Newsletters are an important part of my morning. I subscribe to a dozen or so daily blasts that keep me well informed.Some, like MusicRedef, aggregate news. Others report the news. And folks like Cherrie Hu and Dan Runcie deliver full-on thinkpieces.Beats & Bytes is a hybrid of these approaches. We like to curate and disseminate the best of the best in music, brands, and tech, but we have a point of view, too.Putting a newsletter together is kind of like going to the gym. It keeps you sharp and builds your strengths. It also keeps you top of mind in an increasingly crowded “attention economy.”Newsletter culture has grown significantly since we launched and the pandemic is taking it to new heights. B2B companies that rely on the annual circuit of trade shows and exhibitions for networking and customer relations -- as well as smaller businesses that earn customers through word-of-mouth referrals -- need newsletters to keep customers and fans in the loop, since in-person opportunities are lost.One of my favorite daily newsletters is TheFutureParty. They used to host a very hot party but have evolved into a daily breakdown of key stories and trends. I’m excited to be doing a few cool things with them this week.First, the founders, Boye Fajinmi and Paul Yurick, are joining me for Beats & Bytes Live TONIGHT at 9pm EST to talk about their history and how they built such a fantastic newsletter brand. Tune in on my LinkedIn page.Then, on Thursday, I’m taking part in Face The Music, their virtual conversation about the digital transformation of music, and the opportunities that lie ahead. Sign up for an invite here: http://www.futureparty.com/ftmThe afterparty is Thursday night on Clubhouse. Check out the 9pm Future Of Audio show my friend Jon Kurland from Audible and I are doing on the app. If you don’t know, now you know...
BEATS
The Ice Cream Truck Song Has A Racist Past. So Wu-tang Clan’s Rza Wrote A New OneWu-Tang Clan founder RZA is putting the “good” in Good Humor, partnering with the sweets vendor to create a new ice cream truck jingle as a free alternative to the well-known and problematic tune “Turkey in the Straw.”(LA Times)
Why Warner Music Group Just Paid $85m For A Company That Makes Instagram MemesOn the surface of it, one of the biggest music industry acquisitions of the year has nothing to do with music.Warner Music Group announced its acquisition of IMGN Media on Friday (August 14), a company best known for making memes and viral videos for Instagram, Snapchat and TikTok. (Music Business Worldwide)
Hans Zimmer Created An Extended Version Of Netflix’s ‘ta-dum’ Sound For TheatersNetflix’s “dun dun” sound that plays before an original movie is pretty familiar, but in order to spice it up a little for films that receive theatrical releases, the streamer teamed up with composer Hans Zimmer. (The Verge)
Tomorrowland's Virtual Festival Set A New Standard For Digital Events — Here's How They Did ItTomorrowland has never been one for subtleties. As the Belgian festival scaled up from more humble beginnings in 2005, the Boom location became an array of sights and sounds to stimulate all senses, with colossal constructions, epic line-ups and a sense of other-worldliness. Split across two weekends, almost half a million visitors attended the 2019 edition alone. (DJ Mag)
Dua Lipa Joins Evian As Global Brand AmbassadorEvian, known for fostering creativity via collaborations with Virgil Abloh and Vetements, has named Dua Lipa its new global brand ambassador. The British pop star will join fellow ambassadors Maria Sharapova and Ella Chen. (Hypebae)
John Legend Is Meditation App Headspace’s New ‘chief Music Officer’We’re big fans of famous artists being given spurious job titles as part of partnerships with tech companies, dating back to the glory days of Lady Gaga as Polaroid creative director and Will·I·Am as director of creative innovation at Intel.But perhaps meditation app Headspace really did need a ‘chief music officer’ and John Legend happened to shine the brightest in the interview process. (Musically)
This Socially Distant Music Venue Gives Every Fan Their Own Vip SectionThe Virgin Money Unity Arena in Newcastle claims to be the “UK’s first dedicated socially distanced music venue,” and it just held its first live show this week. The outdoor venue has an extensive green space in front of the stage for fans, with a seating arrangement that’s a bit different: 500 semipermanent, metal, “personal platforms” for groups of up to five—all six feet apart of course. (Fast Company)
Kim Kardashian Announces She is Going to Help With Freeing C-MurderIn recent years, Kim Kardashian has become known for her work with inmates, mainly helping to free convicts who were wrongly imprisoned. Now, Kardashian has taken to Twitter to reveal that she has gathered a team to take on the task of freeing No Limit Records star C-Murder, who many have been saying was imprisoned for a murder he did not commit. (Vlad TV)
How Lil Baby & His 4PF Chain Unmasked a Corporate Scam-PireJust ten days after his sophomore album My Turn hit the Billboard 200’s top spot in June, fans began to notice that Lil Baby’s signature 4PF chain, posted as “Hip Hop Celebrity Style Fashion Silver Plated LIL BABY 4PF Pendant with Silver Tone Plated 16” Cuban Chain,” could be bought on Walmart’s Marketplace for anywhere from $24.99 to $74.99. (High Snobiety)
Tiktok Inks Deal With Unitedmasters That Lets Users Distribute Music To Streaming Platforms Directly From Bytedance’s AppJust last week, we learned that Simon Fuller, founder of XIX Entertainment and the creator of the ‘Idol’ franchise is teaming up with TikTok to find “the world’s next music supergroup”. Today (August 17), TikTok has announced a new deal with independent artist distribution platform UnitedMasters, that will see a full integration between both services directly through the TikTok app. (Music Biz Worldwide)
How Live Music Is Coping, And What The Near Future Will BringLike so many places, the beloved Philly music venue has been shuttered since the Covid-19 pandemic first flared up in March. The 250-person venue, a staple of the local music scene that served as an early stage for Philly acts like Kurt Vile and The War on Drugs, used to host shows almost every night. (NPR)
For Endangered Live Music Venues, Congress Adjourning With No Relief Package Is ‘a Kick in the Gut’“It’s shocking that they don’t just stay until they figure it out,” says Audrey Fix Schaefer of the National Independent Venue Association (NIVA), speaking about Congress adjourning Thursday without taking up federal legislation to relieve businesses hardest hit by the pandemic. (Variety)
Watch Snoop Dogg’s First Corona AdsWhen it comes to mind-altering substances, Snoop is most-identified with gin and juice, and, of course, weed. But starting this week the rapper is lending his chill vibe to a Mexican beer brand. Corona, which confirmed its Snoop partnership earlier this year, today unveiled his first ads as part of the brew's new “La Vida Más Fina” campaign. (AdAge)
Apple Launches Apple Music Radio With A Rebranded Beats 1, Plus Two More StationsApple is revamping its streaming radio service. Starting today, its flagship radio station Beats 1 will be rebranded to Apple Music 1 — a change that more closely associates the station with Apple’s subscription-based streaming music service, Apple Music. (Tech Crunch)
How Cardi B’s Onlyfans Subscription Could Generate Millions Of Dollars Each MonthFan subscriptions for artists are nothing new, with the likes of Patreon, Twitch and Bandcamp already letting artists monetize content via monthly fees. Cardi B’s decision to launch on OnlyFans, however, sparked a few fleeting smirks in the music business, due to the NSFW content the platform is famous for. (Music Business Worldwide)
BYTES
In a just-released episode of The Joe Rogan Experience, Flom and Dubin sat down with Joe Rogan to discuss the new series and the frequency with which innocent men and women find themselves convicted of crimes they didn’t commit.
Artists have been singing about quarantine, masks and lockdowns since the pandemic took over everyone’s lives. Now, there seems to be an influx of animated music videos. Some of today’s hottest artists, like the late Juice WRLD, Billie Eilish and Dua Lipa, are leading this trend.
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Barack Obama’s tradition of sharing playlists continued today with the release of his 2020 Summer Playlist. The playlist includes performers at this year’s Democratic National Convention, including Billie Eilish, Maggie Rogers, Common, John Legend, Leon Bridges (a song with Khruangbin, who aren’t performing at the DNC), the Chicks, and Billy Porter. (Pitchfork)
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!