Sterling Campbell had co-founded a cassette label and a VHS tape label in Ottawa, but needed a new creative outlet after moving back to Cornwall, Ontario, to be closer to his daughter. “I was like, ‘I need to start something up for myself here,’” he says. “‘What’s the most ridiculous …
Read More »The Median U.S. Musician Is Still Making Under $25,000 a Year
Record industry revenue is on the rise. Off the still-rising success of streaming, label executives say they’ve got “money swirling around.” Warner reportedly gave 17-year-old Lil Pump a $8 million record deal. There’s finally profit in music again after two decades of dismal decline. Yet none of this means much …
Read More »YouTube Removes 30 Music Videos for 'Gestures of Violence'
YouTube has removed more than 30 music videos, concentrated in one genre, after British police blamed them for inciting murder and violent crime. The decision came after Cressinda Dick, commissioner of London’s Metropolitan Police Service, said in a public radio interview earlier this month that drill music – a subset …
Read More »A War Is Brewing Between Billboard and YouTube Over Music Charts
FollowingBillboard’s decision last week to tweak the methodology of its music charts in favor of paid streaming services, YouTube, a free streaming service, is ramping up its own music charts. On Thursday, the company debuted “Trending,” a chart that refreshes multiple times a day with real-time data on music that …
Read More »Wall Street Is Betting on Music for the First Time in Decades
UPDATE: Spotify has reported its first quarterly earnings as a public company, posting – as expected – revenue of€1.14 billion ($1.36 billion) and a monthly active user base of 170 million, 75 million of whom are premium subscribers. But Spotify also reported a loss of€1.01 ($1.21) a share, compared to …
Read More »