Music What Does Indie Music Mean: Independent Release or a Style of Sound?

Indie can describe an independent release or a musical style. A record can fit one meaning without fitting the other: sound alone cannot establish its release arrangement. The first axis: independence as a release model In its strictest sense, indie is shorthand for independent.

The Digital Edge 2h ago
Industry Dua Lipa ‘Levitating’ Copyright Infringement Lawsuit Suddenly Dismissed

A copyright infringement lawsuit over Dua Lipa’s “Levitating” that’s been raging on for years has suddenly been dismissed with prejudice. A producer’s copyright infringement lawsuit over Dua Lipa’s “Levitating” has suddenly been dismissed with prejudice, meaning it cannot be refiled in the future.

Digital Music News 8h ago
Music Korea Popmusic Industry Association (KPIA) Fires Back Against ‘One-Sided’ NewJeans Contract Exposé, Says the K-Pop Model ‘Should Not Be Judged Solely Through a Western Lens’

The Korea Popmusic Industry Association (KPIA) has officially responded to the New York Times’ report on NewJeans members’ “unusually restrictive contracts,” criticizing the coverage as “a one-sided and biased assessment.” KPIA, which reps K-pop giants including Hybe, SM, JYP, and YG, reached out...

Digital Music News 15h ago
Music Mailbag

From: Richard Griffiths Subject: Re: Song of the Summer Most important number these days? MPH Merch per head. That tells you if you’re playing a pub for a hundred but MPH is £10 versus artists playing 10000 and only doing £5 MPH. The pub artist has real fans the arena artist passing fans. I have […]

Lefsetz Letter 16h ago
Music Production

Is a requirement at the arena level. The old days of the music being enough…there are very few acts that can pull this off, usually ones who became established before the death of MTV/VH1/radio and the advent of the internet.

Lefsetz Letter 17h ago
Music Rock en Seine Hits Pause on 2027 Due to ‘Unprecedented Factors’

France’s Rock en Seine festival confirms that it will be taking a break in 2027 due to “numerous unprecedented factors beyond its control.” Rock en Seine will not be taking place in 2027, with festival organizers announcing a break next year due to “numerous unprecedented factors beyond its...

Digital Music News 17h ago
Music Pink Announces 2027 Sphere Residency in Las Vegas

Pink has announced that she will be staging a residency at Las Vegas’ Sphere in 2027, making her the first solo female pop artist to headline the venue. The pop singer is slated to perform a string of dates next fall.

Variety 19h ago
Music TikTok rapped by European Commission over ‘rabbit hole effect’

TikTok is in trouble again with the European Commission. The company has preliminarily been found in breach of the EU’s Digital Services Act for its ‘For You’ feed – and specifically “the so-called ‘rabbit hole effect’ of its recommender system”. The post is from Music Ally.

Music Ally 23h ago
Music Suno sued by Elvis Presley rights-owners and Eight Mile Style

The flow of copyright-infringement lawsuits aimed at AI-music service Suno isn’t letting up yet. Two new legal actions have been added to the pile: from a group of Elvis Presley rights-owners and Eminem publisher Eight Mile Style. The post is from Music Ally.

Music Ally 1d ago
Music 5 Keys to Music Attribution

AI may become very good at identifying influence without becoming any better at paying creators. Attribution has become one of the music industry’s favorite answers to the AI problem.

Digital Music News 1d ago
Music Tech Human Enough? How AI Detector Scores Put Indie Artists at Risk

When Hamburg musician André Grafet, who records as Colored Tears, released DECAY / TIME, a 23-song tribute to the 1980s Swedish post-punk band Twice a Man, he says every note was played, programmed, and sung by him using a combination of Cubase, Sequential synthesizers, and Native Instruments’...

Digital Music News 1d ago
Music Opening Acts

People only want to see the headliner. Live music is now an event, not a culture. Sure, there are outliers, fans who need to go to the show constantly, keep up on developing acts, but that’s not most of the public. People have favorites and they want to see them and no one else. They […]

Lefsetz Letter 1d ago
Music Tech Elvis and Eminem rights holders are suing Suno

Suno is facing yet another pair of lawsuits. A group of rights holders of Elvis Presley's music and the publisher of some of Eminem's biggest records are suing the AI music company, claiming it illegally generates music and lyrics that mimic those artists.

The Verge 1d ago
Music Looking Forward

NO COMPLAINING The only people who want to hear it are…other complainers. There’s a whole ecosystem of people convinced that the system is stacked against them, who are constantly complaining online how unfair the game is. The truth is they are not good enough and/or unwilling to work hard enough.

Lefsetz Letter 2d ago
Music What Makes an Arena Artist in 2026?

Not long ago, selling out Madison Square Garden meant chart hits and a household name. Now artists like Slayyyter, FKA twigs, and Cleo Sol are filling arenas on the strength of something else. So what does it actually take to be an arena artist today

How Music Charts 3d ago
Music How Akai and Moog are embracing vibe-coded mods

inMusic, the parent company of Akai, Moog, Native Instruments, and more, has decided to embrace the modding community. In an interview with The Verge, inMusic CEO Jack O'Donnell said, "We're going to provide a toolbox to the community, we're going to provide the inner workings of, say, an MPC or...

The Verge 3d ago
Music Friday’s Endnotes – 11/06/26

University libraries are being swarmed by AI bots, putting public access at risk — “Right now, the bots create ‘a disincentive for libraries and other institutions to make parts of their collection available online,’ Weinberg said.

Copyhype 3d ago
Music Influence Media Partners completes Anthem Entertainment acquisition

2026 isn’t done with expensive music-catalogue acquisitions just yet. Influence Media Partners has announced the completion of its $600m-plus deal to buy publishing catalogues, recordings and film/TV publishing assets owned by Anthem Entertainment. The post is from Music Ally.

Music Ally 3d ago
Music Musixmatch and LyricFind reveal their latest lyrical deals

We promise, we’re not trying to wind up fierce legal foes Musixmatch and LyricFind by grouping them together in news stories. It’s just that they do currently have a habit of making announcements on the same day. The post is from Music Ally.

Music Ally 3d ago
Music Live roundup: The Weeknd, Skiddle stake, UK Artist Touring Fund

It’s another busy day for news from the live-music and ticketing sector, starting with a Very Big Number from Live Nation for The Weeknd’s ‘After Hours Til Dawn’ tour, which has finally wrapped after four years of stadium dates. The post is from Music Ally.

Music Ally 3d ago
Music Get Ready for Your Spotify Wrapped

Wrapped season is almost here! We want to make sure you get everything you can out of the experience. Here are a few simple ways to get your Spotify ready before the big reveal. Update your Spotify app Check your device’s app store to see if an update is available, so you’re ready to dive...

Spotify 4d ago
Music Log In to Spotify. Take Off With United.

The playlist you made for the trip. The podcast you’re halfway through. The audiobook you’ve been meaning to start. Thanks to our partnership with United Airlines, you’ll be able to listen to all of those and more—directly from your seatback screen, logged into your own Spotify account.

Spotify 5d ago
Music Why news analysis podcasts may be a tonic for news avoidance

News podcasts generally do what they say on the tin: report events as they happen, with little analysis, because the headlineshave only just come in. Think daily briefings such as NPR’s Up First or News Now : short, tightly scripted, objective, and fast-paced, built to answer who, what, when and...

MIDiA Research Blog 5d ago