This week, “Black Panther” shattered box office records for February, bringing in $218 million over Presidents’ Day weekend.In fact, according to The Hollywood Reporter, it was one of the biggest North American openings of all-time.While the film is, of course, based on the Marvel Comics character of the same name, its cultural significance was what made for such a poignant and powerful debut. And like many things that break through culture, music was right there in the mix.As theater seats filled worldwide, Kendrick Lamar’s soundtrack rose to the top of the charts. “Black Panther: The Album” includes songs curated and performed by Lamar, and he served as co-producer alongside Anthony “Top Dawg” Tiffith, Founder & CEO of Top Dawg Entertainment. It also boasts contributions from The Weeknd, SZA, Khalid and James Blake, among others.My favorite track? “Pray For Me,” which is performed by Lamar and The Weeknd. It might be only February, but I’ve already declared it as my favorite song of the year thus far.Besides falling into an internship in college at Marvel, I was never a huge comics fan, and I’m not all that into superhero flicks in general, but “Black Panther” is one of those rare events in Hollywood that’s able to bring people together in powerful ways. It’s proof positive that entertainment, and more specifically, music, can shape cultural conversations and spark a movement.Now that’s $16.95 well-spent.P.S. Speaking of victory laps, big congrats to NUE client Live.me on making the Fast Co Most Innovative Companies of the Year list.
BEATS
The Major Labels' Revenues Grew by $1BN In 2017. But Who Had The Biggest Year?The combined sales of all three major record companies grew by a total of $1.04bn in 2017, with cumulative streaming revenues jumping $1.4bn year-on-year to offset physical and download declines.(Tim Ingham, Music Business WorldWide)
Are Virtual Stars The Next Step for Influencer Marketing?Now, a new phenomenon has cropped up, which hasn’t done much to help perceived authenticity within the industry. It’s mainly down to Lil Miquela – a virtual/CGI influencer with an impressive 600,000 followers on Instagram. (Nikki Gilliland – Econsultancy)
Facebook Gets The Smart Speaker ItchFacebook is gearing up to enter the smart speaker market this year with the social media giant reportedly gearing up to roll out two models in the middle of this year. (PYMNTS)
Spotify Announces Major Streaming Stats Calculation ShakeupIn a bit of good news for artists, Spotify recently announced that it will be altering the way in which it tallies streams of remixes, meaning both artists and remixers will both receive more recognition and exposure for their efforts. (Hypebot)
Data drawn from Spotify listeners reveal that we are all teenagers in love. (Seth Stephens-Davidowitz – The NY Times)
The Story of Combat Jack, Hip-Hop’s Flagship PodcasterCombat Jack — Reggie Ossé as he was known to his friends — was lying in his hospital bed. His big belly pressed tight against his blue gown. His face was gaunt, missing 10 or 15 of the pounds that typically rounded out his cheeks. It was late October, nearly two weeks after he’d checked in to Brooklyn’s NYU Lutheran Medical Center. (Paul Cantor – The Vulture)
Introducing: Repost Network and Their Fight to Help Artists Live Off Music Enter, Repost Network. Repost is a music startup out of Venice that helps monetize an artist’s music via their online audience. No more chasing down rouge channels ripping off tunes or trying to figure out all of the annoying backend administrative work that comes along with that TuneCore account. (James Schiff – Earmilk)
VNUE Acquires Soundstr to Streamline Live Performance Royalty Tracking Process: ExclusiveVNUE Inc., a publicly-traded company specializing in live concert recordings and experiential content for music fans, has announced today that it will be acquiring music identification and rights startup Soundstr for an undisclosed price, Billboard has learned. (Cherie Hu, Billboard)
BYTES
This week on Promoter 101, Live Nation's President and Chief Executive Officer Michael Rapino sits down one on one with Steiny to discuss running the biggest concert promotion firm in the world, recorded February 7th at Pollstar Live! 2018 as the conference Keynote. Plus Dan and Luke break down the news of the week.
Watch 17-year-old, Olympic Gold Medalist, Red Gerard in the snowboarding feature film, Arcadia. Featuring the track "Space in Space" by Tiger Love.
’sodes is a casual, cozy way to listen to the occasional podcast. There are no download queues or tricked-out audio features. Just tap a show, tap an episode, and listen.
Frank Ocean Gifts Fans With "Moon River" Cover On Valentine's Night.
This week's newsletter was carefully curated by the Nue Agency staff and our editor Maria Tejada If you think we missed something this week or have any suggestions/comments for next week's newsletter, let us know!