The first notable brand partnership in music was forged in 1964 between the Rolling Stones and Rice Krispies following the meteoric rise of television. The 1980’s brought the first mega-deals, with Pepsi’s endorsement of Michael Jackson leading the way. But until recently, brand partnerships were considered taboo in music. Now, instead of being seen as “selling out,” artists have brands “buying in” to their vision.Brand partnerships exploded in 2020 and this year we will see even more of that growth trajectory. We’ve been in the trenches of many massive music partnerships over the past decade-plus at Nue, so when our friends at Talent Resources connected about a panel series on The Future Of Brand Partnerships, I knew we’d have a lot to contribute.The question of brand partnerships is open-ended. Music is the pillar of culture, so the possibilities are limitless. But for the sake of conversation, I’ll try to answer. The way I see it, the future of music+brand partnerships breaks down into several verticals: 1. Artists launching brands on their own, building them and then partnering with bigger, more established corporations that need the fresh energy and technology. We saw that this week with Jay-Z taking his Armand De Brignac to Moet. 2. Musicians leveraging new technology to get their art out, similar to what Snoop Dogg did this week with Facebook’s Oculus and Tidal. 3. A.I. simulations like Post Malone’s show this week with Pokemon. 4. Artists partnering with platforms to release their music & additional products on the blockchain. 5. Nostalgia plays that take undervalued assets like The Beach Boys’ catalog and revitalize them for the world to enjoy live, one last time. 6. SPACs that are going to create efficiencies, scale, and new conglomerates. 7. Brand marketers and artists building brands from inception, with the creative and execution at the table together from the jump.I believe technology will help create a marketplace for more and more brands to connect with artists. I can see artists licensing on scale as everyone gets more comfortable with this space, similar to what Star Trek and Star Wars might do, but more nuanced. It’s a big sandbox in which anyone can play: new or old, big or small, established or emerging.Beginning this week, we’re going to dive into a different “future of brand partnerships” topic on Clubhouse. We’ll do this the last Friday of each month. We’re kicking things off at 2PM EST this week. Hope you can join and bring your perspective on the deal-making process. Add it to your calendar here.What is the future of in brand partnerships in your mind?
BEATS
Donald Glover’s Reported Amazon Deal Could Lead To A More Curated Prime VideoAfter calling FX home for several years, Atlanta creator Donald Glover is reportedly moving to Amazon with an overall deal worth eight figures, according to multiple publications. As part of the deal, Glover will work on a series of projects for Amazon, including the recently announced Mr. and Mrs. Smith series, which he’ll star in alongside Fleabag creator Phoebe Waller-Bridge. (The Verge)
Confirmed: Universal Music Group Set To Go Public On Euronext Amsterdam Stock Exchange This YearLooks like Universal Music Group is going public this year – in Amsterdam. UMG parent Vivendi has confirmed it is examining a proposal to spin 60% of the music company out from the French company’s corporate ownership, and for UMG to start trading on the Euronext Amsterdam stock exchange by the end of 2021. (Music Business Worldwide)
Daft Punk Break UpDaft Punk, the Parisian duo responsible for some of the most popular dance and pop songs ever made, have split. They broke the news with an 8-minute video titled “Epilogue,” excerpted from their 2006 film Electroma. Asked if Daft Punk were no more, their longtime publicist Kathryn Frazier confirmed the news to Pitchfork but gave no reason for the breakup. (Pitchfork)
7 Hip-Hop Producers Pushing the Genre in New DirectionsBefore the internet age, a music producer was somewhat of a mysterious figure. Sometimes, producers were just engineers who helped artists figure out ways to create the sounds they were looking for by using various recording techniques and musical arrangements. (Flypaper)
Pablo Hasel: Violent Clashes On Fifth Night Of Protests Over Jailing Of Spanish Rapper Who Insulted MonarchyRioters in Spain have smashed shop windows and launched glass bottles at police in a fifth night of violence over the jailing of rapper Pablo Hasel. It comes after the musician was arrested by anti-riot police on Tuesday following a 24-hour stand-off in a university with dozens of supporters to avoid prison over what he calls an issue of free speech. (Sky News)
DJ 3LAU to Auction Full Album Tokenized on Ethereum Blockchain3LAU (real name Justin David Blau) is launching the sale for the Ultraviolet Vinyl NFT Collection to commemorate the album's three-year anniversary, project partner Origin Protocol announced Wednesday. This will be the first time in music history that a full album is tokenized on the blockchain, the musician said in a tweet.(Coindesk)
Want to Make a Hit Record From Your Bedroom? Ask Splice.Use of Splice has boomed during the pandemic, as people stuck at home experimented with making their own tracks. The company specializes in royalty-free samples, which allow people to use drum sounds or flutes from a large library for a monthly fee. (Bloomberg)
Inside the Ambitious Plan to Monetize the Beach Boys’ LegacyWhen Carl Wilson died of cancer in 1998, his sons Jonah and Justyn became heirs to their father’s estate. That meant joining with surviving Beach Boys founders Mike Love, Brian Wilson, and Al Jardine to vote on key business decisions, from archival releases to commercials. (Rolling Stone)
Music APIs Are Exactly What The Industry Needs. Here’s Why.While the music industry demonstrated an impressive ability to bounce back thanks to its early adoption of streaming, keeping that momentum going will require a streamlining of the process through which tech companies get permission to license music. (Hypebot)
Can Musicians Still Strike Gold During a Global Pandemic?Enter the coronavirus. South by Southwest was canceled at the beginning of March and, in the weeks that followed, virtually every major festival and music venue around the world shut down, a growing number of them doing so permanently. The music industry has teetered on the brink of collapse ever since, with artists unable to tour, release schedules left in limbo and no clear sign of when those situations will change. (Playboy)
Letter from the CEO: LÜM’s New Approach to Sync Brings Indie Artists into Commercial SpotlightTechnology is a leading indicator of disruption. Yet technology and innovation often conflict with incumbents’ desire to hold on to their power — resulting in complacency and contentment with the status quo.However, this is only true in the short term. In the end, innovation always wins.(Max Fergus)
Tyler, The Creator Almost Passed On Coca-cola Commercial Opportunity — But Ultimately Secured The BagTyler, The Creator is doing exactly what his moniker says he’s doing — creating. On Saturday (February 21), the Odd Future mastermind tweeted out a new commercial from Coca-Cola that features his own original music. (Hip Hop DX)
LVMH's Moet Hennessy Buys In To Rap Star Jay-Z's Champagne BrandLVMH’s Moet Hennessy is buying a 50% stake in rap star Jay-Z’s Armand de Brignac champagne brand, the latest luxury brand to try to broaden its appeal with a celebrity tie-up. “I’m proud to welcome the Arnault family into ours through this partnership,” the “Empire State of Mind” singer said in a statement, referring to the family that runs LVMH. (Reuters)
BYTES
The MBW Podcast profiles some of the brightest sparks – and most successful executives – working in the global business today. Recent interviews include: Kerry Trainor, CEO of SoundCloud; Steve Stoute, CEO of Google-backed UnitedMasters; Milana Rabkin Lewis, CEO of $12m-backed Stem
Spotify announced today its plans under its “Spotify Stream On” video to roll out a new high-end subscription service, called Spotify HiFi, along with other new features and updates, including new content deals, and features for creators. The company said Spotify HiFi will launch later this year to Spotify Premium subscribers in select global markets, allowing them to listen to music in “CD-quality, lossless audio format.” (via TechCrunch).
Like Clubhouse, Dispo is a social media-type iPhone app that’s recently attracted plenty of attention. Clubhouse launched last year on iOS as an invite-only service and it still requires an invite today. However, while Dispo also relies on an invite system, and comes with a social element, it is vastly different to Clubhouse. For starters, while Clubhouse focuses on audio conversations, Dispo is all about photography (Via screenrant).
This sounds like a dystopian nightmare, but luckily it’s just the backstory of Good Kid Twisted Fantasy, the latest Kanye-inspired mashup album from Toasty Digital, a 26-year-old technical editor who moonlights as an internet DJ and Yeezy superfan. Following up his last project, Kanye 2049, Toasty sets Good Kid one year later, in 2050, as the soundtrack to a space-bound Kendrick Lamar’s cryogenic sleep.
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!