HITS LIST RELIVES
THE OLD DAYS

No, not that old. Our latest array of music-biz talking points features former 1D member turned solo chart-topper Niall Horan and former 1D manager turned Liam’s career handler Richard Griffiths. They're now doing business at Capitol, which is headed by fellow Brit Steve Barnett, the former co-head of 1D’s label, Columbia. Capitol is also the label home of Sam Smith, whose hotly anticipated sophomore album drops next Friday, 11/3. That's five days after the Grammys first-round voting deadline.

The connections continue with RCA, whose roster includes last week’s chart-topper, pop goddess P!nk, who is nominated for Musical Event of the year at the 11/8 CMA Awards for her collaboration with stadium-filler Kenny Chesney, whose just-released live LP will be powered by the biggest ticket bundle of all time (including antiquity), even bigger than P!nk’s bundle, which held the 2017 record for seven days. The presence of CMA topper Sarah Trahern adds a seventh degree of separation. Got that?

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