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Roula Khalaf, Editor of the FT, selects her favourite stories in this weekly newsletter.

Brussels has said it will build up emergency stockpiles of critical minerals and cable repair kits, as concerns grow over the EU’s vulnerability to attack.

“The EU faces an increasingly complex and deteriorating risk landscape marked by rising geopolitical tensions, including conflict, the mounting impacts of climate change, environmental degradation, and hybrid and cyber threats,’’ the European Commission said in a draft document setting out a stockpiling strategy, seen by the Financial Times.

Member states should co-ordinate backup supplies of food, medicines and even nuclear fuel, the EU executive said. It would also accelerate work on EU-level stockpiles of items such as cable repair modules “to ensure prompt recovery from energy or optical cable disruptions” and commodities such as rare earths and permanent magnets, which are crucial for energy and defence systems.

Several instances of potential sabotage to underwater communication cables and gas pipelines in recent years have caused concern about the vulnerability of critical infrastructure.

The strategy is part of a wider push by the EU to improve the security and resilience of the 27-country bloc. Last month, General Carsten Breuer, the German chief of defence, warned that Russia could attack an EU member state within the next four years.

The higher-risk environment was driven by ‘‘increased activity from hacktivists, cybercriminals and state-sponsored groups”, the document said.

The EU is also more susceptible than many other regions to the effects of climate change as it is warming twice as fast as the global average. Wildfires in Crete forced 5,000 people to evacuate the island this week.

In a report commissioned by the EU in October, former Finnish president Sauli Niinistö said that security should be considered a “public good” and called for a preparedness mindset.

On stockpiling, he said that Brussels should “define targets to ensure minimum levels of preparedness in different crisis scenarios, including in the event of an armed aggression or the large-scale disruption of global supply chains”.

The EU in March also advised households to stockpile essential supplies to survive at least 72 hours of crisis.

The bloc already maintains a fleet of firefighting planes and helicopters, a medical evacuation plane, and items such as field hospitals and critical medical supplies across 22 EU countries as part of its emergency response effort for natural disasters.

But the commission said it would establish a “stockpiling network” to improve co-ordination between EU countries. There was “limited common understanding of which essential goods are needed for crisis preparedness against the backdrop of a rapidly evolving risk landscape”, it said in the document.

It would also start compiling regularly updated lists of essential supplies tailored to each region and crisis type. Member states should better incentivise the private sector to help with stockpiling, such as through tax credits, it said.

The bloc should also work with allies on “shared warehousing” and co-ordinate better on managing resources and dual-use infrastructure with Nato.

The need for investment in critical stockpiling would also be considered in proposals for its new multiannual budget, which are due to be put forward later this month.

The draft document is due to be published next week and could change ahead of its presentation.

Desperate pleas peppered social media as loved ones sought any information available about people caught in the flood zone.

Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick said somewhere between 6 and 10 bodies had been found so far in the frantic search for victims. Meanwhile, during a news conference conducted at the same time as Patrick’s update, Kerr County Sheriff Larry Leitha reported that there were 13 deaths from the flooding.

At least 10 inches (25 centimeters) of rain poured down overnight in central Kerr County, causing flash flooding of the Guadalupe River and leading to desperate pleas for information about the missing.

“Some are adults, some are children,” Patrick said during a news conference. “Again, we don’t know where those bodies came from.”

Teams conducted dozens of rescues, and emergency responders continued to search for those who were unaccounted for. That includes more than 20 girls missing from summer camps.

“I’m asking the people of Texas, do some serious praying this afternoon. On-your-knees kind of praying, that we find these young girls,” Patrick said.

Comments on a Facebook post from the Kerr County sheriff’s office were riddled with photos of people in the flood zone. Loved ones posted there, hoping someone could offer an update on the whereabouts of those they hadn’t heard from. One woman said she couldn’t reach her daughter, who had rented a cabin in Hunt for her husband and two children, and pleaded for someone to post the names of those already evacuated.

Judge Rob Kelly, the chief elected official in the county, confirmed fatalities from the flooding and dozens of water rescues so far. He said he was advised not to cite specific numbers and said authorities are still working to identify those whose lives were lost.

“Most of them, we don’t know who they are,” Kelly said during a news conference. “One of them was completely naked, he didn’t have any ID on him at all. We’re trying to get the identity of these folks, but we don’t have it yet.”

One family survives a terrifying ordeal

Erin Burgess’ home sits directly across from the river in the Bumble Bee Hills neighborhood, west of Ingram. When she woke up to thunder at 3:30 a.m. Friday morning, “it was raining pretty heavy, but no big deal,” she said.

Just 20 minutes later, Burgess said water was coming in through the walls and rushing through the front and back doors. She described an agonizing hour clinging to a tree and waiting for the water to recede enough that they were able to walk up the hill to a neighbor’s.

“My son and I floated to a tree where we hung onto it, and my boyfriend and my dog floated away. He was lost for a while, but we found them,” she said, becoming emotional.

Of her 19-year-old son, Burgess said: “Thankfully he’s over 6 feet tall. That’s the only thing that saved me, was hanging on to him.”

A flood watch issued Thursday afternoon estimated isolated amounts up to 7 inches (17 centimeters) of rising water. That shifted to a flood warning for at least 30,000 people overnight.

When asked about the suddenness of the flash flooding, Kelly said “we do not have a warning system” and that “we didn’t know this flood was coming,” even as local reporters pointed to the warnings and pushed him for answers about why more precautions weren’t taken.

“Rest assured, no one knew this kind of flood was coming,” he said. “We have floods all the time. This is the most dangerous river valley in the United States.”

Texas Gov. Greg Abbott said the state was providing resources to Hill Country communities dealing with the flooding, including in Kerrville, Ingram and Hunt.

The Texas Hill Country, a scenic and rocky gateway to booming vineyards and vacation rentals, begins west of the state capital and is a popular outdoor summer getaway. Parts of the region are prone to flash flooding.

Dozens of people posted on Facebook asking for any information on their children, nieces and nephews attending one of the many camps in the area, or family members that went camping during the holiday weekend.

Ingram Fire Department posted a photo of a statement from Camp Mystic, saying the private Christian summer camp for girls experienced “catastrophic level floods.” Parents with a daughter not accounted for were directly contacted, the camp said.

Two other camps on the river, Camp Waldemar and Camp La Junta, said in Instagram posts that all there were safe.

The Guadalupe’s river gauge at the unincorporated community of Hunt, where the river forks, recorded a 22 foot rise (6.7 meters) in just about two hours, according to Bob Fogarty, meteorologist with the National Weather Service’s Austin/San Antonio office. Fogarty said the gauge failed after recording a level of 29 and a half feet (9 meters).

“This is the kind of thing that will catch you unaware,” Fogarty said. “The water’s moving so fast, you’re not going to recognize how bad it is until it’s on top of you.”

Areas east along the Guadalupe River were preparing for their own flooding as the rapid waters rushed downstream from Hunt and Kerrville. In Kendall County, home to the unincorporated community of Comfort, the sheriff’s office sounded the alarm.

“We regret to inform everyone that the flood situation in Comfort is not improving,” the post read. “We have sounded the flood sirens and urge all residents in low-lying areas of town to evacuate immediately.”

New Jersey also sees deaths due to severe weather

Meanwhile, strong thunderstorms were being blamed for at least three deaths in central New Jersey, including two men in Plainfield who died after a tree fell onto a vehicle they were traveling in during the height of a storm there, according to a city Facebook post.

The men were ages 79 and 25, officials said. They were not immediately publicly identified.

“Our hearts are heavy today,” Mayor Adrian O. Mapp said in a statement. “This tragedy is a sobering reminder of the power of nature and the fragility of life.”

The city canceled its planned July Fourth parade, concert and fireworks show. Mapp said the “devastating” storms had left “deep scars and widespread damage” in the community of more than 54,000 people and it was a time to “regroup and focus all of our energy on recovery.”

Continuing power outages and downed trees were reported Friday throughout southern New England, where some communities received large amounts of hail. There were reports of cars skidding off the road in northeastern Connecticut.

Welcome to Music Business Worldwide’s weekly round-up – where we make sure you caught the five biggest stories to hit our headlines over the past seven days. MBW’s round-up is supported by Centtrip, which helps over 500 of the world’s best-selling artists maximize their income and reduce their touring costs.

This week, MBW reported on Aventhis, the outlaw-country “artist” whose AI-generated tracks have garnered over 1 million monthly listeners on Spotify. We also learned that Aventhis’ music was created with a combination of two generative AI music engines: Suno and Riffusion.

Elsewhere, JT Myers and Nat Pastor, the co-CEOs of Virgin Music Group, sent a letter to VMG staff slamming “juvenile and offensive falsehoods” spread by opponents of Virgin’s proposed takeover of Downtown Music Holdings.

Also this week, Scooter Braun stepped down from his role as CEO of HYBE America. He will pursue new ventures while taking on an executive advisory role as a director of HYBE’s Board of Directors and Senior Advisor to the Chairman and CEO of HYBE.

Meanwhile, on Tuesday (July 1), Warner Music Group and private investment giant Bain Capital launched a $1.2 billion joint venture to acquire “legendary” music catalogs across both recorded music and music publishing.

On the same day, WMG announced a plan to reduce the company’s annual costs by around USD $300 million on an annualized run-rate basis by the end of fiscal year 2027 – with $170 million saved via “headcount rightsizing”.

Here’s what happened this week…

1) That AI artist with over 1M listeners on Spotify? His music was created with Suno, says expert report

Earlier this week, MBW reported on Aventhis, the outlaw-country “artist” whose AI-generated tracks have garnered over 1 million monthly listeners on Spotify.

Why did MBW conclude that Aventhis is an AI invention?

Because the person credited as writer and producer on the tracks, David Vieira, appears to have admitted as much in comments on YouTube.

“[The] voice and image is created with the help of AI. The lyrics are written by me,” said the anonymous owner of Aventhis’ YouTube channel.

Now we have further corroboration about the source of Aventhis’ music…

2)  Virgin Music Group bosses slam ‘juvenile and offensive falsehoods’ spread by opponents of Downtown acquisition

Virgin Music Group is having its say.

To date, JT Myers and Nat Pastor, the co-CEOs of the global services company, have publicly refrained from discussing opposition to Virgin’s proposed $775 million takeover of Downtown Music Holdings.

That just changed.

In a new letter to VMG staff, obtained by MBW, Myers and Pastor address several accusations made about Virgin – and its parent company, Universal Music Group – from parties who want regulators to block the Downtown acquisition….

3) Scooter Braun steps down as CEO of HYBE America

Scooter Braun has stepped away from his role as CEO of HYBE America.

According to the official announcement on Tuesday (July 1), the exec will pursue new ventures, while taking on an executive advisory role as a director of HYBE’s Board of Directors and Senior Advisor to the Chairman and CEO of HYBE.

Isaac Lee, described as “a seasoned entertainment executive” who has been leading HYBE Latin America as Chairman since November of 2023, will become Chairman and CEO of HYBE Americas…

4) WARNER MUSIC GROUP AND BAIN LAUNCH $1.2 BILLION FUND TO BUY RIGHTS; EACH PARTY OWNS 50% OF VENTURE

Warner Music Group and private investment giant Bain Capital are launching a $1.2 billion joint venture to acquire “legendary” music catalogs across both recorded music and music publishing.

MBW understands that roughly half of the $1.2 billion is made up of debt, half with cash, with equal liability on both sides of the JV.

WMG and Bain Capital said on Tuesday (July 1) that they will source and acquire the catalogs together, while WMG will manage all aspects of marketing, distribution, and administration.

The funds might be deployed swiftly: Warner and Bain are reportedly mulling the acquisition of the Red Hot Chili Peppers’ recorded music catalog for around $350 million…

5) Warner Music Group to reduce annual cost by another $300M, with $170M saved via ‘headcount rightsizing’

Warner Music Group CEO Robert Kyncl has announced what he calls the “remaining steps in our plan to help future-proof the company”.

This seemingly final stage in Warner’s recent restructuring under Kyncl is expected to further reduce the company’s annual costs by around USD $300 million on an annualized run-rate basis by the end of fiscal year 2027.

Just over half of that annual $300 million cost-cutting target ($170 million) will be achieved via headcount reductions at WMG, said the company.

A further $30 million of savings will be achieved by reducing costs (like admin and real estate expenses) directly related to the headcount reductions. The rest of the cost-cutting will target SG&A expenses…

MBW’s Weekly Round-Up is supported by Centtrip, which helps over 500 of the world’s best-selling artists maximise their income and reduce their touring costs.Music Business Worldwide