The Music Industry in the Digital Age

The Music Industry in the Digital Age examines at the major shifts brought about by digital technology and platforms in the music industry.
Frenneaux looks at how digital production tools, social media, and streaming services have impacted music distribution, creation, and consumption. Along with addressing the challenges of sustaining employment in a fractured attention economy, the book examines the democratization of music production and the ascent of independent artists. It looks at how record companies, producers, and A&R's changing roles in a data-driven environment as well as how algorithmic curation affects genre boundaries and music discovery. Frenneaux explores the demands of continuous engagement and the complexity of artist-fan relationships in the social media age. The work also tackles important concerns such mental health in the music industry and how platforms like TikTok affect virality and marketing for music. Combining knowledge from academics, industry professionals, and artists, the book presents a complete picture of both opportunities and challenges in the modern music industry. Frenneaux balances artistic integrity with commercial viability in an always changing digital environment by exploring subjects including streaming economics, DIY ethics, and the blurring of mainstream and independent production, so offering a nuanced view of how digital disruption continues to shape the future of the music industry.

Richard Frenneaux is a producer, songwriter, musician, and Assistant Professor at the University of Nottingham Ningbo, China. First gaining prominence with his band Red Light Company, using MySpace to secure a record deal and chart success, Richard then entered production and collaboration with prominent artists. Now, working academically, he uses industry knowledge to investigate digital disruption and how it affects the music industry.

Acknowledgements 1. Introduction 2. Participatory platforms and the changing landscape of musical collaboration and exchange 3. The 'new' artist: Competencies, changing expectations and technologies 4. Navigating participatory culture in the new music industry 5. Genre and the new music industry 6. The evolving role of the artist in the new music industry: Navigating DIY ethics, changing production landscapes and new divisions of labour 7. Mental health and the new music industry 8. TikTokification: Transforming music through engagement, viral hits and nostalgic legacies 9. Conclusion References