Music Tectonics

Music has permeated nearly every aspect of our lives from ads to fitness to social media, made possible through the use of sync licenses. Syncfloor is making it easier than ever to navigate the world of sync licensing. In this episode, CEO/CTO Kirt Debique explores how Syncfloor is streamlining commercial sync licensing with Syncstores, a Shopify-like platform that lets artists license their tracks for sync as easily as they sell merch. Find out how Syncfloor is making it easier than ever to sift through their vast collections of music with natural language music search and sentiment analysis. Learn how the exponential increase in music use through podcasts, content marketing, and platforms like Clubhouse are changing the way businesses interact with music. How can comprehensive music integration convey a commercial narrative? Listen for a chance to talk back and win one of host Dmitri Vietze’s favorite books! The Music Tectonics podcast goes beneath the surface of the music industry to explore how technology is changing the way business gets done. Visit MusicTectonics.com to learn more, and find us on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram. Let us know what you think!

Make music with the actual sounds from retro 8-bit games, or sample FM radio to add local flavor to your beats. Swedish design and technology company Teenage Engineering packs off-the-wall features like these into portable, powerful gear for music making and listening that looks and feels  good. In this episode, Co-founder /VP David Möllerstedt explores Teenage Engineering’s origin story and the inspiration behind the playful things they make: tiny, inexpensive Pocket Operators, the candy-like, highly functional OP-1 synthesizer, wild collaborations with Cheap Monday, IKEA, and Baidu, and more. Dig into the design philosophy that makes Teenage Engineering’s products attractive, innovative, and functional. What makes Stockholm such a creative hub for music gear and software? Which up and coming innovations are getting David excited for the future of music making? Listen for a chance to talk back and win one of host Dmitri Vietze’s favorite books! The Music Tectonics podcast goes beneath the surface of the music industry to explore how technology is changing the way business gets done. Visit MusicTectonics.com to learn more, and find us on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram. Let us know what you think!

What are music industry solutions for monetizing fandom missing about the true power of fans? Jacquelle Amankonah Horton, founder of Fave, sits down with host, Tristra Newyear Yeager, to explore the wild world of fandom. Jacquelle discusses the inspiration for Fave, her own personal experience as a diehard fan, and the ever-evolving definition of what it means to be a fan. Discover how Fave, one of Techstars Music’s 2021 class of startups is creating the “Etsy of fandom” by integrating fans into the creative process. Find out what happens when fans engage with each other, the art itself, and the artist. Get Jacquelle’s take on what it means to truly tap into fandom’s creativity and passion as an artist, and the importance of cultivating fan communities. Listen for a chance to talk back and win one of host Dmitri Vietze’s favorite books!

Special episode: We’re sponsoring a Music Tech Meetup at SXSW 2021 Online, this Wednesday March 17! Plus, host Dmitri Vietze invites you to more virtual venue hopping events March 18-20. Explore eclectic online environments via 3D avatar, video chat, and voice. Mix and mingle with music and tech’s brightest minds at fun, spontaneous meetups. We're teaming up with LyricFind, Strat Americas, Super Hi-Fi, and Coffee Shift to recapture the secret-back-door vibe of venue-hopping at Keep Music Tech Weird Week! RSVP at MusicTectonics.com. The Music Tectonics podcast goes beneath the surface of the music industry to explore how technology is changing the way business gets done. Visit MusicTectonics.com to learn more, and find us on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram. Let us know what you think!

You probably heard that the Mechanical Licensing Collective (The MLC) received $424 million in historical unmatched royalties from music streaming services. In this interview with MLC CEO Kris Ahrend, we find out where that money came from, who it is going to be paid out to, and when. What will the time frame be for additional collections and payouts moving forward? Get an inside look at this historic moment of unlocking a significant amount of revenue for publishers, administrators, and self-published songwriters. This is the big outcome from the highly fought-for Music Modernization Act and demonstrates that legislation is starting to catch up with the digital music industry. Listen in for a highly accessible explanation of what is happening with the MLC and mechanical royalties.  The Music Tectonics podcast goes beneath the surface of the music industry to explore how technology is changing the way business gets done. Visit MusicTectonics.com to learn more, and find us on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram. Let us know what you think!

What do Prince, Justin Bieber, and Pepsi have in common? They all turn to John Petrocelli for amazing livestream concerts. When livestreaming boomed in 2020, the Bulldog DM founder already had 20 years of experience. John sits down with host Dmitri Vietze to dig into Bulldog DM’s best practices for compelling, interactive livestream experiences for artists, brands, and the fans that love them. Find out how a transformative experience with Prince led John to found Bulldog DM a decade before livestreaming was cool. What’s it like to watch your field grow from a handful of competitors to hundreds in the space of a year? What are new livestreaming companies missing? How do branded livestreams turn the traditional advertising-programming relationship on its head? Where does John see livestreamed performance going in the future? The Music Tectonics podcast goes beneath the surface of the music industry to explore how technology is changing the way business gets done. Visit MusicTectonics.com to learn more, and find us on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram. Let us know what you think!

What happens when Amazon and Spotify’s “Audio First” strategies bring music, audiobooks, and podcasts into one audiosphere? Our guide to this new landscape is author, podcaster, and literary entrepreneur Joanna Penn. Joanna takes host Tristra Newyear Yeager on a tour of the evolution of audio and authorship, and how a digital revolution is shaking up that world too. Find out how the streaming economy affects indie authors and indie musicians in similar ways, and how they both need to adapt. What near future tech will help reader/listeners find the content they want from the voices that matter to them? Will AI steal authors’ and narrators’ jobs? When boundaries between music, audiobooks and podcasts blur, what creative collaborations will arise? The Music Tectonics podcast goes beneath the surface of the music industry to explore how technology is changing the way business gets done. Visit MusicTectonics.com to learn more, and find us on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram. Let us know what you think!

When tech tools let you play with a song’s component stems, the soundtrack of your life is no longer passive. In this episode, learn how Audionamix’s AI-powered source separation tools unbake the musical cake, pulling out crystal clear individual tracks long after the original multitrack recordings have disappeared. Ellie McNeil and Cory Sims of Audionamix sit down with Tristra Newyear Yeager to explore the evolution of audio isolation. They cover everything from the rise of karaoke in the 1970s, Audionamix’s role removing the roar of vuvuzelas from World Cup footage in 2010, their growth as the global leader in audio source separation, and the future when interactivity will be the norm. How do high quality stems unlock new revenue streams, both for new releases and back catalogue? What happens when fans get to look under the hood at what makes songs great? How should licensing change to support new uses of stems in games, user-generated video, education, and more? Listen for a chance to talk back and win one of host Dmitri Vietze’s favorite books! The Music Tectonics podcast goes beneath the surface of the music industry to explore how technology is changing the way business gets done. Visit MusicTectonics.com to learn more, and find us on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram. Let us know what you think!

Dan Runcie’s Trapital Media gives the business of hip-hop the rigorous coverage and in-depth analysis that it deserves. This week, Dan gives host Dmitri Vietze a picture of the state of hip-hop as a culture, a musical genre, and an influential business ethos— and how it’s evolving faster than ever. Find out why emerging hip-hop artists are so focused on creating their own lane and owning their careers, whether they sign to a label or choose the DIY path. Dan shares Trapital highlights, from an early essay on J. Cole’s superfan strategy to podcast interviews with the people behind the business. Get Dan’s viewpoint on the major music tech trends, like the rise of NFTs and the major label acquisitions that are shaking up the landscape. Dan looks ahead to future developments he’s excited to see in livestreaming and building a more equitable music industry.  Listen for the first “Big Question” winner and a chance to Ask Dan Runcie Anything!  The Music Tectonics podcast goes beneath the surface of the music industry to explore how technology is changing the way business gets done. Visit MusicTectonics.com to learn more, and find us on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram. Let us know what you think!

In the age of data, A&R is no longer a Dark Art. Find out how music industry veteran Travis Rosenblatt created Meddling to deliver indispensable data and tools, so the label executives who spot new musical talent aren’t operating on gut instinct alone. Travis gives occasional host Tristra Newyear Yeager his expert view on the shifting power dynamics between artists and labels, the pitfalls of betting on TikTok success, and where the new tastemakers are. Learn how Travis turned his own career obstacles into opportunities, and why operating Meddling as a “solopreneur” is the only option. Plus, get a peek at how Travis’s next project, Signal, is poised to streamline the rickety Rube Goldberg machine that is royalty collection, so rightsholders are first in line to get the money they’re owed. Listen for a chance to talk back and win one of host Dmitri Vietze’s favorite books!  The Music Tectonics podcast goes beneath the surface of the music industry to explore how technology is changing the way business gets done. Visit MusicTectonics.com to learn more, and find us on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram. Let us know what you think!