Both Artists and Superfans Want Deeper Relationships Through Music
How Warner plans to change the music industry.
Since the pandemic, the music industry never really recovered. To shift the trend and counter the crisis artists are facing, Warner Music CEO, Robert Kyncl laying out his plans for 2024, and the next 10 years.
While the objectives are marketing jargon — growing engagement, increasing music’s value via royalty changes and increases in streaming subscription prices, and evolving the company’s internal practices —there is a bigger plan to reinvent the industry’s growth by setting new methods.
“Throughout the last year, I spent a lot of time with the leadership team — getting under the hood of the company to see how everything works and planning our next steps. We’re showing that WMG can be the best of both worlds: Music and Technology, Global and Local, Scale and Speed, Data and Instinct, Individual Talent and Collective Impact. Today and Tomorrow. That’s why I’m calling 2024 “ — Robert Kyncl, Warner Music CEO
PR release aside, what does it mean for Artists and Fans?
More ‘Promising’ artists, More possibilities
One of the most important WMG quests is to ‘catch’ talents on the rise across the globe based on geographical streaming trends. Thus, the group can create new collaborations with labels and better market song releases.
Technologically speaking, the distribution infrastructure will be redesigned for ‘middle-class’ artists.
The aim is to equip new talents to ease the distribution of their music by improving the management of their catalogue on Digital Service Providers (DSPs)
In need of deep connections
The second Warner’s crusade is about creating Value.
We need to align our DSP relationships so that we appropriately value the contribution of our artists, songwriters, and catalogues; stop dilution from millions of low-value and functional tracks;
While it sounds like the recent announcement by Universal & Deezer, Warner promises to better value the contributions of artists, songwriters, and catalogues.
Recognizing the desire for deeper connections between artists and superfans has not been entirely satisfied, Kyncl suggests developing direct products and experiences in under-monetized areas.
The business is always changing, and the music is changing even faster, so if we want to lead, we can’t let conventional constraints slow us down. Having a flexible mind is very important in today’s world. — Robert Kyncl
In essence, Warner aims to go beyond appearances, focusing on improving artist relations and exploring untapped opportunities for revenue and fan engagement.
While these initiatives are yet to be proven, a question arises:
How do we intend to encourage artistic freedom while social algorithms dictate the next trend?
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