Greetings from Kelli Richards, Jeeni's USA MD

Jeeni Blog

Helping the next generation of talent to build a global fanbase

Greetings from Kelli Richards, Jeeni's USA MD

Greetings from Kelli Richards, Jeeni's USA Managing Director, former A&R Executive EMI Music and an artist superconnector. Mentored by Steve Jobs at Apple, she launched and managed the music and entertainment division, resulting in the birth of global music online, now known as Apple Music. Here she sends greetings for 2021 and an update on her plans and ideas for shaping a path through this, another possibly unusual year.

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Hi, Greetings!
It's our first newsletter of 2021 and I want to wish each of you a happy and healthy 2021!
This past year has been a tough one for everyone. I don't know about you but I'm looking forward to a fresh start, exploring new opportunities and renewing my passion for the possible. Be sure to scroll down and read my recent articles which may help you make 2021 the best year ever. Yes, it's possible. Even with the "new normal" we're living in.

It's about having the courage to ask for what you want, and the willingness to make changes and adjustments that will support the habits and behaviors that work towards your success not against it. It's about defining what success looks like for you and setting your intentions for the year. It's time to take life off of "pause" and start re-shaping your future. In my work as a trusted advisor, I'm all about working with my clients to transform the quality of their lives. If you need some guidance or support in navigating what's next, reach out and let me know.

And, be sure to read the current Client Spotlight article featuring a start-up I've been working with and super excited about, MultiView Media. This platform enables content owners in music and sports to stream historic video content or livestream shows in a multi-camera angle format and has been described as technology that lets the fan be their own director.
Stay safe and well,
~Kelli

The Magic of Asking for What You Want
Do you believe you can have virtually anything you want? I do. We all have a magic wand that can help us achieve our desires, but we forget that we do and overlook the power at our disposal to dramatically increase the odds of having what we say we most want in our lives...

Client Spotlight: MultiView Media
I'm excited to share that one of the start-ups I've been working with over the past couple of years, Multiview Media, led by founder/CEO Ray Meadham has launched our multi-camera angle streaming platform...

Nine Steps to Making Change Easier
Change doesn't have to be hard; here are some tips to make it a smoother process...

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www.kellirichards.com

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12
Oct

Jeeni crowdfunder success!

Fantastic news! Jeeni has reached its funding target and is now fully funded. Thank you to all our investors for helping fund the wonderful artists! We are delighted that so many investors share our vision. It's been a very happy, valuable experience, and our heartfelt thanks goes out to every one of our investors for making it such a success. You have been brilliant. Thanks too to Crowdcube for all their help. As for Team Jeeni, we've been working seven days a week since the start of the campaign, so tomorrow is a day of rest. First thing Monday morning our expansion and scaling up begins, on plan, on budget and on schedule. Thank you all for your enthusiasm, your sanity checks, your due diligence, your discussions, your pledges and your support in helping us make it happen! Here’s to a better future for online entertainment, Mel Croucher and Shena Mitchell, Co-Founders, Jeeni

15
Oct

Jeeni Weekly Round-Up #1

Welcome to the first edition of our weekly round-up blog where we discuss the latest news in music, entertainment, and more. 16 Million Americans Learned to Play Guitar During the Pandemic, Fender Study Finds Guitar sales boomed during the pandemic in 2020, with Fender sales growing by 17%. It was clear more people were picking up the instrument during lockdowns. A new study from Fender has found that about 16 million Americans between the ages of 13 and 64 started learning to play the guitar during the last two years . The study was conducted between May and June 2021 by Fender and YouGov. With 62% citing COVID-19 and the associated lockdowns as a major motivator. 77% of those polled reported that they found themselves with additional free time during this period, which they used to play and practice. The “Fender’s New Guitar Player Analysis” study, analysed who new players were and how they took up the instrument. The major takeaways were that most new players are women, two-thirds of players are between the ages of 13 and 34, more than half of them use TikTok, and 38% of the new player identify as Latinx. Check out the Jeeni guitar channel to find a range of guitar-related content and tutorials. TikTok Adds Six Certified Sound Partners to Expand Commercial Music Library Music is an integral park of TikTok’s platform, with the power to spark global trends and even shoot artists to instant stardom. The platform has revealed six ‘certified Sound Partners’. According to TikTok in addition to its Commercial Music Library which includes over 150,000 pre-cleared, royalty-free tracks. This partnership will help expand the commercial music library in many surprising ways. Furthermore, TikTok has introduced a new series of parents with its marketing partner programme. Which will help brands make content with sound while also helping them better aline with key trends on the platform. Spotify’s New Music Friday Playlist Favors Indie Artists and Women, Study Finds Despite the challenges that independent label artists and women face in the music industry in a study published by the International Journal of Industrial Organisation concluded that independent artists and women are the top performers on the popular playlist New Music Friday, which is selected each week by publishers. Research conducted by the Carlson School of Management at the University of Minnesota analyzed more than 5,700 songs on the playlist throughout 2017. The researchers sought to find if there was a bias towards any label, artist or genre. Despite predictions, they found that music released by an independent labels generally received a higher ranking. Resulting in an average boost of two spots on the New Music Friday playlist. Additionally, songs by female artists also benefited from a higher ranking on the playlist. However it’s important to note that this research only applies to the Spotify New Music Friday playlist. “For instance, streams for music by women account for about a quarter of total streams, a share that is low compared to the number of women listening, among musicians and in the population as a whole,” Said researchers. “Instead, the takeaway is New Music Friday does not compound the challenges these groups face in the music industry.” Recorded music revenue grew by 27% according to the RIAA mid-year report Recorded music revenue grew by 27% in the first 6 months of 2021 according to the RIAA mid-year report, versus the prior year, from $5.6 to $7.1 billion. Paid subscriptions continued to be the strongest contributor to growth. Comprising nearly two-thirds of total revenue, and more than 80 million paid subscriptions for the first time. Inspite of the effects of Covid-19 that have continued to affect the industry the music revenue is still growing. However year-over-year comparisons are significantlympacted by store closures, tour cancellations, and other disruptions from both 2020 and 2021. It's well known that artists rely heavily on live performance income. And the major streaming platforms revenue share is extremely unfair and continue to undervalue the artist. Jeeni is working hard to do the opposite, dedicated to boosting new talent and established artists alike. We reward them and their audiences ethically and fairly. Become a memeber today to find out how we can help promote you and how you can help creative talent alike. Make sure to follow jeeni on our social platforms to keep upadated on everything we are doing. In Jeeni News Jeeni is always finding new ways to support creative talent, currently we are searching for artists, musicans and performers to create dedicated showcases for. As well as looking for creative talent to interview for our Inside Stories. If you are interested please contact our artist liason ella@jeeni.com.

12
Mar

Crunch Time for Festivals

January 2021 is going to be crunch time for festivals. In this still, uncertain time, the organisers of the UK's biggest events remain on a knife edge about festivals being able to go-ahead. Michael Eavis has pinned his hopes on mass vaccination of the country, so Glastonbury can still happen this year. He received his jab, just before new year. Whilst Emily Eavis has been countering claims their festival has already been cancelled and confirming tickets will be rolled over to 2022. Micheal Eavis at Glastonbury - Photo: Getty UK Music have shared a new report, Let the Music Play: Save Our Summer 2021, outlining their recommendations for how to restart the UK’s live music industry. As MPs on the Digital, Culture, Media and Sport Select Committee open their inquiry into ‘The future of UK music festivals’ today (January 5), UK Music – whose CEO Jamie Njoku-Goodwin is among those set to give evidence to the inquiry stating the document “outlines a clear strategy to protect and support the multi-billion pound live music industry so it is ready to restart when safe to do so later this year”. Read the report below: https://www.ukmusic.org/assets/general/Let_The_Music_Play_Save_Our_Summer_2021.pdf “The music industry has worked hard to make event spaces as safe as they can possibly be,” UK Music said in a statement accompanying the new report. “This includes launching testing pilots to be able to hold mass events safely, working with government to develop guidance for how to hold events safely, and looking at new ventilation and air purification systems that would dramatically reduce the risk of transmission. “But there is no certainty about when the industry will be allowed to hold mass events once again.” The report warns that the lack of coronavirus cancellation insurance is “the biggest barrier to major events happening in 2021”, and calls on the UK Government to implement an insurance scheme as it has done for the film and TV sector. Key action points in the report are, “an indicative date for a full capacity restart” for venues and festivals, a government-backed indemnity scheme and targeted financial support for the live music industry. UK Music are also calling for an extension to the VAT rate reduction on tickets, a rollover of the paid 2020 Local Authority licence fees for festivals to 2021 and an extension to business rates relief. Up to 50% of the festival workforce faces possible redundancy if the 2021 season is cancelled and a report by the Musicians' Union stated 71% of musicians were considering leaving the sector or were unsure if they would continue. According to Steve Heap, the general secretary of the Association of Festival Organisers (AFO), major music festivals would have to make a decision about their 2021 editions this month. Smaller festivals, however, could put off cancelling until April. Though the pandemic is still wreaking havoc across the UK the crunch time is definitely, now. The industry and the fans need to know!

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