How can you not be inspired by Kanye’s album roll out this week?!? Inspired and…confused? Aggravated? Disappointed? As spectators, we’ve been in a tough spot with Ye, who was diagnosed with bipolar disorder in 2017. As a culture, we are still not having an honest discussion about mental health or…

As you know, I’m bullish on music livestreams and a big believer in the growth potential of that sector of the industry. Livestreaming has evolved over the past two years, from an afterthought to a key component of every artist’s live performance strategy. …

When I was a talent agent and manager, I was often reminded by my record label counterparts that they were the ones sleeping soundly at night, knowing their artists were locked into long-term deals. The labels were bulletproof, while everyone else lived one mishap away from being fired. Label relevance…

New releases have always been the lifeblood of the music business. The pop charts drove the charts, and the anticipation you could build around an artist delivered reliable results. But right now, catalog music is what’s running the industry. Roughly 70% of streams come from songs 18 months or older…

The Internet went from being mythical — here’s Bill Gates describing Web 1.0 to David Letterman in ’95 — to intrinsic, with Social Media and mobile technology shaping our current Web 2.0 world. Now, the third digital revolution, Web3, is upon us. Online experiences, blockchain technology, and the Hyperverse (that’s…

Hello, Frens. I hope your break was productive and smooth. I took a good amount of time to recharge, relax, reflect, and look forward. Traditionally, this time of year is when I’m dropping predictions for the music business and the upcoming year. But I’m not doing that this year. These…

It’s Indie Music Week! Although I enjoy working on a regular basis with major labels, the indie music scene is and always will be the lifeblood of the music business. It’s where transformation happens and high growth opportunities arise. It’s hard to replicate this inside a major. The cultural shifts…

I’m very distraught over the passing of one of my personal heroes, Virgil Abloh. Virgil was a fellow Badger. He graduated from the University of Wisconsin around the time I did. We worked together a couple of times. As a peer, I looked up to him tremendously. I’m a big…

Web3 is taking the reins from Web2. The technology is adapting and the culture is shifting accordingly. A wonderful, wacky new world is taking shape. It’s wild how early we are. We’re going to look back and find many of the current trends laughable. Over the past month, the producers…