Spotify is now a public company. They have to figure out how to make money, but maybe they should start in their own house and figure out how to save money in general overhead instead of the royalties they pay out. | | | | Cool thing: Kim Gordon performing with Sonic Youth in San Francisco, July 15, 2006.
(Tim Mosenfelder/Getty Images) | | | | | | “Spotify is now a public company. They have to figure out how to make money, but maybe they should start in their own house and figure out how to save money in general overhead instead of the royalties they pay out.”
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| | rantnrave:// TAYLOR SWIFT and BRENDON URIE, with drumline in tow, perform "ME!" for the first time in public at the BILLBOARD MUSIC AWARDS and their hosts don't consider it one of the 10 best performances at their three-hour affair, which is either a) an indication of exactly how much pomp, circumstance and glitter it takes to cut through in these times of pop overabundance, or b) an indication of how sassy our trade magazines have become in these times of pop oversaturation, or c) I'm looking forward to Taylor's thoughts on this in the third single from her upcoming album. DRAKE won seemingly all awards except the country ones at the show, which is based on chart performance. Swift will have to wait until next year for that part. "Me!," meantime, has received a somewhat frosty critical reception (sample somewhat frosty headline: "Against 'ME!'," atop a RINGER article that says the single "isn't terribly good, but it will likely bulldoze its way into your head regardless," which is a hedge-fund-sized hedge and also possibly true). The frosty critical reception has received a somewhat frosty critical reception of its own. In other words, we're in standard Taylor Swift release cycle territory, our biannual chance to talk about the meaning of pop, authenticity, disposable hooks, enduring hooks and whether or not Taylor Swift gives a duck about what we all have to say. On first listen, I would have told you this is a pop star in a holding pattern, revisiting past moves, unsure of her next one. On ninth or 10th listen, I'll mention the lush verse melody, which sounds like it's been around since the beginning of pop time. That's one of the moves she's always been good at... In related news, I'm curious about the strategy of releasing a lyric video *after* releasing the video video. Is this new or have I not been paying attention? Or is thus just something that people who put "loves cats" on their letterhead do? (Also, if artists and labels hate YOUTUBE so much, why do they—oh never mind)... MICHAEL LANG is grappling with the suggestion that WOODSTOCK 50 may not happen... But this is happening, CANNED HEAT and all... The frontman of noted mediocre roots-rock band JD & THE STRAIGHT SHOT is the subject of a lawsuit that accuses him of playing too many shows and making too much money. You are free to supply your own punchline here... Best wishes to the GETO BOYS' BUSHWICK BILL... RIP RUSS GIBB, who killed PAUL MCCARTNEY and gave life to the STOOGES and ALICE COOPER, and LEVEL 42's ROWLAND "BOON" GOULD.
| | | - Matty Karas, curator |
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| Twelve years ago, Vampire Weekend arrived with crisp polos and Africa-indebted melodies, becoming heroes and villains all at once. They return with a new album this week as survivors of the blog-hype era and a music industry that doesn’t prop up hot, young indie bands like it used to. | | |
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| The 2019 graduating class of the Bandier Program at Syracuse University finds its namesake at an interesting point in his nearly 50-year career. | | |
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| For one Wisconsin farm boy, Minneapolis will always be the city of Purple Rain. | | |
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| Lil Nas X's left-field country-rap smash 'Old Town Road' is the biggest song of 2019. Billy Ray Cyrus was smart enough to hitch his wagon to it. So why hasn't Nashville done the same? | | |
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| Beats by Dre launches their first set of wireless earbuds, while 50-year-old British company, Bowers & Wilkins, sets its sight on the wireless market -- and a younger audience. | | |
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| Through his subversive lyrics and the punk ethos of his performances, Slowthai has tapped political disaffection among the young to grow a cult following. | | |
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| Model Salem Mitchell sits down with local LA rapper, Hollei Day to discuss Asians in Hip Hop, and the female rappers views on cultural appropriation. | | |
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| When critically acclaimed singer/songwriter, Amy Speace, live streamed a Concert Window album preview from her walk-in closet to the fans who had just helped fund its release, it wasn't because she couldn't book another venue. | | |
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| The consistently quiet tone of Eilish’s music represents something of a sea change in pop, which until recently favored the brash and the loud. | | |
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| Billie Eilish shares five albums that she loves… a lot. | | |
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| An entertainment attorney weighs in on the legal complexities of adapting an origin story for the stage. | | |
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| How the United States has increased its financial power in the global record industry in the past few years. | | |
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| A Buddy Holly hologram is going on tour this fall. What does that mean for John Mueller, the greatest Buddy Holly cover artist alive? | | |
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| In an era of superstars rewriting the rules of pop music, Taylor Swift has stayed married to the old ways of songwriting and distribution. What does that say about her? | | |
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| For Irving Mills, his “Elvis” was Duke Ellington, but he did far more than manage the careers of the Duke, Cab Calloway and Hoagy Carmichael. Mills got his hand in every aspect of the music business-managing, publishing, recording and leading his own band. | | |
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| The major labels will lose power. Their tight grasp on the industry was based on control of distribution and media. They've lost control of distribution, Spotify is more powerful than every label. No label can afford to pull its catalog from Spotify, it's their number one payer. | | |
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| With “No Suburban,” the 20-year-old rapper became a phenom in his borough. He talks about navigating that local fame in the midst of striving for more. | | |
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| "The amount of narcissism, drama, and insecurity I witness from men in metal is astounding and yields no consequences; the tantrums are accepted without the bat of an eye. As a woman, you show anger, you speak out, and you’re automatically labeled as 'crazy.'" | | |
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| Her new album is full of big, sparkling dance-pop. All it took was four years, a breakup and 200 songs. | | |
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| We met as teenage college students and music fanatics; I was a clerk at the Rhino Records Store in Westwood and Gary was an enthusiastic customer. He was a management trainee at McDonald’s, but eventually we convinced him to come work at the store, and our deep discussions about music continued for the rest of his life. | | |
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| | | | | | | From the Brockhampton frontman's third solo album, "Arizona Baby," out now on Question Everything/RCA. |
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| © Copyright 2019, The REDEF Group |
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