Why Investors Are Looking Beyond Iconic Music Catalogs

The music business has changed dramatically over the past decade, especially in the independent sector.

We sit down with Flexpoint Ford's...

Jay-Z’s Year of Offense, Explained

Jay-Z's 2026 has been a victory lap of sorts. Anniversary shows, stadium runs, and enemies put on notice. He’s focused on the music, yet less public o...

Bold Predictions: The Future for Songwriters and Creators

Our third annual Trapital Summit is right around the corner, live September 15 at the Sunset Room Hollywood. We're kicking off a new segment called Bo...

Remembering Clive Davis: 1932 - 2026

My April 2026 interview with Clive Davis (watch here or listen here) was one of his last before he passed away in June 2026. Here are my reflections o...

When AI Writes Code and Makes Music, What's Left for Humans?

AI keeps getting called music's biggest threat. Or its biggest opportunity. Both framings miss the point.

The real question is harder: if...

Find Your Interstellar: Why Some Art Ages Well

Interstellar wasn't a phenomenon when it dropped in 2014. Now it's widely seen as a masterpiece. It’s more popular now than it was on release.
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Why Everything Feels the Same Now

Was there ever truly a "monoculture”? Or have we been telling ourselves a comforting story about past shared experience? We sit down with Tatiana Ciri...

K-Pop's Paradox: Why BTS Fans Aren’t K-Pop Fans

K-Pop is in a unique situation. The genre “feels” like it’s everywhere. BTS, Blackpink, Stray Kids, and KPop **Demon Hunters have topped Billboard and...

Arena Tours: The Truth Behind “Blue Dot Fever”

"Blue dot fever" is the new phrase floating around for artists whose tours have seat maps full of unsold blue dots for concerts, especially in arenas...

Music Catalogs: Is There Ever A Good Time to Sell?

The multiples for music rights and catalog sales continue to rise, despite high interest rates. Selling can look rational in the moment but great musi...

Troy Carter on Why Suno Changes Everything

I sat down with Troy Carter during SXSW in Austin. We talked about Suno role in music, where record labels stand today, artist management, catalog sal...

Artists and AI: Offense, Defense, and the Future of Music

Is “Artists vs. AI” the wrong way to think about music’s future?

At HumanX, I hosted a conversation with Splice CEO Kakul Srivastava and...

SoundCloud’s Big Bet for the AI Era

SoundCloud is at a turning point, and CEO Eliah Seton takes us inside the strategy shaping its future.

In this conversation, we break dow...

Clive Davis Part 2: Reviving Careers, Industry Power, and Leaving a Legacy

In part two, you'll hear Clive Davis reflect on strategic decisions made when running a record label and career revivals he helped shape that defined...

Clive Davis Part 1: Whitney Houston, Resilience, and The World's Greatest Party

I sat down with the legendary record executive Clive Davis. We looked back on the career-defining moments that made him one of the most influential fi...

Coachella’s Dilemma: Stadium Money vs. Festival Money

Coachella sold out in five days after announcing Justin Bieber as headliner. That's the good news. The bad news? It tells you how hard it's become to...

Talent Agencies: Who Leads the Next Era?

Now that Wasserman Agency has rebrand itself to "The Team," what's next? Who will lead The Team? Who will the new owner be? What will they do with it?...

Can AI Music Creation Be a Real Growth Market?

As streaming growth slows, the music industry is searching for its next big opportunity. One of the leading bets? AI-powered music creation.

Live Nation and DOJ Settled. Now What?

The Department of Justice has settled its lawsuit against Live Nation - Ticketmaster. There will be no breakup of the live entertainment company, but...

Private Investors Love Music. Why Doesn’t Wall Street?

Investors have poured more money into music than ever before. Music as an asset class if hotter than ever,. But the public markets have discounted the...

Trapital: Where Business Meets Culture

Is The Sphere… A Good Business?

Sphere Entertainment is now profitable, Wizard of Oz was a hit, and more locations are coming. Has the business turned the corner, or are there still...

Follow The Money: EVEN, Duetti, and The New Deal Stack

In music right now, the winners aren’t just the artists with the biggest audiences, they’re the teams that control the infrastructure.

Fi...

Why Netflix and Spotify Won in Paid Streaming

For the past 20 years, subscription streaming has produced an outcome that still gets overlooked. The category winners weren’t the big tech giants or...

Inside Grammy Week: Galas, Deal Rooms, and “The Two Grammys”

We just came back from the 68th Grammy Awards. I am joined by Tati Cirisano of MIDiA Research break down what it’s actually like to the experience the...

Can YouTube Have It All?

YouTube is the biggest TV, music, and video platform in the world, but it’s not satisfied. The company still wants to compete for the dollars that go...

The Rise of Reels: Meta’s $50B Ad Machine

Meta’s short-form video surface, Reels, now generates $50 billion in annual run rate. That’s more than some of the largest media companies like Netfli...

Music is a $47 Billion Industry. Why Isn’t It Bigger?

In this episode, we sit down with Will Page, economist and author of Pivot, for a deep dive on the global economics of music. Using Will’s latest Glob...

Polymarket and Kalshi: Financial Tools or Casinos?

Prediction markets like Polymarket and Kalshi have had a big year in 2025, but what are they really? Securities? Derivatives? Sportsbooks? They may be...

How MTV Lost Its Way

People say they miss when MTV played music videos, but their viewing habits say otherwise!

We revisited one of our most popular episodes...

Five Bold Predictions: Netflix and Spotify, AI-Powered Industry, The Big 3’s Future, and More

We continue our Trapital Summit series with Dan and MiDIA Research’s Tati Cirisano sharing bold predictions from Trapital Summit attendees and sharing...

What's a Grammy Worth? New Voters, New Winners, and Rewriting History

This episode is in partnership and collaboration with our friends at The Recording Academy

You’ll hear our deep dive on what we can learn...

Building Businesses Around Artists with Firebird Music CEO Nathan Hubbard

At our Trapital Summit, Nathan Hubbard joined me in stage to discuss Firebird Music’s investment thesis, working with Yungblud, and the business of Ta...

Investing in Music Rights with Shamrock Capital’s Jason Sklar

We continue our Trapital Summit series with Jason Sklar, a partner at Shamrock Capital, to explore music rights as an asset class, as well as gaming,...

Udio CEO Andrew Sanchez on AI’s Future in Music

We continued our Trapital Summit series with our talk with Udio CEO Andrew Sanchez and MIDiA Research’s Tati Cirisano. AI is rapidly transforming how...

Steve Pamon on How to Create Moments That Matter

At the Trapital Summit, we were joined by the CEO of VERZUZ, Steve Pamon. His career is all about turning events into big moments, from his time at Mc...

Andreea Gleeson on TuneCore’s Next Chapter

We’re continuing our Trapital Summit series with TuneCore CEO Andreea Gleeson. You’ll hear her and Billboard’s Taylor Mims discuss how TuneCore empowe...

Kakul Srivastava on Why Splice Acquired Spitfire Audio

We’re continuing our Trapital Summit series. In this episode, we’re with Kakul Srivastava, CEO of Splice, to discuss how technology is reshaping music...

Oliver Schusser on Apple’s Strategy in Music, AI’s Potential, and the Super Bowl Halftime Show

We’re continuing our Trapital Summit recap series. In today’s episode, you’ll hear my conversation with Oliver Schusser, VP of Apple Music and Interna...

Elliot Grainge on Atlantic’s Future, AI, and Selling 10K Projects

We’re kicking off our Trapital Summit recap series. In today’s episode, you’ll hear my conversation with Elliot Grainge, CEO of Atlantic Music Group.<...