Keeping Tempo With Music Biz
Given the constant evolution of the music business, it is extremely important for today’s industry professionals to stay current with the latest trends and technologies influencing the ways we work. Our Keeping Tempo article series taps into the brain trust of our member & partner community to arm readers with the tips and tricks they need to succeed, and discuss the issues affecting industry professionals on a holistic level.
MEMBERS: Do you have an idea for a future article to contribute to the series? Reach out to Henryk Bik from the Music Biz team today at henryk.bik@musicbiz.org.
April 29, 2026 – [Keeping Tempo With Music Biz] — The Catalog Intelligence Gap Costing Music Companies More Than They Know: Op-Ed from Vistex’s Aashish Pathak
How AI turns music catalog data into a revenue strategy Every year, Luminate drops a report that should set music company strategy for the next twelve months. It’s detailed, publicly available, and packed with signals most organizations never act on. Not because the data is hard to find, but because turning market signals into catalog decisions requires a kind of cross-functional thinking most companies aren’t structured to do. This gap is quietly costing the industry more than anyone wants to admit.... Click Here To Read
April 14, 2026 – [Keeping Tempo With Music Biz] — Easy Prompts for Your Team, So They Can Make the Best Use of AI: Op-Ed from EnterGain’s James Celentano
Remember when Amazon and eBay ushered in a world of unlimited shelf space. Then with MySpace, the first floodgates of user-generated content were opened. Users could put up as much stuff as they wanted, limited only by the speed at which they could create products and content. Prior to that, sellers were limited by the amount of shelf space available in stores or catalogs. We have entered a new paradigm: we’re moving from unlimited shelf space to unlimited inventory.... Click Here To Read
March 31, 2026 – [Keeping Tempo With Music Biz] — Why Are Artists Seemingly More Afraid of Publishing Deals Now Than Ever?: Op-Ed from Killphonic’s Caleb Shreve
When I speak on panels, I’m often asked, “What is the biggest problem you encounter in the publishing world?” The real answer is The MLC, but that’s for another op-ed. My more moderate answer is the education and understanding around music publishing, and probably the most logical answer is the title of this op-ed. This comes from a lot of misinformation, an unnecessarily complex system, and a rapidly changing industry with some very stubborn industry professionals.... Click Here To Read
February 25, 2026 – [Keeping Tempo With Music Biz] — Building Genuine Artist-Fan Connection Through Video: Interview with Vevo’s Cynthia Todd
Fan engagement in the 2020s has become a double-edged sword: while the spread-out nature of digital platforms means it’s harder to reach fans than ever, it also creates more opportunities to directly connect with fans in meaningful ways. In this conversation with Cynthia Todd, Director of Talent Booking at Vevo, we discuss the opportunities and challenges of creating genuine relationships between artists & fans, how artists can evolve their sound & brand while still appealing to both new and old fans,... Click Here To Read
January 20, 2026 – [Keeping Tempo With Music Biz] — Why AI’s Most Critical Role in 2026 Will Be Rescue, Not Creation: Op-Ed from Noctil’s Jacob Varghese
Walk into any boardroom, or any room for that matter, in the music industry, and I bet that there will be at least one mention of Generative AI and how it will replace our artists. We spend hours debating deepfakes, voice cloning, and the dilution of human creativity. While these are valid concerns, they are a strategic distraction. We are so focused on the robot in the recording booth that we are ignoring the fire in the accounting department.... Click Here To Read
November 18, 2025 – [Keeping Tempo] — Trust, Safety & Integrity in Music Distribution: Op-Ed from Yoktan Haddad at Revelator
How to Build Systems That Protect Artists and Their Royalties In a world where anyone can upload a track, open a label, or launch a distribution company, integrity has never mattered more. Digital distribution has opened the gates for millions of artists around the world. That’s something to celebrate. But with that opportunity comes real responsibility, not just to move music quickly, but to protect it properly. With unprecedented access has come unprecedented risk: fraudulent streaming,... Click Here To Read
October 15, 2025 – [Keeping Tempo With Music Biz] — Maintaining Fierce Independence: An Interview with Timothy Trudeau of Syntax Creative
From humble beginnings nearly three decades ago, Syntax Creative has grown into a major player in indie music digital distribution with exclusive worldwide rights to 150+ labels. However, according to Syntax CEO Timothy Trudeau, the time and experiences over the last 28 years have only strengthened the company’s ethos: doing good work for its clients while remaining nimble & independent. In our latest Keeping Tempo interview, we spoke with Trudeau about the company’s journey & growing legacy,... Click Here To Read
September 9, 2025 – [Keeping Tempo With Music Biz] — Will AI Ever Make a Classic Album?: Op-Ed by MatchTune’s Ben Porter
Why the Next Masterpiece Won’t Be Machine-Made There’s a reason you love your favorite song, and it’s not simply a catchy hook, musical complexity, or thematic relatability. What makes a song truly timeless — the kind that lingers across decades — is the indelible bond between a song and its human creator; the kind that breathes life into the music and embodies genre-bending creativity. Human-made songs are deeply composed stories lived and felt by the person behind them and,... Click Here To Read
August 12, 2025 – [Keeping Tempo With Music Biz] — Why Scoring Concert Tickets Is Actually Getting Better: Op-Ed by Tradable Bits’ Geoff Robins
There’s no sugarcoating it—getting tickets to in-demand concerts like Taylor Swift, Beyoncé, Kendrick Lamar, SZA, or Olivia Rodrigo can be stress-inducing. Like millions of other parents, few moments have crushed me more than having to tell my tween daughters: No, we didn’t get tickets to the Eras Tour. Ticket buying has always been a rollercoaster of hope and heartbreak. It’s a classic case of limited supply vs. overwhelming demand. A typical arena holds just 15,000 to 20,000 seats.... Click Here To Read
July 30, 2025 – [Keeping Tempo With Music Biz] — The Ever-Growing Importance of Artist Funding Services: Interview with Sound Royalties’ Alex Heiche
More money has flowed into the music business ecosystem over the past decade, thanks to factors ranging from the rapid integration of tech solutions into our industry to the recognition of royalties as a viable asset class. This is promising for long-term growth, but it’s important that artists are receiving their fair share so there is music for the industry to operate around. This month, we talked to Sound Royalties’ Founder and CEO, Alex Heiche about his company’s place at the center of outside investment and serving artists’ financial needs,... Click Here To Read
