This week we go deep (like really really deep) on the Music Modernization Act—a landmark, near-unanimous 2018 law that will reshape the legal landscape of American music when it kicks in early next year. Despite this, it has received little or no critical press attention since. Let’s face it though—the last time this scale of legislation passed was in the 1970’s, so it’s a good bet that we’ll be living with the MMA for a long, long time. We figure out what’s going on in the bill (easier said than done), who it helps (mostly the streaming services), and what it tells us about the power structures that define the music industry.
K-Pop Merger Mania (feat. the Idolcast)
Merlin and What It Means (and Meant) to be Indie
The Great Music AI Contradiction (Live at Wavelengths Summit)
Blurred Lines and the Future of Copyright
Inside the Algorithm Factory: Music Recommendations (w/ Nick Seaver)
Streaming in the Dark: No One Knows Anything (w/ Meredith Rose)
Spotify Redux (Quiet Threats + Desperate Flailing)
From Houston to the World: The Political Economy of DJ Screw (with Lance Scott Walker)
Metadata Errors in the Lime Green Lamborghini (With Kristin Robinson)
Reggaeton Gets Sued
A.I. in Der Klub (And Your Next Playlist)
What Taylor Swift Tells Us About the Billboard Charts
The Rise and Fall of SST Records with Jim Ruland
Penny Fractions Live with Cherie Hu and Liz Pelly
Dan Ozzi on the Political Economy of Selling Out
The Music Catalog Acquisition Cool Down
Damon Krukowski on Unions, Streaming, and Musical Labor
The KLF: A Foolproof Way To Hit No. 1
Born to Sell: Springsteen’s Tickets + Meta Makes Moves
K-Pop Histories Beyond BTS (Featuring The Idolcast)
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