holiday that involves cocaine, strip clubs and lots of shooting people in the face.) Yes, <a href="https://musically.com/2026/08/28/music-features-prominently-in-grand-theft-auto-vi-extended-look/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">the Cliff Richard / Grand Theft Auto crossover you&#39;ve all been waiting for is here at last</a>! *<em>Yes, this is the extent of their violent plans, sorry.</em></p><p>→ The popular US Bonnaroo festival is <a href="https://musically.com/2026/08/25/bonnaroo-festival-takes-a-year-off-to-recover-from-extreme-weather/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">taking a year off in 2027</a> because its venue has been battered by storms two years in a row. Is this a big warning klaxon for other festivals regarding the climate emergency?</p><p>→ We need to talk about <a href="https://musically.com/2026/08/25/ginas-pet-bangers-tiktok-soundon-ai-music/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">Gina’s Pet Bangers</a>. But what are they, and WHY do we need to talk about them?</p><p>→ $76m. That’s <a href="https://musically.com/2026/08/26/stability-ai-raises-76m-from-investors-including-major-labels/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">how much a company called Stability AI raised in funding last week</a>, with investors including all three major labels AND their former nemesis Sean Parker.</p><p>→ Did streaming kill the downloads star? Now SoundCloud wants to bring it back from the dead by <a href="https://musically.com/2026/08/26/soundcloud-tests-feature-for-artists-to-sell-music-downloads-from-their-profiles/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">helping artists to sell MP3s and WAVs from their profiles</a>. Is this a big deal?</p><p>→ OK Go have <a href="https://play.saythesamething.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">released a new mobile game</a>, except it’s an old mobile game that they <a href="https://musically.com/2013/05/13/ok-go-launch-say-the-same-thing-iosandroid-word-game/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">already released in 2013</a>. What’s going on here, and are there any treadmills or tech brands involved?</p><p><strong>And in the special post-show lock-in section just for our </strong><a href="https://www.patreon.com/12218634/join" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">⁠⁠<strong>Patreon Superfans</strong>⁠⁠</a><strong>, Stu and Joe prop themselves up at the bar – in this week&#39;s bonus material:</strong></p><ul><li><p>Joe and Stu wax lyrical about Dolly Parton, including some good Dolly Pub Facts from Stuart;</p></li><li><p> Grand Theft Auto and music: what are the most impactful moments of hearing just the right song at just the right time in video games / movies etc – and will there be a GTA music streaming platform?</p></li><li><p>Stu and Joe play the OK Go game (you&#39;ll be able to tell how successful they were <a href="https://play.saythesamething.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">right here</a>)</p></li></ul><p>===================================</p><p><strong>As ever, we welcome your feedback, emails and – in particular</strong> – any questions you might have about how the music biz works!</p><p>Email us: <a href="mailto:thepriceofmusicpodcast@gmail.com" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠</a><a href="mailto:thepriceofmusicpodcast@gmail.com" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow"><strong>thepriceofmusicpodcast@gmail.com</strong></a><a href="mailto:thepriceofmusicpodcast@gmail.com" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠</a></p><p>See you next week!</p><p>Stuart and Joe</p><p>======</p><p>TPOM online: <a href="h