Cool tips on how to build bulletproof self-confidence 😎

How artists like The Ink Spots gained 300k new listeners after featuring in Amazon’s Fallout TV series. #Music #Synchronization #MusicBusiness #Film #TV #Games

Bifurcation theory | How today’s music business will become twoOne of things we pride ourselves on at MIDiA is helping the marketplace peer over the horizon with disruptive, forward-looking ideas and vision. We have a long track record of doing this (you can find a list of report links at the bottom of this post). While many of these ideas were difficult to swallow, or a little ‘out there’ at the time of writing, they became (or are still becoming) a good reflection of where markets ended up heading. Well, it is now time for another of those big market shaping ideas: bifurcation theory.

Today, MIDiA publishes its major new report: ‘Bifurcation theory | How today’s music business will become two’. The full report is available to MIDiA clients here and a free synopsis of the report for non-clients is on our bifurcation theory page here. So, check those out to find more, but in the meantime, here is an overview of just what bifurcation theory is, and why it is going to affect everyone in the music business, whatever role you play in it. 

The old maxim that change is the only constant feels tailor-made for the 21st century music business. Piracy, downloads, streaming, and social all triggered music industry paradigm shifts. Now, all the indicators on the disruption dashboard are flashing red once more. AI is, of course, standing centre stage, but it is not the cause of the coming change. It is simply a change enabler.The causal factors this time round are all direct byproducts of today’s music business, unintended consequences of a streaming market that has cantered along its natural path of least resistance. Everyone across the music industry’s value chain has played their role, often unwittingly. Whether that be shortening

songs, increasing social efforts, changing royalty systems or following viral trends, each of these micro actions has contributed to a macro effect.

The fracture points of today’s music business are simultaneously the catalysts for tomorrow’s. For example, the commodification of consumption is resulting in a raft of apps and industry initiatives that try to serve superfans; the rise of the creator economy’s long tail is resulting in both traditional rightsholders raising the streaming drawbridge (long tail royalty thresholds) and a fast-growing body of creators opting to invest less time in streaming.

Streaming was once the future but now it is the establishment, the cornerstone of the traditional music business. It has rocketed from a lean forward, niche proposition for superfans into a lean back, mass market product for the mainstream. Music consumers have always fallen into two buckets:

1.    Fans

2.    Consumers

The former used to buy music, the latter used to listen to radio. Streaming put them both into the same place, pulling up the average spend but pulling down fandom into consumption. Streaming is the modern day music business’ radio, just much better monetised than the analogue predecessor. Now though, everyone across the music industry’s complex mesh of interconnected value chains is realising there needs to be something more, built alongside, not instead of, streaming. This is the dynamic behind bifurcation theory. This report explores how today’s music business challenges are becoming the causal factors of a new business defined by two parallel consumer worlds.

The music business is bifurcating – splitting into two – with streaming emerging as the place for mainstream music and lean back consumption, and social as the spiritual home of fandom and the creator economy. We identify these two segments as:

1.    LISTEN (user-led): streaming services, monetising consumption at scale

2.    PLAY (creator-led): highly social destinations where fans lean in to create, connect and express identity

Of course, this process has already started, but social is still largely seen as a driver for streaming. Many artists who try to get their fans to participate on social do so primarily in the hope of driving streams rather than for the inherent value of fans participating in their creativity. However, many next-generation creators are realising they will simply never reach the scale needed to earn meaningful income from streaming.They are therefore shifting focus to building fan relationships on social media and monetising them elsewhere, be it via merchandise or brand sponsorships. Meanwhile, a new generation of fans are creating as a form of consumption, whether that means using songs in their TikTok videos or modifying the audio of their favourite song. While copyright legislation and remuneration have lagged behind these developments, they will be an important part of the future of PLAY. Over time, PLAY will evolve as a self-contained set of ecosystems, built around the artist-fan relationship. It will not be an easy transition. Mainstream streaming will become even more lean back, and social and new apps will exert what will increasingly look like a stranglehold on fandom and the creator economy.

Social apps are plagued with challenges (royalty payments not the least of them) but they will emerge as a parallel alternative to streaming, rather than simply a feeder for it. To this end, the full bifurcation theory report not only describes the lay of the future land, but also presents bold visions of how we think both sides of the music business equation should evolve. We present detailed frameworks for what PLAY services will look like and how LISTEN services can evolve, focusing on core competences to continue to appeal to the mainstream but also deepen appeal to – and better monetise – superfans.

AI will play a key role in the future of both sides of the bifurcated music business, but rather than being tomorrow’s business, it will act as an accelerant for the underlying dynamics of bifurcation theory.

Bifurcation is such a big concept with so many layers and nuances, we have only been able to skim through some of the highest level trends here. We encourage you to check out the full report and report synopsis to learn more.

We’ve spent a long time gestating this concept, so we’d love to hear your thoughts. We’re not expecting bifurcation theory to be to everyone’s taste, but if nothing else, hopefully it will spark some creative thinking and debate.

Don’t forget to check out our bifurcation page for a video discussion of bifurcation theory and a free pdf report synopsis.

As mentioned above, here are some of MIDiA’s most impactful future vision reports, in (roughly) chronological order:

Agile Music (Free report)

Music Format Bill of Rights (Free report)

Rising Power of UGC (Free report)

Independent Artists (Free report)

Music Rights Disruption

Insurgents and Incumbents

Creator Culture

Rebalancing the Song Economy (Free report)

New Top of Funnel

Slicing the Funnel

Music’s Instagram Moment

Scenes – a New Lens for Music Marketing

Attention Recession

Creator Rights (Free report)

Creator Hubs

Music Product Strategy

Fan Powered Royalties (Free report)

Addressable Creator Markets

Misaligned Incentives

Artist Subscriptions

Field of All Levels

Kill the Campaign

Rise of a Counterculture Industry

Taylor Swift’s return to TikTok includes an in-app experience for ‘The Tortured Poets Department’ with ‘first-of-its-kind’ featuresIn-app experience follows the return of the superstar's music to TikTok, amid its licensing dispute with Universal Music Group
Source

Sometimes video #Games inspire #pop #Music

#MusicIndustry trend goes to 'disintermediation'...
We need to be careful with that though - everywhere must be balance at #MusicBusiness

Music Industry is moving from middle-men to ‘disintermediation’New technology suggests that current music business models should be more artist-centric instead of including unnecessary middlemen. from ArtistVerified via Medium Disintermediation is a really long word for a really. Continue reading
The post Music Industry is moving from middle-men to ‘disintermediation’ appeared first on Hypebot.

Recently read the terms of a "new" a16z funded #AI generative music startup. And what I saw in the TOS on the website was licensing terms to the tracks you actually generated - you simply own your music only when you pay your subscription and moreover your uploaded material can be used to train the model. Now it's beta and guys say it's free to generate up to 1200 tracks. Come on! Where are we going?! Read the terms at first please. ✌ #MusicTechnology #MusicBusiness

Many radio stations actually helped to form
a sense of taste as well as clubs. Record labels are cutting their radio 📻 promotion. What's next? #MusicBusiness

Spotify wants to use podcasts to help market musicSpotify intends to explore an untapped marketing strategy that would marry podcasts and music streaming for years to come. by Rutger Rosenborg of MIDiA Research Last summer, Variety published an article. Continue reading
The post Spotify wants to use podcasts to help market music appeared first on Hypebot.

No royalties and "junk tracks"

Penteo 6 now available Penteo Audio Plugins have announced the launch of the latest version of their award-winning upmixing and downmixing plug-in

This portable keys by Roland seem really cool. New hardware tools are coming. #Education #musicproduction

Roland launch GO:KEYS portable keyboards The GO:KEYS instruments take a simple approach to production, but still boast some more advanced features that allow for more involved work as users develop their skills.

Blipblox MPC-style sampler myTRACKS aims to make music production fun for allPlaytime Engineering are continuing to shape the next generation of child prodigies with their Blipblox line.
Specialising in child-friendly instruments for kids three and above, Playtime Engineering’s latest addition to the Blipbox line encourages young people to experiment and unlock their musical potential. The Blipblox myTRACKS swaps out the lunchbox for a groovebox.

READ MORE: NAMM 2022: Playtime Engineering reveals synth and groovestation for kids, grown-up synth fans rejoice

Blipblox myTRACKS embraces a childlike, colourful aesthetic while also capturing the spirit of a hip-hop groovebox. It’s designed to be safe and accessible to anybody, just like a toy, meaning it can be enjoyed by just about any age.
The Blipblox myTRACKS is a total music production studio. There’s a built-in microphone for sampling, two FX processors and a slew of over 50 acoustic, electronic and percussion instrumental sounds to play with. With sound packs also available to download online, creators have ample to work with.
Powered by 25 glowing playpads and two bright purple levers, the myTRACKS is delightfully colourful. Navigating the tool is as intuitive as playing with a toy, the levers allowing users to adjust effects and modulation. There’s also a randomise feature to spur on creativity, allowing users to experiment with new sounds and be inspired by the unpredictable tracks myTRACKS generates.
The journey to creating myTRACKS started off as a fleeting hobby for a Silicon Valley engineer Troy Sheets. With his wife, Kate Sheets, the pair transformed the hobby into a fully fledged business. “Bootstrapping and crowdfunding our business has allowed us the freedom to design and produce our wildly creative line of instruments,” Kate Sheets explains.

“We are tremendously grateful for our supporters who helped fund both the original Blipblox and Blipblox After Dark, and we look forward to introducing more friends to the Blipblox community with the launch of myTRACKS,” she continues.
“Creating music with synthesizers and modern music tech has always felt like play to me,” Troy sheets explains. “By merging the portability, durability, and safety of toys with high-quality and advanced functionality of a legitimate instrument, we’ve created a fun and accessible music-making machine that anyone can play.”
Blipblox myTRACKS’  Kickstarter campaign to support the launch will open on 9th April. The first round of products is expected to be delivered by November 2024.
Reservations are currently open on the BlipBlox website.
The post Blipblox MPC-style sampler myTRACKS aims to make music production fun for all appeared first on MusicTech.