Talking with Helienne Lindvall Because Streaming is Still Broken

Neil Young pulls his music from Spotify to protest the content on Joe Rogan's podcast, and Joni Mitchell and Crosby, Stills, and Nash follow suit. It's a big story for a week, and some noise about "cancel culture" and Rogan himself lingers, but we've mostly moved on. Meanwhile, the economic model for music streaming is still broken. Songwriters make pennies for millions of streams, and the dynamics of the data-driven market are not quite conducive to the kind of experimentation and risk-taking that dominated the period when artists like Young and his contemporaries rose to fame. So, why don't legacy artists who can command so much attention use that power to advocate for fair compensation for the next generation of artists?  I don't know the answer, but the question prompted me to invite songwriter/columnist Helienne Lindvall to join me for this episode.

• 01:22 – Helienne’s background.
• 04:23 – Cyber-bullied for speaking out.
• 08:05 – Changing views about free music, etc.
• 08:52 – The Spotify Young/Rogan controversy.
• 14:48 – What about big artists using their power on behalf of small artists?
• 17:54 – Streaming is also changing the craft of songwriting.
• 25:23 – Are we losing diversity in the digital age?
• 30;20 – Placing value on the work.
• 34:47 –Data driven creation and what that means.
• 39:51 – Devaluing the music.
• 43:35 – Are we producing variety compared to the past?
• 48:30 – Looking at Billie Eilish.
• 51:36 – Songwriting as a job.
• 54:18 – Reprise hope for big artists to speak out.