It was interesting to read about the evolution of the Vanity Fair Oscar Party in the Sunday Styles this weekend. Already the Oscars’ most daunting door to beat down, the event is now more exclusive than ever, only there’s a workaround: access granted through brands. Marriott was a headline sponsor this year and allowed two “civilians” who secured invitations in an online auction, bidding with customer-loyalty points from Marriott, to enter the star-studded bash. Talk about rewards.The VF party started in the early ’90s, arguably the last decade when movie stars — Julia Roberts, Tom Cruise, Tom Hanks — clearly dominated the culture. This was before franchise filmmaking took over Hollywood and the Internet began to rapidly fragment media and create new lanes for new kinds of stars. Absent smartphones and social media, the VF party was a place where celebrities could let their hair down and kick their shoes off without worrying about a video showing up on TMZ moments later.Cut to 2019 and we’re livestreaming the former FOMO factory on Twitter and Vaintyfair.com (thanks to a sponsorship with Verizon!). The once private event now reportedly generates tens of millions of impressions for Conde Nast, VF’s parent company. Which is undoubtably worth tens of millions dollars on top of the $10 million+ dollars in sponsorship revenue that it brings in now, too.Putting the soirée up for sale, however, has resulted in a return to exclusivity elsewhere. Jay-Z and Beyonce’s 2nd annual “gold ball” and the Madonna & Guy Oseary party come to mind. Invites remain extremely difficult to secure and the production is put on by the stars themselves. Brands, if present, are seen only by the people in the room, not boasted about online. #Content, if any, is highly vetted and released exclusively by the hosts. These events are more interested in the allure of old Hollywood exclusivity and less focused on media impressions and the marketing dollars they generate.As a marketer, I ask myself: which room holds a higher value for a company? Is brand presence in a galaxy of A-listers enough to justify the spend? Or are we living in a world where impressions, data, and conversion are all that counts? Is swirling in the epicenter of culture without being able to broadcast it a waste of time or the way to create a perfect storm? Is the real test to balance the exclusive and the inclusive?Ping my replies with what you think. I know which invite I’d rather receive...
BEATS
How Artificial Intelligence Is Transforming the Music Streaming Industry It is fascinating how technology has fuelled the growth of the music industry at each and every juncture in the last 40 years. From the nostalgic days of vinyl records and cassettes to the times of CDs and MP3s and the current digital disruptions through music streaming platforms, the music industry has benefitted from rapid technological advancements. (Live Mint)
Why Musicians Are Starting Their Own Podcasts — And Why To Pay AttentionOver the past few decades, podcasting has bloomed from a primarily DIY medium at the bottom of the media food chain, to a corporate-approved cash cow at the top — and major music-streaming services have become among the sector’s most aggressive investors today. (Medium)
Dubsmash Is Far From Dead -- But Can It Really Survive Its Second Life? For a brief clip, Dubsmash was a viral sensation. Founded out of Berlin in 2014 by Jonas Drüppel, Roland Grenke and Daniel Taschik, the app's early incarnation—which allowed users to record selfie lip-sync videos to famous movie quotes and sound bites from across pop culture—was catapulted into the public eye thanks to unofficial endorsements from celebrities like Jimmy Fallon, Rihanna, Evan Rachel Wood and Penelope Cruz. (Forbes)
Pitbull Audiobook 'From Negative to Positive' Lands at Audible LatinoTo coincide with the launch of Audible Latino, a platform for US Hispanic listeners to access tailored programming, Audible is releasing an original audiobook from hip-hop artist Armando Christian Perez, better known by his stage name as Pitbull. (Billboard)
Kanye West Leads Another Charged Sunday ServiceKanye West has once more gathered somewhere in the Hills to deliver on a new session of his Sunday Services. This time around, it looks like ‘Ye is democratizing the experience with more attendees present outside of the industry regulars on the guest list at previous services.(Hot New Hip Hop)
Inside Nipsey Hussle's Blueprint To Become A Real Estate MogulThe tattered stretch of West Slauson Avenue just off Crenshaw Boulevard in Los Angeles isn’t the first place you’d expect to see a Cadillac Escalade roll up and deliver a Grammy-nominated musician. (Forbes)
Amy Winehouse Hologram Tour On Hold Over ‘Challenges and Sensitivities’Ethical questions about resurrecting a deceased artist to perform for live audiences are still being debated. The Roy Orbison hologram tour debuted last year in North America after its test appearance in the UK — and the flip side is that these tours can be viewed as honorary mementos. Others fail to see the ‘honorary’ part. (Digital Music News)
See Music Differently - Virtual Reality Music Platforms Host Concerts Modern youth are aware of their perceived dependence on tech, and they’re making a point to practice digital wellness to counteract the isolation they can feel behind their screens. Brands are helping by using those screens to bring people together for digital festivals. (Cassandra)
Playing to StrangersHow do you build an artist’s brand? Can you do it from the bottom up amassing fan after fan until there’s a rabid enough base to breakthrough? It’s a commonly held belief that breaking songs is the result of huge vocal, dedicated fan-bases but fans aren’t actually that loyal. (Medium)
BYTES
Saddled with debt and a bad capital structure, iHeartMedia filed for bankruptcy in March 2018. But last month, the radio giant gained court approval for a plan that would cut about $10 billion of debt and allow it to emerge from bankruptcy within the first half of this year. Leading the charge is iHeartMedia CEO Bob Pittman.
Towards the end of last month, J. Cole served up his very first single and musical release of 2019, “Middle Child.” Produced by T-Minus, the record debuted at #26 on the Billboard Hot 100 and ascended to the fourth spot in the following week, making it the highest-charting track in J. Cole’s career.
You text. Ditty sings! Ditty is a fast and fun new way to send friends a custom song and lyric video.
Mr. Mathers has reissued the Slim Shady LP to mark its 20th anniversary – and it comes complete with a selection of bonus tracks.
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!