Your not a music professional if you haven’t been screwed out of money at least once. That’s par for the course and part of the learning process, but it obviously becomes a real problem if it continues to happen. Regardless of what end of the music business you work in, as an independent contractor it’s your […]
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On this week’s podcast episode my guest is the CEO of the Merlin Network of independent music labels, Jeremy Sirota. Merlin is a member-based organization representing the digital licensing rights for hundreds of independent labels and distributors in nearly every country around the globe. That makes up 15% of the recorded music market. Under Jeremy’s […]
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I read a lot of music biographies and history books, especially from the Rock era. Like most people, I love reading about the story behind the hits. The best book I’ve ever read about that era is Buzz Me In: Inside The Record Plant Studios. The Record Plant was co-founded by engineer Gary Kellgrin and businessman […]
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In today’s streaming-first landscape, pop music moves faster than ever, mostly because it’s supercharged by algorithm-driven platforms like Spotify and viral engines like TikTok. The fact that modern pop hits come and go at an ever increasing speed means that if artists don’t account for this, their songs can be left in the dust even […]
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TikTok is one of those platforms that you either love or hate, but either way, you have to admit that it’s important to the music business in so many ways. In fact, 84% of songs that reached the Billboard 200 list in 2024 gained traction on TikTok first, and U.S. users are 74% more likely […]
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In this week’s podcast episode, my guest guest today is Josh Simons, CEO of Australia’s only ASX-listed music company, Vinyl Group. Josh’s journey is as diverse as it gets. He founded Vampr, the ‘LinkedIn for creatives,’ connecting over 1.4 million music professionals worldwide. He’s also been instrumental in developing platforms like Jaxsta and Vinyl.com, tackling […]
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There are reports that the three major labels are in the middle of licensing discussions with AI music generators Udio and Suno. If you’re an artist, just the thought of this should scare the crap out of you, as it’s yet another step down the road to purging real live artists from their rosters. Don’t […]
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I wrote recently about how there are no more garage bands or places for them to play, and how young men would prefer to indulge in video games rather than create music. I think the problem goes deeper than just the creation of music – it’s music consumption as well. MEDiA Reseach recently posted an […]
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In this week’s podcast episode, my guest is music marketing strategist, speaker, author, and the founder of Cyber PR, Ariel Hyatt. Known for her bold ideas and practical strategies, Ariel has helped thousands of independent musicians and creative entrepreneurs craft sustainable careers over the course of two decades. Ariel has always been at the forefront […]
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For the majority of time that the music business has been around, people have purchased the music they listen to. Be it wax cylinders, vinyl records, CDs, cassettes – whatever physical format you can think of – consumers were perfectly happy buying the music that they liked. Today we’ve made a 180 on that thinking […]
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In this week’s podcast episode, my guest is Danny Garcia, co-founder and CEO of the music promotion and discovery site Songtools. Songtools makes it easy to promote your music across Facebook, TikTok and Instagram, and reach out to over 150,000 curated Spotify playlists. It also helps playlisters discover new music, and vets both artists and […]
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In this week’s podcast episode, my guest is Lon Neumann, the president of Neumann Technologies, a company that’s focused on designing and commissioning production facilities for immersive audio. Lon has a long history with Sony, and is especially keen on their 360VME virtual mix environment system, which he discussed at length during the podcast. He […]
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For the past year or so there seems to be a frequent news story about a Spotify executive or investor selling off their stock for a load of money. Just a week ago founder and CEO Daniel Ek sold almost $30 million worth of stock (more on this later), and early investor TCV sold 300,000 […]
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In this week’s podcast episode, I bring back my popular music and audio industry news segment with a full episode dedicated to stories that matter—but often fly under the radar. In this episode, I dive into a wide range of timely and thought-provoking topics, including: Tune in to hear surprising insights, smart commentary, and the […]
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If you’re a musician and want to thrive, the best place to be is where the gigs, and other musicians, are. Insurance Canopy analyzed data from the 50 most populous metropolitan areas in the United States to find the best cities for musicians to launch and grow their careers. They looked at aspects like cost of […]
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