These lists are complete B.S., but this is important, because this is the first time the tied to the label for their ads which they don't buy "Billboard" has acknowledged the pendulum has swung, that today it's all about the road as opposed to recordings.
For all the hate Ticketmaster gets, Live Nation PAYS THE ACTS! And if you're big enough to make money from streaming, not only are you making boatloads more from the road, BUT YOU'RE GETTING A BETTER SPLIT!
Good luck getting even 50% of the net from a major. But if you make a deal with Live Nation...you'll get ninety percent of the face value, sans fees. And a very few acts get even better deals than that!
The record companies were the most hated entities at the turn of the century because of Napster, but now it's Ticketmaster. But if you're on the inside, this is a very positive sign... Because this demonstrates HOW MUCH PEOPLE WANT TO GO TO THE SHOW! If you don't want to go to the concert, it doesn't matter what the fees are.
But I'm not going to get into a discussion of fees here, Ticketmaster is paid to take the heat for the acts.
But for all the fans who love the acts... They should realize that Live Nation and AEG and a few other touring entities keep them alive!
And it's even better than that, have more than a modicum of success and you can get an overall tour deal. Which is essentially an advance. And unlike in publishing there's no vig, never mind having to trust the publisher to account accurately and wait for the money to trickle in.
Is concert promotion a dirty business? OF COURSE! If promoters were 100% honest they'd go out of business. It's a war between the promoters and the acts, but on big shows, as much as the promoter may make, the act makes tons more. And I'd rather settle a show than audit a label. You can get many more cents on the dollar! And you'll get it right away!
Even better for acts... Used to be in the days of independent promoters, you'd give money back for a stiff show, you needed to keep that promoter in business so they'd take a chance next time. Live Nation is a public company, it's not going out of business, almost nobody gives money back.
And unlike the label heads, Rapino doesn't show up in suits, but in regular street clothes, like the audience. Rapino is relatable, you don't feel like you're getting f*cked every time you deal with him. I can't say this about everybody else in the music business.
Meanwhile, Rapino is expanding while the labels are CONTRACTING! Isn't that the story of Universal, getting rid of Capitol?
And touring has a seemingly infinite growth curve, whereas with recordings...there are only so many people in the world, and you get to the point where subscriptions stall, at least that's what Wall Street thinks, which is why Universal's stock took a hit last year.
It's the promoter that does artist development. That will play an act regularly, and move them into bigger rooms if there's demand.
The road is keeping the music business alive. But it's a different world from recordings. Self-promoting Clive Davis made it look slick, about manufactured Top 40 hits, about supposed ears...even though so many of his acts have no legacy, can sell no tickets. And then Tommy Mottola came along and started wearing suits and the label execs acted like Wall Street titans, believing they were the talent, when they patently are not.
And the promoter doesn't tell you what to do, what to play. That's your choice, although it might ultimately affect the size of your payment.
And nothing creates a bond with an act like seeing them live.
But we continue to have to read the B.S. about the label execs, who are overpaid and living on catalog.
A promoter takes a risk nightly. Lose on too many shows and you're out of business. If I want to know what is truly going on in the music sphere, I talk to a promoter. That's where the rubber meets the road, what will the public pay for? And oftentimes it's acts with anemic streaming numbers.
That's the big story of developing acts on the road. They don't sound anything like the Spotify Top 50. Rock is not dead live. Sure, a diva might be able to sell out an arena this time, but next time? And so many of these acts can tour nearly year round, year after year. You don't hear them complaining about streaming numbers.
As for streaming numbers...
If you truly want to do a power list, after putting Rapino at #1, you've got to put Daniel Ek at #2, because just like Live Nation, Spotify PAYS THE ACTS! 84% of U.S. recording revenue comes from streaming, and has over 30% of the market, never mind the most active listeners.
Universal just re-upped with Spotify. That's their major retailer. They need Spotify to keep them in business. And, once again, if you're actually streamed, you can make a deal with a distribution company and keep almost all the money! But the public would rather complain.
But you don't find people complaining about shows. They LOVE shows! Unlike so many of the tracks put up for streaming. Live is the new gatekeeper. That's how you know if you're truly in the music business, whether people will pay to see you. Sure, you can make the record on your laptop in your bedroom, but that does not mean anybody will show up at the venue.
America has it all wrong. People don't know who to hate.
They don't know they should hate the acts for fees, not Ticketmaster, and when it comes to compensation, the major labels are the bad actors here... First and foremost, THEY WON'T SIGN MUCH! Never have the offerings of the majors been more narrow.
The label execs get all the ink, the flash, but it's the faceless promoter who is a lifer, getting it done.
If "Billboard" makes Rapino #1, does that mean the rest of the media will acknowledge this, that Michael is the most powerful person in the music business?
I HOPE SO!
--
Visit the archive: lefsetz.com/wordpress/
--
Listen to the podcast:
-iHeart: ihr.fm/2Gi5PFj
-Apple: apple.co/2ndmpvp
--
www.twitter.com/lefsetz
--
If you would like to subscribe to the LefsetzLetter,
www.lefsetz.com/lists/?p=subscribe&id=1
If you do not want to receive any more LefsetzLetters, Unsubscribe
To change your email address this link
No comments:
Post a Comment