Income
If Spotify Won’t Pay More, They Should Give Us More Data
I’ll say it. And I’m going to get shit for it.
The comment from the CEO of Spotify, Daniel Ek, “you can’t record music every 3-4 years anymore” got blown way out of proportion. I actually did a full podcast...
Income
Session Musicians’ Money Stolen by the Union Meant to Protect Them
If you’ve ever played on a recording as a hired gun, you are entitled to more than just the check you got for the session.
You are guaranteed (up to) 5% of all the performance royalties that recording ever makes....
Income
How To Get a Record Advance Without a Record Deal
One of the biggest reasons that artists sign with major record labels is for the upfront cash.
The advance is very attractive for artists getting a 6- or 7-figure check waved in front of their face - even if it...
Community
Black Postmodern Jukebox Performers Pen Open Letter About Mistreatment
On Thursday, July 16th, in a brave act of solidarity and dissent against their employer, black musicians penned an open letter to the founder and leader of Postmodern Jukebox, Scott Bradlee.
Many posted this letter and subsequent demands to social...
Politics
Huge! Musicians (and Freelancers) Can Now Get PPP Loans (with Forgiveness)
Yesterday, the SBA clarified that if you’re self-employed, a freelancer or independent contractor you can get a PPP loan with forgiveness.
It was previously thought that the PPP program was only for companies with W2'd employees on payroll. But now...
Income
9 Things to do now that Your Gigs are Cancelled Because of Coronavirus
Deep breath. Shit’s scary right now. Yeah. I put on CNN for 15 minutes last night and nearly fell into a full on panic. Shut that shit off. Cable news is not helping anyone. Oh, and don’t listen to that Joe Rogan podcast episode with the infectious disease specialist either....
Community
California’s Music Economy Is About To Crash
Photo: Paul Kitagaki Jr./The Sacramento Bee California is on fire. But this economic blaze will ignite abruptly on January 1st and will affect the California music industry so drastically that it could completely burn it down. As the fifth largest economy in the world and the...
Income
How Do Producer and Songwriter Splits Work
A detailed breakdown of how songwriter and producers split up song ownership.
Income
If You Perform Live, You Could Be Missing Out On Lots of Royalties
Photo by Maya DondonyanI just had a meeting with Sentric Music publishing CEO, Chris Meehan. I’m currently working on a admin publishing company comparison between Sentric, Songtrust, CD Baby Pro Publishing and Tunecore Publishing. Chris happened to be in town so we decided to...
Income
Songwriters! Registering With ASCAP or BMI Is Not Enough To Get Paid
The first thing that most young songwriters in the US hear is “you need to sign up for ASCAP or BMI to make sure you get your songwriter royalties.” I have to hand it to ASCAP and BMI’s PR departments. They do a great job of making themselves known. So much so, that most so...
Latest News
Mixing SZA, Engineering Bob Dylan, Collaborating with Rick Rubin
This week, Ari is joined by grammy nominated engineer and producer Dana Nielsen, to discuss his career journey, collaborating with award winning artists, and making it as a mix engineer.