Bill Donahue
Bill Donahue covers how law, crime and regulation shape the music business, turning complex cases into clear stories for readers of Billboard. He is the senior legal correspondent at the masthead, leading coverage of lawsuits, trials and policy fights that define the power balance between artists, labels, platforms and fans. He describes his beat as the intersection of the music business and the law, and his work follows legal disputes from the first filing through their impact on the wider industry.
Music industry lawsuits and trials
Much of Donahue’s reporting centers on high‑profile lawsuits and trials involving major artists, including cases tied to stars such as Taylor Swift. He tracks civil litigation that tests the boundaries of contracts, royalties and reputation, explaining who is suing whom, what is at stake, and how the courts respond. His coverage includes stories like the streaming‑fraud lawsuit that accused Spotify of generating billions of fake plays for Drake, in which he examines how allegations of manipulation collide with the technical and contractual realities of modern streaming.
Donahue also reports on cases that reach beyond pure business disputes into allegations of serious misconduct by artists and their teams. In one widely cited story, he covers the lawsuit alleging that Backstreet Boys member Nick Carter raped a teenage fan on a tour bus, bringing legal detail and context to a case that blends pop stardom with long‑running claims of abuse. Across these pieces, he focuses on court documents, procedural turns and the way outcomes reverberate across the careers and catalogues of the people involved.
Crime, misconduct and accountability in music
As lead legal reporter, Donahue specializes in criminal cases and lawsuits that raise questions of accountability inside the music world. His beat includes allegations of sexual assault, fraud and other wrongdoing tied to performers, executives and companies, reflecting how criminal law and civil liability now sit at the center of many major music stories. He covers these matters as legal news first, grounding his writing in charges, filings and rulings while showing how they intersect with public image campaigns and fan responses.
Policy issues and enforcement are another part of his work, as he follows how regulators, law enforcement and industry bodies respond to emerging problems. When a case tests new theories of liability or pushes courts into unfamiliar territory, he highlights what the decisions mean for future investigations, settlements and industry standards. This emphasis on crime and policy sets his reporting apart from general music coverage that focuses on releases and performances, placing questions of responsibility and rule‑making at the center of his stories.
Streaming, technology and music business rules
Donahue devotes significant attention to how streaming platforms and new technologies are reshaping the legal framework of the music business. Lawsuits over alleged streaming fraud, royalty calculations and platform practices are a recurring subject, and he treats them as tests of the rules that govern digital listening and revenue. In the Spotify case tied to Drake’s plays, for example, he writes about how claims of artificial streams confront the contractual and technical systems that underlie the platform’s metrics and payouts.
Copyright and ownership disputes are another thread, and Donahue often breaks down cases where a single song or sound is alleged to underpin entire genres or waves of releases. In a widely shared explainer on a reggaeton lawsuit, he unpacks an unprecedented claim that most of the genre traces back to one track, showing how courts assess similarity, influence and originality in a fast‑moving musical landscape. He extends this analysis beyond articles through appearances on Billboard’s On The Record podcast, where he joins colleagues to discuss the state of the music business and the possible outcomes of major legal and policy battles. These pieces and conversations position him as a specialist voice on how legal decisions and regulatory shifts affect streaming platforms, labels and artists in practical terms.
Broader reporting experience
Alongside his legal beat, Donahue has written long‑form features for an outdoor and adventure magazine, bringing a narrative style shaped by reporting in remote and politically fraught places. His own account of past work includes stories about searching for fallen meteorites in the Sahara Desert and sneaking into Manuel Noriega’s abandoned beach house, examples of deeply reported, scene‑driven journalism outside music. This background in immersive feature writing informs his approach at Billboard, where he combines legal detail with an eye for character, setting and the broader cultural stakes of industry disputes. It gives his coverage of lawsuits, crimes and policy fights a texture that reflects both the letter of the law and the lived reality of people working in and around the music business.
4 more music journalists.
Abigail Kellett
Abigail Kellett is a news reporter at the Halifax Courier who stands out for visually led coverage that shows how culture, nightlife and local life play out on the ground. She documents gigs, festivals and major live shows at venues such as The Piece Hall through curated photo sets that capture atmosphere, crowd and setting as much as performers, and she uses extensive image galleries to tap reader nostalgia for nights out in Halifax town centre. Her beat spans arts, entertainment, going out, heritage, books and literary events, along with community life, people stories, local challenges, milestones, transport, regeneration, lifestyle and food. She reports through photographs, checklist-style features, reader-driven lists and roundups of most-read stories, turning announcements, programmes, author events, festivals, shop lists and everyday characters into stories about place, shared memory and how people spend their time.
Adam Lyon
Adam Lyon is a digital audience and content editor whose news beat sits at the intersection of Ayrshire’s cultural life, business environment and public affairs. He works for the Ayr Advertiser and as Digital Audience & Content Editor for Newsquest in the west of Scotland across multiple weekly titles. He covers Ayrshire news with a strong thread of music and local culture alongside business, courts and public affairs. He reports on music when it has a clear community or national hook, treating songs as news events rather than reviews. His business work explains how local firms and retail policy shape town centres. His court coverage uses round-ups of sheriff court cases to show patterns and outcomes. He also fronts video previews and is active in a football supporters trust community.
Adam Maidment
Adam Maidment is a senior What’s On and LGBTQ+ reporter whose work links big-name gigs, new venues and cultural flashpoints to everyday fan culture and inclusion. He covers music, nightlife and the wider cultural scene for the Manchester Evening News, focusing on how concerts, openings and immersive events land with real people and communities. His beat spans live music, arenas and stadiums, new restaurant and bar openings, food reviews, exhibitions, street art and nightlife infrastructure, with a particular focus on LGBTQ+ audiences and neighbourhoods. He reports on venue ambitions and problems, cultural institutions and equality issues, and franchise-led experiences, using straightforward, on-the-ground reporting and clear description. Drawing on a background in community reporting, he looks for underrepresented perspectives and uses social media, analytics and local sourcing to find stories where culture, identity and place meet.
Alison Brinkworth
Alison Brinkworth is a freelance journalist who treats music as a gateway into place, history and everyday life, often through exhibitions, performances and city-centre events. She covers music within the wider cultural and lifestyle scene, leaning toward accessible, on-the-ground stories framed by familiar artists, venues and local attractions. Her work often focuses on music exhibitions and attractions built around well-known performers, alongside theatre reviews, live events and city attractions. She brings a lifestyle, travel and human-interest sensibility, using interviews and personal stories to show how people spend their time. With over 25 years of experience across print, digital, social media and internal communications, she writes clear, factual, audience-facing articles with dates, locations and organisers, suited to listings, guides and practical recommendations.