“This has to be a bad ‘Punk’d’ episode. I’m waiting for Ashton [Kutcher] to jump out of my closet. Our relationship with UMG is solid. Its biggest artists are investors and partners in Triller and Universal owns part of Triller. We find it hard to believe UMG wouldn’t give us any warning or notice but just tell us via press,” Triller CEO Mike Lu said in an interview with Billboard.
Proxima Media, the company that owns Triller, also released a statement to Pitchfork: “We can confirm our deal with UMG expired approximately one week ago. We have been negotiating since then in an attempt to renew. The renewal, however, was just a formality and a courtesy to UMG, as a shareholder of Triller.
“Triller does not need a deal with UMG to continue operating as it has been since the relevant artists are already shareholders or partners on Triller, and thus can authorize their usage directly. Triller has no use for a licensing deal with UMG.”
Some of Triller’s co-owners include Lil Wayne and The Weeknd while other partners outside the UMG arm include Snoop Dogg, Kendrick Lamar, Young Thug and Tyga.
