Spotify
Spotify Takes on $1.3B in Debt
Exactly how Spotify intends to use the money is unclear. The press release broadly states the company intends to use the proceeds for “general corporate purposes” — a term loose enough to cover capital expenditures, marketing or strategic acquisitions. Such a large amount suggests Spotify doesn’t intend to use the money for everyday costs of running the company. Instead, $1.3 billion is enough to make numerous acquisitions to build out its podcasting business, for example, and have a cushion for any uncertainty its leadership foresees in 2021 and beyond. Spotify will reserve the right to redeem the notes in a variety of scenarios. Until March 20, 2024, Spotify has the option to redeem the notes with cash, shares or a combination of the two if the company’s share price “exceeds 130% o...
President Barack Obama Says He Broke Kid’s Nose Who Called Him A Coon
Source: NurPhoto / Getty Barack Obama has been busy since leaving the White House but the 44th President of the United States still has an impact on the culture at large. By way of a new podcast with Rock legend Bruce Springsteen, Obama shared a story of how he broke a friend’s nose who called a coon on the basketball court. Obama and Springsteen have paired up for the Spotify podcast series Renegades: Born In The USA, where the two men seemingly with little in common on paper are actually aligned more than any of their supporters or fans would know. With frank tales about their different upbringings and challenging discussions on race while living in America, Obama landed on a story about living in Hawaii as a teenager and the interaction where he was met with the derogatory term. This ca...
Spotify Expands to 80 New Markets, Including Ghana, Kenya and Tanzania
Sourced from Android Police Spotify is set to expand its streaming subscription service to 80+ new markets across the globe – this move represents Spotify’s broadest market expansion to date. Founder and CEO, Daniel Ek revealed that the platform would now be available to more than a billion people in over 36 languages. Spotify says that it plans to work with local creators and partners to expand its music offerings to meet the unique needs of each market. It will also introduce the following offerings in each region: Plans: Free and Premium plans will be available across all the markets. User Experience: Listeners will be able to select and search from Spotify’s worldwide catalogue when using the product, providing a personalized experience from day one. Music Catalogue: At launc...
Spotify Expands to 80 New Markets, Including Ghana, Kenya and Tanzania
Sourced from Android Police Spotify is set to expand its streaming subscription service to 80+ new markets across the globe – this move represents Spotify’s broadest market expansion to date. Founder and CEO, Daniel Ek revealed that the platform would now be available to more than a billion people in over 36 languages. Spotify says that it plans to work with local creators and partners to expand its music offerings to meet the unique needs of each market. It will also introduce the following offerings in each region: Plans: Free and Premium plans will be available across all the markets. User Experience: Listeners will be able to select and search from Spotify’s worldwide catalogue when using the product, providing a personalized experience from day one. Music Catalogue: At launc...
Spotify Announces High-Fidelity Tier and Expansion into 80 New Markets
The big green circle is about to get even bigger. At Spotify’s Stream On event on Monday, February 22nd, the music streaming giant announced it would be introducing a new high-fidelity audio tier and expanding into 80 additional markets (via Billboard). Spotify is remaining tight-lipped on their Hi-Fi plans, declining to reveal what sized audio files they’ll be rolling out, when the new tier will introduced, or how much it will cost. But the news has to send a shudder down the spines of music execs at places like TIDAL, Deezer, and Qobuz, where high-end audio fidelity is one of the features that has allowed them to stand out. Still, a deep-pocketed competitor is by no means a death sentence — after all, Amazon Music unveiled an HD option in 2019, and those smaller platforms have managed ju...
All Black Everything: Spotify Celebrates Black History Month with New Playlists, Podcasts, & More
Source: Spotify / Spotify It appears that Black History Month is kicking off with a bang for Spotify listeners after the streaming platform announced the launch of new Hip-Hop podcasts and playlists as a part of the Black History Month celebration. On Monday (Feb. 1), the streaming giant announced a slew of few initiatives, including the launch of a full slate of guest-curated playlist takeovers, brand new podcasts, and more to highlight Black culture, Black music, and Black excellence. According to the press release, the new initiative will also feature new cover art from Black photographers in an effort to showcase a spectrum of Black talent, spanning across both musical and visual art, including work from photographers Shawn Theodore, Adrienne Waheed, Doug Segars, Adrian Octavious Walke...
How Davido, Wizkid, Olamide, Burna Boy broke streaming records in 2020
From all available statistics, facts and figures no other Nigerian musical artiste, male or female, was able to pull off what the quartet of Davido, Wizkid, Burna Boy and Olamide pulled off in 2020. The duopoly of Davido and Wizkid, which has been going on for years was questioned most especially by Burna Boy and the new face on the international scene, Olamide. Each one of them released an amazing album and it was a staggering success story on all streaming platforms. The figures showed Nigerian music has arrived on the international stage. Particularly of interest is Olamide, whose music has not really been able to cross the continent to the international stage. Well, thanks to his international connection, which has given wings to fly over the Atlantic. For Burna Boy, his fortunes have ...
Death Grips’ Gmail and the Restraining Orders EP, “More Than the Fairy” Finally Added to Spotify, Apple: Stream
It’s been two years and counting since we last got a proper album from Death Grips, but today’s surprise drop should keep fans preoccupied in the meantime. The group’s experimental EP Gmail and the Restraining Orders and one-off single “More Than the Fairy” have finally been added to streaming platforms like Spotify and Apple. Gmail and the Restraining Orders is a 30-minute collection of noise rock that was played prior to Death Grips’ live shows in 2015. The project was then featured in Warp Records’ WXAXRXP radio festival in 2019, before subsequently being released onto YouTube. As for “More Than the Fairy”, this track was initially put out on YouTube in 2016. It notably features bass from special (and very unexpected) guest Les Claypool of Primus. The collaboration is consider...
Streams of the Unconscionable
It’s become crystal clear this year that without touring revenue, many musicians have little hope of making a living. Streaming royalties are a pittance, and musicians have had to turn to new creative ways to stay afloat. Some sell exclusive vinyl, cassettes, and other merchandise on Bandcamp. Others have turned to the subscription service, Patreon, where fans can pay their favorite creators for access to exclusive content like B-Sides, live sessions, podcasts, and more. But their qualms seem to have fallen on deaf ears at Spotify. All year, the company and its CEO Daniel Ek, have been callous, if not downright contemptuous, towards artists that are trying to eke out a living. Complaints about Spotify revenue have been floating around for years now. Even in 2013, Radiohead’s frontman Thom ...
Spotify to Offer Exclusive Audiobooks
Sourced from Android Police Spotify has released an exclusive collection of audiobooks, causing users to believe that the streaming service is testing an audiobook offering. According to The Hollywood Reporter, the platform regularly runs tests like this to help it improve its user experience. If successful, the initiative could give Spotify “a roadmap for how to take on giants in the space, including Amazon-owned Audible”. Here’s a closer look at the audiobooks on offer: Great Expectations, written by Charles Dickens and narrated by James Langton Frankenstein, written by Mary Shelly and narrated by David Dobrik Cane, written by Jean Toomer and narrated by Audra McDonald Jane Eyre, written by Charlotte Bronte and narrated by Sarah Coombs Passing, written by Nella Larsen and narrated b...
Follow Consequence’s Top Songs and New Sounds Playlists on Spotify: Stream
Since our beginning as a humble, festival-focused music publication, Consequence has always been a go-to source for the best in new music and rising artists. While we’ve grown over the years into a full-blown pop culture destination, music is still at the core of everything we do. That’s why we’ve launched two fresh, continually updating Spotify playlists to keep you up-to-date on all the latest tracks. First is Top Songs, where we’ll collect all our favorites from our ongoing Top Song of the Week feature. Each week, we’ll spotlight our pick for the best track of the week along with a handful of “runners-up.” We’ll spotlight them in our recurring feature, and then gather them all together for your listening pleasure on Spotify. Then to help expand your listening horizons, New Sounds functi...
Spotify Stock Downgraded by Citi, as Podcast Competition Heats Up
Spotify’s share price was already in retreat, dropping 12.5% from an all-time high of $370.95 reached on Wednesday (Jan. 13), however. Some experts would argue it’s still too high. The 25 analysts covering Spotify have a median price target of $298.53 with a high of $425.90 and a low of $141.30, according to Refinitiv. Key Takeaways: 1) The three leading audio streaming companies — Spotify, Apple and Amazon — are pushing hard into podcasts. If turning a music service into an all-around audio service attracts subscribers and reduces churn, record labels and publishers will benefit.2) Regardless of how its podcasts perform in the next year or two, Spotify has the resources to see its strategy through. It had €1.18 billion ($1.43 billion) on its balance sheet on Sept. 30, 2020, en...
