warrior.
John: Some of the nominees at
tonight's grammy awards rose to
fame and popularity on music
streaming platforms like Spotify
and social media apps like
tiktok.
Stephanie sy takes a look at the
changing ways we're listening to
music, and the challenges and
opportunities that come with it.
Stephanie: This week Spotify has
200 million paid subscribers.
Later this month Amazon music
will bump up their subscription
price.
Universal music, the largest
label in the world, is
partnering with tidal to create
what they say will be a more
artist and fan friendly music
streaming model.
Long gone are the days when most
people listened on the radio, CD
or record player.
Today over 50% of music we
listen to, we stream.
9% of people opt for a free ad
supported music streaming and
11% get their music from short
video apps like tiktok.
For a deeper look at the factors
driving how we listen to music
and how that impacts the
industry, I am joined by NPR
music's critic and
correspondent.
It's great to have what I
understand is a fellow beyoncé
fan with us.
I want to start with that
because the grammys are tonight.
One question I have is how
platforms like tiktok and
Spotify influence who is
nominated for an award.
>> The real place where
streaming platforms are changing
the game is at the level of
emerging artists.
I want to focus on two in the
best new artist category, both
of whom who are young jazz
artists.
There is domi and jd back, who
are amazing instrumentalists.
They found success on YouTube
with their dazzling displays of
virtuosity, including NPR music
'S tiny desk concert.
And samara joy, the jazz singer,
quite a traditional jazz singer,
but using tiktok has found an
audience of young people and is
out there saying jazz is a young
person's music.
She was using social media to
bring classic jazz to a new
generation.
Stephanie: You are getting at
the crux of my question, the
democratization of music and DIY
talent, where they found fame by
streaming on YouTube, the only
distributor.
They did not need a major label.
Whether that is one of the
benefits of streaming services.
>> You have artists who are
writing their own music on their
laptops and putting it on
services like soundcloud.
You have independent streaming
services, platforms like band
camp who are working with
artists to stay independent.
At the same time, it's
complicated because the
best-known streaming platforms
like Spotify, YouTube are not
necessarily benefiting artists
financially that much.
Stephanie: Are these platforms
also influencing how mainstream
artists might be producing
music?
>> I think they are.
Streaming has brought back the
music video very strongly.
Someone like Harry styles is a
very visual artist and I think
he gets a lot out of making
exciting videos that go viral on
deplatforms.
Also it creates a different
relationship between these
megastars and their audience.
There is a way we feel we know
beyoncé, for example.
Do you?
I feel I know her just a little.
Stephanie: I definitely do.
>> Because she discloses what
she wants to disclose of her
life through streaming platforms
and Instagram, for example.
Doing that, we feel a connection
to these stars.
They create a connection between
us and them.
Stephanie: I remember radiohead
raging against Spotify, along
with Taylor Swift.
In 2013, Tom York said Spotify
was the last desperate fart of a
dying horse.
He condemned the surveys for
disconnecting the artist from
the listener.
There are still those complaints
from any artists that Spotify
does not pay them what they are
worth.
>> For the major artists on the
major labels, it's a lot better
than it used to be.
Where it has really hurt is the
middle-class and emerging
artists who only get fractions
of pennies from releases and
talk about that all the time on
other streaming platforms, like
Twitter.
There has been a lot of efforts
by artists, whether it is to
raise awareness or organize as
workers.
As you mentioned, the universal
music group deal with tidal to
try to figure out a way to be
more equitable with artists.
Tidal is an artist owned
platform founded by Jay-Z,
beyoncé's partner.
There are attempts, but it is
still really tough for artists,
harder than it used to be to
make a living as musicians.
Stephanie: Ann powers, NPR
music's critic and
correspondent.
Thank you for joining us.