It’s build mode!I’m not going to sugarcoat it: It’s tough out here.Recession is looming. There’s a political divide in the U.S. that makes water cooler conversation nearly impossible. A war is going on overseas that feels like the door to a nuclear abyss. Inflation is the highest it’s been in 40 years and it’s going to be painful on the economy to slow it down. Supply chain issues continue to be a factor and ruthless sonsabitches are using the confusion to further price gouge.Interest rates keep going up, meaning access to cheap capital keeps going down. That’s going to affect the real estate market soon. Stocks are way down and net worths are halving. Crypto winter came mid-Summer and it’s causing carnage. There will be a lot of damage and repercussions from this time. There’s no sign of a bounce back anytime soon.I, however, have some good news.There was a lot of froth in the market (do you like overly frothy coffee? I don’t). Valuations were sky high. A correction was not only imminent, but needed. Historically, economic heart attacks have spawned great American companies.The dotcom boom led to the formation of Google, Amazon, eBay and the entire e-commerce explosion. Even the ‘08 crash had a silver lining. Uber, Airbnb, Venmo, WhatsApp, Instagram, Pinterest, Slack, and Spotify were all born out of that brutality. These were paradigm-shifting businesses built with the technology of Web 2.0.This is why I believe our current crash conundrum will lead to the next era of great U.S. innovation. It might be hard to see the light right now, but there is no question that the world is going through another massive shift. It’s the dawn of Web3 and the dominant players have not yet taken the field.It’s time to innovate, to hunker down, and to create. What happens in the next 18 months will define a generation.Of course, there are factors you can’t control, like broader macroeconomic shifts, timing, and international geopolitics. Let’s leave that to the suckers and experts. This is not the time to get caught in the weeds (unless you’re in the Cannabizness, which is thriving :0). This is the moment to plant your stake in the ground. It’s build mode!For some, the big question is: what do I want to make?!?In the spirit of answering that question, the Web3 community is taking to NYC next week for NFT NYC. I can’t wait to be back in the city to learn, lead, and lay the foundation for the future.We lived through 2008. We thrived through Web2. Now, it’s Web3’s turn. The potential is exponential. We need to forge a brave new world.If you want to connect in person, I have limited slots for our NFTalks on Sunday, June 19th at 630pm. Come have a glass of wine and be a part of the conversation. We’ll have our Lyricist Lounge DAO family on hand, led by the amazing Ant Marshall. Expect to see hip-hop stars from both the golden era and the new school. RSVP here [email protected].I’m also speaking at the conference on Tuesday, June 21st in the afternoon. Hit me for deets. Hope to see you next week.
BEATS
Goldman Sachs Predicts Explosive Music Industry Growth Despite Spotify Slowdown and Wider Economic UncertaintyAmid the ongoing resurgence of crowd-based entertainment like concerts and festivals – and notwithstanding a slowdown in Spotify’s subscriber growth – Goldman Sachs believes that the music industry is poised to crack $153 billion in annual revenue by 2030. (Digital Music News)
#CryptoCrash: What It Means & Doesn't Mean For MusicSince the start of May cryptocurrency prices including Ethereum’s ETH, home to some of the most popular NFT projects and platforms, have dropped significantly. ETH itself more than halved in value versus most ‘fiat’ (e.g. the US dollar or Euro). (MusicX)
Questlove Makes Headlines in Droga5's Latest NYT CampaignThe New York Times explores the roots of Questlove's creativity in a fresh installment of the media giant's "Independent Journalism for an Independent Life" campaign from Droga5. (Muse By Clio)Sound Byte: If you aren’t inspired by QuestLove than you aren’t inspireable. This is one of the great curators of all time.
Building an Award-Winning Freight MarketplaceDespite its massive size, the $800 billion U.S. trucking industry has, until recently, relied exclusively on phone calls, emailed bids, and spreadsheets to manually arrange shipments. (Inc)
SoundCloud Rap Didn’t DieIt’s been a few years since a string of tragic incidents claimed the lives of the biggest stars of the SoundCloud rap era and long since the hype around novelty acts like Lil Pump faded away, but a new generation of artists is breathing fresh life into the scene right now. (Complex)
TikTok Is Turning Music Marketing Into a Labyrinthian GameHave you heard the reports? Artists are being held hostage by their record labels, who can only talk about TikTok this and TikTok that, demanding ever-more lip-syncs, dances, and casual posts for an insatiable internet. (Pitchfork)
Culture Next by Spotify Ad StudioAn exploration of how Gen Z and millennials are shaping audio streaming and culture at large.
Zumiez and Digital Experience Platform NoCap Launch NXTUP Concert SeriesExperiential music specialists, NoCap, has teamed up with esteemed lifestyle and culture retailer, Zumiez, for an innovative new concert series, NXTUP. (Yahoo Finance)
Bruce Springsteen Surpasses One Million Tickets Sold In European TourBruce Springsteen surpasses one million tickets sold for his 2023 European tour and adds more dates in Amsterdam, Barcelona, Dublin, Gothenburg, Hockenheim, Oslo, and Paris. (Digital Music News)
BYTES
This week, host Isaac Butler talks to music supervisors Bruce Gilbert and Lauren Mikus, whose most recent projects include the Hulu series Only Murders in the Building and the the multidimensional action movie Everything Everywhere All at Once.
It’s no secret that TikTok is a virality machine. Songs get turned into sounds that can be used in any video, and if they gain enough traction they can catapult a musician into the pop culture stratosphere.
The final public concert appearances of Tony Bennett and Glen Campbell helped tell the world what many families of those suffering with Alzheimer’s disease already know: that music memories can be some of the last to go.
When we started planning See You Next Year, we had no idea what was possible. This was Pigeons & Planes’ first attempt at making a proper compilation album. It’s something we’ve always wanted to do, but requesting original songs from rising artists is a big ask, especially for a project with no track record.
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!