Bypass: Music Industry News for Independent Artists

Wednesday edition • 3 min read

Fred Again.. Just Showed You What to Do After the Tour

What's Up

Phones in pocket. That's the one house rule Fred Again.. set for his USB002 tour. And not a bad one at that; he wants fans to pay attention and can't do that with a face in their face. The real takeaway here, though, is what he did after. This week he opened a public Dropbox packed with posters, vinyl artwork, ambient visuals, and slow-mo visualiser stems. Stuff most artists hold to their chest.

So What

In his own words: "I increasingly really like sorta leaving a trail of things we did and how they happened." Dropbox liked it so much they blogged about it, which, congrats to Dropbox for finding a personality. On the surface, it reads as generosity, but it's deeper than that. He's giving his fans a piece of how the thing was made.

Now What

Every piece of content you share after a show, every behind-the-scenes moment, and every inside joke are bricks you lay to build something real with your fans. Give people something to be a part of because chances are they'll stick around long after the algorithm forgets you exist.

[Full story at Music Ally]

Proof You're Human? What Is This? A reCAPTCHA?

What's Up

Vocana, an indie streaming platform in public beta, just launched a "Verified Human Badge." Congrats on being human, I guess. Now, you might be asking, "How do I prove I'm human?", which is… a pretty dystopian question when you sit with it. The answer: you have to be gigging. The verification process runs through JamBase, which has been tracking live shows since the Clinton administration.

So What

AI detectors these days are like bouncers. If you're a fake, you get kicked out. Vocana is flipping that on its head. It's more like a kindergarten teacher who hands out gold stars just for showing up. The best part about doing live shows is that AI won't be faking that anytime soon.

Now What

Check out vocana.co and try the beta. If you've been gigging and you're listed on JamBase, great news—you might already qualify. If you're not on JamBase, go ahead and fix that. It's free and takes about as long as making a coffee.

[Full story at Hypebot]

Spotify Just Said the Quiet Part Out Loud

What's Up

On Spotify's Q1 earnings call, Co-CEO Gustav Söderström said this out loud: "Existing artists are left out of the AI explosion because of complex copyright issues. We are determined to solve that problem."

So What

Read that again. The co-CEO just admitted in front of a bunch of analysts (people who write down things for a living) that artists who built their catalogue are, to say the least, being strip-mined by AI. Indies have been screaming about this kinda thing for years.

Now What

"We are determined to solve that problem" is the kind of line executives use when they want to sound responsible without committing a cent. Fine. But it's on record. That's where you come in. Hold them to it. Look out for licensing frameworks, AI revenue splits, new royalty structures, and anything that sounds like they're actually doing something. Stay informed and keep up the pressure through A2IM and the Artist Rights Alliance.

[Full story at Hypebot]