Chris Brown’s got a ploy that’s going to make the Billboard charts look really, really stupid. Just how reliable are Billboard’s charts? That question surfaced earlier this year when Tyler The Creator blasted Billboard on Twitter. Here’s t…
Category archives: Feature Story
10 Ways to Dramatically Boost the Money You Make from Streaming
Streaming is quickly becoming music’s most profitable frontier. For many artists, that means skipping gatekeepers and developing a direct following. But with so many different streaming music platforms out there, the digital rights management p…
45 Ways an Artist Can Make Money In 2017
This list was generated as part of Future of Music Coalition’s Artist Revenue Streams research project, a cross-genre multi-method examination of musicians’ revenue streams. More on this list and other reports here. As you read this list, remember th…
Drake Officially Disqualified from the Grammys In 2018, Sources Say
Drake doesn’t care about the Grammys and didn’t even submit his latest album for consideration. First it was Frank Ocean. Now it’s Drake. Two huge rappers, both of whom couldn’t care less about the Grammys. Both have openly c…
Streaming Has Already Generated $1 Billion for Sony Music This Year
As fans move away from digital downloads and physical formats, music streaming brings in over $1 billion at Sony Music. For the first quarter of 2017, Sony Music reported an impressive 18.8% sales and operating revenue gain year-over-year. Along with s…
Need Funding? Then Talk to the Ex-President of Warner Music Group
Edgar Bronfman Jr.’s venture capital firm will focus on investing in small-time media companies. Former Warner Music Group President Edgar Bronfman Jr. has started a venture capital firm with longtime investor Daniel Leff. According to Bloomberg, the V…
Breaking: Spotify Attributes Subscriber Surge to Heavily-Discounted Plans
Spotify has 60 million paying subscribers. But what are those subscribers actually paying? Technically, a Spotify Premium monthly subscription costs $9.99, and £9.99 in the UK. But it’s entirely unclear how many people are paying that price. Ac…
The California Supreme Court Will Soon Decide the Fate of Oldies Copyrights
After resounding defeats in both Florida and New York, the battle to save oldies copyrights shifts to the Supreme Court of California. It’s a simple question: do recordings released before 1972 deserve any copyright protection in the US? Last wee…
Scam Alert: “Atlantic Records A&R” Solicit Musicians For Money For Submissions
I often run into people working in corners of the music industry who just can’t understand why so many musicians’ guards are up so high. Well, it’s because of scams like this. Musician scams, of course, have been going on for as long as I’ve been in mu…
Jam Master Jay’s Killers Just Got Away With Murder
Will anyone ever come forward to name Jam Master Jay’s killers? During the late afternoon on October 30th, 2002, Jam Master Jay went to his 24/7 recording studio in Queens. While waiting “for things to get started,” the popular DJ (whose real name is J…