Streaming
New Analysis Exposes Vast Gap Between Haves and Have Nots of the Streaming Economy
For artists participating in the Big Tech-driven streaming economies of Apple Music, Spotify, and beyond, it’s no secret that there’s a vast chasm between the haves and the have nots. But how large is that gulf really? A new Rolling Stone piece published by Tim Ingham, founder of Music Business Worldwide, sought to answer that question by piecing together nuggets of data released by Spotify’s own volition. Unfortunately, what unfolded was the revelation of deep inequality within an increasingly crowded digital landscape. It all starts from one sobering big picture statistic. Nearly 57,000 artists on Spotify are vying for their share of around $4.5 billion, which represents 90% of the royalties Spotify pays annually. According to Spotify’s statistics outl...
Spotify Will Make It Easier to Find ‘What’s New’ by Introducing Personalized New-Release Feed
With over 50,000 hours of content uploaded to Spotify every day, the streaming service is making it easier for users to stay up to date with new releases from their favorite creators. Announced Monday (July 26), What’s New is a new personalized feed that will be added to the platform globally in the coming weeks. It can be found by clicking on a new bell-shaped icon that will be added to the top of the Home tab, which will be updated in real time with new releases from the artists and podcasts users follow on Spotify. When a new track or episode is released, a blue dot will appear on the bell-shaped icon to alert them the next time they sign on. The feed will additionally allow users to conduct more targeted searches by including filters that let them sort for new music releases or ne...
Michael B. Jordan Prepping His Own Black Superman Project: Report
It’s a bird, it’s a plane…it’s Michael B. Jordan! According to a new report, the actor is planning to develop his own Superman project with HBO Max. Collider reported the news earlier on Friday that Jordan’s project will be separate from the upcoming Superman movie starring a Black Clark Kent, which is being executive produced by J.J. Abrams. While Jordan was rumored to be putting on Superman’s cape for that movie — the script for which is being penned by Ta-Nehesi Coates — the Creed actor brushed off the speculation at the time, saying, “I’m flattered that people have me in that conversation. It’s definitely a compliment, but I’m just watching on this one.” Instead, his new rendition with the streamer will reportedly focus on the Val-Zod version of the character in a limited series format...
Dee Snider Announces Streaming Concert Filmed in Front of Live Audience
Dee Snider has announced a streaming concert that was filmed in front of a live audience. The stream goes live on July 29th, a day before the release of the Twisted Sister singer’s new solo album, Leave a Scar. Livestreams became the norm for many artists during the pandemic. It was a way to bring the concert experience into the homes of fans worldwide, but most featured only the performers and no crowds. For Snider’s upcoming stream, the metal legend filmed a June show in Patchogue, New York, in front of a full crowd, and he’ll beam the full performance across the interwebs for 30 days starting on July 29th for virtual ticketholders. Advertisement Related Video “I can’t wait to see all you crazy motherf—kers when we’re on the road again, but for now, grab a cold one, crank the volume, it’...
UK Parliamentary Probe Results In Calls for “Complete Reset” of the Streaming Industry
A Parliamentary probe into the current market dynamics of music streaming has yielded a bold call for a “complete reset” of the market by British MP’s. The topic of fair pay for artists has been a contentious one throughout the rise of the streaming era, but the results of this particular inquiry—published by Parliament’s Digital, Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) wing—have led to a rare inflection point where new protectionist regulations might be on the horizon. The subject of this inquiry considered the economic relationship between artists and their record labels, and unsurprisingly, the results showed that labels are reaping a disproportionate amount of the financial benefits. “While streaming has brought significant profits to the recorded music indu...
Tencent Music Shares Fell 9.2% This Week, Down 63.2% Since March All-Time High
Tencent Music sits in a web of relationships and ownership stakes with the world’s largest music companies. It has a joint venture with Universal Music Group and an agreement to form a joint record label with Warner Music Group. It also has licensing deals with UMG, WMG, Sony Music and independent label rights group Merlin. What’s more, Tencent Holdings, which owns a majority of Tencent Music, is part of a consortium of investors that owns 20% of Universal Music Group and about 2% of WMG. There is no indication Chinese authorities view Tencent Holdings’ ownership stakes as problematic. Tencent Music owns three of China’s top music streaming apps — QQ, Kuguo and Kuwo — and accounted for 7...
Here’s How Much Each Music Streaming Platform Pays Per Stream
Streaming has become the most popular form of music consumption in recent years, accounting for roughly 64% of all recorded music revenues according to the RIAA US sales database. One of the most common questions, especially for musicians, is how those revenues are broken down, and how much each artist gets paid per stream. Though that number differs with every streaming service, most artists are in agreement that it’s not nearly enough. The most popular service, Spotify, accounts for over 44% of the market share. However, despite how favorable it is with consumers, the streaming giant pays an average of only $0.00348 per stream, according to data sourced from The Trichordist. To put that into perspective, an artist earning three tenths of a cent per stream would make ...
Pandora Expands ‘Billionaires’ Artist Milestone Program with 8 New Genre Stations
Artists who reach the nine-figure mark in the coming months will be added to the appropriate genre stations, with their music featured at the beginning of the station to mark the milestone. Pandora’s Billionaires program launched in 2018 when the service presented artists who had reached the marker with a commemorative plaque. Over the past three years, hundreds of artists have been honored for reaching the coveted figure, including Taylor Swift, Lil Wayne, Mariah Carey, Bad Bunny, Ed Sheeran and The Weeknd. Listeners can find the new stations in the “Billionaires” module on the “For You” section of the Pandora app. The full list of stations is below. Country Billionaires: Featuring music from Jason Aldean, Chris Stapleton, Miranda Lambert, Florida Georgia Line and more. Pop Billionaires: ...
UK Parliament Inquiry Recommends ‘Complete Reset’ of Streaming Business
But the committee’s report goes further, concluding in sweeping fashion that the global streaming model pioneered and dominated by Spotify, Apple, YouTube and Amazon Music, is unsustainable in its current form. “Streaming has undoubtedly helped save the music industry following two decades of digital piracy, but it is clear that what has been saved does not work for everyone,” the committee writes in its 200-page report. “The issues ostensibly created by streaming simply reflect more fundamental, structural problems within the recorded music industry. Streaming needs a complete reset.” In 2020, roughly two-thirds of Spotify’s global streams came from music distributed by the major record labels, Spotify said in a March 19 written submission to the DCMS committee, although that total ...
Pandora Launches New “Game Time Radio” Listening Experience, Monstercat Takeover
The relationship between music and gaming is one that ages with grace—a marriage Pandora is celebrating with the launch of a new radio experience. To commemorate the one-year anniversary of Pandora’s “Game Time” initiative, the streaming giant has launched a complimentary listening experience called Game Time Radio. Meticulously curated by gamers, the music hub allows users to select songs and beats to soundtrack their adrenaline-fueled gaming sessions. Game Time Radio offers four new listening Modes, each of which offer their own unique vibe. “Level UP” focuses on essential hip-hop while “Open World” slithers into the ambient and downtempo alleys of electronic music, offering glacial beats. “Pixelated” will feel the...
Killswitch Engage to Perform Two Full Albums for August Livestream Concert
Killswitch Engage have announced a livestream event set for August 6th. The band will perform 2019’s Atonement and 2000’s self-titled debut album in their entirety. The stream goes live at 7 p.m. ET and will be available on-demand for 48 hours. Billed with the slogan “Vaccinated + Intoxicated,” the performance takes place at the The Palladium in Worcester, Massachusetts. The venue has been a frequent stop for Killswitch Engage when touring their home state. MyGoodEye’s David Brodsky and Allison Woest will direct the footage. “I am pleased we were able to finally pull this together,” stated singer Jesse Leach. “I hope everyone who watches enjoys this as much as we did making it. Aside from the music, the laughter and funny moments were an equal part of the experience. The whole package real...
Damon Dash Announces ‘In Love For A Living’ Docuseries
HipHopWired Featured Video Source: Hollywood To You/Star Max / Getty Damon Dash has continued to find new ways to bring his well-heeled business savvy from his days as a Roc-A-Fella executive to helming various brands of his own. In a new report, the Harlem, N.Y. native has shared details of a new docuseries and struck down his past depictions in reality television. In an exclusive report from Deadline, Dash will be making a re-entry in the television space by way of a new docuseries titled In Love For A Living. Deadline has more: Dash told Deadline, “I’ve been on a couple of shows. I was on Growing Up Hip Hop and a couple of other ones with BET and VH1, and I never really liked the way the narrator portrayed me or the way we were projected and I wanted to just showcase the reality of what...
