For many music companies, AI “ethics” may be more about strategy and image than about genuine ethical practice.

In October 2023, Water & Music joined forces with music data consultancy Music Tomorrow to put on our inaugural Music Marketing Data Bootcamp, which gave students a comprehensive introduction to music data and the pivotal role it plays across the digital marketing lifecycle.

Even as music streaming has gotten bigger and more scrutinized, there’s still widespread confusion and misunderstanding around the basics of how streaming economics really works.

There’s never been a more fruitful time to build in music AI.

Sony Computer Science Laboratories has been quietly experimenting with creative AI tools for over 35 years. Crucially, they are also one of the only music AI research groups that already has a direct collaborative relationship with a major label.

Understanding the opportunity in “emerging markets” is not just about completing marketing checkboxes on consumption numbers, dollars, or shiny features. It’s about appreciating the unique cultural, social, and economic nuances that shape local tastes, consumption patterns, and creative innovations over time.

TuneCore has become one of the most vocal music-industry stakeholders when it comes to AI, taking a stance that is equal parts proactive and cautious.

“I think we need to move beyond recordings. We have to express the model itself.”

Today’s music streaming platforms are increasingly trying to position their offerings as “artist-friendly.” But what does that phrase actually mean — and who’s doing it right?

How deepfake songs actually work, how we got here, and what kinds of battles to expect moving forward.

Capturing the W&M community’s unique, early-adopter, critical pulse on the music/Web3 landscape, backed by ongoing reporting from our Web3 research team that you won’t find elsewhere.

Our new, collaborative editorial vertical about the future of work in the music business.