Jeeni Blog

Helping the next generation of talent to build a global fanbase

Weekly Round-up #3

/ By Freya Devlin
Weekly Round-up #3

Jeeni's weekly round-up of music and entertainment news.

Spotify Free Users Are Growing Faster Than Paid Subscribers


A report from eMarkerter suggests that Spotify will hit 41.5 million free users in the US this year. That’s an increase of 9.7% over 2020, and part of a trend that finds ad-supported listeners making up an increased share of Spotify’s platform. If that trend continues, Spotify is expected to have as many as 52 million US-based ad-supported listeners by 2025. Spotify's subscriber base has also grown by 19% year-on-year to 172 million. "Looking ahead: Spotify will hit 52.0 million ad-supported US listeners and 52.2 million paid US listeners in 2025, totaling over 100 million."

Radiohead’s Entire Catalog Is Now Available on Bandcamp

On Oct. 21, Radiohead’s entire catalog became available to stream and or purchase on Bandcamp. The collection includes Radiohead’s nine studio albums also offers the band’s live album from 2001 I Might Be Wrong, disc two of In Rainbows, TKOL RMX 1234567, OK Computer reissue OKNOTOK 1997 2017 and the upcoming Kid A Mnesia collection.

“Today, Bandcamp is thrilled to announce that the full studio discography of pioneering UK band Radiohead has come to Bandcamp. Radiohead have forged a career built on constant change, dreaming themselves up anew with each record, but never getting so lost in innovation that they forget to instill every one of their songs with genuine human pathos.” The announcement by Bandcamp stated

Radiohead pulled all their music from Spotify in 2013 “the last desperate fart of a dying corpse.” said Thom Yorke. Although their music returned to Spotify in the following years.

What Spotify, Apple and other streaming services want to pay songwriters from 2023 onwards

Music streaming services such as Spotify, Apple, Pandora and Google are reportedly proposing lower royalty rates for songwriters to the US Copyright Royalty Board (CRB) for five years between 2023 and 2027. Although not released to the public the rates proposed are said to be the lowest ever seen in streaming history, these companies are now coming under fire for disproportionate royalties.

CEO of the National Music Publishers Association (NMPA), David Israelite told Music Business Worldwide “We will be fighting to raise significantly what streaming services pay songwriters, and we will now see with full transparency to what degree Spotify, Amazon, Apple, YouTube and Pandora are trying to cut what little they currently pay,”

Music industry 'should support struggling small gig venues'

 Greater Manchester mayor and Former culture secretary Andy Burnham, called on the "big players" in music to pay a levy, just as football clubs contribute to grassroots facilities. The Music Venue Trust says 30 venues are at imminent risk of permanent closure because of the pandemic, with hundreds more in trouble. Burnham has said that the music industry should help bail out small music venues that are struggling in a panel with Independent Venue Week.

Burnham suggested the music industry adopts a system like Football Foundation. The FA and Government's charity which he helped set up, helps communities improve their local football facilities through football grants. The Premier League and Football Association gave £53m last year, with another £18m contributed by the government.

"The industry needs to step up for you, and I think we should be mounting a case to say, the industry has to pay a levy to support grassroots venues, because that is their talent production ground. They are the junior football clubs of the country. That's where the talent comes through."

In Jeeni News

JEENI Logo With Icon

Jeeni is Hiring! We are currently recruiting for the following roles:

• Role 1: Marketing Assistant
• Role 2: Marketing Executive (Digital Marketing)
• Role 3: Marketing Executive (Public Relations)
• Role 4: Jnr Developer
• Role 5: Jnr Developer
• Role 6: WordPress Specialist
• Role 7: Senior Developer
• Role 8: Senior Developer
• Role 9: Sales Executive
• Role 10: Sales Executive
• Role 11: Partnership Co-ordinator

These are Kickstarter Scheme positions (candidate must be aged between 16-24 and on, or have applied for, Universal Credit.

If you'd like to apply for any of the above roles please send your resume to shena@jeeni.com

Jeeni's Pick of the Week

Our Pick of the Week is Colectiva a nine-piece ensemble exploring the spaces between Afro-Latin music and jazz while reflecting on themes of sisterhood and female empowerment. Exploring the boundaries between Afro-Latin music and Jazz, Colectiva are a unique voice on the UK scene.

Read our blog here: https://lnkd.in/en7sSa2C
Check out Colectiva's showcase on Jeeni https://lnkd.in/en7sSa2C

New Music Friday

In our New Music Friday segment we've chosen to showcase Glasgow based Alt-rock band Respite. Respite blends elements of punk, post-hardcore and pop music, with lyrics and vocals heavily inspired by pop-punk and emo. Having supported acts such as Hawthorne Heights, Trophy Eyes and Like Pacific, the band released their first single “Chemical Sleep” on the 3rd of October and dropped their debut EP “Vol. 1” on 29th of October. Available to stream everywhere right now!

Check out their showcase on Jeeni https://jeeni.com/showcase/respite-band/

BACK
Facing the Broken Music Industry.

10
Jun

Facing the Broken Music Industry.

By Adam Cowherd @ AmplifyX.com Did you know that artists take home only 12% of the $43 billion spent on music annually, according to Citigroup? [1] The hip-hop artist Russ put it perfectly when he said, “The music business isn’t set up for the artists to get rich. It’s set up for everyone else to get rich off the artists.” [2] If you start looking deeper into the music industry, one of the first things you’ll discover is how broken it is. Artists are the nucleus of the business, but somehow they’re the individuals left with no ownership of their Intellectual Property (IP), inhibited creative freedom, and only a sliver of the earnings. There are so many entities involved in the value chain of music that it has created a convoluted industry structure that lacks equality and transparency. When we break down the mechanics of the music industry, we see just how many hands are in the pot: record labels, managers, producers, booking agents, and streaming platforms. A report by Ernst & Young highlighted the post-tax payouts of streaming revenue and identified that record labels are taking nearly 75% of the payout. [3] Why are artists today signing with record labels? Signed artists have fans. They do not have a majority of royalties, ownership of their masters, or creative freedom. Artists have historically been enticed to join record labels as a way to grow their popularity, because major labels can provide global brand recognition. But the music industry is in the business of making a profit — not in the business of freebies. The artist’s growth may be guaranteed, but not their wealth. Take Thirty Seconds to Mars for instance: after multiple platinum records, they were still millions of dollars in debt to their label. [4] This is a result of the artist being forced to pay the label back for cash advances. Although advances may seem extremely alluring, many don’t realize how hard these loans will be to recoup from their small slice of royalties. Artists thriving off of their album sales are the exception, not the rule. This recognizable gap in income has inspired a large number of artists to start challenging the status quo of record label contracts. Artists today have more tools and resources to build their career — and wealth — independently. Traditional services formerly tied to record labels, like recording, distribution, and promotion, are becoming commodified. Also, modern artists have a wide range of social media platforms to engage listeners on, from Instagram to TikTok to Triller. Artists can grow their fame and find new fans on their own terms—retaining their rights and independence. Evaluating the industry today, music spending is at an all-time high. Goldman Sachs predicts we will have over 1.1 billion people on paid streaming platforms by 2030, generating over $130 billion in music industry revenue. [5] By pursuing alternative ways to release music, artists can take a larger cut of the profits while retaining ownership of their IP and a majority of royalties. The industry is projected to experience massive growth over the next decade. Artists should reap the rewards.

Read more
Streaming Revenues - a tipping point?

07
Dec

Streaming Revenues - a tipping point?

At Jeeni, this is a subject we are following closely, being a platform set up to address this very subject. The balance of revenue on most platforms, is tipped far too heavily away from the artists, performers and writers, in favour of the suits and pen-pushers. Quite frankly, it's a disgrace! Jeeni's ethos is to ensure any performing members receive 100% of the revenue they generate. Should all streaming services work the same way? Journalist Dylan Smith, from Digital Music News has written the article below, updating how far the DCMS Committee has got with their fact finding and the issues to be presented on 11 December. Digital, Culture, Media and Sport Committee Chair Julian Knight. Photo Credit: David Woolfall British lawmakers have stated that artists are hesitant to participate in the ongoing investigation into streaming royalties “because they fear action may be taken against them” if they do so. The House of Commons’ Digital, Culture, Media and Sport Committee (DCMS Committee) announced the high-profile probe of streaming royalties last month. The comprehensive analysis aims to identify streaming’s impact on all relevant stakeholders, including labels and artists, as well as its long-term effects concerning “the sustainability of the wider music industry.” Last week, singer-songwriter Nadine Shah, Radiohead guitarist Ed O’Brien, and Elbow frontman Guy Garvey spoke before the DCMS Committee to address the contemporary music landscape. Of particular note was Shah’s statement that she doesn’t “make enough money from streaming” to cover her rent, despite having north of 100,000 monthly listeners on Spotify. Possibly in response to the abundance of information that the investigation has turned up thus far, the DCMS Committee also announced last week that it had extended the window for artists and others to submit written testimonials regarding royalties. From the original deadline of Monday, November 16th, members of the music industry now have until Friday, December 11th, to express their opinions. The probe’s upcoming oral testimony, for its part, is slated to take place next Tuesday, December 8th, with Maria Forte Music Services’ namesake owner, Ferocious Talent owner Kwame Kwaten, and José Luis Sevillano, director general at Spain’s AIE, set to participate via livestream. Ahead of the formal sitdown, DCMS Committee Chair Julian Knight has relayed that many would-be witnesses are opting not to come forward due to their fear of the potential professional consequences associated with speaking out against streaming royalties. “We have been told from many different sources that some of the people interested in speaking to us, in relation to this inquiry, have become reluctant to do so because they fear action may be taken against them if they speak in public,” said the Solihull MP, who became the DCMS Committee’s chair in January of this year. “I would like to say on behalf of the Committee that we would take a very dim view indeed if we had any evidence of anyone interfering with witnesses to one of our inquiries. … This Committee will brook no such interference and will not hesitate to name and shame anyone proven to be involved in such activity,” continued Knight. And in concluding his statement on the matter, the lawmaker emphasized that others who reach out to the DCMS Committee with information or insight pertaining to streaming royalties “will be treated in confidence.”

Read more
How to Build Your Own Playlist

05
Jun

How to Build Your Own Playlist

In our previous blog called, "Top Ten Tips on How to Promote your Music Independently" http://bit.ly/2W2nCJ5 we suggested you get yourself PLAYLISTED. Maybe we should have said, Build your own Playlist and then get yourself Playlisted. So what is the difference? Building your own PLAYLIST is an easy way to boost the promotion of your own music, so why not give it a go. The video is 3 minutes long so I have taken the highlight. (Approx. 60 second read time) Start by creating your own public playlist filled with great music, and include your own tracks too. With a small amount of work you you could get a few hundred followers, it'll still help your chance of landing on other, bigger playlists. With a lot of work and fun, you could build your playlist to have thousands or even millions of followers over time. Discover Weekly algorithm takes EVERY playlist into account, no matter how small. The algorithms behind Discover Weekly find users who have built playlists featuring the songs and artists you love. It then goes through songs that a number of your kindred spirits have added to playlists but you haven't heard, knowing there is a good chance you might like them too.Ideally, you want to be uploading & submitting your tracks to playlists weeks in advance of your release. For example Spotify alone get 20,000 new tracks every day. Make sure you get your tags rights so you can be featured automatically and help the editors find you. No guarantee, but you need to start somewhere. Share your music on your own social media platforms to get on a playlist, stay on a playlist and grow your fanbase. Drive traffic from off platform, that means share your links everywhere. Post them on your socials, website and other channels. You can only submit one track per release, so if you're releasing an album or an EP, have a good think about which track is most likely to get picked by a playlist. Pitch your music to independent curators, if you are not sure how to do this, keep a eye out for our next blog. Try not to disheartened if you do not get thousands of followers straightaway, keep choosing music you love and keep adding to your playlist, be true to yourself, only add your favorite tracks and have some fun. Check out our new community of facebook, called: Unsigned Artist Community and join today. http://bit.ly/2Q45ri8 https://vimeo.com/396927442

Read more