Music Industry News

NARAS: We're Listening, Steve Stoute...

Source: Digital Music News
March 5, 2011

So, $40,000 well spent? What started with a biting full-page ad in the New York Times has now turned into a discussion. And, Steve Stoute's open-letter strategy may even generate some change in the way the Recording Academy selects winners (maybe). Here's a statement (or some would say, non-statement) shared just hours ago by NARAS, aka the Recording Academy. “The voices of artists and our creative community are at the heart of the missions of the Recording Academy and indeed ...

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Pay-What-You-Want Music Label Opens in Detroit

Source: HypeBot
March 5, 2011

This Detroit music label is a great example of disruptive thinking. When thinking disruptively, the goal is to flip assumptions on their head. Case in point: Beehive Recording. All the music is free. All the recording and art services are free. Just donate what you can. The new album won't be released in three months; it will be released in three days. Fans create an account on the site and download all the music they want. Just pay what you can. ...

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"Ad-Funded" Music? Try "Ad-Fun" Music.

Source: HypeBot
March 5, 2011

Usually when we think about the ads fans will endure when Spotify launches in the U.S., we think of boring, intrusive ones. Mazda has started a new campaign wherein if listeners click on the ad, they're greeted with the chance to drift with a car at high-speeds and Parallel Park like a mad person. It just goes to show that even ads in a music service can be fun and engaging if executed properly. In-ad games aren't new, but this ...

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Customer Acquisition: Is It Just Too Expensive in This Space?

Source: Digital Music News
March 4, 2011

Sirius XM has more than 20 million subscribers, but at what cost? The company barely skirted bankruptcy in 2009, and the Sirius+XM merger happened out of necessity, not choice. Meanwhile, the company has been hemorrhaging cash since the beginning, and its current earnings are modest (when they're profitable). And this is a great service we're talking about. But satellite isn't an isolated corner of the music industry. Just think about how much money is being plowed into Spotify, and all ...

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The Rights and Wrongs of Making Remix Records

Source: We All Make Music
March 4, 2011

The idea of the remix album is not new. Though they have been around since the late '70s, they only began to garner mainstream attention in the mid-'90s, and since then remix releases have been embraced as two-way marketing tools. Artists and labels alike have used them to get extra mileage out of a particular album (see: remixes of Nine Inch Nails) and/or generate interest in an array of musical brands (see: URBal Beats). But now that albums have been ...

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Music Exec Watches Personal Music Budget Decline

Source: HypeBot
March 3, 2011

Ethan Kaplan, former SVP of Emerging Technology at Warner Music Group, has published an insightful essay on his blog about the death of the music business and his shrinking personal budget for music. In it, he makes the point that the humans will die before the business of music does, as for as long as people exist, there will be music. Well said. The second point that he makes is that even he, who for nearly five years worked for ...

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Esperanza Still Enjoying Express Chart Status...

Source: Digital Music News
March 2, 2011

Esperanza Spalding's post-Grammy high is proving to be potent. Spalding was the fastest-rising artist on BigChampagne's latest Ultimate Chart, surging 163 collective slots. That's against serious competition from the likes of Chris Young, Radiohead, and the Arcade Fire.

Steve Stoute hates this story already...

BigChampagne Ultimate Chart: Biggest Movers a/o February 28th, 2011

Songs LW TW Movement Artist Title

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Clear Channel Buys Thumbplay at Bargain Price

Source: HypeBot
March 2, 2011

Early Monday, news broke that subscription music service Thumbplay is getting sold. After less than one year in the sector, its burning money and in need of a lifesaver. Hypebot has since learned that Clear Channel Radio is buying Thumbplay at a bargain price. And no, it is not entering the subscription sector. Instead, the company is looking to leverage Thumbplay's technology and staff to build out its existing Web radio service, which places them in competition with Pandora. Clear ...

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