I’m coming off a long week on the road where I met so many interesting folks at both Summit Series and Future Wave. Hello, new friends! I’m glad to be back home in Miami for a bit. From my travels, one thing is clear: the sentiment is shifting in the overall business landscape and even more so in Web3. We’re watching one of the biggest scandals in the history of modern finance unfold like a docuseries live on Twitter. This is a domino that will lead to absolute carnage in the space. Beyond the branding problems the FTX ordeal presents for blockchain as a whole, consumer trust in crypto is now predictably plummeting. Valuations were too high. Exposure to the market and crypto is drying up cash reserves. Raising on a down round will kill companies. This is going to be a cold winter. Cash is still king in this economy and companies are low on it. They’re overexposed. Founders are leaving; platform trading volume is way down; and fans and collectors are losing interest. That’s why strategies are shifting. We’ve been through crypto bear cycles before. When the market crashes, the industry gets a lot of stink on it and – first slowly, then pretty quickly – the world tunes the market out. I was there in 2018. I tuned out and sold off my stakes, and you know what? I regret it. A lot of people do, and we’ve pledged not to make the same mistake again. This is the time to build. Innovators will be rewarded and the great companies of the future will come out of this low. The next few months will bring consolidation, legislation, and regulation. That will be important for righting the wrongs of the past and making this next chapter safer, more expansive, and more inclusive.New projects will need to be more innovative and widespread. Being big in Web3 won’t make you big in the real world, it’s too small a pool. What we need now are crossover use cases from companies and projects that bridge the gap between the new and the old. We need experiences that bring general consumers into Web3 with limited technological barriers. We need examples of these platforms making our actual lives better, not just enhancing our artist and fan experiences. Music is always on the forefront, but it can’t remain the be-all-end-all.This breakthrough moment will not come without hurdles. We’re bracing for a potential recession and thinking about survival. Can we stop marketing and risk market share? No. We still have to take chances and maximize opportunity. Partnerships and events will need to be crafty. Strategies and investments will need to be diversified. If your 2023 play isn’t already in motion, you’re way behind. There are six weeks left this year with two holidays in between. Let’s make the most of them!
BEATS
Tyler, The Creator Spent Years Cultivating His Prized Collections. We Got a Look InsideIntroducing Tyler, The Curator, the two-time Grammy-winning artist with exceptional taste in Cartier watches, old-school cars and more. (Rob Report)
This is Family Business - How SALXCO is Outworking the CompetitionSALXCO's clients on 39 of the Top 500 songs YTD 🚀, 5 songs in the 💎 club, 2022 SALXCO highlights and the top 20 artists report by audio streams 💵 (The Bag)
Grammy Nominations: Beyoncé Leads Field & Ties For Most-Nommed Artist Ever – Full ListBeyoncé leads the field with nine nominations for the 65th annual Grammy Awards, which were revealed today. The singer, who is up for Album, Record and Song of the year, scored her 88th career nom, tying her with spouse Jay-Z as the most-nominated act of all time. (Deadline)
VIVA LA MUSICA!With investment pouring in, and a raft of homegrown superstars emerging, is Latin America the hottest touring market in the world right now? (IQ Mag)
Music in the Metaverse: How Lil Nas X Became a ‘Lighthouse’ & Where We Go From HereThree years on from Lil Nas X's first-of-its-kind concert on Roblox, we're still at the beginning of building the future of music in the metaverse. (Billboard)
Music Funding Platform Beatbread Launches Exclusive Investor NetworkMusic funding platform beatBread has launched what it calls “an exclusive investor network” that adds funding from music companies and professionals, distributors and ‘high-net worth’ individuals to its existing pool of institutional capital. (Music Business Worldwide)
With 100k Tracks Uploaded A Day, A Longtail Music Cull Is ComingWith a reported 100,000 tracks being uploaded to Spotify and other music services. That’s led to streamers each housing 100 million tracks, and as that total balloons, artists and labels are overcrowded, fans are overwhelmed, and streaming services struggle to keep up. (Hypebot)
J. Cole and Jack Harlow Enter the World of 'NBA 2K' As Playable CharactersBoth J. Cole and Jack Harlow are known to be avid basketball fans, and now, the rappers have taken their obsession one step further by becoming playable characters in NBA 2K23. (Hypebeast)
“A Real Purity”: Karen O on Performing Before the Internet Changed EverythingThe singer-songwriter relives the Yeah Yeah Yeahs’ early days via Meet Me in the Bathroom, the documentary adaptation of music journalist Lizzy Goodman’s book. (Vanity Fair)
Where Did All the New Pop Stars Go?The guys examine what it means to be a new artist in 2022 and the rate at which listening to music is drastically changing. (The Ringer)
How Gaming Could Reshape Music DistributionTraditionally, artists and the music industry could only gaze enviously at the sophistication of how the gaming industry is structured. (Musically)
Libraries Curate Local Music Streaming ServicesOver a dozen public libraries across the US and Canada are offering their own curated music-streaming services that members can access. With many major cities creating unique platforms, artists are gladly signing up for a little more exposure. (Future Party)
Taylor Swift Fans Crash Ticketmaster SiteIn an update at 1:05 p.m. ET, Ticketmaster said it was wrestling with “historically unprecedented demand with millions showing up to buy tickets for the TaylorSwiftTix Presale.” (Variety)
3LAU Accused of Not Paying Songwriter Her Fair Share From Massive ‘Ultraviolet’ NFT AuctionThe DJ made $11.7 million from a much-publicized NFT auction tied to his album Ultraviolet. A co-writer of one of the songs says she was offered just $25,000. (Billboard)
BYTES
Spotify’s list is more reflective of passive consumption. Spotify’s top-performing songs are more correlated with radio hits than YouTube, which is a more active consumption experience.YouTube’s Billion Views Club has more international stars than Spotify. With streaming continuing to grow across the world and plateauing in the United States, YouTube’s list more reflects future music consumption.
Mike Posner has embarked on some crazy adventures over the last three years –from walking 2,851 miles across America to climbing Mount Everest. In this episode of #TrainLike, the multi-platinum artist takes us through the workout routine he used to build the endurance needed for these incredible adventures.
Today, Nike is extended Knight’s original mission from over 50 years ago into the next era of sports through the online web, digital experiences, and blockchain technologies by unveiling its own metaverse platform, “.SWOOSH”.
The ultimate cocktail mix from Midtown to Midtown. Thank you to the amazing Mick for curating these vibes. See you there, Miami.
This week's newsletter was carefully curated by the Nue Agency staff and our editor Rachel Meisner. If you think we missed something this week or have any suggestions/comments for next week's newsletter, let us know!