Spotify‘s not having a great time. The streaming service faced a punishing reaction on Wall Street following its second-quarter results last month: Daniel Ek’s firm’s share price fell 5.7 percent in a day, wiping around $2.5 billion off the market cap of the company in a few short hours. On …
Read More »The Music Industry Has Neglected Its DJs. New Tech Will Change the Game
DJ edits of hit songs are everywhere, but the artists of the original music have not been properly compensated for the use of their works — until now. Whether you’re driving to the club, dancing at the club, or pounding tequila shots at your best friend’s wedding, carefully crafted tracks …
Read More »WondaGurl, a.k.a. Ebony Oshunrinde — Future 25
This story appears in Rolling Stone‘s 2021 Future of Music issue, a special project delving into the next era of the multibillion-dollar hitmaking business. Read the other stories here. At 24 years old, Canadian producer Ebony Oshunrinde — better known as WondaGurl — has built a career most music-business veterans …
Read More »California Music Venues Aim to Reopen by June 15th
Governor Gavin Newsom announced Tuesday that California could fully reopen on June 15th, a move that might allow for the state’s concert venues to resume business if certain conditions are met. With nearly a quarter of California’s adults fully vaccinated and the coronavirus infection rate dropping, Newsom said that — …
Read More »Biden's $1.9 Trillion Stimulus Plan Gives Struggling Venues a Needed Boost
Struggling music venues across the country received an added lifeline after the Senate and House of Representatives passed a $1.9 trillion stimulus package known as the American Rescue Plan on Wednesday. President Joe Biden signed the legislation Thursday, March 11th. The new aid package includes an additional $1.25 billion in …
Read More »TikTok Taps 100 Black Creators for an Incubator Program
A month after announcing the creation of its incubator program for black creators on the app, TikTok has selected its first class of 100 creators, who will be getting support to help boost their careers through networking and more individualized focus from TikTok. TikTok selected 100 creators out of 5,000 …
Read More »Why Beatmaking Site Splice Is Suddenly Worth $500 Million
Music creation platform Splice is valued nearly half a billion dollars this week, following a $55 million investment from Goldman Sachs as well as from an investment firm called Music, according to a report from Bloomberg — the latest affirmation for the booming do-it-yourself music ecosystem. The DIY and independent …
Read More »Inside the Ambitious Plan to Monetize the Beach Boys' Legacy
When Carl Wilson died of cancer in 1998, his sons Jonah and Justyn became heirs to their father’s estate. That meant joining with surviving Beach Boys founders Mike Love, Brian Wilson, and Al Jardine to vote on key business decisions, from archival releases to commercials. It wasn’t easy. “The dynamic …
Read More »Why Did Sony Music Just Spend $430 Million on Indie Label AWAL?
“Submit your music.”I’m convinced this is the key factor behind Sony Music’s $430 million decision to acquire indie record company AWAL and its sister firm Kobalt Neighbouring Rights on Monday. “Submit your music” is a simple button on AWAL’s homepage — but it’s also an invitation for DIY artists to …
Read More »BMG Finds Financial Disparities in Black Artists' Old Record Contracts
On Thursday, label and publishing company BMG shared the results of its long-awaited review of historical record contracts, which it had initially announced this summer as a response to Blackout Tuesday. The report revealed that music catalogs from four of the 33 labels BMG had acquired since its founding in …
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