ACM Awards Provide Impressive Sales & Streaming Bump

UPDATED: 11 Million viewers tuned into the ACM Awards broadcast last weekend, according to new stats from Nielsen Music. Viewers responded to the performances by giving a huge lift in sales and streams. Album of the Year and Female Vocalist of the year – Miranda Lambert. Her album Weight of…

How The Music Industry Makes Money In 2016? [INFOGRAPHIC]

Streaming is increasingly the new normal of how consumers listen to music; and according to the RIAA, streaming brought in just over half of the US music industry’s revenue in 2016. But where does the other half of the money earned come from?

The Power Struggle of Music Versus the Machine

The digital age has created previously unimagined opportunities for musicians, and changed music creation, distribution and discovery forever. But alongside those changes, the livelihoods of creators has been threatened. Now is the time to recapture the value that music creates, argues Sound Royalties Alex Heiche, and he sees signs that…

How Would Asset Bubble Theorist Hyman Minsky Feel About Spotify’s Unique IPO Plans?

Recent indicators suggest that Spotify is considering offering a direct listing where it simply registers its shares on a public exchange. This would mark a departure from typical IPOs and, according to Theorist Hyman Minsky, raise some concerns regarding a debt bubble. ____________________________ Guest post by David Lowery of The…

Jay Z Is Back On Apple Music, But Not On Spotify

Much of Jay Z’s catalog is now back up on Apple Music. Yesterday, we reported that Jay Z’s solo catalog has been pulled from Spotify and Apple Music, but remained available on Tidal, which he founded and controls. That news was so… yesterday. _____________________________ Most of Jay Z’s catalog is…

Pandora Is Asking Record Labels For Cash, Better Rates

Battered by investors, Pandora has gone hat in hand to the major labels, asking for better rates and direct investment in the music streamer. The problem for Pandora, is that it is coming from a very weak position. ___________________________________ Pandora executives have asked the major record labels for cash or…

CD Baby Expands Major Latin American Footprint with Local Office In Argentina

CD Baby has expanded into Argentina hiring Martín Liviciche to open a local office. Already one of the largest distributors in Latin America, CD Baby represents 20,000 artists from Brazil, Colombia, Chile and Mexico. _______________________ Martín Liviciche has been hired to open a local office of CD Baby in Argentina,…

Virginia Woolf To Howlin’ Wolf: Author Peter Guralnick On Algorithm-Defeating Art, Expression Of Emotion [INTERVIEW]

Here George Howard shares his recent experience speaking with Peter Guralnick, an author noted for his use of music as a tool through which to explore socio-political and cultural issues. The two discussed their shared concern of an increasingly algorithm-based culture of music consumption, and if we have reached peak…

MoneyBaggYo, Christian Nodal Top This Week’s Pandora Trendsetters Chart

MoneyBaggYo and Christian Nodal lead this week’s Pandora Trendsetters Chart. This chart tracks which 20 artists that listeners have been using to create the highest number of Pandora stations over the past week, and reflects which up-and-coming artists are currently trending on the platform. See the full Pandora/Next Big Sound…

Spotify Exec Killed In Stockholm Attack, CEO Ek Pays Tribute

Spotify senior executive Chris Bevington was one of four people killed during a terrorist attack in Stockholm on Friday April 7th. Now, Spotify CEO Daniel Ek has posted a heartfelt tribute. ___________________________ Chris Bevington, Spotify’s Director of Global Partnerships/Business Development, was killed on Friday during a terrorist attack in Stockholm…