The Industry Connection

Music News

• 📱SiriusXM announced a new streaming app and push into audiobooks.

  • Their new lean-back streaming app launching December 14 will clock in at $9.99/month, and is “aimed at welcoming in a new generation of SiriusXM listeners.”

  • In another attempt to take on a well-know music streaming and audiobook app as of today (Spotify), SiriusXM teased a collaboration with audiobook platform Audible which will reportedly arrive in early 2024.

• 🎶 The Sphere in Vegas generated $4.1M from its first two U2 concerts.

  • Sphere’s parent company announced two more residencies would take place in the $2.3B venue before July 2024. Any guesses?

• 🏆 The CMA Awards went down Wednesday night, with Lainey Wilson taking home 5 awards.

  • Here is a list of the winners.

• 😥 Amazon announced layoffs to their Music team.

• 💰Sony posted $2.33BN in revenue from recorded music and publishing in Q3 (up 8.3% YoY).

  • Sales from physical music were down 18.1% YoY.

Entertainment News

• 🤝 The Actors Strike is No More!

  • SAG-AFTRA and the Studios reached a tentative deal on a 3-year contract yesterday, which was the longest actors strike in history (118 days).

  • The writers and actors strike combined to cost the Southern California economy more than $6.5 billion and 45,000 entertainment industry jobs.

  

  Me reacting to the actors strike being over

• 💰 Disney announced their earnings

  • Disney’s streaming business “only” lost $387M in Q4, up 74% from a loss of $1.4 billion in the same quarter last year.

  • CEO Bob Iger also announced a cost-cutting goal of $7.5B, which includes a slash of their content budget to $25B in 2024.

  • Disney+ and Hulu integration will begin in December. Beef Season 3 anyone?

• 💰 Warner Bros. Discovery posts $111M streaming profit, led by Barbie (obviously).

  • Net loss at the Hollywood studio were $407M however, down from $2.28B in the same timeframe last year. And you’re worried about spending $8 on a green juice…

Interview with Maurice Slade: Head of Marketing, Artist Relations at SoundCloud

This week we caught up with Maurice Slade who is the Head of Marketing, Artist Relations at SoundCloud, where he helps build out their new artist development incubator and distribution business. Previously, Slade was a Creative Branding & Marketing exec at Epic Records, playing an instrumental role in the marketing and branding of Travis Scott and 21 Savage, and a Senior Director of Marketing & Strategy at Jay-Z’s conglomerate Roc Nation. Slade was one of the lead creative minds that helped create and execute some of the most globally recognizable campaigns for J. Cole, Rihanna, Kanye West and Big Sean.

Slade was recently honored with a spot on the coveted 2023 Billboard’s R&B/Hip-Hop Power Players list. He has an awesome story, and a very unique career path that many can learn from.

Our conversation is below:

AvA: Let's go back to the beginning. How did you get started in the music industry? 

Slade: I got my start in New York City. For a year I slept on my brother's couch in Brooklyn while interning at Complex magazine. It was a great entry-point as far as being able to get to meet people not only in music, but also in film, TV, and fashion. I was blogging and writing while also DJing in New York and throwing parties. After a few events, I got thrusted into my first position doing digital marketing at Universal Motown.

I was working on some cool acts like Kid Cudi, Asher Roth, and Erykah Badu. I got the attention of Sylvia Rhone, who was the President at the time, and she had me working on Cash Money as well. I got to work on Drake's first two projects, and Nicki Minaj’s first project, which were great entry points into the music industry. 

To this day I still don't know how, but me working on those projects ended up getting on the radar of Jay Brown, who started Roc Nation. He actually called my phone, and I hung up on him because I thought it’s someone asking me to DJ for them. He called me back and was like, “Oh no, actually my name is Jay Brown and I want you to work for me.” 

I was like, oh shit, this is Jay Brown Roc Nation! So I left Universal Motown, and ended up going to work at Roc Nation. 

AvA: Can you talk about your time at Roc Nation and Epic Records, and how that experience has allowed you to jump over to the Artist Partnership division at SoundCloud?

Slade: The first artist that they threw in my lap was J. Cole. I did his digital marketing and helped them release mixtapes while creating moments. Then I started working on artists like Meek Mill, Big Sean, Kanye, Rihanna, DJ Khaled. In those six years I really understood what it meant to create culture. There was also freedom to come up with really creative ideas, and have the resources to execute them. I was also working under the most culturally relevant person at the time, Jay Z. 

Then Sylvia Rhone gives me another call after six years of working at Roc Nation and says “there's this kid named Travis Scott that I want you to work with. He's blowing up on our label at that time.” Funny enough, Travis Scott is somebody I've known for a very long time, growing up in the same neighborhood of Houston together. It was the perfect fit because she wanted me to work on 21 Savage also, and one of my close friends was 21 Savage’s manager at the time. I So spent the next three years working with Epic Records working with Travis Scott on AstroWorld, and a couple of 21 Savage projects as well.  

I saw the advantages of working at a traditional record label and the advantages of working at a non-traditional entertainment company. I wanted my next move to be a part entrepreneur, and part something that blended technology with music. That perfect combination ended up being SoundCloud. 

AvA: Why SoundCloud?

Slade: I am a SoundCloud kid. I came up on SoundCloud. When I first started DJing I uploaded all of my music and found new artists on SoundCloud. Even when I was doing marketing for a lot of my artists, a lot of the music that we would release would be on SoundCloud. So SoundCloud was in my DNA. 

The vision of SoundCloud for the next five years is something that is going to lead what’s next in music

AvA: We are seeing Artists rollout projects in more unique and creative ways than ever. What are some of the factors you look at when building out custom marketing strategies for each artist? 

Slade: The first major factor I do is really getting to know the artist. What you're selling is not just music, you're also selling the artists as well. So you have to know who that artist is through and through. Every artist is completely different. When I first started in the music industry, I made the mistake of trying to transfer some of my past success on some of the new artists that I was working with. 

You also need to understand the different levers that are kind of available to you. Throughout my career those levers, their potency, effectiveness and ROI has changed. 

Then there is timing. You have to make sure those levers are being pulled at the right time to be able to create a moment. One of the things that I like to do to create a moment is include a real life aspect. Something where you're actually touching people in a real way that's different, that actually has a genuine touch. 

One of the things that we did for J. Cole was him writing a handwritten letter to all of his fans back in the day. That was something that people just weren't doing. Another example when J. Cole wasn't breaking through in a way that we wanted him to, we had an idea to put him on the road. We knew he was great at performing, and if we could get him out in front of his fans and have him perform, then that would translate. So that's how the “Dollar & A Dream Tour” was born [in 2015]. Him being able to go out in front of his fans to create pandemonium where his fans could get into one of his shows for only $1, sold people on him as an artist, as a performer, and also as a superstar. 

AvA: How is SoundCloud uniquely positioned in the marketplace to continue to provide resources to Artists in an ever changing environment? 

Slade: SoundCloud is in a very unique space. Just for the simple fact that it's part streaming company, part social media, puts it in a rare space. To this day, If you're a 15/16 year old kid and you're uploading music, the first place you're going to upload is SoundCloud. That's why we have the biggest music catalog out of all the streaming companies. 

We have the unique opportunity of breaking the next generation of superstars because their first attempts at uploading and sharing their music with friends will be on SoundCloud. We have the unique capability of being able to see who the up-and-coming artists are, the ones who are still tinkering around right before they have their big break, which allows us to really get in there early and be able to work with those artists in a different way than say an Apple Music or Spotify could. We can really help shape and build those careers. 

AvA: Any upcoming projects you're excited about?

Slade: As far as new Artists that I'm excited about: MiLES. He’s an artist on our roster who is an 18 year-old kid from Atlanta. He’s a genius and plays every instrument on all of his records: drums, guitar, saxophone, trumpet, everything. He also produces all of it, and does some of the mixing. He's just an amazingly talented kid. When you meet him, you just know that he's got his head on his shoulders, and he's super smart. 

We're working on his next EP that we're planning to drop in November, and then we have another EP coming at the top of the year. 

AvA: What is advice you'd give to someone just starting out in the business? 

Slade: There's multiple paths to get to any specific destination, and you can take any path. My advice comes from the path that I took.

1) Be in it 100%. You have to live what you want to do, especially in the music industry. It’s easy to get too comfortable, and the demand to work in the music industry is so high that it's easy for people to weed you out. 

2) If you ever get the opportunity to be in a room with someone… have something to say, have an opinion. A lot of that comes from being well-read and up to date on what's going on in the music industry, so you can offer your own opinion or insight. 

3) Be helpful. Even with the smallest things. Don't ever be the person who's just sitting around.

Week of November 6^th Open Jobs and Internships

💼 = Job | 🎒 = Internship

💼 Principal Content & Editorial Manager - Sonos - California, Tennessee - Ideal candidates should have strong editorial judgment and experience building cohesive narratives across content formats. Preference goes to candidates with experience in content programming, development and/or production in the audio or music space. Apply here.

💼 Communications Coordinator - SoundCloud - New York City - Applicants must have 2 years of communications experience, either in-house or agency— those with experience in Music, Entertainment, or Tech are preferred. Apply here.

💼 Personal Assistant, Music - Career Staffing Talent - Los Angeles - Prior PA experience working with artists or individuals in the music industry is required. Basic photography, editing, and social media skills are a plus. Apply here as soon as possible (interviews take place throughout November).

💼 Label Coordinator, Lowly - Create Music Group (Lowly) - Los Angeles - Lowly is an independent record label that was recently brought into the fold under Create Music Group. They are looking for an applicant with 2+ years of experience in entertainment, 1+ year of administrative experience, and skills in digital setup, marketing tools, and project management. Apply here.

💼 Social Media Specialist - Fender Music Instruments - Remote or Hybrid (Los Angeles) - Ideal applicants will have a minimum of 2-4 years of experience in social media/content production, proficiency in Adobe Creative Suite, experience with social media management tools, and guitar knowledge. Apply here.

🎒 Winter 2024 Talent Management & Entertainment Intern - Select Management Group - Los Angeles - Students interested in Select Management Group’s paid internship should have an interest in a career related to talent management, agency, PR, digital, or production/casting. Preference goes to candidates with experience and understanding of digital influencer/talent landscape. Apply here with resume and cover letter.

🎒 Spring 2024 Intern - APG - Remote or Los Angeles - APG interns will have the opportunity to join one of APG’s teams as well as as have a mentor separate from their supervisor, participate in various “101 seminars”, create a case study presentation, and access resume/interview workshops. To apply, submit your resume and cover letter here.

🎒 Spring 2024 Marketing Intern - Insomniac - Calabasas, CA - Applicants must be able to commit 10-24 hours per week for this paid role, and have knowledge of dance music and Insomniac’s brands. Apply here.

🎒 Spring 2024 Intern - Thirty Tigers - Nashville, TN - Thirty Tigers is offering internships in Project Management, Digital Marketing, Physical Sales + Indie Retail, and Digital Sales + Streaming. Interns must be able to receive college credit. Apply here by November 17th.

🎒 Spring 2024 Intern - Wasserman - Remote or Hybrid (Los Angeles) - Interested applicants should have knowledge of the media landscape (print, online, broadcast, podcast) as well as a thorough understanding of social media, especially Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook. Must be able to receive college credit. Apply here.

🎒 Summer 2024 Intern - United Talent Agency - Los Angeles - Interns at UTA will receive a fundamental instruction of the talent agency business with special opportunities to work on department projects of interest. Applications are reviewed on a rolling basis— apply here as soon as possible.

🎒 Creative Intern (Electronic Music) - Red Light Management - Los Angeles - Interested college students must have creative abilities in at least one of the following: Graphic Design, Video, Motion Graphics, Illustration, or Photo. Candidates must have knowledge and experience in Adobe Suite. To apply, submit resume and portfolio here.

🎒 Marketing Intern - Syndicate - Los Angeles - The Syndicate is looking for college students who can earn college credit and have a working knowledge of Google Suite and a content creation platform of choice (Canva, Photoshop, etc.)‍. Interested applicants should send their resume and references to [email protected] with the subject "Marketing Internship Application - Your Name Here". The deadline to apply is November 27th.

👋 Thanks for reading this week’s newsletter and see you next week!

This newsletter is written by Warner Bailey (connect with me here). Edited by Malik Figaro. 

Get in touch! Email us at [email protected].

Want to partner with us and reach 11k+ music and entertainment professionals? Email [email protected].